Jenga

This year Rus and I get to celebrate his birthday together. During our relationship we have never once celebrated anything while being physically together on the day. We send each other gifts, have skype dates and belated celebrations when we do see each other but this is the first time we get to be properly and fully together, and I’m so excited that it’s his birthday first.

Because giving is always better.
Though also mainly because I am slightly concerned about his family’s lack of excitement towards birthdays and need to show him how it’s done so when mine rolls around in June we can do something more fun than Souplantation.

I’ve booked us a hotel for the night in Big Bear. I’m hoping it will have snowed some and he can snowboard, I did some research and there’s a pretty decent chance that it’ll be a solid option. I have planned the cake I am going to take with us to his hotel, or rather cupcakes as they travel better, but more on that when they’ve been made. I know where we’re going to eat, the hotel has a spa for us to relax in, I’ve looked into a few activities for if we can’t snowboard and I’ve made sexy jenga.

Normally I am not one for drinking games. Drink and play a game, okay why not, but don’t change the rules of the game because you daren’t declare “I wanna get blackout drunk tonight guys!”. But for this one I’ll make an exception because it seems like it will actually make the game much more fun.

It’s quite simple, each time a piece is pulled from the tower you either do a shot, shed some clothing or do nothing. I made it myself, I did see one years and years ago in Ann Summers but why spend £25 when you can spend less than £5?

Start with a Jenga game. I opted for the cheap generic version, not the branded game. The blocks stick a bit more because they aren’t varnished but whatever, by the end of it I’m going to be drunk and naked regardless. I found this one on eBay for about £2.99.

I split my tower into three, a third to be left blank, a third to be inscribed with SHOT! and a third to declare STRIP!  I used a trusty standard black Sharpie for writing, my stabilo pens are just photobombing.

Once written on I thought the blocks looked a little lack-luster. I had a pink glitter glue pen laying around my desk [I have bizarre impulse purchase habits] so I covered them in that. The photo doesn’t do them justice, they do not look that patchy.

I’ll be honest, Rus is not the biggest fan of glitter. Partly why I decided to use it for this project is so he has good connotations with glitter and will grow to love it. I couldn’t help but sending him this photo with a teasing “I’m customising your birthday present” text attached. That was three hours ago and I’ve still not heard back.

Then on two of the blank blocks I threw in a bonus surprise. It might be the first block that gets pulled, it might not even surface on the first game. I’m not going to tell Rus it’s in there, just wait and see his face if it gets pulled. Cause okay, drinking can sometimes make a game a bit more fun but sex breaks are guaranteed to!

One thing that I realised when I was re-boxing the game is that I am going to be very drunk and very naked very early on in the game. For a more sensible approach to drunk naked sexy jenga only write on a total of 1/3 of blocks.

I also contemplated using two colours for the writing. Black for me and red for Rus then, every time a red piece was pulled Rus would have to follow the order and I the black, regardless of who had pulled it. Unfortunately red doesn’t go with pink glitter so I dropped that idea.

To play with friends, replace strip with a truth/dare block. Unless you’re really comfortable around your friends.

Crochet Crazy.

I’ve decided to temporarily post-pone the crafting. At least crafting with a view to sell. I mainly needed something to get me through the never ending winter we British endured this year. A hobby to keep me sane on the long dark nights where I was trapped inside due to treacherous driving conditions with nothing but a bad tele schedule and snoozing parents for company. I loved playing around making the earrings and bracelets, sculpting fimo and stitching felt. I had modest success at local craft fairs and village fates but I still have ample stock left for any up coming events and, now that summer is upon us I don’t really have the time. I’m in beer gardens with friends, I’m walking my pug and I’m sunbathing in the garden with the snoozing parents, and it is wonderful. I’m making the most of the time I have left with my friends in this country, before me visiting becomes a novelty.

