Sketch With Me | Pen & Ink Gerberas

Create With Me | Handmade Wrapping

Paint With Me | Christmas Cards - Watercolour

Plan With Me | December 2022

Paint With Me | O Christmas Tree - Watercolour

Plan With Me | November 2022

Focusing on the month of November with a 'Grateful Heart'. Whether you celebrate Thanks Giving or choose to count your blessings everyday as I do, this months BuJo set-up is just for you xo
Time to gather your watercolours and friends as we sit down for the next half hour to celebrate November together.

Create With Me | Seasonal Decorations - Foraged & Found

Paint With Me | Watercolour Pumpkins

A rustic pumpkin watercolour dedicated to all things Harvest, Halloween, Thanks Giving, Autumn & Fall. Loose brush strokes, an earthy colour palette and your favourite supplies - a Paint With Me video dedicated to the creative heart in us all.
Put on your favourite movie or just enjoy the acoustic tunes as we sit down together for the next 30 minutes.

Plan With Me | October 2022

Coinciding with my Harvest release, this months BuJo has all the Halloween, Thanks Giving, Fall and Autumn vibes. From sweet pumpkins to stems of wheat and loads of leaves, you are sure to love this months colour palette and botanical feel.
Grab your favourite supplies and beverage as we get creative celebrating the beauty of October.

Plan With Me | September 2022

All the Moroccan vibes this month as I create September's journal with the help of a handmade stencil, acrylic paint and lashings of texture and colour.

This month is all about simple shapes and layering colour and is just perfect for Beginners. Grab your favourite supplies and get comfortable for the next 20 minutes as we get creative together.

Australia | Watercolour for the Beginner

Paint the breathtaking Australian landscape with me as we explore the 'Red Centre' and our iconic Ayers Rock | Uluru.

The perfect imperfection of mother nature never ceases to inspire me and sits at the core of all I do. Whether I am bringing it to life with my pen or brush, or sourcing products wisely to protect its fragile beauty, I am forever grateful to live in one of the most beautiful places on Earth - Australia.

Plan With Me | August 2022

It's time to get your watercolour and journal on with me this month as we get creative in the Studio together. This month promises to be a productive one as I work on my 2nd Textile and Wallpaper Collection, ready for a Christmas release and inspired by the beautiful Australian landscape

Settle in for 24 minutes of colour and fun as we play with different media, paper and cardstock to create a journal all our own.

Healing the Heart with Art

When there are no words there is always art.

I created this sweet botanical sketch on the anniversary of my beloved Nana's passing. Picking up my favourite pencils from childhood I let my art speak the words I could not.

I hope I inspire you to do the same Friends xo

Handmade Journal | Vintage Inspired

Sharing a peek BTS as I create a handmade Journal. I know I've been promising to share this one with you for the longest time so I do hope it's been worth the wait.

As a BuJo lover, I like nothing more than personalising my pages each month to really set my soul on fire and to inspire the days, weeks and month ahead. If you too find standard journals a bit limiting, I hope that you will be inspired to create your own.

This vid is a super short one . . . just 45 seconds of content and captions so feel free to slow it down, pause or even replay it to catch all the steps.

Plan With Me | June 2022

Unpack with me this month as I focus on settling in and making memories in our new home. June is all about growth, new beginnings and getting back to my joy and I can't wait to share it all with you!.

Settle in for 25 minutes of 'real time' video starting with the sweetest watercolour tree in all the shades of Spring | Autumn. Perfect, no matter what side of the globe you are on.

Plan With Me | May 2022

‘Plan with me, Move with me' this month as we celebrate May and our new home. Given we will be super time poor in the weeks ahead, I have kept it simple with lots of super sweet pen & ink sketches and just a splash of colour. Settle in for 25 minutes of 'real time' video dedicated to whimsical sketches and Home Sweet Home

Homemade Vegetable Stock

The season has certainly shifted here on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The constant rain that has been with us since last September, has been accompanied by much cooler days. The jumpers finally came out over the weekend and the sniffles came a'callin’ so homemade chicken soup was the order of the day. There’s nothing like fresh, crunchy bread and a steaming bowl of fragrant soup to get you back on your feet and to chase those Winter chills away.

Most families have their secret recipes that have been handed down through the ages, and ours is no exception. I have tweaked our families Homemade Chicken Soup recipe over the years to suit the tastes of growing children, however nothing has had the impact that this little gem did quite some years ago. All these years on, I can’t remember exactly where I heard this little secret, but it has certainly been a game changer when it comes to our homemade soups and casseroles.

