Heartmade Project ~ Bookmarks
If you like giving books for Christmas, why not make a handmade bookmark to give with each book?
Cut a cuff from an old shirt and sew the edges with blanket stitch, in a contrasting or co-ordinating colour.
Cut two small hearts from the sleeve of the shirt and sew together with blanket stitch. (You can always use another stitch, if you prefer. Even simple running stitch will be effective.)
Attach the heart to the cuff with wool.
(If you are giving this to a girl, she could wear it as a cuff too!)
Heartmade Recipe ~ Beautiful Brussels
Brussel sprouts are a bit like marmite; people tend to either love or hate them! But cooked like this, they are a very different thing entirely and even people who say they don’t like sprouts change their minds.
Cut your sprouts in half and gently cook in a frying pan, with a little olive oil some garlic, salt and pepper. When the sprouts begin to caramelise, turn them over and cook the other side for five minutes. Just cover the bottom of the frying pan with some vegetable stock and cook slowly until it has been absorbed and the sprouts are soft.
Brussel sprouts cooked like this are sweet and delicious. You could add a handful of chestnuts to your pan as they cook, making them extra festive.
Heartmade Tip ~ Holly Without the Spikes
If you don’t want to use holly because of the spikes, or because you can’t easily source holly, try substituting something else. I often use bay leaves as they resemble holly in shape and have the same lovely glossy green leaves.
Plus, when Christmas has finished and you take decorations down, the bay leaves will have dried and you can store them and use them as you need in all kinds of dishes. :O)
