Archive for the ‘News’ Category
You are currently browsing the archives for the News category.
15
Dec
2009
Over & out for the Holidays
Adue Adue
Just a short note to say Merry Christmas & wonderful new year to everyone. I don’t know if I will be posting while I am overseas so stay safe over the holiday season & we will speak again soon my dear dear friends.
This is our little holiday playmate…His name is Herbert. I found him in a car park about 8 years ago & I have always hung on to him. Tune in next year for the Canadian & American adventures of Herbert.
I will miss my sunny beach side town, my little flat. I will miss my friends & family..I will miss the sun rising over the ocean & setting over the backdrop Chevron Island.
Goodbye blog, goodbye life. See you soon
Shannon Smyth 
27
Nov
2009
Kitchen Heroes November 09
Time to reflect on the month that was. I’m a pretty seasonal kind of a chick so it seems appropriate each Month to pay homage to the things I enjoy most in my kitchen. Here’s what blew my knickers back (where does that saying even come from?) in November..
Lemons: Of course they are a spring staple, great in syrups, cakes/muffins, sauces or just squeezed over a salad. They couldn’t be more perfect.
My Mandolin: I think I have finally forgiven this kitchen contraption for severing 1/8Th of my thumb from my body (including half a fingernail) I am happy to report my thumb has grown back & I am now enjoying the fact I have regained some sensation in that corner of my thumb. Seriously though, when it comes to lazy slicing & julienne you don’t get much quicker or more accurate than this thing. If you use the finger protector (obviously I don’t) you wont lose life or limb…probably.
Spring Garlic: Plump, juicy, fresh from the ground spring garlic, how I love thee. (By the way, how awesome is our new noodley area rug for the lounge room)
My Carafe: O.K I know this one is a little weird guys but bear with me. It’s not so much the Carafe but what it usually contains that makes me love it. It usually is the vessel which brings forth my all time favorite spring drink, SANGRIA! I am completely obsessed with making sangria for hot weekend BBQs. I could drink it all day.
Golden Echalottes: These little onions are gold, pure gold. Buy a kilo & caramelize them in your slow cooker like…right now! They add serious flavor to gravies, sauces, tarts, burgers ect. They’re amazing, they’re special..well, they’re just good, In the same way Princess Di was humble & good..they’re good.
Ricotta: The simplest of cheeses also makes the simplest of deserts, I adore honey & nutmeg baked ricotta served with grilled peaches. It is also great in pancakes, muffins & the like.
Toasted Coconut Marshmallows: pillows of heaven coasted in toasted coconut. I bought these at the start of the month from our posh local chocolatier planning to top cupcakes with them or bury them in some brownies…the only thing they have done is be repeatedly & secretly eaten by me.
I am also digging the spring lamb but it gets cooked & eaten so quickly I would need a faster lens to capture it!
24
Nov
2009
Burning the candle at both ends
Hey you guys, I miss you!
I haven’t been paying as much attention to bake & bloom as I would like lately… I really just haven’t had the time. Work has been a bit busy, my apartment was in dire need of a good wash, my laundry still remains un-laundered, my homework halfway done & oh…I went camping for the weekend with Mr Bake & Bloom & some mates.
Could someone please tell me why days are only 24 hours long..I need at least another 5 I’m sure.
Anyway enough winging, I wanna tell you about camping in Byron Bay. Well, it was bloody windy & our campsite manager was a douche but we still had a pretty rad time. (except for the scary, blowie around tent that frightened the life out of me) We ate out, frolicked on the beach, browsed the shops, listened to buskers & so on. We had a completely awesome breakfast on the last day at the Black Sapote cafe that triggered me to leave the biggest breakfast tip I have ever given to the nicest & most helpful waitress in the world.
Good times…and more to come.
I’m not sure if I have told you guys properly I have a massive holiday coming up from Dec 17Th (my birthday) – January 13Th. My trip will look something like this:
- Vancouver
- Whistler (for Christmas)
- Seattle
- Las Vegas (for NYE)
- L.A
I am super exited because this is my first big trip overseas (I went to Fiji for 2 weeks once) and my first white Christmas. I have been compulsively googling airplane beauty tricks & liquid allowances for carry on luggage for about a week now, I am pumped! Nearly a month of bliss & time off from work, school & my domestic little life.
I have a few things I really want to cook before I go though because let’s face it, my life is nothing without cooking. I have egg whites ageing in the fridge & I am determined to make some good macarons. I have tried a few times & never been able to even get them off the baking paper. I also want to do a variation on those coconut palm sugar cookies & make them into the best ever gingerbread cookies. I have a couple of Birthday cakes to make before I go too…Dad don’t go thinking just because I’m not home for the holidays that I’ve forgotten about you!
On the school front I have been learning to make wreaths & centerpieces lately. I love spinning them about on the lazy susans on our big work bench, it’s super fun. There are tons of agapanthas in bloom at the moment & I have been erm, pruning them from neighbouring gardens (in the commercial district, I haven’t been pruning little old ladies hard work!) They’re so so lovely!
Hmm I think that covers everything. I promise promise promise a proper update on Thursday.
<3 Shannon
Camping shenanigans with my bestie Maggie (& some cheeky monkey flipping us off in the background)
22
Oct
2009
Learning, loving, living
OK, so they’re not flowers I would have chosen. But look how full & round my table arrangement is! We have to make these table arrangements over & over in school apparently, this is my second go & I’m pretty proud of it. My first one was all ragamuffin & patchy.
To anyone considering a career in floristry please know first, it’s hard! Do you know how many kinds of flowers there are? Well there’s heaps, like thousands & you have to learn them all by 2 names, botanical & common. You have tonnes of homework, you stab your fingers with wire & you have to use ugly orange chrysanthemums. BUT to me it’s all worth it. Maybe I am a little weird but I have always enjoyed work this hands on. I always loved working in organics for the same reasons I think I’m going to love floristry.
The ladies at work picked up on the fact I am somewhat of a creative genius (ha!) & one asked me to make her hat for the Melbourne Cup. What an honour, I really feel awesome that someone would place that much trust in me. She gave me the base, some scraps of fabric from her custom made suit, a hot glue gun, some dried flowers & free creative licence.
I know I am proud as punch & Jenni is wrapped with her hat (it looks gorgeous with her outfit) What do you think of my handiwork?
14
Oct
2009
Back to school
My sunny little friends
I am officially a student again, with a pencil case & everything!
Last night was my first in 28 weeks of floral design school. I have a feeling it is going to be a steep learning curve, there’s text books, homework, prac work, assignments…in short a lot of non fun stuff, but I’m pretty sure it is going to be worth it in the end. There’s only 2 students in my class (including me!) so getting the most out of each lesson is going to be quite easy I expect.
Some light reading
Last night we covered preparation of flowers including stripping foliage, additives for water, refrigeration ect & some basic workplace health & safety stuff. We also learned how to wire flowers, we did a couple of gerberas & took them home! I was so exited taking flowers home now I know what to put in the water & that I have to cut them on an angle..OK so I already knew that bit, but it felt so much more important! I also learned that having nice nails is a thing of the past as they’re going to end up covered in hot glue, wire puncture marks & dirt…glamorous I know.
I now have some sunny little friends in my living area brightening up my life.
Those little kinks are called elbows..it gives the flowers room to grow, yes these ones still grow after being cut!
Oops! her little wire is poking out!
