My first attempt at sugar cookies *winks*

 

Would you believe that your gal here has never made sugar cookies and made them pretty? *dramatic music plays in the background*

So I made my first batch on Sunday and got some "assistants" to try out the consistency of my royal icing....

Nephew #3: working hard on spreading his icing....

The niece was very pleased with her creations. And of course my assistants were paid handsomely - they ate all the cookies they decorated! *LOL*

So I thought I might attempt a Christmas cookie box as a gift for my cousin. But of course, nephew #1 ate most of the remaining undecorated cookies so I had to make and bake some more. 

I also got a food container box from Daiso for my Christmas cookie gift box. Well, I found out that the decorating part was way way way harder than I thought and I had to simplify to get a somewhat decent box of cookies. Alright, brace yourself. Don't forget that this gal is new to sugar cookies and decorating them....

Tada! My first decorated box of Christmas cookies! Hahahaha!:) They don't look that great but they are quite yummy! :)

Here they are all wrapped up and as I am typing this, digesting in the stomachs of my cousin, her husband and their son.:)

Happy holidays my friends! I know this is a tough year with many of us unable to spend the festive season with friends and family. But this difficult time will pass. Let's just stay safe and protect those around us. 

Meanwhile I'll be taking a bloggy break...see you in 2021! 

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The other day's girl in my sketchbook

 

Hello friends! It's almost Christmas! How are your preparations? I've been busy baking cookies all day. Tomorrow will be the fun part of actually decorating them! Yes, it's your gal's first time making decorated sugar cookies. And she intends to give them away as gifts. *winks*

 But here's the other day's girl in my sketchbook. I went in with a white gel pen to define her features and I like how she turned out. :)

Happy week ahead friends! :)

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Living Room #2 finally got some love

 

So, with all the staying-at-home I've been doing in 2020, it was inevitable that some furniture was going to get moved around. The family living room is a decent size so I decided to create 2 living room areas in the space. Living Room #1 would be the cosy area to foster conversation while Living Room #2 would be for watching tv. Unfortunately, everyone in the household has their own mobile devices to stream their own interests so Living Room #2 has been quite neglected.

Until the Gangster Gang (3 nephews + 1 niece) got an early Christmas pressie from their parents in the form of a Nintendo Switch set. Now, Living Room #2 is the most popular living room because of its sheer proximity to the tv. *LOL*

Now all the 4 kids love hanging out in Living Room #2, hoping that their siblings will fare badly in the game so that it will be their turn to play! Hahaha!

I used the bits and bobs I got from my recent happy mail and just added more washi tape and of course, an owl, because no layout would be complete without a bird (right, Julie???)

And yes, I even got my border punch out for a quick play! Go me! *winks*

Can you believe that this is the first layout of the kids together in 2020? Yep, I haven't seen the nephews #2 & 3 and the niece since March. So, even though the photos aren't great, I'm glad they made it to the Yam family album for 2020.

Playing along with More Than Words.

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Let's chat - life update in Singapore

 

It's been a while since my last update on life in Singapore during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our Prime Minister just announced several days ago that we will be going into Phase 3 of re-opening on December 28. We have been in Phase 2 since June. 

With Phase 3, local attractions can accommodate visitors at 65% capacity up from a previous 50%. Social gatherings can be in a group of 8 people, up from 5 previously. There would be a pilot scheme of some nightspots re-opening in January 2021. These have been closed since March 2020. Mask-wearing remains mandatory in all public places.

And of course, by end December, Singapore will have its first batch of the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccines in the country. While priority will be given to essential and front-line workers and the more vulnerable citizens, the plan is to vaccinate all citizens and long-term residents above the age of 16 by third quarter of 2021. 

While vaccination is free, it is voluntary. Our senior ministers will be first in line to get vaccinated to allay public fears and attest to the safety of the vaccine. My folks are adamant about NOT taking the vaccine because of the fears of the long-term side effects which are unknown at this point in time. My sister and I are on the same page - we will get vaccinated if it means that we get to travel again. However, we'll probably be low in the priority queue based on risk factor. 

What about you? Will you be taking the vaccine once it becomes available to you?

