Get ready with me - for Halloween!

So, this year the plan was to host our very own halloween party. Because organising a big official party takes grown-up skills and we don't have them, it didn't happen though. Even worse - our town offered no real party either. So we (meaning three people in total, four if you count a near-fail*) basically decided to not give a crap and use a random bar party the saturday after Halloween as an occasion to dress up. :D
(*near-fail meaning that the fourth person did, in fact, dress up, but he chose a look that he sports basically every day and missed a key prop so nobody noticed ^^)

I decided to try a Blind Mag look (for those of you who don't know, she's a character from Repo! The Genetic Opera - GREAT movie!). Unfortunately, absolutely nobody knew her. :P It was great fun anyways. For the lulz, I videotaped the whole process. I myself laughed my ass off the first time I watched the footage and actually decided to share it.

Drawings.

I'm not a real artist when it comes to drawing. It does, however, calm me down and every now and then I really get an urge to do it. Please be aware thought that - except for the pseudo oldschool tattoo designs - every drawing I made was more or less 'copied' from a reference picture. I suck at proportions and I guess I also lack the creativity to really create my own scenery with a pencil.

Victor from Corpse Bride. :D His face is slightly too long...

 God how I love drawing eyes. <3

This happened in school - I was clearly bored to death. ;) (The only reference for this was my empty coffee cup. So, so empty... ;____;)

Yeeah ok, I have a thing for skulls, I'll admit that. Though, again, I had an amazing reference picture, I'm quite proud of the shading and everything. :)

Lol, look at her feet!!! ^^

Photo reference.

He's some kind of reenactment warrior, the reference was an actual photograph.

Beast <3

Jewellery storage and noteboard.

I've been living in my one-room appartment for over a year now - and it's -just- starting to take shape.

First, we have my jewellery storage installment. I found a tutorial for the coathanger on Cutout&Keep, the creator is a fellow craft blogger, Almost Alice. The earring frame was made from a brown plastic frame with white tulle, the noteboard was just bought, painted and decorated with some fabric flowers. The authentic family pic is just the cherry on top of all. :D

I also recently made this noteboard from a piece of wood that had been disposed of in the basement. I snatched it, painted it white & added chalkboard foil and an art nouveau border with acrylic paint.

Just to make you all feel bad about putting crap into your system, I chose a pic that shows how long I have not had a single sip of Cola, haha (or any soda, for that matter). It's been way over a month now. Go meeeee! The tally has been washed off now though since I think I've got the habit down and don't need to remind myself anymore.



UPDATE

The setup is part of a bigger plan. Here's more visuals. :P

Aaaand now here's me trying to take some aesthetic pics of my favorite pieces...
Find more of my photography here!

Let's get cooking - Pasta and leek casserole

This is perfect for pasta leftovers.
My mom used to make this and this dish reminds me of my childhood so much... :)


You need:
- Pasta
- Leek and other vegetables to your liking
- Feta Cheese (can be left out)
- Ground cheese
- Cream


1) Either cook some pasta or gather leftovers. Spaghetti aren't the best pasta for this, I prepare the smaller shapes and versions for this.

2) Cut the leek, disposing of the outermost layers and the harsh dark green tips. Wash it thoroughly, most leek might still have some soil in between the outer layers.
To cook it, fill a small pot with a bit of water, just a few inches are enough. Add a drizzle of salt to the water, put in the leek slices and heat to a boil. After about (!) 10 minutes, the leek will become softer. You don't want it to fall apart but you don't want it to be solid. Test with a fork.
While this cooks, preheat the oven (180°C)
I haven't tried it yet but I'm sure you could replace the leek with broccoli, brussel sprouts and other veggies.

3) Depending on your preferences, you could now dice (half) a block of feta cheese.
Feel free to add more vegetables too, bellpepper, sweet corn, mushrooms...

4) In a casserole dish, layer pasta, some ground cheese, feta, leek, pasta, cheese, leek, ........... Mix your cream with spices and herbs, pepper, salt, garlic... and pour it over everything. Don't use too much or it'll just get soggy.
I have to admit though, my sauce recipe isn't perfect yet, my moms sauce always thickened while baking... hmmm...

