How to | Make Cyanotype Art

Sun prints, or cyanotypes, are a simple and effective way of creating art using the sun. You can buy kits online or from craft stores, that will come with instructions but here’s a quick guide to how to get started.

1. Take a piece of heavy duty paper. It’s going to get washed with the solutions so it needs to be able to withstand that. Sometimes the paper will come ready prepared; with other kits you will need to mix equal parts of the two solutions they give you, paint it on the paper and leave it to dry completely. Once you are practised at it, you can use fabric, too.

2. Once your paper is ready to use, place your objects on it and arrange them. You can print with any objects you like but flowers, leaves and branches with interesting silhouettes look really effective. Plants like fern are great as they have a delicate pattern for the sun to pick out. 

3. When you’re happy with your composition, weigh it down with something transparent like a piece of glass. The glass from inside a picture frame is ideal. Put the whole thing outside and let the sun do its work. 

4. Your paper will turn blueish then a grey colour, which is when you’ll know it's done. How long it takes will depend on how sunny it is. You can do cyanotypes even on a cloudy day - it will just take around 15 minutes then, whereas in strong sunlight it may only take a minute or two. 

5. Take a washing up bowl or in-tray - anything that the paper will fit into easily, fill with cold water and place the paper in it. The blue colour will deepen as it washes. Remove after a few seconds and hang somewhere to dry completely. The colour will continue to deepen during the drying process.

6. Frame your print and feel very pleased with yourself. 

If you’re feeling inspired, you can meet cyanotype artist, Mandy Barker, and see some of her work (also pictured above) in our August issue in our feature Out of the Blue. For more information about Mandy’s work and to buy the book, visit mandy-barker.com. Photography copyright: Mandy Barker

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More art to take part in…

More from our August issue…

Who's Who | Punch and Judy

In case it’s a while since you sat in front of a stripy tent and some puppets, we’ve put together a reminder of who’s who in the story of Punch and Judy. That’s the way to do it!

Mr Punch

Motivation: To shirk babysitting responsibilities and consume sausages left in his care.

Catchphrase: “That’s the way to do it!”

Fun fact: Mr Punch originates from the Italian 16th-century Commedia dell’Arte, in which he was a marionette called Pulcinella. 

Mrs Punch (Judy)

Motivation: To find two minutes’ peace, while leaving her feckless husband in charge of her precious baby. As you do.

Catchphrase: “Oh Mr Punch! You are a nasty, nasty and WICKED man!”

Fun fact: Judy was originally known as ‘Joan’ in early versions of the play.

Toby the Dog

Motivation: To cause havoc and eat sausages (if the crocodile has not got there first).

Catchphrase: “Bow Wow Wow!”

Fun fact: Until animal welfare sensibly stepped in, Toby was sometimes played by a real dog in Punch and Judy shows.

The Crocodile

Character motivation: To steal the sausages from Mr Punch and devour them in one bite. 

Catchphrase: SNAP SNAP!

Fun fact: No one is entirely sure why the crocodile was written in but it might be to do with the Victorians’ fascination with exotic animals. 

The Policeman

Character motivation: To lay down the law wearing a very tall hat.

Catchphrase: Ello ello ello. What ‘ave we got ‘ere then?

Fun fact: Originally the police officer was a ‘beadle’, a sort of religious Community Support Officer. 

The Ghost

Character motivation: To teach Punch a lesson. In most versions, there is a slapstick tussle and Mr Punch is the victor.

Catchphrase: “I hAVe CoMe tO haAAAUUUUuunnNt yOOOOoooOOU Mr pUuuunncCCHh!”

Fun fact: The ghost sometimes appears as the Devil, and ghost story writer, MR James cites the Ghost in Punch and Judy as his earliest inspiration.

Joey the Clown

Character motivation: A friend to Mr Punch, but one who likes to outwit him and make the audience laugh by doing so. Also wants his sausages looked after by him.

Catchphrase: “Has anybody seen Mr Punch and my sausages? (Cue: He’s behiiiiiiiinnd yoooooouuuu).”

Fun fact: Joey is named for the famous Victorian clown, Joseph Grimaldi. 

The String of Sausages

Motivation: To be eaten by the clown, the crocodile or the dog, rather than by Mr Punch. We like to think the string of sausages has a moral motivation here. 

