Chocolate Cake... yummmmm

I love it when friends have birthdays to celebrate. It means getting together to share each others company, some yummy food and catch up.  This particular birthday was no different.   A gorgeous girlfriend was turning 50, so I offered to bake the cake for her.

 Like me, she has a wonderful passion for all things chocolate.  So, what was I to do, but pull out my Great Grandmother's chocolate layer cake recipe.

Inside the cake, there were 14 fine layers of individually cooked cake, alternated with chocolate cream.  Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of the cake when it was cut to show you the layers.

I did have a panic moment when my friend asked me to put 50 candles ON the cake.  When I was purchasing the candles and flowers, I mentioned this request to the sales lady, who promptly said "Good Luck with that". 

My compromise was to put the candles on the board, which I am pleased I did, because they burnt like crazy when lit, making me doubly glad that I had also put a hard chocolate shell around the outside edge.  Phew!

All in all, it was a fantastic day, with the sun shining, lots of lovely people gathered and my girlfriend had hired a chef for the occasion, so there was no cooking or washing up.  It was truly heavenly.

Christmas in July - almost

Well, it's not quite July, but it is certainly cold enough at the moment for a Northern Hemisphere Christmas right here in Australia!

In an effort to try and complete some of my "smaller" projects, I decided to work on my Christmas apron.

 And... it's taken along time to percolate in the zip-lock bag it was in.  

• Fabric and pattern purchased in 2009. 
• Shapes traced onto fusible web in 2009.  
• Applique fused and stitched onto background in 2014.
• Finally put together a few weeks ago.  

 To get the shape/size of the actual apron, I traced around the shape of my favourite apron, then I knew it would be a perfect fit and it is.

Stitching this apron was quite a break away from my normal things to do, but the book I got the layout and letters from was so lovely and with many nice Christmas items contained in the pages, that I couldn't help myself.  I just had to make it!

I am looking forward to preparing Christmas dinner, wearing my new apron. :)

** Applique Pattern:  'I Believe' book by Nancy Halvorsen for Art To Heat.  Pub. 2009.