brewers CRAP

 My Sister in Law's sister is a chef.  One year at Christmas, she sent beautifully decorated snowflake cookies.  I've often dreamed of making something similar.  Little white dots and lacy white lines of sugar adoring fragrant home baked gingerbread hearts were the cookies of my dreams. And I did get to make them...kinda.... some kids I know wanted to help. Well, actually I had to recruit one kid I know as to avoid that kid continually bothering the other kid. However,  in the end they got right into the whole process and things strayed a little from my plan of beautifully decorated gingerbread hearts.

My Hearts... cute... not quite the adorned level of the Sister in Laws sister. 

Some Kids I know... made Teddy Bears that appeared to be bleeding from the bite wounds.

...this one is even holding it's own head.....

H

 I recently watched a movie call "Puzzle".  Housewife in Argentina receives a puzzle for her birthday.  As an iTouch might distract me, this puzzle took her away from family in an amusing sort of way.  She teams up with "another" fella and competes in competitive puzzling.  Well.....With starting a Guelph Puzzle league in mind...... I just had to pull out some of our puzzles.

First the Weyermann factory in Germany. 500 pieces... Three days.  I'm not quite ready for full on competition....

Next ..... Star Wars and a montage of first and second generation characters...... 500 pieces... 2 days... getting better...

BUT wait.... take a closer look.....

yes... Yoda does frown upon a missing piece..... it would seem as though King of the World... has taken a liking to puzzles as well....

I feared my puzzling days were over.... and have decided to relocate to my place of work.... Hopefully as my skills improve I will also snag a fello competitor to join me at the puzzle table.

H

 As with most Holiday seasons, some kids I know and I get down with some Gingerbread House creative action.  After taking our house to a local Gingerbread contest and sorely losing to the Mayor, we decided to pit the Mayor's house against ours in a Squirrel verse House taken down.  The Goal.... to see which house would stand the longest.

Our's in the background.

Our first Squirrel customer.

After taking a few nibbles from our house....

They took the whole side of the Mayor's!!!

In the end both houses were brought to the ground.  

Conclusion:  When there isn't enough snow, I take pictures of Squirrels eating Gingerbread. Please send more snow, I'd like to go skiing.

I love pie.... This felt pie was so much fun to make. 

I bought the pattern from a vendor on ETSY called Sweet Emma.... and sewed it up for my ma.  

H

Pie, Oh pie.  "Me oh my I do love pie".  It's kind of pie season isn't it?  From Thanksgiving's pumpkin to Christmas's .... What pie does Christmas have?  Apple?  Cherry?  Grasshopper?  No worries, although my pie is not felt free it is hand crafted and fat free.

PS Do not show this blog to my mother.... This is her Christmas gift.  Thanks H

(I bought this pattern from Sweet Emma on Etsy.)

 3,604 cups of coffee were made into a giant Mona Lisa painting in Sydney, Australia. Each cup was filled with different amounts of milk to create the different tones and shades....... (What more can I say...This is pretty cool.  Of course made from Ale, Lager and Stouts.... I may just drink the smile off Mona's face.)

Carrier for a Double Wine..... Check-out with it on ESTY (as I don't yet have it on the official brewersCRAP site)

http://www.etsy.com/listing/85650335/brewerscrap-2-bottle-wine-carrier

One of my customers asked me to make this so he could take two bottles to a house party and leave the bag there as a gift.

I've got this brewersCRAP Prize pack ready.

Ready to be auctioned off at this....

(as copied off their website)

The Scotiabank Giller Light Bash, in support of Frontier College, is an exciting evening where people come together to celebrate Canadian literature and raise money for Frontier College, Canada’s original literacy organization. It is a well-known and well-attended cultural event that has become a must-attend event and a highlight of the Canadian literary scene.

P.S.  I'm excited and I'm not even going to be there..... but my brewersCRAP is..... and lucky person will take home.... a pre-loaded "Round of Beer", hat, soap, wallet, zippered pouch and notebook with brewersCRAP cover.

 While in Pittsburg, I did go to the Jinte Iggle (Giant Eagle), I did not buy Jumbo for my sandwich.  Pittsburg, as well as having their own dialect (and proud of it) also proved to have really friendly people, some very cool museums and great places to eat your lunch.  

Andy Warhol's 9 floors of Pop art and basement of hands on, screen your own Pop art T-shirts AND Heinz History Museum's exploration of local condiments and Pittsburg's industrial history couldn't top our visit to Primanti Brother's, on a Steeler's game day.  The sandwich (photoed below) was accompanied by "Go baby, Go baby" cheering.  Move over Montreal and your poutine.... Along with Coleslaw, Tomatoes and Meat of your choosing (or fried eggs), Pittsburg puts their fries and cheese ON the sandwich.... I'm going back to Pittsburg one day..... for the sandwich.

H

**May also return to Newell, West Virginia for some "Hoopy" (Hillbilly Home Cooking).  Thank-you West Virginia.  I had a great lunch and have added to my collection of Feistaware. 

