Author Archive | Rasa Pelham

Seaworld in patterns

By Rasa Pelham on January 20, 2015 in Inspiration, Pretty patterns for crafts, Travel

One of the ways to get inspired to be creative is to look around you (especially in nature). At least this works for me! When we were visiting Florida it was hard to find something cultural or a place in nature. All you could find in Kissimmee is a lot of Amusement parks (I might love them one day when we have kids, but I hate them now)! So I ended up visiting the one with the least rides and more nature. In Seaworld I focused on texture colour and shapes. And this is what I got!

Some patterns I have painted myself after being inspired by all those underwater colours! I hope you feel inspired today and look around you when you go outdoors! And you can find patterns everywhere, even better than the ones I found in Seaworld :-).

Rasa xoxo

Pinterest challenge: roasted veggie, curried avocado and coconut rice bowls

By Rasa Pelham on January 19, 2015 in Healthy, Lunch or Dinner, Pinterest challenge, Recipes

This is my first Pinterest challenge this year! So I thought I will pick something on the healthy side. I think we all have been guilty of heavy eating during holidays and I am sure every one of you would love to start fresh and come back to a healthy eating routine. This awesome and wholesome bowl full of veg has instantly caught my attention! And I am glad it did, because this magic bowl is full of flavour! It actually taste real and the combination of flavours really works. So why not to try? ROASTED VEGGIE, CURRIED AVOCADO AND COCONUT RICE BOWLS adapted from Half Baked Harvest

(roasted veggies)

1/2 butternut squash, pealed, seeds removed and sort of cubed (I kind of sliced it in wedges)
1 sweet potato, chopped (I pealed it as well, but I wish I left the skin on)
250g bag of brussels sprouts, all sliced in half
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cayenne
2 tbsp maple syrup
salt and pepper to taste
1 handful pecans

(coconut rice)

1 cup uncooked brown rice
2 cups coconut water
pinch of salt
80g creamed coconut, grated
1 tbsp coconut oil

(curried avocado)

2 ripe avocados, pealed and pitted
handful coriander leaves, chopped
1 green chilli, deseeded and sliced
1 lime, juiced
1tsp curry powder (used mild one)
1cm cube ginger, pealed and grated
1 tsp honey (got mine from Florida!!!)
salt and pepper to taste

(for assembly)

handful of goat cheese or blue cheese (tried both and preferred goat cheese in this combination)
arils from one pomegranate

1. Start by roasting the veg. In a small bowl (or a cup) whisk together the olive oil, cayenne, maple syrup and a pinch of salt and pepper. Spread the veggies out in the baking dish and drizzle the olive oil mixture over them and toss well to coat. Roast it in C210 preheated oven until vegetables are tender and starting to brown (about35 – 45 min), stirring the veggies halfway through. During the last 15 minutes add the pecans and toss to coat.2. Meanwhile, cook the rice. Add the rice, coconut water, salt, coconut oil and creamed coconut to a medium size pot and cook it as usual. As I have electric cooker I cook my rice this way (although I really hate electric cookers at least it is good for cooking rice and stuff!). So I bring the rice pot to boil and then I switch the cooker off. The heat that remains on the electric plates will finish cooking the rice without burning it! Just don’t be tempted to open the lid while magic happens!

3. Final step is to make curried avocado! Just pull all the ingredients to the food processor and whizz… ta da! 4. To combine the bowls just add a little bit of everything: roasted veggies, rice and curried avocado. Sprinkle the bowls with some cheese and pomegranate arils.Enjoy!

Rasa xoxo

The Kennedy Space Centre and Cocoa Beach

By Rasa Pelham on January 17, 2015 in Daydreaming, Travel

Anyone who knows me or anybody who reads this blog regularly are probably aware that I love love the seaside (or the beach). I don’t have to have palms in it, but I certainly like some white sand dunes with a small amount of greenery in it. I like that, because it feels like unfinished canvas where I can imagine something colourful.

I also dream to go to space. In fact I share this dream with Joni. Maybe not exactly the same way, but this random dream of mine is the first thing that got me interested in Joni (in case I forgot to mention, he is an Aerospace Engineer). So why am I talking about Cocoa beach and Kennedy Space Centre? What do those two have in common? Well…my two major dreams (to open a cafe and go to space) don’t go together either, but I still have them and I know it sounds crazy, but I think I have them for a reason.

