Making Damson Vodka

Quite a few people recently have asked me how I make the  Damson and the Blackcurrant flavoured Vodkas I give away as Christmas gifts.

So I thought I would tell you, again :)

Take a clean jar, I used a Le Parfait jar, but any wide necked jar will do.

Put in washed, pricked fresh fruit and add spirit of choice. I have found Vodka or brandy to be good - it doesn't have to be an expensive brand.

If you don't want to have to prick the fruit, freeze the fruit whole, then put it in the jar and pour on the spirit. The liquid will rapidly cause the fruit to split.

Add sugar. It is better to add too little as you can always add more, if you want it sweeter when you taste test it!

Put the jar somewhere you can shake/upend until all the sugar has dissolved.

Put away in a cool, dark place.

Leave for up to a year...I have found if you leave it longer than that it might get a slightly musty taste.On the other hand it might become divine and utterly delish! So it is up to you to keep on tasting the jar occasionally!

Strain (I use one of those permanent coffer filters for this inside a funnel, all sterilised) into a suitable bottle ( I save the small wine bottles one can get (25 or 35 cl) is these are ideal to give as gifts as well!)


Label.

Drink!



Damsons in Vodka and sugar



After a day of shaking/soaking

Surprise!

I love it when this happens :)

I got an unexpected parcel in the post this morning :)

Which contained vegetable seeds from an organic supplier I had not heard of :) And the beads are the start of a necklace, now :)

I am not feeling very well today - I ate a slice of home made, organic, wholemeal bread for lunch (not eaten wheat for 5 months now) and have had unfortunate after effects as a result. It looks like wheat is a no-no for me now.

I didn't open the parcel until late afternoon ( I put it down somewhere "safe", so safe I couldn't find it for 6 hours!) and this little parcel really cheered me up :)

Thank you Jane, for a very kind and thoughtful gift.

An unexpected gift from Ecover UK

 I got an unexpected padded envelope in the post today. When I opened it

This was inside!

And when I untied the ribbon, look what I found!

Special Christmas washing up liquid :) 

Thank you Lauren at Ecover UK for my lovely festive smelling washing up liquid and the lovely card. The washing up liquid smells delicious - like a Christmas Grotto full of cake :).

Message in our bottle

No, not the Police hit single!

I was lucky enough to be invited to London yesterday by Ecover to the launch of their new campaign ‘Message in our Bottle’ - but sadly I could not attend ( my back is not yet up to a 3  hour each way train journey yet)

As I was sent the press release, though, I thought I would share it with you all as it sounds really interesting. and is a positive step forward in both reducing packaging waste AND reducing marine pollution.

From the Ecover press release... 

Ecological innovator, Ecover, today unveiled plans to launch a world-first in packaging in 2014 - an entirely new form of fully sustainable and recyclable plastic incorporating post-consumer recyclables (PCR), Plantastic – plastic made from 100% sugarcane and plastic fished from the sea, along with an influential art project designed to attract mass attention.

Ecover launched  100% sugarcane-derived plastic (Plantastic) as packaging  in 2010. This was followed by a further move to tackle the growing plastic waste mountain, resulting in its most recent announcement of the inclusion of PCR into Plantastic bottles.

The press launch yesterday was to announce the aspiration to create an entirely new plastic incorporating a percentage of sea waste into its Plantastic/PCR packaging by 2014. 

Ecover says...

Research from the Marine Conservation Society reveals that plastic debris accounts for almost 60 per cent of all litter found on UK beaches and it is widely recognised that vast amounts of beach waste ends up in the sea.  Working closely with Waste Free Oceans (WFO), Logoplaste (who are supporting the development of the new materials) UK plastic recycling plant Closed Loop, Ecover will be working with fishing communities to collect plastic* and reintroduce it into the recycling chain via its bottles – a solution which will help protect the delicate sea-based eco-systems and give a whole new meaning to ‘catch of the day’.  Trials have already begun on the exact mix of the three plastics which allow the brand to deliver what will be the first ever fully sustainable and recyclable plastic.

 The press launch was also used to unveil an ambitious art project designed to influence and engage.

 Ecover say...

Renowned sculptor Ptolemy Elrington, will be creating a free-standing, attention-grabbing art installation which will be unveiled at Glastonbury 2013.  Using recycled content – including sea waste – the installation has been designed as a focal meeting point for festival goers – and an education opportunity into the bargain.  

After Glastonbury, the new installation will then take pride of place at the RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show alongside Ecover’s show garden by Matthew Childs. An upcoming gardener, Childs won the Conceptual Gardens category at Hampton Court in 2012. This year he is designing the ‘Ecover Recovery Garden’ which will also be championing plastic from the seas, and will help further convey the importance of sustainability within plastic materials.

