September Cake

It's not handiwork. It's baking. But cooking and baking, I guess are both a craft in their own way. They're most certainly a form of science, that's for sure!

This is a recipe for a "September Cake". I've been facinated with this cake since I was small, and I always used to try and hit my Mum up to make it for me.

She won't though.

But she makes a mean jelly cake!

September Cake.

Ingredients:

• 5 ozs. SIMPSON'S SELF-RAISING FLOUR.
• 1/4 tsp salt.
• 1 tbsp cornflour (not wheaten).
• 1 tbsp arrowroot.
• 1 tsp cinnamon.
• 4 eggs.
• 3/4 cup castor sugar.
• 2 tbsp butter.
• 2 tbsp water.
• 2 tbsp orange juice.
• 1 tsp grated orange rind.
•  1/2 tsp Parisian essence.

Method:
Sift the flour, salt, cornflour, arrowroot and cinnamon together three times. Combine the butter, water, orange juice, orange rind and Parisian essence in a small saucepan and heat slowly until the butter is melted -- do not boil. Beat the eggs until thick and light-coloured; gradually add the sugar and continue the beating until the mixture is thick and fluffy. Remove beater and fold in the sifted dry ingredients, adding the liquids slowly. Mix until evenly blended. Bake in two greased and flour-dusted 8-inch layer pans in a moderate oven 375 degs. F. for about 25 minutes. Cool cakes. Slice to make 4 layers then sandwich together with a Creamy Butter Frosting. Cover the top and sides of the cake with the same frosting. Sprinkle with shredded or desiccated coconut. Decorate top edge of cake with slices of green angelica.

CREAMY BUTTER FROSTING
Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp butter. 
• 1/8 tsp salt. 
• 2 1/2 cups sifted icing sugar. 
• 1 egg white, unbeaten. 
• 4 to 5 tbsp cream. 
• 2 drops green colouring. 
• 1 tsp vanilla essence.

Method:
Cream the butter, add the salt. Add the sifted sugar, cream, and egg white alternately to the creamed butter. Blend well after each addition. Add the vanilla and green colouring. Beat until light and creamy.

Razzle Dazzle Doyley

This is currently something I'm working on. It's pretty fast and easy, but it can be a little fiddly when making the loops. To learn how to make the loops click here, and to join it into a circle click here (however, skip the first part about gathering the first side of loops - you don't need to do that for this pattern).

I'm currently making this in a fuchsia size 80 tatting cotton, and I'm using a British size 5 (1.4mm) steel hook with a short handle. It's pretty easy, and my first Hairpin piece. I have an Aero 3/4" hairpin lace loom (looks similar to the metal knitting needles), but you can get adjustable looms.

Traycloth In Crochet

Requires 3 balls of white or other selected colour Coats' Mercer-crochet No. 40; steel crochet hook No. 4 (1.65mm) (Slack workers could use a No. 4.5 (1.5mm) hook and tight workers a No. 3.5 (1.8mm)).

Useful Oddments in Tatted Lace

Tatting is one of my most favorite hand crafts, apart from knitting. I was taught how to tatt by the wonderful ladies of the Flying Fish Point CWA (Country Woman's Association) a few years ago on my 25th birthday. I had been wanting to learn how to do it since I was little girl. I had first found it in a Reader's Digest Book on Craft, but I had only managed in confusing myself terribly and making a large, tangled mess. I love the rhythm one gets into when tatting. However, I really don't like the unpicking of all the teeny-tiny stitches when I make a mistake!

This scan comes from the Furness Tatting Designs book, No. 2., and was written by Marjorie Willis. All the designs in the book have Kiwi names.

I have a feeling this book was actually my Great Aunt Monica's book, rather than my Grandma's, as Grandma had told me that she never knew how to tatt, and was facinated when I used to sit under her house and work on my projects.

Funny little tip from the back of the book:

"Sprays and Posies which have become limp through humidity in the atmosphere or getting wet become as new by shaping the petals with the fingers, and drying in moderate heat. A posy perched on your shoulder whilst at the hairdressers will benefit by the drier. A further application of Gum Arabic is not needed."

Crochet... dainty mats for your home.

Requires a ball of linen thread, No. 30 (but substitute as you wish), and a steel crochet hook No. 4.5 (1.5mm).

I don't know what publication this was printed in, nor the age of the article.

Sunflower Table Set

This pattern requires a No. 8 crocheting hook - I think this might be 1.5mm? It also calls for "Strutt's Macrame Twine", but I think you could possibly get away with using corresponding yarn for the hook.

I think this may be in American crochet terms.

My apologies for the shoddy scan. My scanner is a normal A4 scanner, and doesn't do too well with wide format pages. The last column is as follows:
[...]second circle on top of the first in the same way as for the centre mat, then join on yellow and work foundation round as given for centre mat. Work in rounds of loops as follows:
1st round. -- *4 ch., 1 d.c. in 2nd ch. from hook, 2 ch., miss 1st s.c. on previous round, 1 s.c. into next s.c.; rep. from * all round, sl. st. into base of first loop.
2nd round. -- Sl.st. along edge of 1st loop to single ch. loop at top, * 3ch., 1 d.c. into 2nd ch. from hook, 1 ch., 1 s.c. into single ch. loop at top of next loop ; rep. from * all round, working last s.c. into base of 1st loop. Fasten off.
Lay out the mats on an ironing board or thick cloth and pin out the points in the last round. Press mats well with a hot iron and damp cloth.

Breton Doyley

Requires white, No. 80 crochet cotton, a crochet hook suitable to work, and padding cord.

Does requiring having a padding cord make this a form of Irish crochet? Please let me know in the comments.