So Many Ideas……….

Hi Vintage Lovers,

We are still on our road trip but on our last leg now. We have been back to Ballarat and are now in Geelong for a few days, then on to Mount Gambier before coming home.

 

 While in Ballarat again we spent a lot of time at Sovereign Hill, which was just fantastic for gathering ideas for The Old Croft. I am coming home with so many ideas for our old lady and her garden. Too many to count.

The gardens were fabulous not only in Sovereign Hill but around Ballarat also. I cannot wait to get home to get started in the garden. The hedges, weeping trees and maples in the gardens look fantastic.

The gardens were full of  all my favourite plants, roses, aggies, clivias and hydrangeas to name a few.

I have so many ideas and thoughts for our garden buzzing around in my head right now. It's hard to think straight! 

They make and sell quality items such as cookware, tinware, and blacksmithing, using tools and techniques just like it was done in the mid 1800's. We couldn't resist buying a few items.

We are coming home with two of these brackets to create a shelf above Agatha the Aga stove..........

and some S hooks for hanging on the old ladder in the laundry. I bought the old ladder earlier this year and have been waiting to find the right hooks to suit it before hanging it up in our laundry.
 

I am keen to create a similar look to this..........



 

We all loved Sovereign Hill and Ballarat and have bought a membership to Sovereign Hill to support them and as an added bonus we receive free entry for a year and 10% off all purchases within Sovereign Hill. Yay!!!!!

 

I can't wait to go back.

 

Thanks for popping in, Have a fantastic week.

Mel xx

 

 

 

A Road Trip.....

Hi Vintage Lovers,

 We have decided to go on holiday for a few weeks. While we are away the plasterer and the electrician will be able to work their magic on our kitchen in peace.

 So we have embarked on a road trip. I just love road trips.

We flew to Melbourne over last weekend and drove up to Ballarat, a place I have always longed to visit.

From the moment we drove into the outskirts of town I fell in love with Ballarat. The delightful weatherboard cottages that have been lovingly restored and looked after for many decades. The old buildings in the city tell a story of the money that was in Ballarat during the gold rush era and each and every one of them is just gorgeous.



The beautiful house we are staying in at Ballarat.

Visiting Sovereign Hill (an 1800's replica town) was just the most amazing experience. I loved every minute of it. The level of detail was incredible and for the day we simply forgot the real world beyond the gates. All the shops sold quality items just like they used to be made, not the plastic junk of our era that is thrown out in no time at all.

The main street of Sovereign Hill.

The kids loved gold panning........



and discovering the forgotten game of coits.
 

 There was so much to see and do. We spent two whole days in Sovereign hill and I would love to go back for another day if we have the time.

We are heading to Melbourne this weekend to see the football and do some city sight seeing which should be a lot of fun.

 

Our trip takes us back to Ballarat next week though - I just can't wait..........

 Have a great weekend.

Mel xx

 

 

 

 

 

Feels Like Home Already……

Hi Vintage Lovers,

 

This is the view I have woken up to all week.......and I couldn't be happier.

The Old Croft feels like home already.

 

Our move went very well but we are still in a state of chaos until everything is sorted out. As the kitchen is still in the middle of being renovated we are actually cooking out of our laundry for the time being..........

 

and our kitchen table and old leadlight cabinet is in the family room for now to store all the pantry food. We are using office desk for all our other kitchen bits and pieces. It certainly is rather cosy at The Old Croft right now!

 

We have the fires roaring tonight.........it has been soooooo cold this week. So glad we have 4 wood heaters in our old girl. Sally has decided that the best spot right now is next to the fire in our library.

 We are having a night off tonight. It has been a huge and hectic week here. I am certainly looking forward to the weekend.

 I am exhausted, ready for my bed.........but very, very, very, happy.

Have a great weekend everyone.
Mel xx

Sticky Date Pudding Recipe

 

Here's my Sticky Date Pudding recipe as promised.

Sticky Date is one of my favourite puddings to make and to eat........as you can see it doesn't last long!

Sticky Date Pudding

340g Dates
120g Butter
4 Eggs
1 teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
2 teaspoons of Bi-Carb Soda
340g Brown Sugar
340g Self Raising Flour

Toffee Sauce

400g Brown Sugar
250g Butter
200mls Cream
Vanilla Extract

Boil the dates and Bi-Carb Soda together in 500mls of water. Combine other ingredients and then add cooled dates. Combine all. Bake in large cake tin for about an hour at 150C.

To make the sauce, mix ingredients together in a saucepan and cook until golden.

Enjoy.

Mel xx

 

A Crazy Week,but a great one at that.....

Hi Vintage Lovers,

 

It's been a busy week here with lot's of things happening. I would love a hot bath right now and to curl up next to a roaring fire, but that's going to have to wait until we move. Might have to just settle for a hot cup of tea and a bickie for now......

and light my Brown Sugar and Vanilla Jurlique Candle.

Apart from packing, packing and more packing this week......

we have had to take out more unsafe wiring that the electrician has found. There has been quite a bit of it in the kitchen. The wiring in the photo below was wrapped around the wall from the kitchen to the front lounge room and connected into a power point.

 

 

 

 

The plasterer has also been back this week to run the channels down the walls in the kitchen.

 

 

Wayne and I spent most of today looking at fixtures and fittings for the kitchen. We found exactly what we wanted at  Old Adelaide Restoration Centre down in Adelaide. The shop is fantastic and they have everything you need for your restoration. Can't wait to get all the fittings to the Old Croft to see how they look.

We even had time for a quick coffee before picking the kids up from school.

The week was finished off with a family dinner at our place with my Mum and Dad who have just returned from a six week holiday in Europe.

We cooked pea and ham soup (perfect for a winters night) and I whipped up a sticky date pudding that went down a treat. I will post the recipe for the pudding next week for you all.

Moving Day tomorrow.
One sleep to go.
Yay!

Hope you had a great week too.
Mel xx

 

 

 

 

Mel’s Traditional Shortbread Recipe

 

Here's my traditional shortbread recipe as promised. I have been baking this recipe for years (too long to count) and is very much a favourite in our house. I always make a double batch as they disappear way too quick.

 

Mel's Traditional Shortbread Recipe

180 grams of margarine

1/2 cup of caster sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon of vanilla essence

1/2 cup of self raising flour

1 and 1/2 cups of  plain flour

Preheat oven to 180C. Cream margarine and caster sugar together. Add the egg and vanilla essence and beat again. Add the two lots of flour and mix through. Knead the mixture into a ball. Lightly flour a board and knead the mixture until it is smooth without any cracks. Roll it out until it is about 1/2cm thick. Using biscuit cutters, cut the dough into shapes and place them on a foil covered tray. Bake for about 10 - 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Enjoy.

Mel xx

 

Back to Bare Bones

Hi Vintage Lovers,

We have had our electrician and plasterer back this week to do some more work on the kitchen.

The plasterer has put on a rough undercoat on the walls and the electrician came and hung all the wiring, ready for the plasterer to come back and cut out all the channels.

 

 

 

 I have been busy madly packing this week also....

the shed is certainly filling up with boxes.
 

It's also been a week of baking.

 

 

 

 It will be the last lot of baking for a while due to the 4 month wait on the Aga. I have been making the most of the oven while I still have one. I will have to go to Mum and Dad's for a while to do baking. I am sure they wont mind. J

I will post the recipe for my shortbread bickies for you in the next day or so.  They are so delicious!

This time next week we will be calling The Old Croft home.

One week to go !!!!! Yay !!!!

 

Hope you are having a fabulous weekend everyone.

Mel xx