Author: Clare at CatsEatDogs

‘I like’ Friday – the Mandala edition.

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I have been looking at and drawing and making lots of mandalas lately. It all started when I did Susannah Conway‘s new year workbook – ‘Unravelling the Year Ahead’ and at the end were some beautiful mandalas, placed to inspire our word for 2015 and aid the search for said word.  They looked equally complicated and simple and so lovely to look at. I loved the mandalas so much I decided to research further about how to get started drawing them and what they mean and symbolise.  I found lots of ‘colouring in’ mandala books which I am not really into, I am more about the lines than the inside colours and don’t tend to color in the ones I draw, so I won’t be colouring a book full. When I came across the 100 Day Project I decided to make and draw mandalas for 100 days and I am really enjoying it, we have just reached double digits as we are on day 12 today.  All of my mandalas are on Instagram under my …

Through the Lens Thursday 16. Yellow.

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Since I took this photo of yellow tulips for this week’s Through The Lens Thursday prompt, I have been seeing yellow things all over the place. I went on a thrifting adventure this morning at Goodwill Outlet (the place where second hand goods go to end their days) and saw a yellow cake stand (which I bought), a yellow teapot (had a chip in the spout so I left it), a yellow banana shaped change purse (bought) and a yellow vintage Lipton iced tea jug (kind of wish I had bought it). I even found some fab yellow thread on a vintage wooden spool and bought it with about 15 other spools once I had dug them out. Isn’t it funny how once you start looking for something, you see it everywhere! I took the tulip photo earlier this week after a downpour and I am pleased with the effect the raindrops have on the picture, especially the ‘highlight’ tulip in the middle. Today the yellow sun is shining and it is nice and warm, …

I am reading these books and magazines.

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I thought I would share some reading matter this week. What are you reading? Do you read books? One at a time or can you keep up with more than one? I can read one at a time, I think my brain would pop if I tried more! I do read kids novels to my son at night, so I kind of read two books at once, one to him and one to myself. I love magazines but I have to have a novel to read a bedtime, reading a magazine at bedtime gives me so many ideas and inspirations, they almost stop me sleeping. Consequently I don’t get through as many mags as I would like and sometimes I don’t even get through the ones I buy before the next issue is out. In fact the new issue of The Great Discontent is due out soon, so I had better get cracking and finish this one! I discovered The Great Discontent when I came across The 100 day Project which is hosted by the …

One+Four=Life 15/52

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1. I got a little bit damp early this week when I got caught in a massive thunder storm on the way home from the gym. By the time I got to the covered area at the park, I was so wet, I decided to throw caution to the wind (and rain) and keep going to get home. My umbrella went unused because of the rampant lighting. I decided to take wet over fried! 2. I started The 100 Day Project this week and I am loving it, I hope it doesn’t become a chore when I get into double figures. I am only a week into it, but the ideas are flooding into my brain. For my 100 days, I decided to draw (and make) 100 mandalas. 3. The school held the Art Fair this week and it was a joy to see all of the art created by the kids in one place. 4. Birds on a Wire. I am joining Pip at Meet Me At Mikes for this week’s One+Four=Life.

Six Word Saturday

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I have been a busy bee of late making some lovely balms. Mixing up essential oils is becoming an obsession. I tell you, once, you make a couple of balms which smell amazing, it is hard not to carry on. I am always thinking of new combinations of oils and seeing how they smell. Palmarosa is my current favourite. Despite it’s rose implied name, to me it smells of black tea in a wonderful way. Do you have favourite smells? I have been hand lettering the labels and will most likely carry on, to be honest I am such a duffer on the Photoshop, this way is probably quicker and less stressful! Happy weekend!

Through The Lens Thursday #15. Baked.

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I may or may not have gone to the shops to get butter to bake brownies especially for this week’s prompt which is ‘baked’. Never mind that I ate a baked muffin for breakfast and I have some baked peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies in the kitchen. Oh no, this called for fresh baked! Fresh baked brownies. In my defense my teen requested brownies and this recipe specifically, the Jamie Oliver ‘S’mores Brownie’ recipe minus the ‘S’mores’ bit! Bad news is I can’t find the darn recipe online, good news is, I am willing to type it out for you! Jamie Oliver’s S’mores Brownies without the S’mores… Oven 400F Line a 20cm square cake tin. 100g butter 200g chocolate (I used semi sweet chocolate chips) 4 eggs 250g sugar 100g flour 1tsp baking powder 30g cocoa powder Melt the butter and chocolate. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until pale. Fold the eggs and sugar into the chocolate which has cooled (we don’t want scrambled eggs!). Fold in the flour, cocoa …

Jumble sales. Rummage sales. Goodwill. Yard sales. I love them!

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I love a bargain and preferably a hunted down bargain.  Don’t get me wrong, I do like a good deal from a shop, with the magical layers of price tickets as the cost has been gradually reduced to a rock bottom ‘heck what a good deal’ price. Today I am talking about the second hand sales and all their wonder!  Whether it is someone’s front yard or a bun fight at the local village hall, I am all about the treasure hunt! Since I have lived in America, I have not been to a jumble sale which makes me sad.  Schools don’t hold them and there are no village halls to put a sale in. I think they are called rummage sales here, but I have not come across one of those either.  When I was younger, the guides, the scouts and the schools all had endless rounds of jumble sales to raise money for a canoeing trip or a new roof for the scout hut. I would help set them up with Mum and …

‘I Like’ Fridays Easter Special

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This weekend we will be egg hunting, cleaning up the local woods and creek, making easter nests and eating hot cross buns.  In the spirit of the Easter season and Spring generally, this is what I have been liking this week- I am waiting for my Hot Cross Buns to rise as I write this. As usual I got covered in flour and ended up in a mess trying to make nice neat ‘crosses’ on my buns! Even though the boys are getting bigger, we will still have an Easter Egg hunt in the garden.  It has rained all day today and the grass is about 7 feet high (ok, just a few inches..), but an egg hunt we shall have! I have the ingredients to make Easter egg nests using cereal (I use Trader Joe’s Shredded bite sized Wheats), chocolate and chocolate eggs.  This is another messy yummy project which is essential to our Easter weekend! I have made them with cornflakes and shredded wheat and we like the shredded wheat best as it looks …