It's been a while....

since I blogged - sorry, life became much too hectic, and I downed tools for a while. I'll post some projects shortly, but I wanted to show you some images from the night away Steven and I just had...

We arrived at our B&B on Saturday afternoon, went for a couple of walks and had tea at the local RSL.

We then snuggled up in our lovely room with the above essentials....bliss!

The next morning, after a fabulous breakfast, we strolled down and looked around......

before I tell you where we stayed, I'm going to offer a surprise to the first person who guesses the location.. good luck!

A fantastic sewing retreat....

After a break of a few months, I am finally getting around to publically raving about the last place

we stayed on our fabulous Tassie holiday .......

 The Old Cable Station in Stanley.

I decided this place was so beautiful for so many reasons that it deserved an entry all by itself.

This little gem is tucked away just outside of Stanley proper, a short distance from the Highfield homestead and is the site of the cable station that enabled a telecommunications link

between Tasmania and the mainland.

We were lucky enough to be placed in the self contained cottage containing the old telephone exchange....

Out the window of the photo below, there is a covered courtyard the holds a beautiful timber table,

large enough to seat 10-12 people. A gas heater and barbeques are also provided, so even on a cool day,

it would be possible to sit and sew or relax in comfort.

Upon arrival, we were provided with tantalising foods of the highest quality for breakfast the next morning.

Several smaller but really lovely rooms are located on the other side of the courtyard. I could imagine staying here with a few friends for a weekend (or even longer!) relaxing in the fresh air

and sewing to our hearts' content.

The cottage has several bedrooms, and at least 2 have their own ensuite, as well as

a self contained kitchen and lounge with a TV and DVD player.

We were given the main bedroom which had its own massive bathroom

complete with a luxurious spa.... it was heavenly...

The icing on the cake was dinner in the restaurant in the evening. Mic is a top class chef who created a memorable meal for the two of us. I had been hanging out for the

wood oven roasted Stanley 1/2 crayfish with baby potatoes and a fresh side salad......

while Steven enjoyed fresh salmon served with locally grown vegetables.

We finished off with a platter of Tasmainain cheeses and loccal produce.....MMMMMMMM!

You couldn't ask for better hosts than Mic and Charlotte - they are genuine people who are passionate about providing their guests with the best of everything. Would anyone be interested in going down there with me for a sewing retreat? 

Chocolate fantasy

During 2009, as one of the professional goals I was required to set at work, I elected to learn more about coverture chocolate, as I had no experience in this field of specialty.
I was fortunate enough to stumble into one of Sylvia's workshops, and was hooked from there!

I have attended three workshops so far. Each one built on the knowledge and stills obtained in each earlier one, and I have to admit, I thoroughly enjoyed every one of them. Sylvia explains all apsects clearly and is a very positive and patient teacher.

The rose decoration is made using chocolate 'putty' and is fully edible. It's good to see the cake decorating skills I learnt in 2008 can be used in other areas!

I have to confess that it was a requirement to complete sensory evaluations on each type of chocolate.... some needed several 'checks' to make sure they were of a reasonable quality to offer to my colleagues and family. It was a tough job, but someone had to do it.
Which type of chocolate is your favourite?

Heaven on Earth! (Part One)

Steven and I have arrived back from our postponed 25th anniversary holiday to Tasmania

….. the most beautiful place in the world, we think!

We were blessed with perfect weather, magnificent accommodation and sumptuous food

– it’s hard to know what to leave out, so get a drink, relax and enjoy!

The photo above shows part of the track to Liffey Falls, a beautiful waterfall which is well worth visiting if you are in the area. We spent quite a while relaxing here, just soaking up the atmosphere.

The first night, we stayed at Lemonthyme Lodge, near Cradle Mountain. It is tucked away on a gravel road in western Tasmania. The lodge is surrounded by forest and has several walks you can undertake. The evening meal was inspirational….

Much to Lana’s disgust, I selected …

“Tender and succulent char-grilled wallaby rump dusted in Moroccan seasoning

and placed on a vegetable frittata, topped with Chef’s tomato relish

and seasoned with red wine vinegar and sumac dressed salad”

The photo doesn’t do the meal justice – it was mood lighting in the restaurant! Steven had Crispy skinned grilled Chicken Breast which he thoroughly enjoyed.

Dessert? We shared a cheese platter and a platter of mini sized desserts that were heavenly!

The next morning, after a relaxing walk to the fern glade on Lemonthyme, we headed for Cradle Mountain. We had managed a flying visit on our postponed honeymoon nearly 26 years ago, but had more time on this trip. Neither of us were sure how Steven would cope, but we chose the Dove Lake circuit, which was not in existence on our first trip. We walked about 8.5 km that day, but enjoyed every moment – this area is SOOO stunning, in so many ways!

We fell in love with this tree… it contained several beautiful burls, which Steven loves to work with…

After such strenuous activity, we desperately needed a rest…

this is what awaited us at Wheelhouse Apartments in Strahan..

This was one of the most stunning places you could ever hope to spend a few days.

After a luxurious spa bath, we settled in to watch the sunset with

fresh fish and chips and a bottle of Tassie bubbly… what more could you want?

my amazing students

I had to share with you some of the fabulous morsels my students created for their cup cake design assignment.........

They put a great deal of thought and imagination into their work, and produced their own photographs. I am incredibly proud of their efforts. What do you think?

(By the way, if you want the answers to the sushi quiz, the students' work is pictures 1 and 3 - did you guess correctly?)

A quiz for you

Over the last few weeks, I have been showing some classes how to make sushi. After sending a selection of their photos to the staff, several colleagues asked how to do it, so I ran a special class for them after school this afternoon. We had a lovely time, and shared a lot of laughs


Now for the quiz - can you pick which of these photos are the students' sushi and which are the teachers'? No hints - let me know what you think!

Picture 1

Picture 2:

Picture 3