Monday 30 January 2012

On becoming a Biscuiteer

Brrrr! It's turned a bit chilly here, so here I sit beneath a blanket, in my jim-jams, though it's only a shade after seven in the evening!  Truth be told, I was up very early this morning, after a rather wakeful night, as I had to take Mr U-t-B off to Gatwick airport, so that's my excuse for being ready for bed at such a time.  

If I can stay awake long enough I will once again be using this present...


...which my dear husband persuaded me to let him get me at Lidl on Saturday!  

I was in denial that such a thing could help me with some of the WIPs I have awaiting my attention.  

After all, I've always had 20/20 vision, so even if the presbyopia monster seems to be running close behind me have caught me up and tanned my hide, surely things weren't that bad?  
Well, my goodness they obviously are!
This bit of kit makes such a difference - well worth the £29.99 Mr U-t-B lavished on my pressie!
(I'm only mentioning the price in case anyone out there wants to dash out and buy one, not as an indication of my worth to him!)

 

It took a wee while to get used to using it, but the magnifier makes easy work of my evenweave linen cross-stitch!  This WIP is now properly underway again (AGAIN!  This project has had more stops and starts than a London bus...)  Expect a ta-dah sometime in the not too distant future, because I will most certainly be celebrating when I've finished the last of the eighteen cows!!!


On Saturday afternoon, I decided to take time to enjoy a bit of biscuit-y baking, inspired by one of my recent bargain purchases...


This was definitely not a job for when one was in a rush!  First the biscuit dough was made, rolled out and cut, then chilled, cooked and cooled.  Next, the making of the Royal Icing, the piping of the outlines, the mixing up of different colours, the thinning to make flood icing and the flooding of the shapes, then the polka dotting.  And this was for the simplest of designs, in only three colours!
It was a good practice - next time I will be braver and have a go at something more detailed.

In the end, with the help of my retro-style Tala Icing Bag Set and the squeezy plastic ketchup bottles I bought at the catering shop for next to nothing, I managed to produce a selection of polka-dotted biscuits...


I learnt that a) they look best if the outline is done in the main colour (not white like I did for the pink and blue one) and b) round biscuits are unforgivingly hard to ice neatly.


Miss U-t-B was happy to take the resultant tin-full to school today, where her classmates declared me to be 'adorable' for having made them!

Here's something that made me chuckle today to finish...


Anyway, there seems to be a gentle moo-ing coming from nearby, so as I haven't put myself to the point of sleep with typing, I will switch my magical LEDs on and get stitching!

13 comments:

  1. Wow the biscuits look divine Alix. I bet they didn't last long though. Haven't made any for ages - something else to put on the list!

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  2. Oh those cows are so sweet! I started a sampler moons ago, art nouveau in style, book ended by peacocks and then the second bird went wrong and I was so frustrated then I deserted it.

    And those biscuits look scrumptious!

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    1. Oh yes, I recognise that scenario - something goes wrong and I abandon a project for yonks. I have a William Morris tapestry on the go that I started about 16 (!) years ago - got started again last year, but have done a section in the wrong colour, so it's been hidden away again!
      x

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  3. I have this book and am desperate to get hold of some squeezy bottles and have a go. Yours look great!

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  4. Hi Alix, those biscuits look wonderful.
    Love your sampler.
    I have nominated you for the Versatile Blogger Award. You can read more here http://smileattheflowers.blogspot.com/2012/01/thank-you.html.
    I hope you can accept it.
    Carol xx

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  5. You need good eyesight when embroidering so small stiches, and I thought the lamp looked excellent for that purpose.
    And your biscuits look tasty!

    Hope you manaed a good nights sleep.

    Enjoy your tuesday, it's freezing cold here.

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  6. I'm ashamed to say I was given an illuminated magnifier that you hang round your neck but I'm too vain to admit needing to use it so it's been banished to the back of the cupboard while I struggle with 2 pairs of reading glasses which quite honestly can't be any worse!

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    1. I definitely didn't want to admit the need, but I'm glad I have given up the pretence now!
      x

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  7. I'm sure you are worth £29.99... and the rest ! I haven't seen these perhaps because my eyesight is poor these days !

    I've had reading glasses for a couple of years now & recently hubby had to borrow my old ones which are a fetching shade of green !
    OOh your biscuits are adorable !!! just like you ! )

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  8. Wow I love your sampler, and those biscuits look very fetching. You have obviously got a better hand with the food colouring than I have. Icing is pretty vivid when I try to colour it. Very soon I will need milk bottle bottom strength glasses. I can't read a thing now without my glasses on, it drives me round the bend.

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  9. Those biscuits look wonderful! I'm not too bad at baking/cooking stuff, but my presentation skills are utter rubbish! Yours however are stunning. I'm planning on making flapjack tonight - they'll be delicious, but I doubt if they'll be half as pretty as your biscuits.

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    1. Aw thanks! These really didn't take much skill - just the right equipment!
      x

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  10. Oh, lovely biscuits! We got a biscuit press for Christmas and have had a great time with it - but we didn't ice them as they were for a really big feast. I don't think our attempts will be as pretty as yours. I needed that magnifier when I was embroidering French-style cross-stitch napkin initials for Christmas presents. I never knew they existed!

    Thanks for your comment too - the first box was the first one I ever bought, and the second is probably my most recent!

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