TTT: Stock Making

I'm sure when you read that title, you thought it would be more like a Monday, where I tell you how I make various items of my stock... no, today I am talking about literal, actual, stock. Perhaps it's called broth in America, but that's something different over here too.

This is what I mean by vegetable stock.

I tend to make vegetable stock rather than from meat, but this method works for either (you can always top up vegetable stock ingredients with a chicken carcass or joint bones). First thing to do, is to get yourself a freezer bag, and every time you peel a vegetable, onion, carrot, potatoes, peppers, whatever - put the bits that you don't eat (the peel, the seeds, the stalks) into the freezer bag. And then straight into the freezer. 

There's no limit to what vegetable odds and ends you can include

You don't have to fill the bag all in one go - pop it in the freezer and add to it every time you cook. When the bag is full, you're ready to go! Pop the peelings (and meat bones if you're using them) in the slow cooker, or in a heavy bottomed pan over a low heat, and let it simmer for HOURS. And I really mean hours. The longer you leave it, the stronger it will be. I tend to leave it in the slow cooker overnight. 

The slow cooker is by far the easiest way to do this

When it's done, strain all of the 'bits' out, and you can bin or compost them depending on how you deal with your waste. The liquid is what you want to keep. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and then freeze in ice cubes or other hand sized portions to use in all of your recipes. Delicious and free! What's not to love.

Tasty vegetable stock - free, delicious and very useful!

TTT: Spoonie Tips

Hi All and welcome to another Top Tips. As you all know, I'm a chronic illness sufferer - I suffer with M.E./C.F.S. which is a condition which involves chronic pain and chronic fatigue amongst other things. I'm about 10 years into being ill, and I've pretty much got it managed these days, although it's always a learning curve and can definitely throw me some curve balls. Here are my top tips for dealing with chronic illness.

This is my purple spoonie bracelet 

1. Organisation! It's my top top tip as it were... if you know what you need to do and how much energy each task is going to take it's a lot easier to manage those tasks without overdoing it. If you know you need to do the washing up, sort the laundry and send some emails then you can do the washing up, then send the emails, because that's a sat down activity, and then sort the laundry.

My spoon charms are one of my favourites

2. Pacing! Take breaks when you need them, don't feel bad if you need to take 5, or even 10 in order to get back on your feet. It's not always possible, so when it is, make the most of it!

My spoonie keyring can be personalised with any word or name

3. Communication! Tell people how you feel, let the people closest to you know when you're having a bad day - they can help! For too long I tried to deal with everything on my own, but I've learnt that the people who love me want to help.

My spoon jar is the perfect gift for a spoonie

4. Know your limits! Know when to say no to things. If someone asks me to join them on a half marathon, I'm going to say no, if they ask me to help them move house, I'll tell them I can help with packing tips, but not with physically moving them. I let my wonderful husband take Littlest Princess swimming on his own most of the time, because I know it drains me too much for the rest of the day.

My green spoonie bracelet and earrings

5. Do some things that are just for you, even at the expense of doing things that you feel are things you 'must' do. When you have limited energy it's easy to feel you have to spend all of that energy on doing the chores, but over a long period of time, that will destroy you. If all the energy you have left can be spent on doing the washing up, or on having a sandwich.... have that sandwich!

Zebra stripe spoonie bracelet.

TTT: TOMM

So many letter T's... Today's Top Tip Tuesday is The Organised Mum Method. I stumbled across this method online, because I'm always struggling to keep on top of the housework. Being a full time mum, a part time crafter/blogger and a part time teacher doesn't leave a lot of time for keeping a house clean.

Sneak pick of my lush house (which I love)

When I came across TOMM (as those of us in 'the method' refer to it) I was skeptical to say the very least - it boasts that you can spend just 45 minutes a day, and you'll have a spotless house. Now, I'll be the first to own that doesn't include tidying, but actually, keeping on top of the method has meant my house is tidier too. 

TOMM logo

There's handy print outs and and even handier facebook group which is a great place to swap cleaning tips and ask for advice where Gemma (the inventor of the method), and other like minded people are able to answer your questions.

Trust me, it sounds like it won't work - but it really does!

Top Tip Tuesday - Lemon Water

Those of you who know me know that I'm never seen without my handy water bottle nearby, and it almost always has a slice of lemon in. Now, that might seem like a lot of work, but I've a really easy cheat method.

First, you buy a bunch of lemons. And I mean a BUNCH - get them when they're in season and cheap. Slice them up straight away, and lay on baking parchment. Pop them in the freezer for a couple of hours - they'll take up a lot of room, but it's only for a couple of hours. Then when frozen, you can move them over to a ziplock bag - much more economic on space.

Then, every time you make a drink, pull out a slice of lemon (they shouldn't stick together using this method) and pop it in your water - fresh lemony cool water at the drop of a hat.

Why do I drink lemon water? Loads of reasons, but first and foremost because I really hate the taste of plain water, but lemon water I can stick. It has loads of health benefits as well, it's great for your skin, and it's a digestive aid! So, next time you can get your hands on some lemons, slice them up and prep them - and they'll keep you in sweet water for a long time!

Bonus tip: they also work well in hot water!