That said there are still days when I get home from work, it’s been hot and busy and I want to sit down and watch a film and be a little bit lazy. I really did enjoy the crafting and, as Rus and I are working on how we (I) want our bedroom to look I have taken up crocheting with plans to make us a blanket. It was really only ever a matter of time, my mum is a crochet queen! I find it terrible relaxing and have dosed off on a couple of occasions meaning I can add ‘Siestas’ to my list of hobbies and interests [I wonder how that will look on my American CV Resumé].

A made one teeny tiny mistake though, I started crocheting the blanket sat downstairs in an arm chair. I did my initial chain and laid it on the ground only to decide it clearly wasn’t wide enough to cover a double bed and added to it. My blanket is now wide enough to cover a California King floor to floor, so it’s going to need a little more wool than I originally planned…

The wool I chose is King Cole Gypsy in ‘Fern’, a stunning moss green with occasional heather running through it. The wool/blanket is to be the base for my our room design. I cannot wait! Rus picked us up some sheets from Walmart in a near identical heather colour – I hope – it is tricky to tell on Skype! The walls are a passable colour already so no painting! I’m so excited to throw this onto my new bed in a few months time, but it is currently only a foot long thanks to it’s obscene width so I have a long long way to go!

Tie Dying

One thing that’s always bugged me about moving to be with Rus is that it had been made clear that we weren’t to stop at the family home. I get that they want to teach their children independence and that’s great, no one wants a mummy’s boy as a fiance, but given our situation  – and the fact that I can’t work for the first 6-12 months you’d think we’d have some slack cut.

Well planets aligned, pennies dropped and the trigger was pulled because suddenly it’s been deemed a good idea by the parents. We’ve been given the front of the house for ourselves, rent free, so we can save for a deposit on a house. The only down side is that all my kitchen nicknacks will collect dust for another year or two.

Basically we will be living in Rus’ room, his brother will move out of the room next door giving us a living room. The two are connected by a balcony and have a separate bathroom. I have been racking my brains for how I can turn this boy-infested area into a nice place. It’s all very functional at the moment but lacking any soul. Rus uses his shelves to store his tools.

I want girlie, relaxing but not shameful for a man to live in. My current room is like the love child of urban outfitters and laura ashley. I can only take a few small bits over with me and while I’ve been looking forward to the project of redesigning a room I’ve been struggling for ideas. And of course Rus is Switzerland.

Then, the other day I saw an Etsy tweet about dip-dying shoes and just had to try it out. It did not work as planned, instead of violet fading-through-lilac-to-white pumps I have violet pumps. While they were stewing and I was sulking I tied a couple of knots in an old t-shirt and through it in the bucket too.

OMGWOW.

I’ve loved tie dye for a while and it has been slowly taking over my wardrobe. I cannot believe I’ve foolishly been buying what I could so easily make. I plan to practice my skills until I feel competent enough to make some brilliant bedding for my new home and I’m hoping the rest will all fall into place.

Any one have any tips?

Cupcakes please.

I have an unhealthy obsession with cake. I cannot remember a time when I haven’t loved it or wanted that extra slice. Blame it on my mum buying me cakes as treats, blame it on my grandma’s chocolate cake, blame it on my sweet tooth. I really couldn’t tell you where it originally stemmed from or why I haven’t the will power to eat the apple instead. I’ll often forget I’ve eaten some until I see the wrapper in the bin. And don’t get me started on the thrill of Asda’s bargain bin birthday cakes. Yes I have shared a serves-16 cakes with only myself and a Hugh Grant film on more than one occasion.
On our first date Rus marvelled as I inhaled a slice of Cheesecake Factory cheesecake in ten minutes after having already eaten one of their huge meals.

It’s a bit of an on going joke with everyone that I’m a fat girl trapped in skinny jeans but I really was doing my best to pick healthily.
Then about, what four years ago? the cupcake craze hit. Suddenly I didn’t have to buy an entire cake! I could easily get an individually sized sugar rush from pretty much anywhere. My sister and I have always enjoyed baking and now there’s so many cake cook books around my blood sugar cannot maintain itself.

So when I wanted to start playing with Fimo – a product that you have to set by oven baking, I really had no choice but to combine it with my other well loved baked good. Yes, the cupcake.

