Danny Douche Butters- Respect

Well-done to co worker and top fellow animal lover Danny Douche for raising 600 quid for the Dogs Trust.... He decided in January to forgo his lovely (but thinning locks) and undergo the Beverly snip with number 1 razor cut... We all encouraged him to go the whole hog but as the day in question dawned, I think we were all pretty nervous for him... I think he gave his beard an extra stroke that day;-)

No turning back here most of Crown's staff wanted to see value for money...

The Douche before with his Timotei hair style

Aww think Douche is hair sore

Steady on Bev...

Reminds me of Rodney's famous rats tail hair piece. Classic

No dude, Inverted bob ... Don't see many of those on those bikers fellers do you. Soldier on Bev this look is definitely a no no.

That's more like it dude.......

Round of applause for The Douche.... Jobs a good un, anyone got a hat. No seriously much respect...

Lavender Biscuits & Lavender Sugar

For the lavender sugar just mix 1kg/2lb 4 oz caster sugar with two teaspoons of lavender flowers. I didn't have a jar big enough so I halved the ingredients and put them into this Kilner jar, the lavender infused sugar should keep well for up to six months. Next year instead of buying culinary lavender flowers I want to try to harvest them from home-grown plants.

Lavender Shortbread

Ingredients

125g/4oz butter

55g/2oz lavender infused caster sugar

180g/6oz plain flour

Icing sugar/optional... I just used caster sugar

Set oven to 190/375f/gas 5

Beat the butter and sugar together until smooth

Stir in the flour to get a smooth paste. Then roll out the paste to 1cm/half inch thick

Cut to any type of shape you like sprinkle with icing sugar and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Bake in the oven for 15 - 20 minutes or until pale golden brown

Set aside to cool on a wire rack

Mine came out slightly too golden so I would start having a peak in the oven after 10 minutes if you like them the colour of the shop bought stuff. These tasted even better the next day. What I liked about the recipe was the minimal amount of ingredients needed to produce something so scrummy.

Recipe adapted from bbc.co.uk/food

Culinary Lavender from Cotswold Lavender 3.99 for 100ml jar... Expensive for a small amount but if you make the Lavender sugar then it will go a long way. Nice product.

And The Winner Is?

Congratulations go to Trish from Life As I See It... you guessed correctly. Doogy was the toy Harry found in the park. Email me your address and I will send the bird box off to you. Was it the scruffiness that made you pick it?

Also congratulations to Matron at Down On The Allotment, Lioney was the most vigorously ruffed up toy by far.... I had to strategically photograph him so you could not see the holes where the stuffing was coming out. Consolation prize consisting of two knitted mice goes to you. These two cute colourful critters were made by Linda at Shabby Tiger, Handmade.

Thanks to everyone who took the time out to enter my little competition. Cheers

Shagrat's First Giveaway competition

Which one of these toys did Harry find in the park? Remember the rules, 1 guess only and you can't choose the same toy as someone else. See previous post for rules and prize info.

1. Piggy

2. Snaky

3. Monstar

4. Liony

5. Dumdum

6. Dino

7. Doogy

8. Foofer

9. Bally Wally

10. Bottle

Shagrat's First Ever Giveaway

Tuesday 20th of September would have been Harry Labs Twelfth birthday so I'd like to mark this day by hosting a giveway to honour and celebrate his life..... and to thank some of my regular followers for their support.

Harry in his element indulging his favourite outdoor pursuits, collecting sticks and getting wet.

At home Harry was no different he loved playing with his vast array of toys, of course he did grow bored of some of them over time accumulating a large toy graveyard but Harry definitely had a few firm favourites... One particular longtime favourite was a toy he found himself in the park whilst walking with my dad, of course Harry didn't leave it behind....

Now here are the rules to win the giveaway prize. On Tuesday I will upload ten pictures of some of his favourite toys with a number and a name, all you have to do is guess which one Harry found under a bush and brought home to add to his stash.

Remember that once a toy has been chosen by a blogger you cannot pick the same one so it is vital you look back at what others have chosen. Just leave a comment with the number and name of the toy. Once all the toys have been picked I will announce the winner, now I don't get lots of traffic on here so if I'm struggling to get all ten toys picked you might have to help me out by spreading the word around. The competition is open to all regardless of location and you don't need to be a follower.

Here is the prize on offer a colourful bird box, I was going to giveaway something doggy but then not everyone has a dog. Most bloggers like birds don't they? The only stipulation is... if you win it please report back with pictures and a few words if you are lucky enough to get a lodger. I might do a very small consolation prize for the person who chooses the toy that Harry relentlessly roughed up over the years;-)

Goodluck to you all.... Remember pictures uploaded on Tuesday 20th.

P.S Goodluck Phil Rob and Karl running the Great North Run for Help The Hospices Today. Have a great day chaps....

Rose Petal Jam

Recipe from that handy pocket sized book Food For Free: Wild dog Rose petals, caster sugar, water, lemon and orange juice and that's just about it... Will have a tasting when Iv'e made some scones and bought some clotted cream.

Many Tears Animal Rescue (MTAR)

I've just started collecting used postage stamps for Many Tears Animal Rescue based in South Wales, here they take in and re-home primarily ex-breeding dogs who are no longer required; those on "death row" in the pounds and those whose owners are no longer able to keep them. MTAR also have many foster homes set up all over the country. Collecting used stamps is a simple and easy way to help raise much needed funds for the rescue. If anyone wants to help can you email me for my address and I will send them on for you or you can acquire the co-ordinators address from the website www.manytears.co.uk. If you have the time take a look around the website as there are a number of different ingenious ways you can help especially if you like knitting;-).

Here is a photo of how the stamps should be collected with a half inch border around the stamp. Please don't peel or steam the stamps off the envelope as they are worth less this way especially if they are damaged. UK stamps are good but foreign stamps are worth more.......