Same with the Kennedy Space Centre and Cocoa Beach, they sound random, but geographically close. They even share some history together! During 60’s this beach town was populated by many people involved in America’s space program. So basically this is where astronauts would come and rest when they are not in space! How amazing is that!Don’t you think that this car tyre imprint on the sand looks a little bit like the foot steps found on the surface of the moon!?Loved this Kennedy Space Centre star globe fountain with my reflection in it! Cocoa Beach in the fog look sort of dreamy… I hope I got the attention of some of the cosmic dreamers (or seaside lovers) out there ;-)

Rasa

Biscuits or scones?

By Rasa Pelham on January 15, 2015 in Lunch or Dinner, Recipes, Savoury Delights, Travel, Winter Warmers

We recently have visited States and I finally had a chance to taste a biscuit… for breakfast, with the gravy!!! What? If you come from America than this might not be that surprising to you. But here in England biscuit has a complete different sense and purpose. It even looks different! The biscuit that I had in States reminded me of scone that we have over here. Maybe we don’t eat scones with the gravy, but we certainly have cheesy types as well. I must admit eating the biscuit with gravy inspired me to try and marry the scone with the soup! Not just any soup, but the most british one: broccoli & stilton soup.I of course tried to determine the differences between american biscuit and british scone, but did not found that many. Although the ingredients are practically identical, the scone recipe might call for buttermilk, oatmeal or even barley (especially the most traditional recipes). So I guess the choice is yours how to call this baked delight ;-).I often bake these basic type of scones, because they are that basic that you can add any flavour you want to them. You want them sweet = add a 1-2tbsp sugar and handful of dried sultanas, you want them cheesy = add any cheese you want! I replaced butter with coconut oil, just because I believe that make the scones feel a little bit less naughty. And it works every time! Oh, I just love the consistency and the benefits of the coconut oil!

BASIC COCONUT OIL SCONES

150g flour
1 tsp baking powder
45g coconut oil
30ml milk (can be substituted with coconut milk)
1 medium egg (or add another 25ml of milk if you want to keep it even more basic)

1. Mix all the ingredients together (mix flour and baking powder separately first) until everything combines well and shapes non-stick dough.

2. Roll the dough 1 cm thick and by using cookie cutter cut the dough into the circles.

3. Bake the scones for about 10-15 in the preheated 180C oven. Enjoy!

Rasa xoxo

Our holiday in Florida

By Rasa Pelham on January 13, 2015 in Travel, Updates

Well… this was mainly my holiday as we were flying to Florida for Joni’s conference so I had loads of time on my own. Not my perfect type of holidays, but I appreciated the opportunity and I am glad I grabbed it as I did (with both hands :D). What I enjoyed the most is the change of weather from frosty England to sunny beach!DAY 1: To begin me and Joni had first two days together. So we visited what mattered most, the Kennedy Space Centre. We both dream about going to space: me mostly for experience and Joni just loves the technical part of it (he is an Aerospace Engineer after all). If you are into experience as much as me I would really recommend Shuttle Launch Experience! I like tasting different flavours of Ice-cream wherever I go. This time I tried this pretty root beer float, which was probably not a right choice for me. I think root beer has a very acquired taste and I am… well… not quite acquired to it (this was my first time trying this type of drink!). The other ice cream I have tried was freeze dried Ice-cream (otherwise called Astronaut ice cream). It may not feel like eating an ice cream, but it was certainly an interesting experience! DAY 2: While Joni had a chance to take an extra super special tour at Kennedy Space Centre, I decided to explore the beach. Cocoa Beach was the closest and it certainly made my day! I spend a day in the sun lying on the sand dunes (tiny to compare to Lithuanian sand dunes though) just relaxing and reading a book (a head start on my new year resolutions!). DAY 3: I wasn’t sure what to do with myself that day. Though I will check out the town, but have been told that there is nothing to be found. I humbled myself and checked out the SeaWorld (least commercial amusement park in Kissimmee). I am not quite keen on all those “parks” and my beloved beach is not an easy place to get to without the car. However I did like the aquariums with the underwater world (will post more pics soon!). DAY 4: A shopping day. I know I know, I generally don’t do much shopping (at least for clothes)! I promised myself long time ago that I would make my own clothes all by myself (well, except shoes maybe), but it turned out quite a fun day! I bought so many things for Joni. Who knew that shopping for menswear can be that much fun!?