I’ve made up a little army, sprinkled some with glitter, finished them all with a love heart cherry and smiley face then attached them onto a keychain/phone charm. I absolutely love them, they’ve been a success at craft fairs and now I’ve put them in my Etsy store.

I’ll be honest, I’m struggling with my online motivation. I much prefer selling to people face to face, but 20c a listing is stupid to turn down!

Check them out here. And any tips on good online sites to use to promote or sell would be much appreciated! I’m really wanting to get into the online blogging community, any advice on doing so would be great.

Tea time.

I did a cross stitch keyring for my dad one Father’s Day when I was a young whipper snapper. My mum, Joanie, would thread the needle, do my first few stitches and patiently repeat instructions as I pricked my finger and miscounted stitches. The keyring took months, in fact I have a feeling it ended up being gifted for Xmas and was only completed because Joanie insisted I finish something I started.
After putting my needle down I never felt the urge to pick it up again.
Until five days ago when I saw a pattern in my mum’s latest edition of Craftseller. I threw aside all my bad feelings for cross stitching and tentatively asked Joanie to reteach me the basics. Four days later and I was finished, I don’t know who was more impressed with the result.

I’m currently obsessed with my future kitchen, I’ve been buying nicknacks and trinkets, sending Rus to ikea to get glasses in case they’re discontinued before my next trip to the states and wistfully flipping through home magazines day dreaming about counters. I plan for my kitchen, nay my entire apartment, to be so crammed with English themed bits that I cannot get homesick and no Californian will think me American.
I’m not the biggest tea drinker but since starting my current job a year ago I have slowly been converted by my co-workers – a team of middle class, middle aged, english women. I get it now, tea is the excuse to gossip and as a result I average about 4 cups a day. Strong, milk, sugar… in case you’re putting the kettle on.
Every day when I get in from work, wake up in a morning or am at a loose end, Joanie and I will sit in the kitchen, drink tea and chat (and eat a slice or three of cake). It’s something I’m going to miss dearly. This quintessentially English piece will always bring back those lovely memories of biscuits, laughter and burnt tongues from eager sipping.

If you would like this in your kitchen too, and who wouldn’t, click here.

It began with a bunny

I’ve not touched any art supply since I opted out of art class at age 14. Unable to paint or draw and only really enjoying the feeling of peeling PVA glue off my hand I resigned myself to the fact that I was not artistic. And, as great as an art folder would have looked with my goth clothes, I headed to an education full of maths, history and english.

Fast forward nine years and a seemingly romantic gesture from Rus that we make each other valentines day gifts leaves me in cold sweats.
Talking about it at work my colleagues all cocked their heads and said “but you look artistic”. Apparently you can’t wear tie-dyed anything without owning a box of water colours or spending your spare time paper-macheing.
My sister just burst into fits of giggles when I explained the task and my mum suggested I buy something that looked homemade.
After a lot of pondering I decided on stitching something, I had spent my late teens hand sewing my jeans to make them so tight I couldn’t cross my legs without getting pins and needles so it seemed like the best bet. I wanted something easy, Rus always says he misses the way I smell so I opted to stitch a little cuddly that I would then douse in my perfume for him.

The first choice was a sock monkey, but they are slightly sinister looking. After looking a patterns I decided to tweak it to turn it into a bunny. The first looked a lot more like Kipper the dog, but the challenge was complete, I had something that looked decent enough and hadn’t taken me too long at all.

About a week later my mum announced she had booked a craft stall for April to sell her ever growing collection of crocheted accessories and did I want to come along. I bought a pack of kids socks from asda, made the pattern less kipper and more bunny and started sewing.
I now have a little collection of adoptable bunnies – they were a hit at the craft fair so only a few remain. As I was packaging them up to sell I had a flash back to my Cabbage Patch Kid dolls all coming with their own names and decided to do that for these little orphans too. Each one comes with a name, birthday and a few favourite things.

Adopt yours today!