TTT: Self Care

Today’s Tuesday Top Tips are tying in with last weeks Monday Make – which is our spoonie bracelets. When you’re chronically ill, one of the most important things in life is looking after yourself. It’s often easy to remember all our commitments and promises to other people, and to forget about our commitments to ourselves – like keeping enough spoons in our back pocket. So here are a few tips I use to get through even the worst days.

1.       Stay Hydrated. I’m not even joking, being hydrated can make the world of difference to how you feel. If you’re anything like me, and hate water… plan ahead. On a good day, I slice up a load of fresh lemons and put the slices in the freezer (one day separated on baking paper, and then you can just pop them in a freezer bag) – that way you can just grab a slice from the freezer and have cool lemon water whenever you need it… the same goes for cucumber too if that’s your flavour. Alternatively if you’ve got an infuser bottle, you can use frozen berries in the fruit compartment instead of fresh.

2.       Treat yourself like your own best friend. It sounds weird, but bear with me for a moment. If you went round to your best friends house, and they were sat on the sofa, still in their PJs, no make-up, not brushed their hair and they said ‘excuse the mess, I’m having a really bad day’…. Would you berate them for not tidying up on a bad day like you berate yourself? No, you’d tell them to sit back and relax while you popped the kettle on – so be your own best friend, cut yourself some slack on the bad days, it’s not every day, and it does make a difference.



3.       Know what cheers you up – is it watching a few episodes of your favourite TV show, is it reading a book, or maybe crochet? Give yourself a break, don’t feel bad if you need to soak in a bath – I’m pretty infamous in my house for having 2 hour long baths…. I could soak for a lifetime. Give yourself a few hours to truly just be, doing the things that really relax you – no pressures, no stresses.

4.      Find something low energy, that is also a little bit productive. No, I’m not talking about re-organising your kitchen cupboards. I like to sit and write some blog posts in advance on a difficult day. Maybe you could write a shopping list, or a list of the things you’d like to do when you’re feeling better – perhaps you can add a couple of rows to your knitting project, or make that phonecall to your grandma that you’ve been putting off. Accomplishing something, no matter how small, can really make a difference with how you feel.

5. Treat yourself. If you can afford it, buy something that makes you happy. If you can’t – allow yourself a sweet treat from the cupboard, maybe a hot chocolate, or perhaps there’s an ice-cream in the freezer with your name on it. It says in many religions ‘treat others as you yourself would wish to be treated’ but I think my overarching message today is to treat yourself as you treat other people too.

6. Last but not least… accept help. I’m lucky, I’ve family and friends that love me, and that understand my illness – sometimes it’s hard to remember to share when I’m feeling bad, but once they know, they’re so understanding. Even littlest princess likes to help by giving mama some kisses to make me feel better. Know that it’s not every day, and on the better days you can give back, so allow yourself to be helped – again, going back to point 2, you’d want to help your best friend on a day like this right? So let your best friends help you.

Top Tip Tuesday - Feeling like a Princess

Hi everyone! Welcome to my first ever Top Tip's Tuesday. For Tuesdays on my blog I'm going to be sharing some tips with you, and trust me, they're going to be random. They might be about jewellery making, about sewing or crochet, or some other craft I do - or they may be about housework, about family life and everything and anything in between.

However to kick things off, I'm going to start with the idea which is the underlying principle behind Katy Page Designs... How to feel like a Princess.

My 21st Birthday - yep, I'm a princess

(And yes, I'm going to intersperse this with various photos of me, feeling like a princess). I have to say, Littlest princess has it easiest - she's two, and when she wakes up in the morning and decides she needs to be a princess, on goes the princess dress and the crown. Usually Snow White (that's her favourite) but her godmother Luthaisea has made her a whole variety of fabulous princesses dresses - you can check them out on her blog here. She's also currently running around in a pair of fairy wings.... I can't get away with that shit!

LRP is a great opportunity to be a princess

As an adult, it isn't so easy - you put on a ballgown and people look at you funny in the street (unless you're at a LRP, but that's a story for another day). However there are some days when you just need to feel like a princess. So I've got a few tips to make you feel a little bit more special.

1. Start from the bottom up... literally. I always feel WAY more glamourous when I'm wearing matching undies - there's no way not to! And whilst a satin balconette is sure cute, it isn't practical. I love love LOVE Molke bras - they're made here in the UK, (in scotland) and there is no way you CAN'T feel fabulous wearing a pair of matching Molke  undies. They're super comfortable too. And no, I'm not being paid to say that, I'm a super molkevangelist (which is a word I totally invented) - they've changed my life for the better, and I love them!

This bra is sure to make you feel like a superhero

2. Dresses. I stopped wearing school uniform at 15, and by the time I was 18 I realised I went to school every day in jeans and a hoody. Not that there's anything wrong with jeans and a hoody - but it's very... same-y. So when I hit Uni I came up with the rule that I could only wear trousers once a week... and since then, it's dropped even more - I actually find dresses are WAY more comfortable than trousers... but put on a floaty maxi dress and you'll look like a princess. I made a super easy one which you can find on my old blog here.

Totally Princessy, and totally comfortable.

3. Accessories. I only got my ears pierced in the last couple of years, but trust me, having a pair of dangle drop earrings makes anyone feel like a princess. These cluster beads are a particular favourite of mine for the glamorous look, or if you're a fan of charms I have various different charm earrings like these ballet themed ones. 

Autumnal Earrings