DAY 5: With a little bit of planning ahead I managed to squeeze in another day of beach! Yey! This time it was a Clearwater Beach which suppose to be a better beach to compare to Cocoa Beach. However Cocoa Beach has that rustic appeal that I love so much more than clear water and very very white sand. Ok, I did like the sand better in Clearwater beach. I think that sand may even be whiter and finer that the sand in the Lithuanian Beach. Which is quite odd, because Lithuanian beach have really fine slightly beige sand. Anyway, still another enjoyable day! I hope you did not mind that I shared…

Rasa :-)

Sister hats!

By Rasa Pelham on January 10, 2015 in Crochet, Knitting, Outdoors, Winter Warmers

I was so super happy to get a sister last year! When you’re the only girl in your family getting a sister is a big deal. So when it came to deciding on what gift to give to Nicola a little lightbulb lit up and I started making these cute pom-pom hats so that we would both have something matching(not identical though! That would be a bit weird..). I needed a good hat as my old one had had its days and Joni’s hats… well… they did not quite make a fashion statement. Unfortunately we did not have a chance to take a pic of us together with these hats, but we did spend a day shopping and while we shopped these hats were very useful for spotting each other in the crowd! I hope you like these hats as much as we did. You can find the pattern and instructions for them here. Just so you are aware, you will need knitting, crochet and pom-pom making (real easy!) skills to complete this project.Good Luck!

Rasa xoxo

Friendly Nettle on Instagram!

By Rasa Pelham on January 8, 2015 in Updates

I know I know it took me a while to get the hang of this as for I long time I could not quite understand how Instagram works. Thanks for Catherene for explaining me the ins and outs! To follow us click here ;-). Happy Instagraming!

Rasa

Handmade gift idea for kids

By Rasa Pelham on January 6, 2015 in Budget £, For little ones :), Gift Giving, Knitting

Giving gifts to kids is so fun and easy (I mean the toddler age)! I remember when my little brothers were still little. They used to be so excited about any toy I got for them. Those days are unfortunately over as I find it tricky to please those teenagers. Luckily last year I got a nephew-in-low and only yesterday he turned two!I love knitting socks, or any other circular knitting! This is why I knew I will knit these monster socks. This way it’s fun for me and hopefully it looks cute to Benjamin’s parents. Do you find these cute? If so, here is how you could make yours! Click here for detailed step-by-step instructions.As for wrapping I nicked this idea from Pinterest. I used materials I had: graph paper from my A4 notebook, washi tape, used cake candles and a spare ribbon. I wish I had better pen to write with though. Enjoy gift giving!

Rasa xoxo

New Year resolutions + free printable 2015 calendar

By Rasa Pelham on January 2, 2015 in Organisation, Updates

Wow! It’s 2015 already! I hope you had great New Year celebrations! Every year I love making New Year resolutions (some are more effective then others). Last year I set simple goals, mainly because I knew it was going to be a very exciting and busy year personally (planning a wedding takes up a lot of time and energy). This year my goals are more ambitious as I am eager to learn more and improve the Friendly Nettle business as a whole.

Here are my New Year resolutions for this year:

1. Upgrade Friendly Nettle website so it’s easer to use. This means that I also need to learn to code (at least the basics). I started training myself in this once before, but dropped out as when I became too busy. I am hoping to establish a training schedule where I spend 30min every second day. That can’t be that hard!

2. Create amazing new products and bakes for a new website. I relaunched the bakery website last month, but it still needs quite a lot of updates to make the website shopper friendly. Oh, and I already have sooo many ideas on other exciting products which I am working on at this moment.

3. Update budgets. And by budgets I mean our personal budgets. For the past few years I had a system that really worked for me and I updated that for us both once me and Joni got married. We have since realised that we need to add extra budgets since we now have more things to save for. I am hoping to share very soon my years of experience with personal budgeting.

4. Read more books, because I am hoping this will improve my writing. As you may know I am not a native english speaker, so I often experience writers block because of that. I am sure you sometimes even come across some grammar mistakes. I really hope this will be less of an issue in the future. 15 min of book reading before bed is quite realistic don’t you think?