All this sounds really interesting and I was really sorry I had to miss out on attending. But, even though I could not go to the launch Ecover sent me the goody bag I would have received if I had gone, which was jolly nice of them and which I will enjoy using. The bottles are made from Plantastic - if you use Ecover products look for a distinctive green and blue Plant-astic logo

What do you think about this? I have mixed feelings about using land to grow sugar cane to make plastic, rather than using it for food BUT I totally applaud the idea of retrieving plastic waste from the seas and recycling it.

If only we could stop people throwing the stuff into the seas, in the first place...!

Gifts

 Lovely books :-)

 A tall lamp to help me with crafting :-)

A lovely Amber necklace

A hand made beeswax candle (smells lovely!) and a fab pair of crafting shears for cutting material :-)

Some things I have made recently

Sunday, 9 December 2012

These were made as a birthday gift for Compostgirl, a drink mat and a face flannel. Made from corganic cotton dishcloth yarn on a 4 mm hook.















This is the start of a round cushion,  using a 5 mm hook and Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino yarn.

Some of the things I have been making

These were made as a birthday gift for Compostgirl, a drink mat and a face flannel













This is the start of a round cushion

A surprise gift for me !

 This week the postman brought me a package from The Organic Gardening Catalogue - my prize for being their 600th follower on Twitter!

A lovely seed tin, 9 packets of organic seeds and 25 m of biodegradable ties. :-))

Thank you The Organic Gardening Catalogue

And the winner is.....

No, not a tennis related post!

I have shamefully neglected to tell you ( and, indeed, her!) the winner of my 500th post giveaway.....

Compostwoman hangs head in shame...

My only ( non) excuse is that it has just been manic here for the last few weeks, and I simply forgot to post the result...

So, without further ado, the winner is................( cue drum roll...........)

Aromatic

Congratulations Jane, and if you email me your snail mail address I shall post you a parcel of goodies.

I shall not put up a picture of the contents until I know you have received the parcel, so as not to spoil the surprise....

And thank you to all the rest of my lovely readers who put their names down, I am just sorry I couldn't send all of you a small token of my appreciation ....

:-)

Chickhen House name!

Oh you lot HAVE made me laugh! Well done, all of you!

I love the names you all have come up with for the new hen house, I really do!

I think I like " Sandr-egg-ham House" and the "Pent-egg-on" the best!

Compostman thinks we are all potty BUT when he read the "Pent-egg-on" comment, he decided to build a 5 sided house and call THAT "The Pent-egg-on"...so I think he is secretly quite amused....

At the moment I really like "Sandr-egg-ham House....or "Peckingham Palace"

The house is the same height and width as the other wooden house, which is a "Handy 10" from Flyte So Fancy and is supposed to house up to 10 hens, BUT is is not as deep
( only the double nest box deep rather than the nest box plus about another foot...)

So I would guess it would easily hold 8 hens?

Especially as Cluckingham Palace has lots of room even with 10 hens in there, its the attached run which is tiny! BUT as my hens are only in the run first thing in the morning, just until I go and let them all out into the Orchard, its not really a problem....

I am hoping to get another 5 or 6 hens and put them in the new house, put the run from Cluckingham Palace on the new house and Compostman is making me a bigger run to put on Cluckingham Palace....

THAT was the present, really...a new hen house and a new run, BUT he has been so busy he has only done the house, so far...

Still when he DOES get the run finished, I "eggspect" it will be as "eggcellently" splendiferous as the house..!




And I haven't forgotten my 500th post/Birthday givaway...I will announce it in a later post.....(ooh ramping up the tension...!)

Belated birthday present.....

But oh so well the waiting!

LOOK at what lovely, lovely Compostman has made for me :-)


A new hen house!





Hmm now what to call it.. the other wooden house is "Cluckingham Palace" so what should this one be called?

An unexpected gift

Ooh I have received an unexpected gift via the postman!

I was entered into a draw and I have won some lovely goodies from Garden Organic.

A jute bag, some seeds, a CD about composting, a couple of booklets (on worm composting and composting), the biography of Laurence D Hills ( which I was actually considering buying!) and a yummy G and B Easter egg...

Mmm guess what I will be doing on Easter Sunday? reading my new book and eating "Maya Gold" chocolate, that is what :-)

It has occurred to me, as I have some of these items already, and I have got a few other things I would like to share out from having a clear out, and it is my birthday soon

..... I think I shall do a giveaway...watch for a post in the next few days for details....

Happy Valentines Day

I am very happy!

Lovely Compostman gave me a very wonderful (and somewhat unexpected) Valentines Day gift today...

"The Victorian Farm" book of the BBC TV series!

and the DVD of the archaeologists previous "living in a past era for a year" called "Tales from the Green Valley" which I completely missed when it was on TV, as I was quite ill all that summer with M.E and other stuff, and remember struggling just to get through the day and go to bed early, not stay up and watch TV....

So I will be able to finally watch it!

:-)))

I AM a lucky lady! (and its a good job I had got him a lovely gift, as well)
We have been married for 24 years at the end of March, and have been together for more than 25 years, and he can STILL surprise me :-)

I hope everybody else is having a good day as well :-)