Plenty of ideas : Plenty Kitchen Towel

The humble kitchen towel is a martyr to many a domestic situation from cleaning up kitchen spills, getting the paw prints of the cat flap to cleaning put the microwave when you've not been watching your soup.

But did you know it is SO much more than that, it is essential in craft projects and science experiments. I used it in my very own craft project which you can read all about here.

Juan Sheet is the star of the show , I've not met him but my good friend Jane Willis who blogs at Onions and Paper  . I think she was rather taken with him and blogged about her meeting with the very dapper gentleman and hearts were a flutter that day !

Plenty kitchen roll is more like a cloth than a paper kitchen towel and and such lasts a a very long time.
When the kitchen towel arrived it arrived with a box of shopping , I am sorry I haven't got a picture to show you but with a rugby mad son chocolate was on his radar that day to aid his recovery. Also I was able to do a slow cooker pasta dish ready for when we got back from a long hard day at a rugby festival. And of course I used my Plenty kitchen towel to clean up any spillages which is obligatory when serving up a tomato pasta sauce!

I shall be adding Plenty Kitchen towel to my shopping list  as it our performed any kitchen towel I had previously used also I think perhaps Jane might like me to add Juan Sheet to the list too!

Disclosure ( I was sent the Plenty kitchen roll and a box of shopping all thoughts, words and opinions are my own . I was not told what to write about )

Photo used with permission from Jane Willis at Janesgrapevine.

Kobo Mini Reader Inspect-A-Gadget

Faced with a long journey I was pleased when the opportunity arose to review the Kobo mini reader thanks to Money Supermarket.

Kobo mini reader is small compact is as it's names suggests a reading device as as previously mentioned I had to take a long journey of four hours on the coach. At first I ignored thesimple instructions of loading the books on to the mini reader , I did at one point have to enlist the help of my husband as I was getting cross with the device. This was my fault as I had it been bothered to read the bluntly simple instructions usually it's the other way around and my husband doesn't read the instructions (man with screwdriver is a powerful combination)

And then when there were breaks at a conference I could quickly whip out my Kobo mini reader and lose myself in the realms and reams of fiction.

So much easier than me taking the book with me as I 'd have to fight the cat for it!!

The price of the Kobo reader is £49.99 and it's available in either in black or white though if you shrewd you can find it around ten pound cheaper of an shopping Internet site. This would allow you to buy a snazzy leather case for it .

Disclosure (I was sent £50 to purchase this for review all thoughts, words and opinions are my own )

Chic to Chic

Chic is not thrust up you it just appears I am finding it just crept up on me ,appearing one day,one persons chic is another persons Magino line and it's quite simply a line than cannot be crossed.

But who cannot fail to love Homebarns instant transformation of simple objects, finding inspiration in your home needn't be hard.

Old children's letter blocks and abacus invite intrigue and makes you want to be tactile with the objects, after all objects shouldn't just be for looking at. With letter blocks there is a living visual history and it's Important to pass on such knowledge and appreciation of objects.

I love the beauty and romance of the written word , people hearts and souls went into writing a postcard trying to capture a moment in time.

Practical objects such as reels of cotton can offer instant colour to your home and encourage your to build upon that theme.

The underground is a under used resource ( see what I did there)  the colours just leap out at you.

I even found Underground style at the YMCA where I stayed for one night proving that budget accommodation doesn't have to lack on style.

Bringing the outside in : makeover challenge

I spend my life outside due to a number of factors being a sports parent going to watch my son play rugby and football. Cycling to and from work , pleasure to relax,

I adore nature and the happiness that it brings.

There is nothing better than the wind on your face, and the sun warming your heartland soul. And when I am home and I am in my dining room I want to bring the outside in and the inside outside. I love having a fushion of the two.

But unfortunately the dining room had become a dumping ground for the want of a better word.

When we moved in the garden was an overgrown wilderness as the house had been abandoned for 2 years. We spent time taming it , the lawn became home to a set of goalposts. So we left the established shrubs seeing as they could take the punishment of a football and children trampling over them to get the ball back. Now he's older and the goalposts have gone ( he plays for the village football team) we can start to inject some colour back the garden.

I also want this theme to flow back into my dining room as well. So with armed with a few items thanks to Moneysupemarket and working with what I already had. I Hope to have created a little oasis a "me" space for quiet contemplation even when the weather is too wet to go outside I have my own little piece of England . The picnic basket awaits by the patio door, the herbs are waiting to grow , the flowers (will) rise majestic from my Emma Bridgewater vase. 

A copy of Winnie the Pooh sit underneath the Arts and Craft table ready to inspire a whole new generation of new readers and to kindle the memories of those who have read it before or been read it. Everyone at least once in their lives must play "Pooh Sticks"

The plant table was a find from the other week.

The picnic baskets I already had.

The teddy is a childhood friend and toy.

The cushion is from my best friend ( who knows me all too well and is a human barometer)

The Emma Bridgewater vase was £29.99

The herb set was £10.00

The words were £10

And the labour for all this was free ( my husband was more than willing )

Crispy Pollock fish fingers in tortilla salad wraps recipe

Crispy pollock fish fingers in tortilla salad wraps with McCain French Fries
Serves: 4
Preparation time: 5 mins Cooking time: 20 mins
Ingredients:

•   400g fresh pollock fillet cut into 8 strips
  
•   1 egg, beaten
  
•   100g cornflakes, crushed finely
  
•   480g McCain French Fries
  
•   Salad leaves and baby tomatoes
  
•   Cooked peas
  
•   Dollop of mayonnaise
  
•   4 Tortilla wraps
  
  
  
  Method:
  

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C / Gas Mark 9.
   
2. Place the crushed cornflakes in a dish.
   
3. Dip each fish strip into the egg and then into the crumbs to coat the pieces evenly.
   
4. Place the fish strips on a lightly oiled oven sheet.
   
5. Bake in the oven with the McCain French Fries for approx 15-20 minutes.
   
6. When the fish is cooked, take each tortilla and spread with some mayonnaise, salad
   leaves, baby tomatoes and a few peas, add two fish fingers to each and make a roll.
   
7. Enjoy with McCain French Fries. 

We enjoyed this recipe and it just goes to show you you can have homemade food alongside oven fries creating that going out experience inside.

Disclosure ( I was provided with the ingredients for this review and my opinions are own and not biased in any way )