Tuesday 21 August 2012

Banana Peanut Chocolate Cookies

I love cookies, and I LOVE my Martha Stewart Cookies cookbook.

Martha Stewart Cookies on Amazon

I love it so much that when my cat peed on it, I still used it for a year soaked with cat-pee smell.  Then I bought it AGAIN.  It's awesome, because the table of contents is pictures of cookies.  It's awesome because the categories of cookies are divided by texture (ie. "cakey and tender" or "chunky and nutty")
It's also awesome because it has so many types of cookies in it, that when I dream up my own cookie idea, I can usually find something similar to use as a jumping off point.  Because it is actually impossible for me to follow a recipe.  I just can't do it.

I dreamt up a cookie last week, inspired by some ripe bananas I found in the freezer.  Peanut butter banana cookies with milk chocolate chips... yum.  I didn't have time to make them last week, which was great, because it gave me time to have another idea: salted, honey roasted peanuts needed to get involved. *drool*

Martha has a recipe for Banana Walnut Chocolate Chunk cookies.  Walnuts became Peanuts.  Butter became peanut butter and coconut oil.  Wheat flour and rolled oats became Quinoa and rice flour, and flax meal.  I cut the salt and sugar down since the peanuts were sweet and salty.

I ate four already.



Sunday 19 August 2012

Jewels and Treasures at Chaton Beads

I found this awesome bead store on Queen the other day:

Somehow, despite years of dedicated Queen West browsing, I had never noticed it!  They had lovely beads, yes, but most exciting was their selection of jewellery making hardware in a variety of metals.  My favourites were the hoop earring parts perfect for beading;  I've been looking everywhere for hoops with gold coins, to replace one I lost.  I was able to make TWO sets of gold coin hoops, as well as a selection of other things, for a grand total of $26 in materials!



Chain anklet with a feather charm (they had a whole wall of chains)



I took one of the chains and hung some earring parts off of it.  I had two different lengths of these metal posts so I alternated.  I friggin' love this necklace.



A charm bracelet made with extra parts and charms I had lying around.


I don't see any reason to ever buy jewellery again.


Saturday 18 August 2012

Crochet Headband, with cable!

I taught myself to crochet a few years ago and have made a few simple things, but I started a project from a magazine last fall for this headband/earwarmer. I foolishly thought I'd be finished it by Winter. Ha!

I finally completed it on a recent camping trip. It's made of plum cashmere yarn, so it should make a cozy-boho Fall addition.

I'm specifically excited about this because it is the first time I have followed a pattern that included adding and subtracting stitches, plus making a crocheted CABLE, yo! I hereby declare this a departure to the next level in my crochet skills.

Friday 10 August 2012

Porno Portraits

One of the themes that I am most interested in is female archetypes. The Temptress, the Mother, the Crone, the Virgin, etc...
I started these little portraits of women from pornography as a study of these roles and expectations, using images and mixed media (aka butterflies and glitter!) with the paintings to add a tongue-in-cheek reference to a "girlie" aesthetic.
The idea is not to glorify the porn, but rather to find the mother (thus all the boobies), the innocent teenaged girl, archetypes of the women within the sex object. (i.e. it's a feminist comment, so haters: don't bug me)

These are the first, more to come!

Ron & Gary

Oh the possibilities!