 I love this time of year.... wooly hat and mitt time just around the corner.....hot chocolate and stew weather... cold air starts making it harder to get out of bed in the morning.....keeps me (and Major Tom).... snuggled under the covers a little longer.... The pressing urge to get up, drags me to the washroom.

Yesterday, I harvested my carrots.  Perhaps this one was dragged out from under the warm dirt covers just in time.

H

and now I can work on making more brewersCRAP....... for Carrot Fest at Everdale Farm's this coming weekend AND Cafe Volo's Cask Fest at Hart House at the end of October...... which should prove to be a really great day as there will be casks from all across our fine country........ first ever National Cask Festival in Canada.  

H

I recently rented a car to take myself and some kids I know to visit family in Vermont.  As I was loading our things into the wee rental's trunk, I recalled how easy it was getting everything into the trunk of my old Cutlas Cruiser.  With it's wood panelled, side panels and extra back, back seat, I could transport 8 people!!! or loads of stuff.

My fancy new Impala rental, proved it's greatness very quickly.  AC....worked..... that's a big one when driving across NewYork state in the summer.  AND even more importantly I got all the away to Bennington, Vermont....on one tank of gas.... that's an 8 hour drive!!!.....

Unfortunately,  Irene's foulness played hard with my rental, as the Impala was sadly impaled.   

As we were stuck at the "Top of the Mountain" my poor Impala was the largest of our problems.... My thoughts go the the others at the bottom of the mountain who are still cleaning and rebuilding their business, homes and roads.  

Tonight I will eat my Ben and Jerry's..... right from the container.... and send good thoughts to the people of Vermont.

H

This is great collection of brewers crap.... and some brewersCRAP made the cut too.

 http://www.trashycrafterblog.com/2011/08/beer-cyclced.html

H

 I've been working on "The Mona" for several months now... and after a pre-Hillside prep. month, brake from hooking "The Mona", I've climbed back on that wagon.......... and Mona now Smiles.......... as she should......

 H

Finally, got some dirt and plants into the new planters.  

I love the two tiered planting area.  

and the crazy new lights that Beer Man and Son of Beer Man picked out for me to use at Hillside Festival.  They are so ..... "epic" at night with little stain glass glowyness.......

They are made from "New Glass" skids.... the Glass jugs that are up turned will eventually have their top removed and be outfitted with lights.  

H

 Hillside....three days.... sweated like a dog on Friday while setting up brewersCRAP booth.....swam in the lake..... Saturday, heat again.....gave my garlic wand (Garg-ah-smell) to my garden friend (child was happy as I was pretending it had a voice and was using it as my Howdy Doody Doll)...... more heat,  swam in the lake...... Sunday not so hot...... swam in the lake anyway....twice....... 

Twas not the goose poo, on the beach, of the lake that I swam, that disgusted myself.... twas the all food that I ate.

Chicken tikka----- twice

Butter Chicken

Smoked Gouda ----- provided by George's high school buddie

Empanadas  

Salad Rolls 

Pad Thai with Mango Salad ---- twice.... (had to finish what child could not)

Wedge of Blue Cheese with crackers 

Summer Sausage ------- made from spent grain feed, local Red Angus..... 

Pretzels

Kettle Chips ----- handmade at the Festival

Hummus ------ 2 tubs

Babaganous ------ sm tub that I made previous to hillside..... I roasted the eggplant and garlic on my BBQ 

Bag of red Licouris

Several Carrot sticks

Drinking Chocolate -----vanilla

Chicken Satay -----2

Beef Satay -----1

AND........ Maple Ice cream

I love the music.... I love being outside..... I love meeting new friends...... Calgary Girl, the sky is the not limit.... you will fly higher. And yes I think you need to call the cops.... I smell it too.  : )

Thank-you to everyone that made my Hillside weekend extra great fun. Thank-you to everyone that stopped by to check out brewersCRAP.  Thank-you to everyone that took some brewersCRAP home.   Thank-you to all the food vendors.  

365 more sleeps until we get to do it again!!!

H

Hillside countdown....... (this is Saturday and Hillside starts on Friday...) ....6 days????  and here is some New CRAP that I'll be selling.... This loverly bag is made with Sewfunky's organic Cotton offcuts and Malt bags... it's  got a cute little pocket on the inside for cute little things....

I've been working on some new CRAP for Hillside Music Festival in Guelph.  Here is a sneak peak at a handy little zippered bag.  

I've used Malt bags and Organic Cotton...... (which I collect from SewFunky.....also vending at Hillside this year.  

H

My inner flaming Van aches for this vehicle.  I would look soooo hot driving this bad boy in my velour co-ordinating ath-leisure pant and zippy uppies suits.  (kinda sound like I'm dis-ing...However, anyone that truly knows me, has seen my expansive collection of velour..... and realizes my mad love for flaming vans...... Mini Winny's..... and Wood Panelled Station Wagons.....with fold up far far back seats.)   

I need this van.  I need to belief that this van has deep pile in the back and a second set of seats that swivel as to be seated so that one can either drive of rest comfortable at a mini table with inset cup holder.... so that your drink does not upset while traveling..... nothing worst that cola on pile.

H