Over the weekend I took a trip to a local nursery and bought this little beauty to put on my home office desk. I love having a vase of fresh cut flowers, but another popular alternative is a succulent.
This one in particular is called an Echeveria or 'Violet Queen' and is happy to stay potted and live indoors. Perfect 🙂
{image via here}
Happy Thanksgiving bloggies!! And especially to A…I wish we were cooking up a fine turkey feast together just like last year. Mmm mm.
{image via Apple Brides}
Hope everyone had a lovely weekend. I spent mine in Speers Point to celebrate a best friend’s engagement party.
Congrats lovely xx
Not only are these tile coasters a fun and inexpensive weekend project, but bound with twine or ribbon and they double as a lovely homemade gift for someone….or yourself if you can’t part with them!
SUPPLIES
Tiles (3.5″ x 3.5″ squares)
Decorative paper prints (3.25″ x 3.25″ squares)
Cork sheet (3.25″ x 3.25″ squares)
Foam brush
Mod podge
Clear acrylic spray
Step 1 – Using the foam brush, paint an even layer of mod podge onto the tile.
Step 2 – Centre the print onto the tile and press down firmly to eliminate any air pockets. Allow to dry completely.
Step 3 – Paint an even layer of mod podge onto tile and allow to dry completely.
Step 4 – Following the manufacturers instructions, spray an even coat of clear acrylic onto the tile and allow to dry completely (overnight preferably). Repeat again for a second and final coat.
Step 5 – Spread an even layer of mod podge onto a cork square and adhere it to the reverse side of the tile. Allow to dry completely before use.
Enjoy xx
{image via Dreamy Whites}
And rightfully so after I managed to fight off a mild case of 'Mondayitis' at 6am this morning and get myself to work on time 🙂
I'd also like to take the opportunity today to say a big thank you to everyone for the overwhelming response to my infinity scarf tutorial. It just makes me all the more excited to share another tutorial with you tomorrow!
Yesterday I was feeling a little overwhelmed with everything that I want to get done this week, or at least by Saturday anyway. Sunday I’m keeping free for an impending flake out. In my moment of crisis I did what I always do – ring Amanda and plead guilty to exactly that…biting off more than I can chew.
Seems we sisters are tarred with the same brush. When asked could she make a tart for an upcoming celebration (the emphasis being on that one would suffice) she too confessed to going into overdrive and now cannot choose between four different fillings.
And let’s not forget an earlier phone call to me this week, requesting that we ‘go crazy’ putting together a dessert bar for another occasion only weeks away. Of course I said…’sign me up’ before we’d even contemplated the logistics of the four hour travel time that separates us. Probably a good thing someone else had already offered to cater instead. At least that’s what we keep telling ourselves.
So anyway, by 9.30pm last night whilst I was a hot mess painting our toilet, because it’s completely normal to be painting at that time of night right?… I’d come to the conclusion that I LIKE being a ‘doer’. I LIKE feeling like I’m achieving whatever it is I set my mind to. I LIKE having a huge list and crossing it off one by one.
With that said, I CAN bite off more than I can chew. Just watch me stuff it all in and chow down like the cookie monster. This is how my week life rolls.
SPINACH AND RICOTTA RAVIOLI
{Serves 4}
Honestly, I think I could happily consume ravioli for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Add some crispy sage leaves, drench in browned butter and I could then happily live on it for like, ever.
INGREDIENTS
For the ravioli…
1/2 cup ricotta
120g baby spinach, blanched and finely chopped
1/4 cup parmesan, grated finely
1/4 cup pinenuts, toasted
1 egg yolk
Gow gee wrappers
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
Sage leaves
Salt and pepper to taste
For the brown butter sauce…
60g unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 160° C. Lightly toast the pinenuts and set aside.
Bring a small saucepan of water to the boil. Add the baby spinach and blanch for 20-30 seconds. Place immediately into iced water to stop the cooking process and then strain well. Pat dry with paper towel making sure all excess water is removed, before chopping finely.
In a small mixing bowl, combine the ricotta, parmesan, chopped spinach and egg yolk. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Place a small amount of filling (using a teaspoon works well) onto a gow gee wrapper and brush the edges with a little water. Place another wrapper on top and press the edges together to seal, making sure there are no air pockets around the filling. I also like to slightly press the edges using a fork, not only does it help re-inforce the seal, but looks quite pretty too! Repeat this process until there is no filling mixture remaining.
Bring a small saucepan of water to a gentle boil. Add the ravioli and
cook for approx 3 to 5 minutes, or until the ravioli softens and floats to the surface. Drain well before arranging on a serving plate.
For the brown butter sauce…
Place a skillet over medium-high heat and add the butter. Once the butter melts and starts to foam, whisk continiously until little brown bits start to form on the bottom of the skillet. Still whisking, add the sage leaves but remove from the heat, you don’t want this baby to burn.
Drizzle over the ravioli, scatter on a few toasted pinenuts and serve immediately.
So lovely….pretty peachy cream roses adorning my bedside.
So this is it! The new look…what do you think? I am super excited about how it all came together in the end. If you're a new visitor to Nicabella then thankfully you will have missed what it looked like prior to receiving this much needed makeover.
Anyone who knows me knows that I love pink, so obviously that was a given. And then of course I couldn't say no to a set of glittered social icons to add a little sparkle. They were kindly custom designed for me by Sara from Mint 102…check out their gorgeous shop and blog. Thank you Sara!!
Anyway, I really think this one is a keeper 🙂
Hope you have all had a lovely weekend xx