Moving on to some happy things...check out the happy mail from my Aussie pal Lizzy. Of course, it arrived the day after I informed her that her X'mas package will be late (because in a time of pandemic, parcels have to be sent out mid-November to have any hope of reaching the recipient before Christmas)...*LOL* 

And yesterday, I went to Spotlight (Aussie-owned craft and interior superstore) to pick up a 1M open star tip and some sprinkles...and came home with these! My excuse is that there were on 30 -40% off and I get an additional $40 off $100 purchase. So, you are looking at S$61.80 worth of cake-decorating supplies! Guess, cake-decorating is going to be my new hobby for 2021.

Tell me, how are things going in your neck of the woods?

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Handmade gift #2 - home-baked chocolate chip cookies

 

Hello friends! 2020 has been such a challenging year so I am spreading a little festive cheer with some home-baked sweet treats...nicely packaged in one of my Christmas packaging of course. Pictured is the reworked decorated paper bag featuring Santa.

I even took out my Christmas oven gloves to help me out with the festive baking. Aren't these cute? I found them in mum's stash months ago and now I can finally use them! *happy dance*

Today I'm sharing my current fave chocolate chip cookie recipe. Please note that lots of patience is required to make this.

1 cup unsalted butter (227g)

3/4 cup organic raw sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 cold eggs 

300g all-purpose organic flour

26g bread flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 tsp organic sea salt

2 tsp cinammon 

chocolate chips & walnuts (or nuts of your choice)

organic sea salt for sprinkling

1. The first thing you need to do is get your butter out and into a pan. Because you need to melt the butter till you get burnt butter. Which takes a long time. And a lot of stirring. And a lot of.."Why did I even start this?" Until you start smelling the toastiness of the burnt butter. Then you will be like, "Omg. This is going to be the best cookie ever!"

Even so, you're going to have to wait. Because you need to transfer the burnt butter into a container and put it into the refrigerator until it solidifies again. Which takes like maybe 90 minutes.

2. During the wait, you could prepare your other ingredients and put them in the refrigerator as well. Because this recipe requires everything to be cold.

3. Once your butter is ready, cream the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer. You could totally do it with a wooden spoon and get a good arm workout. But I would recommend using a stand mixer/handheld mixer because you already lost some precious time with the burnt butter. *winks* Once the mixture is light and fluffy, add in the cold eggs, one at a time.

4. Next, add in half the dry ingredients until well-incorporated, then finish off with the remaining dry mixture. Do not overmix. I usually stop when I still see little bits of flour because I find that it is easier to mix in the chocolate chips and nuts when there's still some flour unincorporated.

5. Add in the chocolate chips (I went with dark chocolate and white chocolate) and nuts. I didn't specify an amount because I usually just eyeball the amount. *LOL*

6. Then you need to put the dough in a container, cover it and put it in the refrigerator. Where it will stay for 3 days. Because it got tired after all the mixing...and needs to rest. Okay, you can bake them after 1 hour but it gets more yummy after 3 days. My suggestion is to bake some to get you through the 3 day wait and then bake the rest after 3 days.

7. Three long days later, get your cookie dough out of the fridge and preheat your oven to 350F/180C.  Place your cookies out on a baking tray and bake for 12-14 minutes depending on your doneness preference and how big your cookies are. I like mine crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. And I like the size of cookies I get when I use my ice-cream scoop. They are easy to handle and pack.

They do spread a little so leave some space for them when you bake.

For a little more depth of flavour, sprinkle some organic sea salt on top.

There you have it...my current fave chocolate chip cookie recipe. :)

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A quick decorated Christmas gift bag for the minimalist

 

Now that all the fussy-cut Santa faces have been used up, it's time to move on. Today's project is a decorated Christmas gift bag for the minimalist. 

I cut two sheets of the same patterned paper to fit the front and back of the paper bag (eh...I might have done a little shopping lately...okay, it was just yesterday! *LOL*) Then I ran the sheets through my Xyron Creative Station for an even layer of adhesive before adhering them to the bag. After that, I inked the edges of the patterned paper  so that the edges blended in with the black paper bag. I finished by inking a chipboard sticker for a cohesive overall feel.

