the swedish sandwich board

a swedish thing.  serving a sandwich/snack on one of these adorable little boards would make it taste even better, don't you think?  i have seen little boards in many shops i've popped into but the ones at hipp! are my absolute favourite (above and the first two below). 

these decorative serving boards from mini empire are also so sweet.  but i couldn't resist the red striped cat from lisa larsen and bought at design torget.  kai's afterschool snack is served on it and sometimes i will use it for myself too :-)

 

a dream kitchen

the kitchen in my house is small.  despite it, stefan cooks up a storm in there and turns out some amazing food.  kai has always helped out in the kitchen, observing his cooking, getting to help with small jobs and now he helps out more with prepping and actually cooking (he is famous for scrambling the perfectly cooked egg).  these days, he also helps with clean up although he would much rather be causing the mess. 

i dream of a bigger kitchen but since we are not moving anytime soon, i'll have to opt for a more stylish one in the meantime.  here are some lovely kitchens.  what do you think, would you want to cook in these spaces?

love the backsplash



love the brass accents



love the hints of colour



love the light and dark mix

love the mix of white and wood and that bench!



love the kitchen by the garden vibe



love the counter space



february eighteen

stefan and i celebrated nineteen years on february 18th - the day we met.  we probably work well together because he always cooks and i always clean up :)  we finally get to celebrate tonight, dining at the farmer's apprentice while kai is looked after by friends.

have a lovely weekend.  and you can buy those awesome tea towels from here.

hearts galore!

tomorrow is valentine's day.  will you be celebrating?  kai will be at a dance and stefan and i will probably be home watching a movie and eating take out.  although we don't celebrate valentines, i do adore anything heart.  kai says i have a gazillion around the house! 

that heart shelf is crazy cute, right?  i'd be happy having it hang on my wall.  and wouldn't those mini pans be perfect for pancakes  :)



ring



source unknown



shelf



bottles



phone case





mini pans





hair clip



pyrite stone



t-shirt... it's in my closet :)







balloon



tote



embroidery art



paper boxes

if you are in the mood, see a couple of my previous valentine posts... paperman and love ever after.



circle craft

last year, i came home from the circle craft fair empty handed but not this year - see my stack of rings post.  there was so much more of course that could have followed me home.  take a peek:

gorgeous hats from wildhagen.  when i visit toronto next year i plan to visit them.



felt products from trifly design, especially this little vessel.

 

 

 

adorable rattles from mimi.  they also have a cute elephant.  perfect for a little one, yes?

 

 

 

ceramics by erin morris are influenced by nature... trees, birds, and dragonflies.  so lovely.

 

 

a simple wool cowl for men and women by pip robins accessories.

 

 

 

patrycja's very cool mom, jagoda, is a jewellery maker that i have written about here. and she fell for this cute pant apron for makers; it looks so adorable on.  made in vancouver by glasnost.

 

 

 

porcelain vessels, by russell hackney that i have eyed and coveted in vancouver boutiques.  gorgeous.

 

 

abeego, reusable 'saran' wrap, is genius.

 

 



 

thank you circle craft!  they are a british columbian artist cooperative that exists to connect craftspeople with the community and i am so grateful otherwise my right ring finger would be empty. and i now have ideas for gift giving - myself included :) 



kai in the kitchen

with stefan acting as his sous chef, kai took charge of the kitchen one friday evening.  he could choose, prepare, and serve whatever he wanted for dinner.  he chose hamburgers!

he was very proud of himself slicing pickles and tomatoes, flipping burgers, cutting an onion without shedding a tear (unlike his mama), and shredding lettuce.  i especially loved how uneven the tomato and pickle slices were... it was pretty awesome.  

and the hamburgers were delicious.  thank you kai, i can't wait until you are in the kitchen again!

 

 

i am spoiled... now i have two boys cooking for me :)

whip it

i baked a cake.  from scratch.  those that know me will know that it is the first time that i baked a cake.  crazy, right?  i thought so too and did something about it. 

the current issue of martha stewart living described this cake as "the simplest layer cake ever".  however, i had to look up exactly how much a stick of butter was (4 ounces if you are wondering) and which kitchen aid mixer attachment was best to use (the beater).  otherwise it was pretty straight forward.  

i really enjoyed the process which was a huge surprise to me.  i was giddy with anticipation for how it would turn out.  and excited to present my cake to stefan and kai.  no one knew that i was baking; i wanted to delve right in all on my own with absolutely no advise.  i enjoyed being in the kitchen whipping something up for my boys.

the result?  dense and too sweet.  i was disappointed; there was no explosion of deliciousness. it was just alright.

stefan concurred; he said it wasn't "too bad" and over the next few days ate no more than three teeny tiny thin slices (or he fed them to the cats, not sure).  kai said he loved it and thought it was "perfect" but in a tone that suggested maybe he didn't.  but then he proceeded to eat nice big slices (so maybe he really did like my cake).  i ate many slices despite the denseness and sweetness; it was my first real cake :) 

will i attempt to bake again?  i think so.  apparently i need to spend more time mixing the batter to fluff and lighten it up and lessen the sugar in the frosting.  i can do that... maybe.



beating the batter... i didn't spend enough time on this step





the best part?  i didn't have to share the batter... so good.



this is when i knew something was wrong; they look like pancakes



the very sweet frosting is applied







the end result







kai enjoying a slice of my cake :)



 

have a lovely weekend.  eat cake!