A Road Trip and Banana Coconut Cream Popsicles

Hello readers, welcome to the Weekend Blog Post.

Tonight I share with you 

"A Road Trip and Banana Coconut Cream Popsicles." 

Happy Reading ♥

A Road Trip

We recently took a break and explored the South West for a few days. You know it's going to be a good road trip when you find Smiley Face Cookies at a bakery along the way :)

We had so many wonderful experiences - like breathing in smell of  the ancient forest at The Valley of the Giants

we walked amongst the forest tree tops along a 420 metre long steel-truss walkway which leads over a deep red Tingle Tree Gully. The highest point along the walkway is 40 metres. Amazing!

And yes that is me hanging onto the hand rails! 

We got lost in a living maze that stands over 2 metres tall 

and saw fantastic sculptures at Margaret River and Cape Leeuwin. 

We completed a 7km hike from Cape Naturaliste to Sugar Loaf Rock in very very warm weather; 

spotted some sensational coastline along the way

and stopped to watch local surfers catching waves. 

We then discovered the regal beauty of Castle Rock on a much shorter stroll near Dunsborough. 

We even braved wind gusts of 132 km per hour at the Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse! Cape Leeuwin is such a special place, it is the point where the Southern and Indian Oceans meet.

Topped off with some fantastic food from around the South West region, it really was a most satisfying road trip.

Banana Coconut Cream Popsicles

I recently tried one of the most delicious boutique Popsicles I have ever had, it was made with bananas, coconut milk and crushed cacao nibs. I tried to replicate this at home. I missed the Health Food Shop so used grated organic milk chocolate instead of cacao nibs but this didn't give a very strong flavour. Also, I only had two small bananas and a can of Coconut Cream in the cupboard. I would like to try making this again using two large bananas and Coconut Milk perhaps. Anyway, give it a try for yourself. This recipe will fill between 4-8 Popsicle moulds depending on the size of your moulds. I love this recipe as it is dairy free :)  

Banana Coconut Cream Popsicles

Ingredients: 

400ml Can of Organic Coconut Cream or CoconutMilk2 Large Ripe Bananas

2-3 Tablespoons Crushed Cacao Nibs or Grated Chocolate

Method: 

1. Peel and cut bananas into chunks and freeze. 

2. Blitz bananas in a food processor with Coconut Cream/Milk and Cacao Nibs.

3. Spoon into Popsicle moulds and return to the freezer to set. 

Readers, I hope you enjoyed reading "A Road Trip and Banana Coconut Cream Popsicles." See you all on Wednesday for a new edition of Wednesday Wishes xo♥

Friday Friends - Local Makers - Nazzy Beads

Hello readers - Happy Friday to you all. You may (or may not have) noticed the absence of a weekend blog post last Sunday. Maddabling had a little vacation and was a tad preoccupied road tripping. Never mind, I am entitled to miss one here and there *wink* 

This week it is my great pleasure to introduce you all to Naomi of Nazzy Beads. Naomi is a local maker and a dear friend of mine. 

I am a really really big fan of her work. We have given the gift of Nazzy Beads glass home wares on several occasions now; with the items of choice being a cheese board and beaded cheese cutlery set, a custom lamp work bead cake server set as a wedding gift and two bottle serving trays! Let me share some picks from Naomi's Madeit store now so you can see what I am on about.  

This is one of the fab Beaded Cake Server sets currently available - LOVE ♥ ! 

For a statement piece, you can't go past the vibrant colours of the handmade and melted Moretti glass necklace, this one is in Orange and Sky Blue - I really must get one of these, I do love the colour combination. 

And this is one of the gorgeous Beaded Cheese Cutlery Sets I mentioned earlier, it is just so delicious! 

Readers, I now invite you to put up your feet and read the inspirational creative story that is "Through the Nazzy Beads Looking Glass". Have a fabulous weekend xx

Through the Nazzy Beads Looking Glass

Hello readers, I'm Naomi, the face behind Nazzy Beads. From collecting antique glass from the age of 13, I have always loved glass over any medium. After trying many hobbies, nothing ever took my interest any further than trying it once. Then 3 yrs ago I was taught the art of Lamp working Moretti soft glass, well I was hooked!  

 The many designs,styles,patterns that you can make with glass, some designs that you can never ever recreate, the way glass moves,chemical reactions, the many other mediums that you can add and the absolute endless possibilities, opening up my eyes to the new and fascinating world of glass.

I've had great joy making Lamp work glass beads, modern jewellery,  beaded home wares such as cutlery, cake sets, salad servers, children's spoons and the ever popular cheese sets etc. Getting great joy of live melting demonstrations at art shows and festivals.

But my passion for glass grew, after looking at Antiqued glass I had collected, I toyed with the idea of going bigger, to recreate glass pieces such as platters and Vases that I'd collected, experimenting with another level of glass. 

Always having a passion for the large pieces of glass at art galleries and securing a few small pieces that Ive been able to purchase, I'd always admired the artists that created these beautiful pieces, never even considering that it would be something I could achieve,even in my wildest dreams! 

Well, guess what, with my beautiful partners encouragement, I took the extra step, with the purchase of another, much larger kiln, I have now ventured into Slumping and Fusing of glass; already knowing how glasses work together, I have taken to it like a duck to water.