We’ve all heard that the most nutrients are 'just under the skin' in fruits and vegetables and we are more conscious than ever about what we eat and where it comes from. The slow living movement has also been a timely reminder to be more mindful of how we live, to reduce, reuse and recycle. I have to admit, that I have always hated wasting food. I didn’t grow up in a wealthy family and have raised my children to appreciate second hand, vintage, preloved. Don’t get me wrong, new is a wonderful thing, but being a little more careful with how and why we spend our money has allowed us to make memories we otherwise wouldn’t. We’ve lived and renovated, travelled and explored the world in ways we wouldn’t if we had been adverse to getting our hands dirty. As a result, this clever cooking tip has been embraced in our family as not only a tasty alternative but a way to make a difference in our world.

INSTRUCTIONS:

• In order to begin the process of making your own Homemade Vegetable Stock, first you must collect the material needed. This is as simple as collecting your usual veggie scraps as you go about your regular, daily meal prep ie. making a salad or stir fry for the evening meal. Instead of discarding the skin from your onion, garlic, ginger, carrots . . . the leaves from the celery, the off-cuts and seeds from a capsicum etc, pop them into a large, resealable bag or big empty container and put them into the freezer (yes, the freezer). This will keep them fresh while you continue to add to your stock supplies over the coming days | weeks. Simply pull this bag | container our when prepping meals and throw your scraps inside. Continue to reseal and freeze each time until your container is full. Expect this process to take a couple of weeks, although you may be surprised just how fast it fills up

• When your scrap container is full, simply empty the contents into a slow cooker or large stock pot, cover with water and allow to simmer gently for at least half a day. Honestly, the longer they cook, the better your stock will be. And another little bonus . . . the smell is amazing!

• Make sure to add a lid to your slow cooker or pot to ensure the moisture stays inside and doesn’t evaporate. Check on the progress of your stock throughout the day. The water level must remain high and you will notice the water slowly change from clear to a deep, rich, fragrant brown as it absorbs all the nutrients from your vegetable scraps

• All that is left to do is to drain the scraps, retaining the stock in a few handy jugs, and discard the soggy vegetable scraps that remain. Make sure to add them to your garden or compost heap - Mother Earth will be ever so grateful you did

THINGS TO NOTE:

• DO NOT add meat scraps or egg shells! NO fruit peelings (oranges, apples etc), and NO scraps that are showing signs of spotting or decay

• This delicious Vegetable Stock can be made ahead of time - I like to make my stock the day before use, OR pour it into resealable containers and freeze to use at a later date. A little hint: freeze in large volumes for soups and smaller volumes ie. in ice trays, to use on a smaller scale to flavour casseroles and stews

• Vegan friendly stock that delivers the ultimate feel good vibes . . . Good for you, Good for the hip pocket and Good for the planet!

Frozen Vegetable Scraps

Homemade Chicken Soup

Sharing a wonderful family recipe with you today for Homemade Chicken Soup. This one is truly made from scratch my friends - starting with the delicious broth or stock. Perfect for the meat lover or vegetarian | vegan as I will be sharing two recipe options with a full shopping list for each. Truly for the mindful chef who loves to spend a little time in the kitchen.

This recipe has been handed down through the ages and is one that I remember from when I was a little girl. As with all good recipes, it has been modified through the years by each cook as we all cook intuitively and from the heart. I am therefore, going to share 2 options with you - one for the meat lover which will include chicken, and one for the vegetarian | vegan. Both recipes are so hearty and full of flavour that they are bound to become a favourite.

OPTION 1: Traditional Chicken Broth

• Place a whole, organic, free range chicken in a large stock pot

• Cover with water and simmer on low for hours - until the meat is falling off the bones

• Strain the stock from the chicken and put aside to cool - this will be added to the soup later

• Discard the bones and skin and shred the chicken - put aside to be added to the soup later

OPTION 2: Homemade Vegetable Stock

• Making this stock, although not complicated, does take a some time, so I have shared the ‘how to’ in the previous post . . . Homemade Vegetable Stock

• Defrost a lovely large batch of stock prepped and made earlier or . . .

