Barbara Pagani's Tresor Cache 101

source:  http://imgoingtotexas.blogspot.ca/search?updated-max=2010-10-07T22:28:00-05:00&max-results=100 Potstickers  (serves two) Filling  2 Tbs safflower or peanut oil 3/4 pound ground pork 1/2 cup rough chopped shitake mushroom tops 1 garlic clove 1 inch peeled fresh ginger 1/4 cup thin sliced scallions 1/2 cup finely shredded cabbage Sesame oil Soy sauce Microplane box grater (this thing scared the heck out of me when I first got it, but now I use it all the time) Slice green scallions into thin rounds.  Finely shred the cabbage using a medium-sized microplane blade. Heat the oil in a saute pan, throwing in the pork and shitakes first.  As the pork begins to cook, gently break it up with a wooden spoon (I used an old bamboo paddle that came with a wok that has long since departed ... it's one of my favorite cooking tools). Grate the garlic and ginger on the finest microplane blade and toss them into the pan, turning the heat down to medium high if things look like th

I have been thinking about making some rain chains for a while because I found them to be pretty costly at most of the garden centers. Here are some of the ideas that I have found via: http://dollarstorecrafts.com/2012/07/tutorial-rain-chain-from-wire-wrapped-rock/comment-page-1/#comment-59864 Project Materials: 2 spools of floral wire, $1 each 5-10 coils of thick decorative floral wire, $1 each 1 bag of decorative river rocks, $1 Paper clips, on hand Pencil, on hand Wire cutters, on hand or $1 Needle-nosed pliers, on hand or about $3 p Note about Supplies: Wire:  You can find the thin, green floral wire, the thick decorative wire, and wire cutters in the floral section of the dollar store. If you can't find the thick decorative floral wire, pick up a spool of colored  20-Gauge Wire  in the jewelry-making section of your local craft store for about $5. You can also use plain silver floral wire instead of green floral wire if you prefer. How much wire you need

I came across these 2 stained glass pieces on the weekend at a garage sale for $2.00. I know I have no where to put them, but I just could not resist them. Each piece has some slight damage on small sections of the glass but this can be repaired. Instead of just soldering some hooks and hanging them in the window with chain, I am going to look for some old windows to put them in and then add some thicker chain and hang them in my diningroom. This will sit in the project pile for a bit but it will be a good project in the fall or winter when there is nothing else to do outdoors.

My very first fasination with door knobs and keys was because of my grandfather, on my dad's side know as my Nanoo,  who kept all his secret stuff ,whether it was his chocolates, dried friuts , little shot glasses or his whiskey, wine or some soft drink that just came on the market, he had some special treats locked in the hallway closet.  Of course being slightly curious living with my grandparents I could not help myself by looking what was behind those locked, closed sacred door. It took my months of planning to see what times my grandfather would go to lie down, but I finally established what his pattern was and I went across his room all the while trying not to breath or knock into anything. My hand was on the key and my heart was racing so fast and hard that I thought it might wake him from his sleep. Now I was almost racing across to the other side of the bedroom anticipating what I would find in this closet only meters away. I turned the key very carefully so not to wake

Ingredients *Please note: If you do not have access to Nudo Italian olive oil with mandarins, use a high quality olive oil that you have on hand and add the zest of two oranges or three or four mandarins. This substitution also works for lemons. 7 oz / 200g hazelnuts, ground and blanched 1/3 cup /50g polenta 1/3 plus 1 tablespoon /50g of 00 flour* 8 tbsp extra virgin olive oil crushed with mandarins 7 tbsp /100g butter 3 eggs 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 cup /100g soft brown sugar 1/2 cup /100g caster sugar mascarpone, a spoonful for each serving *all-purpose white flour will work fine here Preparation 1. If you are starting with whole, unroasted hazelnuts (better), heat the oven to 200°C. Lay out the hazelnuts on the baking tray, no more than a single layer deep, and cook for 5–10 minutes, when the skins should start to peel off. Take them out of the oven, pour onto a clean tea towel and rub to remove the skins. Grind the nuts in a food processor. 2. Turn the oven

some of the patterns that I want to try on some salvaged furniture pieces

here are some wonderful ideas for Joe P, my daughter's boyfriend. Making a greenhouse out of old windows and doors: source: http://charmhome.blogspot.ca/2010/06/adorable-diy-conservatory-guest-blog.html Rain water barrel source:  http://beachbrights.blogspot.ca/2010/01/everybody-is-going-green.html The ultimate rain barrel source: http://conchacastaneda.blogspot.ca/2009/03/got-rain-season-2.html Garden private fencing source:  http://landliebe-cottage-garden.blogspot.ca/2011/08/drei-alte-fensterladen.html retractable awning source:  http://www.luxist.com/photos/retractable-roof-pergola/2009054/

We bought some of the outdoor sets that are being sold at Reno with 6 chairs for $199.00, 2 yrs ago. Well after most of the chairs have broken while someone is sitting on them, we decided to start looking around for something better. My neighbour had 6 teak chairs that she felt she couldn't maintain and I bought them from her. I plan to do at least 2 chairs a day and then put on the sealer until I am done. And then of course I will have the table and another couple of chairs to do. Let's see if I can get all this done b/4 August. Here is a b/4 and after sanding.

We were thinking of getting another dog to keep our Lab, Blu busy and while at a party several weeks ago, I mentioned it to one of my daughter's friend's and low and behold she called asking us if we were interested in a Pug. At first, I wasn't that keen on a Pug, but I found out that if she didn't find a home she would have to bring him to the SPCA and if he wasn't adopted within 10 days, they would put him to sleep so I said well "let's give it a try" if he doesn't get along with Blu, then we'll call her up and send him back. He arrived last thurs evening and our dog was all over him and I thought, oh no, it doesn't look like a good idea but after letting them get out their ya ya's, they have finally calmed down a bit and are very cute together. Henry is a very smart dog and is listening to almost everything I tell him but I do notice a little bit of a stubborn streak but he'll soon come around when he see's Blu following o

I've been busy lately doing alot of things other than painting. I made strawberry jam and went raspberry picking with my middle daughter and picked 1 litre of raspberries but of course ate just about as much while picking last week. I flash froze the raspberries as we were at our cottage and all my jars and pectin were in the city. I will make the jam this week because the weather has just been way too hot. I worked on 2 paintings last week, one for my brother and one for my sister in law. This one is 12 x 16 acrylic soft body paints with gloss medium gel. "Colour explosion"  I also have 2 encaustic paintings in the works and I will post them as soon as they are completed. 

Source:  http://www.thehandmadehome.net/2012/02/25-fun-fonts-for-font-snobs/  

Well it's summer time again and that is about the only time I play with encaustic because I worry about doing it without proper ventilation or a mask in the house. So I wait until it's nice outside and play around. I am all out of wood to play with and I have tons of canvases that I recently bought on special so I figured I would give it a try. I am not sure how well it will hold up over time with the weight of the wax but I'll come back at   later date and make notes. The letter B was collaged and after fusing some wax and buffing I added some detail which I later filled in with some metallic paints. This was done on birch board, 8 x 10 $75.00 Work still in progress on canvas. I added some collage elements and different colour waxes and then used some metallic ink for some details.

Source:  http://deviatsia.livejournal.com/46168.html A project to do for the daycare