{a little glimpse} Fourteen

experimenting with this...but not for what you might think.

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How to Make Oreo Cheesecake

Sometimes emergency desserts don't have time for many ingredients or instructions, so here is my quick but very tasty oreo cheesecake, made with not much notice and with what I had available in my kitchen [not really sure what that says about me].

What I Used:

Serves 2

1 pack of Oreos

200g of cream cheese

20g butter

I blended an entire pack of Oreos [minus one for decoration later] until fine and no lumps remained:

I separated 4 tablespoons into a bowl, added a drop of melted butter at a time until of a thick consistency, paste like and transferred these equally between two small tumblers:

Pop in the fridge to set and in the meantime, to the rest of the Oreos, I added 200g of cream cheese
 and blended again until fully combined:

Removing the biscuit base from the fridge, I transferred the oreo-cheese mixture equally between the tumblers and crushed the biscuit I didn't blend to smithereens on top:

Pop in to the fridge for at least 2 hours to fully set and then embrace the calories:

This is a thick, rich cheesecake - flippin' gorgeous - serve with a helping of whipped cream if you
 are treating yourself x

How to Make an Ombre Tissue Paper Flower Pom Pom Garland

Last year, I made large tissue paper Flower Pom-Poms for my Birthday and I've wanted to try out some different styles ever since.  Over the Bank Holiday weekend, I made some smaller versions with a different 'petal' that I can have around for Summer [I felt like it was here then], so set about making these during Britain's Got Talent with scissors and a stapler.

I bought one 'Fire' Tissue paper pack from HobbyCraft which was more than enough to create one pom-pom from each of the sheets [10 in total], but I just used the white, pastel yellow, pastel orange and dark orange colours to create an ombre effect. 

To start, I unfolded one sheet and used the already marked folds to cut four lengths
[two folds in width] of the tissue paper:

Stack on top of each other:

...and fold in half width ways to mark where to cut to create 8 tissue paper layers:

Folding the paper along the shortest length, fold once at around 2cm, turn over and fold the opposite way and continue this until you reach the end [around 7 folds in total]:

Fold the fan in half across the length to mark the middle and staple the centre with one or two staples:

Now cut the shape of the flower petals.
In my previous How To, I cut a rounded point, so opted for a softer round at each end:

Turn the fan on to its side and spread out one end:

Now take one layer, starting from the outsides, at a time and separate it from the edge and pull away
 towards the centre [be careful, but if you have a few rips or tears, it really doesn't matter once
all layers are separated]:

Continue with each layer until each of the 8 layers are separated:

...and repeat on the opposite side...until you have a completed flower pom pom:

I strung mine together with the colours fading from dark in to light and back out again, from the centre with a light thread.

Brightens up the wall behind my bed, I'm planning where in the house I need more:

see you tomorrow x

How to Make a Frame Tray

Part of my search in trying to keep organised, tidy and keep some style is the search for the perfect bedside table and coffee table trays.  Ideally, glossy plastic or stylish glass trays that can hold a candle, hand cream, a book and lamp base or keep together some accessories, hold the TV bits and bobs - you know, together, organised and tidy.  These trays, of course, don't exist.  Or at least, they don't exist for my budget or in quite the simple style that I am after.

Making these finished my search and here's how.

My main reason for wanting a glossy tray was to sort out and tidy my everyday makeup area of my dressing table, which also shares space for my jewellery and office/computer area.
I chose the Ribba in high-gloss grey, size 13cm x 18cm - a RIBBA standard frame with a glass front.  £2.25 - beats the £40 ones I've been looking at any day!

In general, the tray is the frame, back to front:

I removed all the components: backing, mount cover and glass.

 From the back board, I removed the stand [it just pulls away, but if you want to be a little neater than me, you can easily unscrew it] and hanging - you can save the components in your 'man-drawer' and stand for future makes - it will come in handy and is sturdy and strong:

The cardboard backing now becomes the bottom of the tray.

Next, this can be decorated/covered [or used as a template] - I just used the frame cover as it was cut to size and I knew it was all going to be covered by my stuff!  Then slot the glass back in place and your frame is complete:

 So, so simple and achieves exactly the look and function I am after:

Percy says Hi.

I'm really pleased with the results and it's been a really simple and easy way in helping me organise some of the rooms in my home.  So I couldn't stop - 

I went up a frame size in white for my bedside table:

..and larger again in white for my coffee table:

Which is also perfect to use as a coffee tray when needed! I tried doilies as a pattern, but I think we all know this tray is meant to be decorated with grey chevron - the paper has been ordered and on its way, so I'll update here when complete:

With the white frames, the side frame fasteners need to be removed - a few pushes up and down and then the help of some pliers [I didn't have any so used blunt scissors] will remove them easily as these parts are not very strong at all.

If you wanted to add a bit of colour or fancy to the tray - the tops [which were previously the back of the frame] could be covered.  Believe me, it took everything not to cover them in washi tape!  If the tray is also going to be used for more practical to-ing and fro-ing - you can easily screw some handles to the sides [but I would recommend ensuring the sides are reinforced safely].