• Strain the stock from your veggie scraps and put aside to cool - this will be added to the soup later

INGREDIENTS:

• Approx. 2 kg Organic, Free Range Chicken (Option 1 Only)

• Celery - Approx. 1/4 of a Bunch - Chopped

• Carrots - 3-4 Large - Diced

• Swede - Medium - Chopped

• Parsnip - Large - Chopped

• Potatoes - 5 x Medium - Peel & Cut in halves or thirds depending on size - Leave chunky

• Brown Onions - 2 x Medium - Peel and dice

• Garlic - 5 x Cloves - Peel & Dice finely

• Ginger Root - 1 x Large Piece - Peel & Dice finely

• Olive Oil - 2 x Tablespoons

• Curry Powder - 1-2 Tablespoons (to taste)

• Vegeta - 1-2 Tablespoons (Option 1 Only) - to taste

• Bread - Fresh and crunchy and completely of your choosing

• Rice Noodles - 400gm Packet of wok ready noodles - not dehydrated (Optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Heat olive oil in deep, heavy base pan | stock pot

• Prep brown onions as directed, sauté slowly, on low heat - until clear

• Prep ginger root and garlic as directed, add to onions and continue to sauté on low hear until fragrant

• Add curry powder, stir gently to combine

• Add pre-prepared chicken, stir gently to combine (Option 1 Only)

• Add pre-prepared broth or vegetable stock

• Add pre-prepared vegetables, stir gently to combine all ingredients

• Add lid to pan | pot to retain heat and stop loss of liquid broth | stock

• Turn heat up until soup boils then adjust to low heat to retain a gentle simmer. Leave your soup to cook all day to infuse the flavours and allow the vegetables to cook through

• Taste at intervals to check flavour - add Vegeta (Option 1) and | or curry powder if required and to suit your taste

THINGS TO NOTE:

• You will notice that I added Rice Noodles to the list of ingredients, however I haven’t mentioned them again until now. That’s because they are actually a 3rd option and one that my daughter loves. For those of you who are a lover of “noodle soup”, as Joey would say (Friends reference), or that have little ones who like everything better when it has noodles, try adding some wok ready noodles to your bowl before ladling over the soup. You will note that I don’t say ‘add them to the soup’. That’s because the noodles will overcook and ruin the integrity of both the soup and noodle. Simply open a packet of wok ready noodles (ie. NOT dehydrated noodles and of the rice variety if you are vegan), pop them into a pot or bowl and cover them with boiling water (from the kettle is fine). Loosen them up with a fork before draining the water back off and portioning them out into bowls. Pour piping hot soup over the top and serve

• The addition of curry powder should be specific to you and your family and can be omitted if you prefer. We are generally quite generous in our family as we enjoy the flavour and the little bit of heat it brings. If you are taking some soup to an elderly family member or neighbour, I suggest you don't add curry as it can make them cough (this is a little gem I gathered from personal experience). Curry powder can always be added once you have ladled out their portion that way no one misses out on this delicious soup!

• When I make soup, I make enough to feed an army! This recipe makes enough to feed a family of 4 for several days

• This soup freezes well so don’t be afraid to ladle some into a container to freeze for another day. So good to come home to after a huge day. Just remove from the freezer, transfer to a pot and heat gently for a fabulous dinner in 30 minutes

• It’s a little bit magic! I have made this soup for many friends, neighbours and family when they have been unwell and they all swear it is magic. It’s something about the nutrient rich stock | broth, teamed with the vegetables, garlic, ginger and curry that instantly clears the head and sinus passages. I honestly believe that a gift of the heart and your time is the real secret. Either way, I hope you love this gift from my family to yours xo

Homemade Chicken Soup made w. our own Homemade Vegetable Stock

Watercolour Mini Project - Gum Leaf | Sunburnt Country

Mini Watercolour projects to suit the absolute beginner. We are celebrating our beautiful, Sunburnt Country today as we create an artwork dedicated to the humble Gum Leaf.

Watercolour Mini Projects were borne of my passion for design and honed by my teaching heart that desperately wants art to be accessible to everyone. You will soon see that you don't need to know how to draw, and you most definitely don't need to spend a fortune on paper, brushes and paint. All you need are a few basics and a creative heart.

Inspiration for this video came from an iconic Australian company - Buckley and Phillips Aromatics, who gifted me this beautiful candle. I am currently working on a new textile collection, inspired by the unique Australian landscape so this gift couldn't have come at a better time. Feeling very blessed today to stand beside such a wonderful Australian company, committed to local manufacture and sustainable design 🇦🇺

Plan With Me | April 2022

April's Bullet Journal Set-up is an Easter treat of whimsical bunnies, tulips and daisies. If you too have been super busy and are in need of a catch up, hit play and let's do this together!

You may have a handmade journal like mine, or a branded one you love, either way we are all about making it personal here in Shabby Shac Studio. Follow along as we create the pages together and adjust to suit your individual style.