5. Learning to take better pics is one of my bigger goals! I already learned so much about photography from writing my own blog and taking pics of my projects at the same time. Getting a DSLR a few months ago transformed my photography completely, but I still feel there is room for improvement. I feel I don’t use the DSLR camera to it’s full potential, but I will start reading the manual and that hopefully should change :-D.

6. Eat healthier! This is probably the most common New Year resolution. I don’t quite know how I am going to achieve this yet, but is very important I do ;-).

7. Get active. Eating healthier and exercise goes hand in hand. At least I have a plan for this goal. I will just pick a fun sport activity! Hopefully this is as simple as it sounds!

Through this week I am hoping to fill my 2015 planner with the actions that will help to achieve this year’s goals. Do you have any New Year goals? If not, then I encourage you to write some down. It really really helps to see the bigger picture. Click here to get your free printable 2015 planner!I printed out my calendar and crocheted it together so I could hang it on my wall. Enjoy New Year planning!

Rasa xoxo

My favourite moments of 2014

By Rasa Pelham on December 31, 2014 in Let's Celebrate!, Updates

Hey dear crafters! Today is the last day of 2014! Are you ready for new beginnings? I love a fresh start, but also loved 2014. The year that is about to end was exciting and fun. This year is the year is when one of my biggest dreams came through as I got married to Joni!

2014 started with a trip to Eden Project. I like going somewhere warm while it’s cold outside! While the Eden Project isn’t in a hot country it’s easy to imagine it is when you are surrounded by tropical plants. I feel super lucky to be able to travel to Florida this January (so looking forward! my bags are already packed with many summer dresses!).

If I had to pick my favourite knitting project of 2014, I would definitely choose my knitted cable sweater. It’s the first sweater I have ever knitted and I love it so much up to this day and wear it quite frequently.2014 is when Joni visited Lithuania for the first time to meet my parents. It was a very misty weekend!Visiting Aunt Olivia in Beaulieu was also quite memorable (especially all those wild ponies!).

I love spring and 2014 spring has been the bestiest so far! See what I have created while enjoying the meadow!A huge thanks to Suzanne for organising the most amazing Hen-do ever!My Wedding preparations has been stressful on some occasions, but I am thankful for the moments I had with Vicki. She was the only one who was able to fit me into my wedding dress! Our Wedding was perfect if not better how we expected. The only thing I would do differently is choose the photographer carefully, especially when they are your friends. We spend our honeymoon in Tuscany where we enjoyed plenty of wine. You would never guess where we wanted to go for our honeymoon originally! It was Iceland, but we thought it would be nice to visit it in different season. Next autumn perhaps, to see the Northern Lights?

Here I am wearing one of the bridesmaid dresses that I made. I loved it so much that I wear it so often (thankful to Nicola for giving it back to me). After a honeymoon we had another Wedding celebrations in Lithuania. This was Joni’s second time in my home countly!In September for my birthday we welcomed Princess Leia into our team. She is so fun to play with (a bit distracting when I am trying to get some work done!).

Visited Granny Elizabeth twice in lovely Cley-next-the-Sea!Visiting Lithuania for Christmas is a nice way to end the year! I just wish there were snow on the seaside…I hope you have great New Year celebrations and may 2015 bring you fresh new beginnings ;-)

Rasa x

Something old, something new: my diaries

By Rasa Pelham on December 30, 2014 in Embroidery, Organisation

Since getting back from Lithuania I have been thinking how to have more organised in 2015. Getting a new diary is one of my methods (actually 2015 diary was a Christmas gift from Aunty Pam and I am very grateful for that!!). I loved how my fabric covered diary turned out last year so I thought I will do something similar this year. Last year I crossed stitched my diary with “2014” and it was a nice book to keep. Even though it did not always fit into my handbag I liked that it had a lot of space for writing my to do lists, recording appointments and other schedules. This year I sacrificed the space for the convenience of being able to have my diary with me at all times (well, almost). I thought “Dear Diary” cross stitch embroidery is very appropriate for my diary. You see I love scribbling in my diary so much that Vicki once thought that I actually have little “conversations” with the diary itself. To be honest, I just love my to do lists. It feels so good to be able to cross them out!Click here for this very useful fabric covered book project!Wishing you organised 2015!

Rasa xoxo

Lithuanian seaside in winter (minus the the snow)

By Rasa Pelham on December 29, 2014 in Lithuanian, Outdoors, Travel

We are back from Lithuania and I could not wait to share the highlights with you. My favourite place in the world still lies on the Lithuanian seaside, in Kuršių Nerija National Park. However this time I was hoping for snow. Why? Because snow on the seaside looks unusual and I like unusual things! Anyway, maybe I will catch the snow next year?

