Sunday Baking

I quite often bake a treat for us on a Sunday.  It feels as though it rounds off the weekend nicely.  A celebration of time spent at home and in my kitchen.  An acknowledgement to the week ahead and and extreme busy - ness for the week days.  Baking has been absent whilst I've been sick and also because of the gluten free diet.  I mean I ain't gonna bake something I can't eat, now am I?  Cakes and baking being an integral part of me! (Remember, this bake a cake post, So it's taken a while to get my head around gluten free alternatives.  I've armed myself with a couple of cookbooks and scoured the web and found heaps of recipes, so now I'm armed and equipped, ready for action! First cake.. A Victoria Sandwich Cake!

Here it is posing for its photo! A very photogenic and willing subject!
(The flowers were a lovely surprise from my stepmum, wishing me wellness as the whooping cough drags on.  Aren't they beautiful? so bright and cheery - the complete opposite of how I've been feeling...morose and sorry for myself.  C'mon Susie snap out of it!  Well the cake helped.)

  It was perfect. Such an easy recipe...one bowl. Mdae with brown rice flour.

Dusted with icing sugar

Sandwiched together with my home made plum jam.  Is your mouth watering?

Served up on my favourite cake plates, with a super generous DOLLOP of cream whipped with icing sugar. Sitting contentedly watching Sunday night TV.
Really it's all good isn't it?

Hand Piecing Hexagons

 I realise I was a bit of tease yesterday talking about my hexie progress, but not sharing any photos!  Naughty for those readers interested....!  So here, just in case you're in suspense here are a few photos. 

My quilt is a completely random scrap quilt.  Most fabric is scraps from quilts I've made or in progress.  My English grandmother spent lots of time hand piecing and there are several hexies she made but never included in a quilt.  They are stitched on scraps of paper from the church bulletin.  They are absolutely precious.  So much so that I hope to somehow frame a few.

This quilt has been a work-in-progress for 2 years now!  I work in bursts on it.  I am really inspired to finish it this year though. 

Lately I've felt a bit of falsetto craft blogger with my lack of real craft posts.  But I'm over that...musings about life and things that inspire and happen on our own journeys are all part of me and my creative"ness".

The benefit of being ill...

is that I've snuck in a bit of crafty time for the first time this year - my hexies are starting to turn into a quilt!

I have been sick for the last 3 weeks, no energy, constant coughing.  All sorts of tests, something suspect going on, more tests...but the worst has been the coughing and trouble breathing at night - just means I'm exhausted.  I have to sleep upright.. feeling a bit like Gypsy in this photo after one of her fits...just need some TLC and comfort that everything will be alright again soon.

Sitting quietly, recuperating doing hand piecing.  What a luxury! It has kept me sane over the last few weeks.