Mikołajki / St. Nicholas Day – 6th of December St. Nicholas Day also known as Mikolaki celebrated on the 6th of December in Poland, Germany and other European countries.
Handmade Terracotta Clay Hamster’s Hideout I made this hideout during art workshops I attend. It will be placed in the hamster’s playground together with other handmade clay gadgets. MATERIALS terracotta clay transparent glaze EQUIPMENT clay tools pottery kiln
Andrzejki / Eve of St. Andrew’s Day – Night of Magic & Fortune Telling Andrzejki – Eve of St. Andrew’s Day – traditions and party ideas.
DIY Clay Mermaid Statue for My Daughter My older daughter (she is 7) adores mermaids so I decided to make one for her, out of clay during the art workshops I attend. It did not come out perfect (ugly to be honest) but she loves in anyway (!) MATERIALS white clay clay paints transparent glaze EQUIPMENT clay tools pottery kiln paint brushes […]
DIY Felt & Bead Heart Design for Kid’s T-Shirts When you buy 3 packs of kid’s shirts there is always at least one plain, without any design. My daughters are very fussy about what they wear and all those single coloured shirts are hanging for years in the wardrobe without being used… so today I took them to the textile class I attend to […]
Stained Glass Bread Baubles – Edible Crafts Classic stained glass baubles made out of bread and boiled sweets.
Recycled Art – Old Newspaper Coaster Tutorial How to make newspaper coasters at home… very simple yet beautiful recycling art project.
Caribbean Lemons & Other Exotic Citrus Fruits Caribbean lemons are just one of the exotic looking citrus fruits, they are much bigger than regular lemons and round in shape. Pictured above fruit has been photographed on the Spice Mountain near Ocho Rios, Jamaica. Another quite impressive citrus fruits are pomelos also called shaddocks which are gigantic grapefruits with much nicer and milder taste. […]
Handmade Felt – Wet Felting Process in Step by Step Tutorial MATERIALS craft wool fibres dish-washing liquid very hot / almost boiling water EQUIPMENT bamboo place mat / sushi mat deep tray / container with flat bottom long & round wooden rod or thin rolling pin piece of linen cloth METHOD Below you can see step by step tutorial on how to make your own piece […]
Handmade White Clay Leaf Plate For a longer while I was looking for leaf shaped plate at reasonable price (for food photos of course) but I could not find it so I made my own… MATERIALS white clay transparent glaze clay paints (I used dark green and yellow) EQUIPMENT clay tools rolling pin pottery kiln (Unfortunately I don’t own one, […]
Creamy Garlic & Ginger Pearl Barley with Coriander Healthier alternative to pasta – creamy barley with garlic and cilantro.
DIY White Clay Baby Shoe Couple of months ago I started making this clay baby shoe that is replica of white sandal both of my daughters used to wear when they were very little. Today I have finally collected it from the school and I can share it with you. MATERIALS white clay transparent glaze EQUIPMENT clay tools rolling pin […]
DIY Felt Brooches for Moms, Aunties & Grannies – Christmas Gift Ideas MATERIALS few varied size felt circles pieces of craft yarn thread & needle buttons or beads brooch fastenings METHOD 1. First make flowers out yarn: wrap it around your fingers, tighten the loops on one side and then spread to shape the flower. 2. Place first flower on the biggest felt circle and sew it […]
How Do You Like Your Tea & Coffee? Almost all my adult life I was fooling myself, pretending that it is better to have unsweetened coffee or tea with a biscuit instead of sugar… I used to drink couple of coffees and teas a day with a biscuit (or two) on a side, but no sugar… to make it healthier! Couple of days […]
“Anisha’s Adventures In Bangladesh” by Moinul Islam – Children’s Book Review “Anisha’s Adventures In Bangladesh” by Moinul Islam, beautifully illustrated by Calvin Innes and published by My Little Big Town is a book aimed at children 5+. My daugheters who are 2 & 7 and they both enjoyed reading / listening to this story a lot. The older one has quite a few Bangladeshi friends at […]
Kulebiak – Traditional Polish Sour Cabbage & Mushroom Pie [Recipe by Babcia Ala, my mother.] INGREDIENTS for the dough 1 kg plain flour 100g fresh or 3⅓ tbs dry yeast 100g unsalted butter 2 whole eggs 2 egg yolks, save the egg whites for brushing 1½ cup lukewarm milk 1 tsp grated nutmeg 1 tsp sea salt, less if butter is salted for the […]
Hamster’s Terracotta Clay Sand Bathtub Project MATERIALS red clay / terracotta clay transparent glaze Almost finished bathtub, waiting to be fired together with water bottle holder. Bisque fired bathtub, ready to be glazed. Finished, glazed terracotta clay sand bathtub filled with sand and a happy hamster inside the playground. NOTES I made the steps thinking it will be easier for Toffy […]
Raffaello – Almond & Coconut Cream No Bake Cake Recipe for no bake cake inspired by Raffaello from Ferrero Rocher.
RSS and Email Subscription Change Just a short note to let you know that due to problems with FeedBurner I was forced to change my feed settings, you can re-subscribe to the new one here: Coffee & Vanilla’s new RSS. Also the email subscription has been moved to different service and I absolutely love it, you can subscribe to my […]
Wild Mushroom Risotto with Dill & Garlic INGREDIENTS handful dried wild mushrooms (sent by my mother from Poland) 6 cup of boiling water 2½ cups easy cook rice (or even better risotto rice) 1 tbs vegetable stock powder 1 tsp minced garlic (I used “lazy garlic” made by my husband) 2 tbs fresh / frozen dill 25g unsalted butter 100g grated cheese […]
Jumbo Connect 4 from Big Game Hunters – Review It may look like regular Connect 4 at first but it is not… this is Jumbo Connect 4 that is much bigger than the standard version (75 cm tall), hence it is best suitable for garden but not only. The whole construction is very sturdy and because of the size and material (solid wood, except for […]
Japanese Kimono Inspired Nail Art Pattern Japanese kimono pattern for the nails – aquamarine blue, dark cherry red and light cherry blossom pink.
Last Minute Clementine Jack-O-Lanterns Quick and easy Halloween clementines for party bags, décor and trick-or-treating.
