Spot the difference

I really like the photography and styling of the Fischer Clothing Fall collection. I also like the way they have shot the guys and girls in the same setting with subtle differences. Link found via {frolic!}. Photography by Edwin Tse.

Inspirational styling

Love these images posted on Poppytalk today. I'm always drawn to neutral colour palettes with hints of colour mixed in. They're styled beautifully.

Online!

I finally got my act together and uploaded my website tonight. It showcases what I work on day to day, as well as some photos I take in my spare time. I hope you enjoy!

A batch of biscuits

We had friends over last night for pizza and beer and being Anzac Day today I thought I'd whip up a batch of Anzac biscuits for dessert. They are so easy and quick to make. Recipe below, found in the Donna Hay Modern Classics book 2.

Anzac biscuits

• 1 cup rolled oats

• 1 cup plain (all-purpose) flour

• 1/2 cup sugar (I used brown)

• 3/4 cup desiccated coconut

• 2 tbsp golden syrup

• 125g (4 oz) butter

• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

• 1 tbsp hot water

Preheat oven to 160C (325F). Place the oats, flour, sugar and coconut in a bowl. Place the golden syrup and butter in a saucepan over low heat and allow to melt. Mix the bicarbonate of soda with the water and add to the ingredients and mix well. Place tablespoons of the mixture on baking trays lined with non-stick baking paper, allowing room for the biscuits to spread, and flatten slightly. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden. Cool on wire racks. Makes 22.

An early start

So, you could probably call me a bit of a grandma. Rather than sleeping in on a Saturday morning I got up at the crack of dawn to go for a run, then headed over to Davies Park Market in West End to get some fruit and veges, croissants, a tomato and rosemary focaccia and a couple tubs of honeycomb. Then after having breakfast with the husband headed over to the Rocklea Flower Market and picked up an armful of flowers.

Davies Park is beautiful and all the stalls line a path underneath a canopy of fig trees. There are little coffee and food stalls where you can stop for breakfast and the fruit and veges are so cheap. I paid a third of what I would usually pay. I think I've been converted. All I need now is a big carry basket!

Sweet treats

It's nearly time for the second Frankie recipe book - sweet treats. This one's filled with recipes like honeycomb, toffee apples and candy hearts. All the sweet things you remember spending your pocket money on in your early school days. Shot again by the very talented Catherine Conroy it's bound to be one you will look forward to flipping through on your weekends. On sale from May 5.

Seek and you shall find

Not long now before the next Finders Keepers markets opens its stalls in Brisbane. Held again in the beautiful Old Museum next to the RNA showgrounds, it's a must visit for those crafty individuals and those of us who like to be inspired by talented designers. The markets are held on Saturday 26th and 27th June from 11am - 6pm.

Jonathan Levitt

Jonathan Levitt is a photographer from Lincolnville, Maine and his portfolio of work is quite impressive. It's real and captures people and places in their true form. It reminds me a little of Derek Henderson's personal work in that it documents small towns and the people that live there, capturing life as it is for them. Jonathan's blog Grass Doe is worth taking a look at as well.

Janne Peters

The work of Hamburg based photographer Janne Peters is absolutely stunning. I especially love her food photography and the soft feel to her images. Found via Lushlee.

A Dutch sunday morning breakfast

Inspired by our trip to Aruba, I thought I'd try making Apple Pannenkoeken (Dutch Apple Pancakes with Caramelised Sugar) for breakfast this morning. I'm not a huge pancake fan as I find them quite heavy but I quite like these as they're a thinner pancake, more like a crepe. Recipe below. Found on Almost Bourdain. You can make them with different toppings. In Aruba we had apple and bacon. Very yummy.

Apple Pannenkoeken

• 1 cup (200g) flour

• 1/2 tsp baking powder

• A pinch of salt

• 2 eggs

• 2 apples (I used Granny Smith)

• Lemon juice

• Caster sugar

• Cinnamon sugar

• Butter

Peel and core apples and slice thinly. Turn them in lemon juice so they retain their colour. Combine the flour with the baking powder and salt, and add enough cold water to make a thick batter. Stir in the eggs. Heat a little butter in a skillet and spoon in the batter. Immediately arrange the apples slices like tiles on top of the pancakes. Sprinkle with sugar and cook until the pancake is brown. Using a dinner plate or pot lid, carefully turn the pancake over so that the apples cook and the sugar caramelises. Turn once again sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and serve hot. Makes 2 large or 4 small pancakes.

Derek Henderson

Derek Henderson is a photographer who grew up in New Zealand and now travels internationally photographing for a large array of clients. I've been lucky enough to have worked with him for three seasons now, having him shoot for the menswear lines I work on - Rodd & Gunn and R&G. There is an unpretentiousness about him which I really admire, and it's interesting watching him work as he is so laid back and an absolute natural behind the lens. Derek is forever looking around, finding beauty and quirkiness in things most of us often overlook.

As impressive as his fashion work is, his personal work is really unique and represents the reality and rawness of New Zealand and it's people.

Morning Tea Party

My 30th birthday is on the horizon and I've never been one for parties. But after the fun I had planning our wedding I've decided I'm going to have a little morning tea picnic in the park with a few close friends. I'm thinking peach, soft yellows and cream tone flowers, baskets of scones, finger sandwiches, cupcakes and fresh fruits, and nice big pots of tea and coffee.

