Almost there

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purple flower
I love these flowers in my garden, they remind me of daisies but purple. There are still several buds that haven’t opened but most have and this one is almost there too

On a completely different note, I didn’t realise it but I’ve now had this blog for 1 whole year! So thank you to all those that have visited and followed my blog and I hope you continue to do so. And I hope that I can carry on showing you my world, in an interesting and colourful way

Kew Gardens – Autumn visit 3

At Kew Gardens one of the areas that was quite seasonal to the autum/winter period was the berry walk, with lots of different species of berries dotted about. I’m not sure if any were edible but they looked pretty in various colours and shades.

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I found it interesting how some berries look quite similar in colour and size but the leaves on the branches and bushes look quite different or didn’t have any at all

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I love the purple colour of these berries, which are called Callicarpa japonica and are not edible but can be used to make herbal tea which sounds interesting

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Walking around I also spotted that there were several types of mushrooms growing, mainly under trees where dead leaves and foliage can decompose in the moist air, nourishing and encouraging fungal growth. I was quite fascinated with them as I haven’t seen so many different types of mushrooms growing in nature, but at the same time I did feel quite grossed out so I didn’t get too close and relied on my zoom to get a better look

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I do quite like these ones though, the creases on the stem make it look like they have a wrapping around them

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One of the things I really liked at Kew was that although it is clear to see that plants and trees have been categorised according to types, species and even climate, British nature has found a way to join in, to become part of a particular area no matter where it comes from, such as mushrooms under pine trees or squirrels up Redwoods.

My other posts of Kew Gardens can be found on the links below
Kew Gardens part 1
Kew gardens part 2

The best of 2013

2013 has been an exciting year for me with regards to photography; I finally managed to get myself a DSLR and was able to take some great photos with it at some amazing places. I have also been learning more about photography through a course as well as through all of you bloggers out there. Some of you have left helpful tips, while others have left kind and encouraging words, but I think most of all I feel that having seen photos that you have taken and published on your blogs you have really set the bar high, with beautiful, amazing shots of the world around you. I thank you all for your support on my blog and for helping me see the world in a different perspective.

I hope you all have a happy and successful 2014 and I leave you with some of my favourite photos from this year.

Rainbow cake

It was my brother’s birthday recently so his wife and my sister decided to make him a cake, but not just any cake; a rainbow cake. (and I did my bit of course – babysitting!). They took inspiration from the Hummingbord rainbow cake which looks amazing.

First they made the batter like normal (sorry not a great photo)

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Then they mixed the batter with various colours of food colouring, adding more or less depending on how rich they wanted the colours to come out

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Then putting them in the baking tins and spreading the batter evenly

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Once cooked leave them to cool

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Then the fun part-layering the different colours of the cake with icing or in this case low-fat cream cheese for the butter-cream icing holding it all together

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Then just cover the whole cake in the icing and decorate as you like. All that is left is to chill and serve.

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The cake is fairly easy to make, looks great and tastes delicious. For the recipe see here and you can see my sister’s write up of her baking skills here

Colourful cupcakes

My sister has become quite talented at making cupcakes, all she needs is to be told what colours you want them in. These bright and colourful cupcakes were made for a henna party recently.

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And the best thing is not only do they look great they taste delicious too