Hello, my name is Celia

... and I am one of the new contributors to this blog.

I usually post in my own blog here - Celia Knits. As the name of my blog says, I knit.. and crochet, and weave, and sew and dye, and cook, and bake and... well, let's just say I love craft! I love it all so much, in fact, that I have my own store called Celia's Basket and we ship worldwide. I also have my own Ravelry store for my patterns (look for Celia on Ravelry). I make everything in the store myself - hand-dyed yarn, hand-made stitchmarkers and drawstring bags, and hand-dyed fibre. Soon, I plan on introducing a new product - bookmarks - because I love to read as well!

So, who am I?

I am Malaysian Chinese, and I now live in Sydney, Australia with my husband and son. My little 4 year old is my muse and I love sewing and knitting for him, especially since he is still appreciative of my hand-made clothes for him. This will not last long, I have been told, so I am enjoying it while it lasts!

I plan on sharing with you a little about our life in Sydney, a recipe or two, and perhaps even a pattern or two for those of you who are avid crafters like me.

I leave you today with a picture of my little muse wearing one of my latest patterns



and a recipe for Rocky Road - a favourite in this house! I adapted this from Retromummy's blog. Corrie aka Retromummy also happens to run the Retromummy store which sells the most gorgeous fabrics including a selection imported from Japan. Go take a squiz!

Okay, enough talking.. here's my version of Corrie's Rocky road

Ingredients
About 375g good quality dark chocolate (semisweet)
3/4 cup roasted hazelnuts
2 cups mini marshmallows
1/2 cup dried cranberries raisins
3/4 cup halved raspberry gummy lollies (you can use jelly babies in a pinch)

Method
Line a cookie sheet or large baking tray with greaseproof paper.
Place chocolate in a large heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water. Stir till chocolate has melted.
When chocolate has melted, remove from heat.
Stir in all remaining ingredients quickly.
Pour out the mixture onto the lined tray.
Using the spoon, push the mixture out so that it forms an even layer on the tray.
Place tray in the fridge for an hour to set.
Transfer greaseproof paper and rocky road onto a cutting board and using a clean dry knife, cut into squares or rectangles.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

I'd say it will keep for a week or two, but mine has never lasted that long due to the many "hungry" mouths around. Enjoy!

Celia - Celia Basket