I love it when I get one of those wide paper bags because you can put loads of stuff in them. You just have to reinforce the bottom with some cardboard. And fluff up the top with some wrapping tissue (recycled of course). This bag folds flat for easy storage too. Perfect for someone in your life who may not appreciate a lot of cutesy, colourful stuff. Yep...no Santa face for this minimalist! *hahaha*

Happy weekend friends! 

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Surprise ! Extra Santa projects!

 

Last week, I shared what I thought was the last Santa project as I wasn't sure if I could share the last few projects since there were going to be on actual mail packages. I did manage to take some pictures before I addressed the packages. So you get to see them. I mean, in case you had some Santa withdrawal (is it only me? *winks*)

This one was the largest package so I had a little more space to play with.  I made sure to leave space for actual stamps. I always ask for stamps at the post office. :)

I wanted to make it look nice and festive without covering the whole package and confusing the mailman. *LOL*

While leaving me enough space to write the recipient's name and address. 

The sweet lady at the post office took great care to paste the stamps around my design so I hope the recipients enjoy their parcels. Or at least the stamps of Singapore's cityscape. Parcels which they might receive possibly in 2021 since apparently I was supposed to send out mail by mid-November to even score a pre-Christmas delivery. I have a totally valid excuse:  It's 2020's fault. *LOL*

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Workspace Wednesday - a face from the sketchbook

 

I haven't been drawing much in the last few months. Yep...my 100 portraits project for 2020 is a total bust. I think I did like 20. :(

Prior to the whole COVID 19 pandemic, I would draw at a cafe for a bit after a late lunch while finishing my cup of tea. Now that we have been home for the last 8 months, there would always be something else to do in the house - fix something, vacuum, cook et cetera. Lots of distractions.

Plus, I wanted to do 100 portraits of family and friends. The need for resemblance in my drawings to real life people made the task seem harder so the lazy person in me just avoided it altogether. 

Today, I went back to my usual cafe to find a little inspiration to start again. It has been 8 months since I've last been here. Just a quick sketch...a loose drawing with no likeness to anybody in my life. Just to get back into the rhythm of drawing again. This is the product so far.

What about you? Is there one aspect of your life you feel uninspired/unmotivated by?

 

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A page from the recipe planner - chocolate sourdough bread

 

Hello friends! Today I'm sharing a page from the recipe planner - chocolate sourdough bread. :)

My first foray into the sweeter side of sourdough breads. These smell amazing when they are piping hot right out of the oven. But of course, you can't cut into them. I wait till the next day. (Yes, my friends, who is this patient gal right? *winks*)

I did modify the recipe though...I used walnuts. The original recipe uses hazelnuts which are ridiculously expensive here.

The upside about working on my recipe pages is that I get to use up my 6x6 patterned paper scraps and stickers.:)

And small fussy-cut pieces that might get lost on a regular 12x12 page...:)

Happy Tuesday friends! :)

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The one about the bad haircuts

 

So, nephews #2 & 3 came over yesterday with terrible haircuts. Grandma was like, "Those barbers just cut the hair too quickly...it's over in like 2 minutes. But this is so bad. How come so uneven? (referring to nephew#3's hair) How come got holes at the back? (referring to nephew #2's hair)"

And I was like, "Didn't you go to a professional?"

Then my sister-in-law asked, "Which one is better?"

And then we learn that nephew #2's haircut was the handiwork of mummy and nephew #3's haircut was the handiwork of daddy (aka my brother). *LOL*

At this point, nephew #1 comes trotting down the stairs and I had to stop him mid-way...

"Brace yourself, "I said.

I know, I tend to be quite dramatic. But that is part of my charm. *winks*

Then he saw his siblings and started laughing. Hahaha!

Now, nephew #3's haircut was very uneven but he still had some length at the back and sides to "save" the haircut. But nephew #2's haircut can only be saved by a razor to the head - a buzz cut so that it can grow out evenly. The poor kid was visibly upset because he can feel the holes at the back of his head and he was meeting his mates on Tuesday. 

Playing along with Let's Get Sketchy.

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