Stephanies Teacup and Mug exchange...The Mug & The Teacup..

 I've been a joyous participant in the Teacup and Mug Exchange run by Stephanie from The Enchanting Rose for two years in a row now. Each time, it's been fun both compiling a gift for someone, and being the happy recipient of one as well.

This year I chose to both send and receive twice...a mug to and from one lady, and a teacup to and from another.

My first parcel arrived from Elizabeth who lives in the UK and blogs at Small Moments. She spoiled me with all manner of pretties. 

A little box  hid a treasure trove of loveliness including a gorgeous rose embellished bone china mug, authentic British tea, Chocolate, slips of lace, a tiny chest filled with more lace, a divine mug rug pink striped and trimmed with more roses, and lush L'Occitane products. I was completely overwhelmed by her generosity and the sweet note that arrived with the pretty parcel. Thankyou Elizabeth!

I just adored the attention to detail from Elizabeth, from the colour co-ordinated prettiness, to the tiny chest filled to the brim with lace...

 

My second parcel arrived more recently, all the way from Canada from the lovely Lorrie.

 Deliciously pink frothiness in the tissue paper wrapping and a card featuring the Eiffel Tower, hid a gorgeous china teacup and saucer. Lorrie tells me that she has an entire dinner set in this pattern! Can you imagine sitting down to a meal with this framing your three meat and veg...sigh....

 Of course that wasn't all...Lorrie also gifted me some Irish Breakfast Tea, a silk sachet filled with lavender in the most fabulous shade of rose pink, a hand made tea wallet with some specialty teas inside...

....and a Paris themed teatowel which will look perfect in my kitchen!

Look at the detail in this little button on the Lavender sachet...just stunning.

I sent to two ladies, both internationally and had a bit of a saga doing so. Customs regulations are so strict these days!

As I neglected in the kaffuffle, to take photographs, I will have to let the ladies concerned, share what pretties I sent them.

Thankyou to Elizabeth and Lorrie and to Stephanie for taking on the mammoth task of organising such a lovely exchange.

...Mimi...

Five Star Frou-Frou #46...

 

Hello all, and welcome to Five Star Frou-Frou!

This week, Amy from A Day of Small Things was a runaway with the tally for most clicks. She showcased her divine collection of vintage patchwork quilts. I don't know about you, but I am green with envy!

 Next in line was Leigh from A Chat Over Coffee. Leigh has been renovating and the results speak for themselves. Clean lines, and a new elegant look for her kitchen, all on a budget.

And finally, Gina at Victorian Wanna Be shared her stunning collection of replica Titanic dinnerware and genuine Titanic flatware. I think for any of us, the memories of the lives lost on the Titanic, remains a poignant one. I found myself wanting to reach out and touch the plates and beautiful silverware to see what stories they would tell. How special.

Thanks to all for sharing, and please make certain to make our guest features feel special by visiting and commenting.

An InLinkz Link-up

Recipe in 4 sentences...Marinated and Slow Cooked Sweet Soy Chicken...

This is an old, old, really old family favorite here. 

I hope it becomes a favorite for you too.

Here it comes, in four sentences....

Marinated and Slow Cooked Sweet Soy Chicken 

Serves 4-6

Make a marinade from 2/3 cup plum jam and 1/2 cup soy sauce, and 1/2 teaspoon each minced garlic and minced ginger, heated gently until the jam dissolves. Marinate your chosen chicken pieces in this overnight. Tip the chicken and the marinade into a slow cooker four hours before you want to eat (it will look blackish brown on the outside, and that's fine), and cook on high for one hour, then on low for three hours. When you're ready to eat, remove the chicken, slice it on the diagonal or shred it if you prefer, and serve with sides.

This is brilliant served over rice, inside wraps or peking style pancakes, inside sushi rolls, rice paper rolls, or sliders. Add sides like coleslaw and mash or , or rice noodles tossed with steamed snow peas and carrots tossed in ginger and honey. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds for a special occasion. It's also fantastic the next day served on top of a salad of any kind, and remains moist, flavoursome and succulent.

Use chicken breasts or thighs, chicken pieces, drumsticks or wings. They're all delicious. This amount of marinade/sauce is good for about one kilo (2lbs) of chicken.

You will love this. It's been a favorite in our household for over 40 years, and every single time I serve it, someone asks for the recipe. 

Enjoy!

...Mimi...

 

A Homespun Year...Lavish French inspired trimmed pillowcases...

 I've been pinning dreamy lace trimmed French linen pillowcases on Pinterest ever since Pinterest first sucked me into it's vortex caught my eye. I have hundreds of them on my Lush Bed Linen board.

They're lush and lavish and lacy, and really...what's not to like? 

But there is that one stumbling block. The ones I frequently admire start at $98 each. That's not for a pair. That's for one. Sigh.

So what could be easier than making my own?

You like?

 I can't decide whether I prefer the buttery ivory vintage styled cotton lace and chiffon flounced version above...

..or the more lavish appliqued, beribboned and muslin frilled soft dove grey one below...

 It's okay. At this price and with very little effort, I can have both...as many as I want.

I used inexpensive purchased pillowcases at around $6-$10 each, in white and soft grey.

I had on hand the following trims:

Muslin (Cheesecloth)

A remnant of cream chiffon

Ribbons in many different colors

Many lace trims

Bridal/Costume Appliques

I tend to snaffle these things from the bargain tables at my favorite haberdashery, and rarely pay more than mere cents per metre for them.

The appliques were just $1 each, as they were a shade of lilac that clearly isn't really in favor at the moment. They're the kind of thing that comes in a mirrored pair, and usually adorns the bodice of a costume or wedding dress. A dunk in a bucket of boiling water with a third of a bottle of grey Rit dye for polyester fabrics, where they swam around for several hours until I was happy with the shade of grey, remedied the less than stylish colour.

 A 20cm (8 inch) width of muslin was folded in half and stitched to create a double layer for my flounce. I gathered it slightly, and laid it along the open edge of my grey pillowcase, topping it with a sliver of pewter grey satin ribbon trim. I pinned all the layers together.

 I then added the applique`, pinning it into place.

 I carefully ran a line of small stitched along the ribbon, making sure I caught all the layers of muslin, pillowcase and ribbon with my stitching. I then stitched very slowly and carefully around the entire outer edge of the applique`.

 The white one was a little easier.

I cut a 15cm (6 inch) deep piece of chiffon, using the entire width of the fabric to create my frill. I left the edges raw to create a Shabby look, and gathered the material to make it fit the opening of the pillow case. Then this and my cotton, vintage inspired lace, were pinned to the top edge. Make sure you're pinning your trim to the single layered edge of your pillow case, not the one that's doubled, that keeps your pillow in place.

 Again, I carefully ran a line of stitching along the edge of the lace and chiffon, making sure I caught each layer in the stitches.

 A very lush and lovely result for a total spend of about $40, which was for the pillowcases, the appliques, and the grey dye. That $40 spend will yield me 6 embellished pillowcases. Even if I'd bought all of the trim, I'd have spent no more than a further $20 at the very most. So let's say I'd had to buy everything to start with, I'd have spent $60 for the six pillowcases, so that's $10 each.

That's a lot sweeter than $98 each! And I love them...

What do you think?

...Mimi...