5) Top with moar cheese. Cheeeeese!!!

6) Bake. Depending on your oven, this is going to take longer or shorter. Since all ingredients are already cooked, there's no real minimum time to cover once the cheese has melted and started to darken.

7) Enjoy! :)

Let' get cooking - Avocado-based snack

This, my dear reader, is probably the best snack in the world. Let me take you through it step by step. :)

1) Cut your avocado in half, remove the peel and the kernel (?). Try to make sure that the avocado is ripe enough so it's soft, a very hard avocado is not really suitable for this.

You could keep the kernel and try to grow a plant. :D


2) Mash the avocado up with a fork and add some cream cheese or yoghurt. Mix. Add spices to your preference, pepper, salt, herbs, garlic, anything goes.

3) Cut one or two slices of bread into stripes.

4) In a pan, melt some butter - or use olive oil, though I really do prefer butter for this recipe.

5) At medium heat, let the bread stripes fry a little so they get slightly darker and crispy.

6) Dip the slices in to the avocado cream dip - and enjoy.

Om nom nom!

Let's get cooking!

It's almost funny that my first real entry is about cooking - since that's the last thing I ever thought I'd enjoy. In my family, the cooks are my mom and my brother. My dad and me are the ones fixing stuff like lamps and sinks and shit.
So though I always liked to bake, cooking was never a thing I did just because it was fun. I used to do it because every now and then, the human body craves a warm meal. When I started living on my own, I mostly feasted on easy, simple, quick to make things (not just junk food though, mind you!). I never dared to experiment with food.

What changed? I don't know.
But I do know that the final turn towards cooking as a fun thing to do came, oddly enough, during a food challenge I did just for fun (It was a Hiit-Challenge called "Don't eat crap for 21 days"). During that time, I went absolutely food crazy!


So just let me share some dishes I made - may they appeal to you and inspire you to make a nice dinner tonight. ;)

Prawns in a coconut coating next to basmati rice with honey and cranberries. Honestly, this is the most exciting dish in this post. You can go home now. ^^

Pasta with a cream sauce featuring bits of bacon and brussel sprouts.

Brussel sprout chips, as seen on the Hiit-Diet recipe pages. Yum yum yum!

Ok, here's where it gets incredibly simple - chicken soup. I managed to go through a quarter of a century without ever making some myself - and now I can't stop. It's SO delicious!!!!!!!

Ooooh boy this is a good one. The basic ingredients are onions and apples. Yes, apples. In a pan. Together with onions. Trust me, it's good! Add what suits your mood, I included diced bacon, red bellpepper and mushrooms. The yellow things are "Schupfnudeln", the best way to describe them might be "potato dumplings"?

My favorite thing to make - chicken dishes. I love chicken, I love cream-based sauces, I love combining them. Sometimes I get fancy and replace the cream with coconut milk. Yum yum yum yum...
Aaand I also love baked potatos. Wait, no, I love potatos period. 

Strawberry jam filled pancakes. <3

Ooooooon to the baking! Yay!

This was the birthday cake for a friend who is obsessed with Batman. :D We made it a 'thing' to create themed cakes for birthdays, matching the theme to whatever the person likes. For my birthday, I got the most freaking amazing cake with a marshmallow topping shaped and coloured to look like the face of Cthulhu!!! Omg!!! <3

(LOOK AT THAT!!! xD xD xD I absolutely freaked when I saw this!

If you're wondering, the box behind the cake of awesome contains a zombie apocalypse survival set. Fuck yeah I chose the right people as friends haha!)

We have had Ireland-Cake, cat muffins, a Dexter-themed cake... I love this little tradition in-the-making.

These are banana-oatmeal cookies with cranberries. Simple - mash (over)ripe bananas, add oatmeals untill it looks dough-ish, add whatever you like to the mix, bake. You can add chocolate, nuts, cinnamon, fruit pieces, maple syrup, raisins, anything!

My first go at Red Velvet Cupcakes, made for my boyfriend. As you might be able to tell, they're not red. Stupid recipe included too much cocoa powder and stupid me followed it blindly. Still yummy though.



So... what's cooking with you? ;)