Swimming Swans & Milking Maids

Day 341 of the Doodle Olympics – Six geese–a–layin!! 

Day 342 of the Doodle Olympics – Seven Swans–a–swimming! With inflatable water wings and swimming caps! 

Day 343 of the Doodle Christmas – Zombie bear is making another appearance and he is getting ready for Valentines day - yikes! Would you like a chocolate?

Day 344 of the Doodle Olympics – Hurrah, Zombie Bear has realised that he was getting ahead of himself and has come back to Christmas.

Day 345 of the Doodle Olympics – Some days I just don't want to draw, however I'm always open to a terrible Christmas pun! Apparently, according to a google image search, this is a dutch hoe, it's the only hoe I've ever known... well... ;)

Day 346 of the Doodle Olympics – Angel Russian Doll.

Day 347 of the Doodle Olympics – Back to the Twelve Days of Christmas... Eight maids–a–milking! What do you mean it looks like I was trying to avoid drawing eight maids... they are all there – just! ;)

Book Review: Bake Me I'm Yours... Christmas

We are now well into December, the tree has just gone up and in our house and that means one thing, it's time to start thinking about baking. 

I do love a christmas baking book, there is just something about the effort that goes into the decoration that makes food extra special at this time of year.

Bake me I'm yours...Christmas is a sweet little compact book containing festive projects for cookies, cupcakes, brownies and sweet treats guaranteed to delight young ones and big kids alike. 

The book is divided into various sections, beginning with a handy page listing tools and equipment followed by the project section, which is divided into Festive Favourites: ideas for large cakes, Tasty Treats: cupcakes, brownies and small treats, Delicious Decorations, and Perfect Presents – further small treats. The projects section includes full page images of what the finished treats will look like, as well as step-by-step instructions on how to complete the decoration.

The next section provides you with all the recipes you will need for the projects, including essentials like traditional sponge cake, chocolate cake and fruit cake, brownies, ganache and gingerbread, as well as recipes for less common items such as sugar paste, flower paste, pastillage and piping gel.

 

The instructions are short, simple and concise, and each of the cake recipes also comes with a useful table that tells you the quantities of ingredients that are needed for the various sized cakes, so you can make any of the projects in any flavour. Extra tips are also suggested throughout under cute little holly leaves. 

The final section covers techniques which offers basic advice on cutting, filling and coating cakes, how to bake cookies successfully, decorating and modelling with sugarpaste, how you can use royal icing, and tips on working with chocolate. 

It may initially seem a little odd to start with the decoration and finish of a project at the beginning of the book, before you are told how to bake it, but having the baking in it's own section does save the recipes repeating each other, you can simply pick out the parts that you need. 

This book isn't overflowing with new information but has just enough guidance and is easy to follow. The accessibility of the book means that it's ideal if you would like to bake some Christmas goodies with the family, as young ones will be drawn to the bright photographs of cakes decorated with angels, and christmas tree bauble decoration cookies. It's also a great book for those that would like to make gifts for loved ones, that are new to baking or intimidated by more substantial baking books. 

It's time to let the baking begin! Merry Christmas!

Bake Me I'm Yours... Christmas is published by David and Charles, RRP £14.99, also available from RU Craft priced at £7.49.

Please note that I wasn't paid to write this review but I was given a copy of the book. 

A Partridge, French Hens & Colly Birds

Day 334 of the Doodle Olympics – Christmas is creeping closer, so I thought I would go for it and doodle Santa's workshop!

Day 335 of the Doodle Olympics – Baubles!

Day 336 of the Doodle Olympics – A partridge in a pear tree! Suitably festive and it also gives me another possible eleven doodles... not sure I'll get as far as twelve drummers, that's a lot of drummers!
 

Day 337 of the Doodle Olympics – Two turtle doves.

Day 338 of the Doodle Olympics – Three French hens.

Day 339 of the Doodle Olympics – I always thought this part of the song was four calling birds, but research suggests it was originally colly birds, or blackbirds.