Getting to any destination begins with a journey and ours started with a ferry. I love how there is no other way to get to the other side than the ferry (unless you travel via a Russian enclave)! You basically get transferred to the other side while sitting in your own car. How amazing is that!Walking through the forest to get to the sandy beach feels fairytale like. However I found these squirrel trail signs hilarious :-D. And who thought we could find ready decorated Christmas tree in the middle of the forest? Trying to make sand angels (I somehow think snow angels are better). I hope you enjoyed your Christmas and getting ready for 2015 ;-)

Rasa x

How to bake Kūčiukai (Lithuanian Christmas Eve biscuits)

By Rasa Pelham on December 23, 2014 in Christmas waiting, Lithuanian, Recipes

As I write this I am Lithuania and I thought it would be nice to post something Lithuanian to make for Christmas. Kūčiukai (Lithuanian Christmas Eve biscuits) are very traditional, but they might not be to everybody’s taste. Some might find them too bland but they are definitely fun to make, so please give them a chance! If you are trying to imagine what they taste like imagine a small breadstick but with poppy seeds in them. They are usually served soaked in poppy seed “milk” but can be eaten as a snack. Interested? Then read on ;-) KŪČIUKAI

500g plain flour
7g dry fast acting yeast
2 tbsp sugar
1 pinch of salt
2 tbsp poppy seeds
2 tbsp olive oil
1 egg, whisked
250ml milk (lukewarm)

1. Mix all the ingredients and form it into a dough. Kneed the dough for at least 5 min. 2. Form the dough into a ball and place it into a bowl. Cover it with cling film and place it somewhere warm for an hour or so. When the dough has risen (at least doubled in size) then punch it to “deflate” it and cover it to proof for another half an hour. 3. Once the final proofing is done shape the dough into sausage shapes and slice them into small bits (about 1cm in size). 3. Bake these in preheated 190C oven for 5-7 min until slightly golden but not brown. I must admit, this recipe is slightly naughty! Traditionally Lithuanians don’t eat any dairy or meat during Christmas eve and this recipe certainly has some milk and eggs. If you want to try you can soak these in poppy seed “milk”. To make the “milk” just soak some poppy seeds in sweetened water and mash them with a mortar and pestle. The water should turn slightly white and milk like. Enjoy! Rasa ;-)

Instructions for Christmas craft kits!

By Rasa Pelham on December 22, 2014 in Christmas waiting, Crochet, Embroidery, Gift Giving, Projects, Sewing

Missed your chance to order Christmas craft kits? Well here is your chance to make your own hanging decorations with the materials you have. We have updated the original instructions and now they are exactly the same as you would have found in the Friendly Nettle craft kits. If you fancy making hanging birdie deco then click here or if you prefer to crochet then hanging star may be your thing ;-).Alternatively if you learn this triangle crochet pattern, you could make these super cute mini buntings!Happy Christmas waiting!

Rasa xoxo

Pleated gift wrapping

By Rasa Pelham on December 19, 2014 in Gift Giving, Paper Crafts

Finally almost all gifts are wrapped! If you are still working on your gift wrapping load, then this is another gift packaging idea to get excited about. I love how pleated gift wrapping makes the gift look more interesting, however this technique does use up quite a lot of wrapping paper. So be warned! 1. To begin, pleat the wrapping paper while still on the roll (you want to make sure you have enough of paper left for the whole gift and the pleats before cutting it off). If you don’t know how the pleats work, all you need to do is fold a straight line in and next one out. Repeat this as many times as you want until you find you have enough of pleats.

2. Place a gift upside down onto the pleated gift wrapping paper. Measure how much more of paper you will need for the gift and then cut it off from the roll.

3. Wrap the gift as you would normally do. Secure the ends by inserting double sided tape (this tape is great, because it’s hidden so no loose tape on the show!!)

4. If you want you can cut into the pleats to create variety of “trims”. But this is completely optional, pleats are pretty by itself anyway! The gift then can be styled with the gift tag which can be attached with washi tape.Alternatively you can tie a ribbon or even attach a ribbon flower (click here to see how you can make one).Most importantly, have fun ;-)