My inspiration is constantly changing and quite vast, my latest inspirations are landscapes  the colours of spring , bright and bold jewellery. I also have great fun with recycling glass, such as window glass, and wine bottles. Using many mediums such as powdered & crushed glass, copper,silver,gold,granite and wood to name a few. Also incorporating the 2 styles of glass work-lamp working, slumping and fusing. I love being quite diversified with my work.

I do get super excited when I see someone wearing my jewellery out and about, or going to someones home and their using my home wares, that's probably my greatest joy, people enjoying my passion. 

I have many things in the pipeline, many ideas, but so little time to put them to fruition. It would be a dream of mine to be a glass  artisan as my full time career, there is nothing better than making a career out of your passion.

If you have any enquiries please do not hesitate to email me at:

nazzy.bead(at)westnet.com.au

Where can you see or purchase Nazzy Items? Check below: 

Find me on Facebook here: 

www.facebook.com/pages/nazzybeads

and buy lovely things online at Madeit here: 

www.madeit.com.au

You can view my items in person at the following locations: 

The Vancouver Cafe + Store, Vancouver St, Albany, WA, 6330

The Denmark Visitor Centre, Denmark WA, 6330

and in person at the following markets: 

The Ivy Street Fair Sat 29th March 2014, 11am-5pm

Denmark Arts Festival in Denmark (during Easter) 19th April 2014

Vancouver Art Street Festival in Albany on the 3rd May 2014

Road Trip - Wednesday Wishes

We recently went on a road trip + these cute finds were found using Road Trip as a search word on Etsy.

Road Trip - inspiration for the Wednesday Wishes blog post.

Enjoy xo♥

Airstream, Retro, Silver, Summer, Road Trip,11x14 Photo from TerraVision

Travel Journal Road Trip Vacation from BagLadyLulu

12 Road Trip Series Pencils. Let's Explore from Earmark

Road Trip Pendant Necklace with Multi Colored Beige Cords from WiReDBoutique

The Original Road Trip Fund Ceramic Piggy Bank from OohThePlacesYoullGo

Friday Friends - DUSTy Divas - Little Scamp Prints

Welcome to Friday lovely readers, I hope you have had the most fabulous week. What have you been up to? I would love to hear about your creative endeavours, share a comment if you so wish :) 

This week it is my absolute pleasure to introduce to you a new Friday Friend, DUSTy Diva and Australian Creative. Meet the adorable Amanda from Little Scamp Prints!

Amanda creates gorgeous prints - from the inspirational to the downright quirky! Here are some that I had to share with you, I really love her work ♥ Take for example the "Up up and Away" original design ready to frame print - it has just the right amount of whimsy to inspire creative thoughts. 

Never a truer word was spoken with this cute "Milk Loves Cookies" and j'adore this how to define "LOVE" print ♥

I have always loved the saying I Love You To The Moon and Back but this print takes it to a whole new level :) 

Dear readers, I now invite you to explore The Terrific Typography of Little Scamp. Have a most wonderful weekend everyone, see you soon for the Weekend Blog Post xo♥ 

P.S. Please respect that these images have been authorised for use on the Maddabling blog with the express permission of Little Scamp Prints. Do not use, crop, recreate or alter these images in any way. Thank you for respecting Amanda's copyright as an artist on these fantastic images ♥

The Terrific Typography of Little Scamp

Once upon a time there was a first-time mum who felt so smug when her baby daughter slept so much and so well, she thought she might turn her creative ideas into a small business creating prints and canvases. What a great way to fill all those hours of spare time!

Soon after, the baby grew and did not sleep so much. But the business remained anyway and Little Scamp Prints was born! 

Named for my cheeky daughter, the original little scamp, "we" create unique, fun and sometime cheeky prints and canvases  for the whole family. But prints for other little scamp, kids and baby's rooms are our speciality.

I am proud to have become a member of the DUST team and have been inspired and awestruck by the amazing talent of the group! I am a total font geek, and love exploring new ideas in typography and design. 

A look at my designs will quickly show you that a lot of my inspiration comes from music... song lyrics, even just a fragment, can evoke gorgeous memories. Poetry, cheeky sayings... inspiration is everywhere! 

My favourite designs change all the time... at the moment it is a canvas from the Mum Logic series, "Brush your teeth or they will all fall out!". I love seeing which designs take off.... I get a laugh from the fact that my most commented on print at markets and online is 'Never drink and bake'! 

I joined etsy over a year ago, because, to be honest, I wanted to go to an etsy photography workshop and I needed to have a store. Like most people there, I created a store and added one item the night before. Confession! But it planted the seeds to get me started, and almost a year later I have come back to set up shop properly to complement my own website where most of my sales are made. 

I am loving learning more about etsy... I am yet to make that first sale, and you may hear me (all the way from Brisbane) screaming with delight when I do! 

Dear readers, would you like to see more? Here is how you can connect: 
Visit the Little Scamp website here: 
www.littlescamp.com.au 
Become a follower on Facebook here: 
www.facebook.com/littleprintsau 

Buy lovely things on Etsy here: 
https://www.etsy.com/au/shop/LittleScampPrints  
And see what inspires on Pinterest here: 

www.pinterest.com/littlescampau