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Friday 31 January 2014

MISI - Handmade in the UK: Fabulous Fridays... The Interview ~ Vintageellie

MISI - Handmade in the UK: Fabulous Fridays... The Interview ~ Vintageellie: It's Friday! - I think we are all happy about this - so we have a brand new interview for you. We are pleased to present you  Vintage...

look out for my store Interview! tomorow with MISI!

Bespoke vintage Castle is on the map! Great news! My sister and I have been interviewed by Misi.co.uk! The Uk based website for sellers of handmade items; just like the items we create here at Bespoke VC!
So look out for our interview and exclusive tomorrow! It will be featured on my blog! Can't wait! One more sleep to go!

Wednesday 29 January 2014

Bespoke flower Girl this Valentine!

My latest creations from my studio at home! Bespoke flower girls! Items made for the special little girl chosen for you're special day!

Gorgeous wands made with silk, Dupioni, gold netting tulle and buttons 


In lovely exuberant colours this wand is chocolate and aqua with gold and silver accents still with original Nottingham lace and dupioni silk.

Wands for you're little flower girl basket alternatives, I made wands for my flower girls on my wedding day topped with silver birds! Baskets are so ordinary! Go Bespoke on you're big day!


Sweet hot pink and red silk crocadile clips perfect for a Valentine wedding!

The back is neatly presented with lace and feathers

An absolutely bespoke hair bow boutique style on a crocodile clip perfect for a little princess! Made to order in a choice of silks and colours!

Slightly gothic romance, this bespoke hair bow has been made with 100%silk in a ravishing red perfect for valentines wedding backed with silky black feathers this piece is truly beautiful, delicate and couture








Tuesday 28 January 2014

housewife and home

Rustic Homemade Kebab and chips Recipe

I made kebab and chips from scratch for our supper tonight, It's not the most fancy thing to Blog about as my first recipe & menu, but I have to start somewhere other wise I will continue to procrastinate! like they say no time like the present!
 So because I am new at this I will try my best to convey and make sense of what I did and I hope it sounds yummy enough for you to try it too!

  Here is what I did






Meal  prep: the work area & wash, peel chop and refrigerate the chips
prep time 15 mins
cooking time 40 mins

To start you will need:
wooden skewers
plastic bowl
potato peeler
saucepan 
frying pan
chopping board
Baking tray or oven proof dish


 Ingredients:
Potatoes (organic Home grown)
Beef as burgers or minced meat
store brought garden salad
pineapple
sweetcorn
black pepper
lettuce
tomato
cucumber
sweet peppers
onion finely chopped
store brought Coleslaw
plain flour
Olive Oil

seasonings:
sugar
Thyme
Maggi cube
salt 
pepper
BBQ sauce
breadcrumbs
beef seasoning
ginger paste
Garlic Paste


The above is what I used but below
(For that extra flavour:)
coriander
chili
lime
add to the Beef/Kebab meat







So firstly you take you're meat as much as you need and mash it with a fork then continue with you're hands. with the meat portions I have to feed a family of three; and yes i have got to get better at people to food ratio thing! When i start with ,my personal trainer next month i guess i will understand it better,but for now I make too much for everyone and we eat too much  lol!
 anyway; I digress; with the mashed beef meat add all you're herbs, spices and seasonings from the teaspoon of sugar to garlic paste. Personally I never add a pinch of any my spices unless its salt. With everything else i just shake and stir according to what my taste buds are accustomed to! So I am not a fan of salty tastes unless its with something sweet for example, sweet and sour chicken or honey roasted salty cashews or salted caramel etc etc..so my seasonings are a little on the sweeter side with this meat than too salty.
Next add the garlic to the mashed meat, ginger for a fragrant taste to the beef and its a food preserver also, add the flour maybe 1/4 cup to bind it all together but it should not be grey you have added too much  , so it would be better to sift it in you will see how much you need to make it a paste the flour helps to keep it on the skewers so really not too much.
Then take a skewer : (Handy tip to stop you're skewer from burning in the oven soak it in cold water for about 20 mins you will need to do this as part of you're prep)
and add you're meat to the skewer; meaning don't make balls and pop them on there likely to slide down take the skewer and add the meat to it, you can play around with the design but keep the layering of meat thin so it cooks evenly as i have done in the pictures below:




In the first one I am meat molding (very messy warning!) next there all askew! at this point pop them in the fridge to chill and take out you're prepared fries.
Now the way I make chips is fool proof you cant have more tastier chips if you follow this exactly! I have learnt this recipe years ago and its to die for!
The Great British Chip:
King Edward Potatoes (we grow our own)
peel and chop potatoes into similar shapes and sizes and place in a cold fridge to chill for 1 hour
take out and Boil for 10 mins take from the boil and place the chips in ice cold water
fry in sunflower oil! voila! the best British chip Ever Guaranteed!
....trust me I am a Housewife!

At this point your chips have been in the fridge chilling for the hour now boil them instantly for 10 mins!






In my picture journal above I am popping the skewers in the oven now on 180 degrees fan oven gas mark 4 for 20 mins as I bring the chips to the boil then I start my Fruity salad!which literally takes me two mins!

My Fruity Salad:
pineapple
sweetcorn
black pepper
lettuce
tomato
cucumber
sweet peppers
olive oil, pepper,salt and lemon to dress
 additionally if time permits, add to the lettuce homemade mayonnaise, a handful of chopped mango,grated carrot,  apple,olives raisins, celery a pinch of nutmeg yummy!




So firstly the chips boil in the saucepan for 10 then I shallow fried  (I hate deep frying unless i really have to and you should for the ultimate British chip really its tradition!)

The skewers are ready now so I made a sticky glaze literally in a bowl of :
smoky BBQ sauce 
2 teaspoons of brown sugar
honey
mustard
mix!
add to the skewers plate up you're salad and a healthy dollop of coleslaw (I prefer home made but hey its Tuesday.. in January- don't judge me! ;)
plate up you're meal, make it presentable, my husband always likes to see what i have done to his meal with the presentation!
LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK! 
try it out, or simply cast you're comments below I would love to know what you thing about our midweek supper!
Thanks


Lastly plate it up neatly for the family and serve with love!
Its not about engorging on the most glamorous food all the time its mid January after such a busy Christmas and a holiday abroad were hardly eating steak at this time of year, but its the little things with big presentation that matter and the heart and soul that goes into what you do for your family.






Monday 27 January 2014

I want a Bespoke Boutique!!!

My vision , inspiration and the next level for my online shop is to open a Boutique!
I  am currently looking at having my bouquets and accessories featured in a few shops around Derby,which is fantastic and an absolute privilege but wouldn't it be so super to have my own!
Locally I haven't seen any that i would consider elite Bespoke shopping experiences except one!
Mimi Toko in Duffield Derbyshire!



This Boutique is the only one locally that I believe shares a vision of what i want to do! Its stunning, opulent and really stand out with excellence!
I would like to have a popular Bespoke Boutique like Renee Strauss, Angela Vickers 
or Sondra Celli. under my name 

Betty Timbo!

It sounds fabulous! I want to host a variety of gowns by, Jenny Packham, Ian Stewart, Chipo Bespoke,Mooshki, Lizzie Jayne, my own line and many more!


featuring my flowers, buttonholes Bouquets..
Bespoke Purses and shoes..


All in a stunning Boutique setting!


love the flowers on the front of this store

loving the lights!





Everything's so pretty!



A home away from home at our Beautiful Boutique!


With pretty Blossom trees on the front
sounds incredible but its my fabulous vision for Bespoke Vintage Castle!


Saturday 25 January 2014

My new Obsession Washi Tape!

Yes I know i am late and Washi Tape is old news! 
But I've actually been able to get my hands on it for the first time! Now the possibilities are so endless I'm the sort of person that never knows where to draw the line! Lol



Love these ideas I will be using them in our Bespoke Vintage Castle store


So going to do this with my house keys! It's uber pretty!