Day 340 of the Doodle Olympics – Five GOOLLLLD Rings!! It's quite hard to draw five rings, they aren't the most dynamic of objects, so I decided to pop them on a reindeer type creature, whose antlers make wonderful jewellery holders. 

Wacky Cars, Churches On Hills & Mr. Toad

Day 327 of the Doodle Olympics – This week I wanted to draw cars. I can't draw realistic cars to save my life, so I was aiming for more of a Wacky Races feel. Again I couldn't resist drawing some boxy buildings. :)

Day 328 of the Doodle Olympics – Badger... I find badgers really difficult too – their heads are really long!

Day 329 of the Doodle Olympics – Badger wasn't actually intended to be 'that' Badger, but he did get me thinking about The Wind in the Willows, which made me think about Mr Toad... I don't think I've attempted to draw toads before either.

Day 330 of the Doodle Olympics – I wanted this little chap to be looking down and playing, but I think he just looks a bit sorry for himself.

Day 331 of the Doodle Olympics – Church on a hill. I think it's something you see on christmas cards, right? I have a vague memory of something like that. I'm starting to feel a little festive! :)
 

Day 332 of the Doodle Olympics – Another church on a hill and more boxy buildings.

Day 333 of the Doodle Olympics – Little Mouse playing with building blocks. 

Boxes, Cobwebs & A Bit Of Cliff!

Day 320 of the Doodle Olympics – Buildings. Every now and then I get an urge to just draw boxes, so turning them into little buildings seems like the obvious choice.

Day 321 of the Doodle Olympics – A festive door. I watched my first Christmas film for television of the season... possibly the worst TV film I've ever seen, but there was plenty of festive decoration, so I stuck with it.

Day 322 of the Doodle Olympics – This little chap is taking an imaginary ride into space. You can tell it's just pretend as he isn't wearing an oxygen helmet.

Day 323 of the Doodle Olympics – Argh Cliff!

Day 324 of the Doodle Olympics – Festive, Dickensian feelings are starting to creep in. Forget lightbulbs and light switches, give me an empty bottle and a candle, let's create some atmosphere!

Day 325 of the Doodle Olympics – More boxes.

Day 326 of the Doodle Olympics – Tumbling feathers, leaves, dandelion heads, cobwebs and spiders.

An Old Man, A Fortune Teller & An Invisible Bike

Day 313 of the Doodle Olympics – I thought I would try and doodle some people this week, I'm pretty rubbish at people, much prefer cute animals! Here is an old man.
 

Day 314 of the Doodle Olympics – A fortune teller. I know. I know, appalling hands! What can you do when you have the word fortune teller in your head.

Day 315 of the Doodle Olympics – Girl on a stile.

Day 316 of the Doodle Olympics – Not a person, a doodle bird!

Day 317 of the Doodle Olympics – Girl on a bike... no I can't draw bikes ;)

Day 318 of the Doodle olympics – Sleepy little boy in oversized pyjamas.

Day 319 of the Doodle Olympics – Girl holding a doll. 

Doodle Olympics Update - Autumn Acorns & Falling Leaves

Day 306 of the Doodle Olympics - Obsessing over autumn right now, it's all about trees, leaves and squirrels.

Day 307 of the Doodle Olympics - Autumn also means that the smell of bonfires and fireworks linger in the air!

Day 308 of the Doodle Olympics - Another leaf tumbling on the breeze!

Day 309 of the Doodle Olympics - Little mouse collecting acorns... honestly I just had a real desire to draw acorns.

Day 310 of the Doodle Olympics - The back of a patterned rabbit. I started drawing a pattern... it looked a bit rude... so I turned it into a rabbit. I'm quite pleased with him though :)

Day 311 of the Doodle Olympics - Fortunately I won't have to experience any of this kind of thing this year, but it is hard to forget the memories of standing in the cold waiting for a bus that may never come. I remember one year, I was working in a bookstore that was a twenty minute bus ride from home, I had left work at 5.30pm and didn't get in until 9.10pm, cold and hungry.

Day 312 of the Doodle Olympics - Some days you just don't want to draw. This was was second attempt in the end, the first just kept going from bad to worse!