How-To Tuesday: Turning badges & buttons into magnets.

A while ago I had turned a pile of my hair ties with fabric covered buttons into magnets because I wasn't using them. Recently I acquired some badges that I wanted to do the same to and made a tutorial to go with it. This is really good if you have fabric covered buttons and/or badges you like but don't get to admire as much as you would like. Let's get started...

What you need:

A pair of wire cutters, magnets, buttons and/or badges and an adhesive (I used Selley's multi grip). I bought the magnet in an assorted pack from the craft section at my local Bunnings hardware. 

Step 1: Using the wire cutters, cut as much of the wire on the back off. 

I cut the pin off at the hinge (you could also cut the hinge off too if your magnet is small or thin) and the hook. You want to make sure that you cut off enough of the wire so once the magnet is glued on it wont scratch your fridge/white board.

Step 2: Following the directions of your adhesive glue the magnet to the back of your badge/button.

If you are using Selley's Multi grip, you need to apply the adhesive to both surfaces, wait a minute and then put the two surfaces together. I recommend leaving the magnet on the table/bench you are working on because it can get a bit fiddly trying to put the magnet down after putting the adhesive on the back of the magnet. 

Step 3: Wait for the glue/adhesive to dry.

Selley's multigrip recommends 24hrs for the glue to dry and reach maximum strength.


Step 4: Enjoy your new magnets!

 

Easy peasy!

If you make any of your buttons or badges into magnets, post a link to your blog or the photos in a comment below. I'd love to see the magnet love!

P xx

Passionfruit Butter

I was introduced to passionfruit butter by my mum a few years ago. At first I didn't like it, but, the more she bought it, the more I grew to like it. I had though about making it a few times and then never got around to it.

At the end of November we went down to the Hunter Valley to go and see the Christmas lights at the Hunter Valley Gardens. Whilst we were down there we picked up some passionfruit butter and it was the best I've ever tasted. The perfect balance between sweet and tangy. I knew I would have to make some of my own now so I scoured the Internet for a recipe that looked easy enough and had good reviews. I found this recipe that had gotten 5 stars from each of it's reviewers. And it looked so easy, just four ingredients and four steps. Easy!

And it was easy (phew!). There was one stage that I thought it might not work but i kept going and it turned out well. It did take longer than stated in the recipe, but I can see how it could only take 15minutes to prepare if you were seasoned in making stuff like this. Anyway, here are the results:

 This is just after putting it into jars. The recipe made heaps, filling all four jars.

And here is what it looks like after being refrigerated all night.

The recipe called for the pulp of 12 passionfruits, but seeing as passionfruit isn't in season I used 3 small (170g each) tins of passionfruit pulp instead.

So if you ever want to make passionfruit butter, I highly recommend this recipe. I really want to try making a lemon & lime butter recipe and maybe even an orange, lemon and lime recipe. Leave a comment if you have ever made these and link to your fave recipe. I'd love to see what your fave recipes are!


P xx

Music Monday

This video has been making the rounds on social media websites so there is a good chance that you have seen this already. But I wanted to share it with you because it is that awesome! I am amazed that five people using just ONE guitar can create such a great cover of Gotye's Somebody That I Used To Know.



Enjoy!

2012...A Year of Possibilites

2011 is over! Highlights include graduating university and visiting Melbourne for the first time.

I didn't achieve many of my goals for 2011 - I did not finish 12 projects or sleep more, but overall I am happy with everything that I did in 2011. I just intend to make 2012 a better year!

2012 should be a more exciting year for a few reasons: two good friends of mine will be getting married, I start a new job (and get to quit my old job!) and I've booked my first overseas holiday!

I will be going to Europe in winter and am looking for suggestions on what to do there! I will be going to London, Paris, Lucerne, Barcelona, French Riviera, Rome, Venice, Vienna, Prague, Berlin & Amsterdam. Except for London, I will only have one full day in each place, so if you have been, what would you recommend to see, do or experience?

Enjoy a great start to the 2012 and make the most out of it!

I bought myself an early Christmas present...

I decided after all to treat myself to a DSLR, an early Christmas present to myself and I am so glad that I did. My kitty, however, has show some loathing towards it! I decided on a Canon EOS 550D with a twin lens kit. I'm still learning to use it (I've mastered the auto settings, but really want to learn the manual settings). Once I've done that I'll plan a few trips up the Blue Mountains and to a few other places to test the camera out a bit more.

After looking around for a suitable camera bag, one that would hold the camera body with a lens attached, plus room for 1-2 other lenses and not finding a one that I liked I turned to the Internet. The problem with all the camera bags in the shops was that they looked like a camera bag - an unmistakable sign for "I'm carrying around expensive equipment". That was definitely was not what I was looking for. I found this nice bag that looked big enough and more like a handbag from Camera Chick:

The bag is "B Hobo" by Kelly Moore. It fits my camera and spare lens and has room for my wallet etc so I wont need to carry around a second bag when I want to carry my camera around with me. It's just the right size and is well made too, but it does need a few good outings to really test it out.

If you have any photography tips or have/know of any good photography blogs, leave a comment below.

And here is a photo of my kitty, just coz:

 

Have a good Christmas :)

To get a DSLR or not?

I have been tossing up between getting a DSLR or not lately. I love the idea of having much more creative control over my photos, but am daunted by it at the same time. There is so much to learn in order to use the full potential of the cameras. I have used them a few times when my friends have had theirs out and loved it. But I still can't decide. I don't know if the investment is worth it for me...

You see, I bought myself a Panasonic Lumix TZ10 last year with the money I got for Christmas.

I have used it more than I usually would and have learnt how to use some of the features, but not all of the features. So, I'm not sure if I should learn how to use my point and shoot to it's full potential before I dive into the world of DSLR's or not. I was thinking that if I did get a DSLR, I would get a Canon EOS 550D.

Thoughts? Opinions? Suggestions? Help me make this decision!