Images by:

Top, left to right: Invitation design by me; field by Bordon's flickr photostream. Middle, left to right: Flowers by Dandelion and Grey, found via The Sweetest Occasion; Scones by Donna Hay; plate unknown. Bottom, left to right: Cutlery found on Snippet & Ink; cherries unknown; tea and cake from the Donna Hay Seasons book.

Tuesday cupcakes

A Tuesday night treat, Donna Hay cupcakes. Yum! I better peddle extra hard tomorrow morning in RPM.

Lecture by Scott Hansen

For years now I have been really inspired by and admired the skills of Scott Hansen - Iso50. Scott is a designer and musician from San Francisco who has an appreciation for minimal, vintage design reminiscent of "old school" posters, packaging and signage. My style of design I feel is in some ways similar in depth and feel and has a sense of dreaminess about it. Like Scott I always aim to evoke a feeling in whatever it is I do.

Over the past couple years I have drifted a little and I'm kind of in a place of the unknown at the moment with where my style is taking me and what my interests are for the future, hence my website having nothing on it at present! Watching Scott's lecture to students at the Academy of Art in San Francisco gives me chills and reminds me of what it's like to be a designer and the passion and desire you have to create something meaningful. It's more than just a job, and you put your heart and soul into what you work on. Sometimes the passion is clouded with the dealings and frustrations you have with clients but I guess you have to remind yourself why you chose to be a designer, or why it chose you.

Lecture for those interested.

A piece of pie

After the wedding I decided I'd like to spend more time in the kitchen preparing meals rather than eating easy fish or meat and veges day in, day out. During the week I struggle to find the time after work let alone the energy, but on the weekends when things aren't so rushed I'm going to make the effort.

So this weekend I made a Beef, mushroom and red wine pie found on Gourmet Traveller. It took a while to cook but well worth the effort, and we have plenty leftover so don't have to worry about cooking tomorrow night or the next. Yes! I did cut one corner and used puff pastry sheets. Recipe below.

Beef, mushroom and red wine pie.

• 1.7kg boneless beef shoulder, cut into 2cm cubes

• Seasoned flour - for dusting

• 30ml olive oil

• 2 onions, diced

• 2 stalks celery, diced

• 1 carrot, diced

• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped

• 600ml beef stock

• 375ml (1 1/2 cups) red wine

• 10 sprigs of thyme

• 3 fresh bay leaves

• 40gm plain flour

• 200gm pine mushrooms, coarsely torn

(I used button as I couldn't get hold of pine)

• 30ml red wine vinegar

• 375gm butter puff pastry

• 1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 tbsp milk

To serve: Steamed Roman beans

Dust beef in seasoned flour, shaking off excess. Heat oil in a heavy-based casserole over medium-high heat, add beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until brown (4-5 mins). Add onion, celery, carrot and garlic and cook until vegies are tender (4-5 mins). Add stock, wine and herbs, season to taste with sea salt and black pepper, reduce heat to medium and simmer for 2 hours. Add mushrooms and cook until meat is falling apart (30 mins).

Place flour in a small bowl and add enough braising liquid (about 1/3 cup) to make a thin, smooth paste. Add to casserole, stirring until smooth and thick (4-5 mins). Season to taste, add vinegar, cool, then spoon into an 8-cup capacity pie dish, removing bay leaves.

Preheat oven to 180C. Roll pastry to 3mm thick on a floured surface. Place over filling, with edges overhanging. Press with fork tines to seal edges and trim excess with a knife. Brush with eggwash and bake until pastry is golden (about 20 minutes). Serve with beans. Serves 6

Jen Gotch

Nice Flickr photostream by Jen Gotch. Jen also has a blog called My polaroid blog worth taking a look at.

Bundt cake for Easter

Today we got together with family for an Easter Sunday afternoon bbq and I decided to bake a Cinnamon sugar-coated maple apple cake. All was going well until I turned it out onto a wire rack and part of the cake stuck to the bundt tin. Disaster! I now know to let it cool for longer than I did. It still tasted good though despite the mountainous landscape look on one half of the cake. So forgive me for only showing the good side of the cake above.

The recipe is below. The original by Donna Hay makes 12 smaller bundt cakes however I chose to make a larger cake which meant setting the oven to 160˚C and baking it for 60mins.

Cinnamon sugar-coated maple apple cake

• 2 1/2 cups (375g) self-raising flour, sifted

• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

• 250g butter, melted

• 1 cup (175g) brown sugar

• 1/2 cup (175g) maple syrup

• 4 eggs

• 6 red apples, peeled and grated

• 2 tsp ground cinnamon, extra

• 1 cup (220g) caster (superfine) sugar

Preheat oven to 180˚C (355˚F). Place the flour and cinnamon in a bowl and mix to combine. Add the butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, eggs and apple and mix well to combine. Spoon into 12 x well greased 1 cup-capacity (250ml) bundt tins. Bake for 20 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Turn out immediately. Place the extra cinnamon and sugar in a bowl and mix to combine. Coat the cakes in the sugar and cool. Makes 12.

Oliver Gustav

I found this link via Mustard & Sage. Oliver Gustav owns an antique store in Copenhagen and lives in his industrial style home on the floors above. I love the mix of concrete, white walls, raw timber and the combination of old and new elements. Link originally from Lotta Agaton.

A cozy weekend away

This week I arrived at work to a surprise red envelope on my desk from a few of our good friends. Inside as a wedding gift it contained a voucher for a night in an Airstream Caravan at Byron. It looks pretty funky and cozy. Looking forward to a relaxing and romantic weekend away. Thanks guys!