Making housework colourful! These ideas are great for home!



Perfect for Easter crafts this year!

This is..Absolute Washi extremities!! 

loving the tape il be trying it out with some crafts of my own in a few weeks 
Most likely after the fashion show! All my time and energy is going into that now, but if I Love it, I know I gotta try it!










Friday 24 January 2014

Home chic home weekly blog

I have decided every week I will post one room in my house taking pictures and putting them on my blog! So this week is my shabby chic kitchen, I spend the most time there (cleaning it) lol and it's the place that resembles me the most it has my sons art work,beautiful  vintage pieces delicious recipes, my shabby chic things pretty things all over, Bunting, clever words, cakes, bakes,sweets and treats. Something is always in the oven! I just love my kitchen!

My pretty pastel things and love lots of sunlight coming in! I love retro signage and sayings there all over our home! I love pretty things and clever words!


The theme is even with the cat bowls! I love aprons I enjoy making them there is a pretty blue one hanging up it reads :time for tea?  With a Kistch china cup on it.
What's really special is the wicker basket it was my mothers and she used to carry what she made at school in cookery class home in it, when I went to School I did the same and one day my daughter will too! 
 My rocking chair, this  chair is so special to me! 
I actually salvaged this from being chopped up by someone who just simply didn't want it any more! My husband was driving i was like "what is that guy doing? STOP, STOP!" luckily he did! We shoved it in our car and took it home! But What a waste it would have been! His wife just didn't want it anymore it was her baby nursing chair and they got another new one! Are there really people like that?

During the day I love rocking in my chair, I often read a quiet novel there and soak up the natural light I have pictures of friends and family in the heart wire frame on the wall 
it's a special spot and my husband is drawn to it also as every evening as Im serving dinner on the stove my husband sits there and tells me about his day. 


By the back door to the garden I have shabby chic wind chimes on the other side




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Housewife Fridays

WELCOME TO HOUSEWIFE FRIDAY!
As much as i love my business at home I am a true old fashioned housewife at heart. that is why i work from home! i love being home with my son and kitty cat! I love all things traditional like cooking and cleaning and making new recipes! Its great that i have that balance within my home, it was at home that i was inspired to start my Bespoke business. i love decorating and interior design and decorating that i knew i had to share that and my husband and Bespoke Business has let me do this!
So today is housewife Friday, this is the day i leave my business for the weekend and do my housewife duties!I am so lucky to spend every day at home anyway with my son so i clean and tidy always and daily focus on the home i do cook and clean as usual but i will consciously not work at all on my Housewife Fridays!
Every Friday in the morning take my son Jonathan Football, and then to the adventure playground, then we come home, and we have a late lunch, in fact I am making lunch now something light, tomato soup on the stove and baking home made bread! (i may start posting my recipes actually)and i have our creamy mushroom chicken supper in the slow cooker then i have laundry and hoovering to do this afternoon! and watch cartoons with Jonathan such a quiet and simple day! its in my comfort zone, then maybe tonight we will go out as a family somewhere nice, its great to relax after such a busy week!





Thursday 23 January 2014

Cowboy Toy box Bespoke

Today I started, and completed a cowboy themed toy box, customised  to match the small boys bedroom for his birthday tomorrow! notice given to me on Monday ... yes two days ago the day before my son's birthday Monday! 
thank God that I have managed to complete it it wasnt easy to do what with people turning up on my doorstep today to "visit" and with me stupidly started to do the spray painting on the box in the house! (I was hallucinating at one point) 
After all that hard work, it kind of looks okay I've asked the client if she likes it she said: "OMG it's incredible I absolutely love it" 
For me that is just what brings ultimate satisfaction :) 
It matches her little boy's bedroom perfectly and was made with love for his birthday tomorrow! 
From us at Bespoke Vintage Castle, I'm so tired but i had to get it done, i mean, he shares the same Birthday week as my son! how can I not make this with love?







I took these right after I finished the toy box late last night




Front view and side both  sides are bespoke differient!