Catchphrase: Not applicable. He’s the strong silent type.

Fun fact: The sausages usually belong to Joey the Clown, who entrusts their safety to Mr Punch, against all good sense, frankly. The sausages’ arrival in the cast of Punch and Judy is probably related to a plotline from one of clown Joseph Grimaldi’s acts. 

If you’d like to find out more about Punch and Judy and how it’s growing and changing for modern audiences, don’t miss our Modern Eccentrics pages in our August issue, in which we meet some real life Punch and Judy people.
Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More fun beside the seaside…

More from our August issue…

Project | Make a Belfast Sink Pond

Illustration by Cristina Carpenter

Create a bit of a kitchen sink drama for local watery wildlife.

You’ll need: an old Belfast sink (if you can’t get one, any large tub or a washing-up bowl will work);

some pond liner; large rocks; a plank of untreated wood; smaller rocks; gravel; a few pond plants

To make:

1 Locate your sink on even ground, somewhere where it’ll get some sun but not too much. Line it

with pond liner unless you’re sure that it’s watertight.

2 Create a ramp at one side using the plank (or rocks) to help smaller creatures climb in and out

easily. Add some large rocks in the sink where the plank joins it to help them get into the water.

3 Add smaller rocks around the other edges of the sink and then add gravel to cover the bottom of the pond. Fill with rainwater from a water butt.

4 Plant your pond plants in the gravel – miniature water lily and spearwort are good. Go for a mix of floating and upright plants.

5 Open your pond for business and wait for the flurry of aquatic Trip Advisor reviews to ‘flood’ in.

This back garden project is taken from our Almanac pages which has seasonal things to note and notice, plan and do every month.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More things to make…

More from our blog…

Recipe | Fig & Goat's Cheese Filo Bundles

Photography by Kym Grimshaw

It’s the crunch of the filo pastry that’s worth paying attention to – and, of course, the peppery fig, cheese and walnut filling. Eat them al fresco so that any crumbs can be left for the birds.

Makes 12

You will need

12 large figs

250g soft goat’s cheese

4 tsp black peppercorns

100g walnuts, chopped

12 large filo pastry sheets

100g butter, melted

Handful chives

To make

1 Preheat your oven to 200C/Fan 180C/Gas 6 and line two baking trays with baking paper.

2 Remove the stems from the figs and score a deep cross in the top of each one, cutting about two-thirds of the way down. Gently squeeze the base of each fig to open them up slightly.

3 Remove the rind from the goat’s cheese and grind the black pepper. Mix together with the walnuts before dividing the mixture evenly between the figs. Try to get it as deeply into the fig as you can before squeezing the sides back up around it.

4 Divide each filo sheet into four and stack them up, sandwiched with a light layer of melted butter. On each stack, place a fig in the centre and then gather the pastry up around the sides of the fig, pressing to keep each one together.

5 Transfer the bundles to the baking trays and bake for 12-15 mins, or until the bundles are golden brown.

6 Allow to cool for 5 mins before scattering with the chives and serving while still warm.

While you wait…

While the filo bundles are in the oven, here’s a little mini project to keep your creative mind busy.

Fig leaves may get overshadowed by the fruit but they’re beautiful in their own right. Here, they take centre stage in a printmaking project that anyone can try. They make lovely labels for fig jam, too.

You will need:

Water-based acrylic paint

Palette or dish

Paint brushes or sponges

Fig leaves

Newspaper or scrap paper

Thick paper or card

How to make

1 Squeeze a little paint onto your palette. Using a paint brush or sponge, gently daub a fig leaf with paint until you have fully covered the stems and veins well.

2 Do a test print by placing the leaf paint-side down onto some newspaper or scrap paper. Place another piece of newspaper or scrap paper over the top side of the leaf and then press hard enough that the paint transfers from the leaf to the paper. Remove the top sheet and peel away the leaf. If the details of the leaf are lost, try using less paint or lighter pressure. If the print looks faint, increase the amount of paint or press more firmly.

3 Once you’re happy with the end result, begin printing onto your paper or card. Leave to dry thoroughly. These prints work beautifully as labels for the blackberry and fig leaf jam. Simply make a small hole in one corner, write onto the plain side, and attach to the jar with twine or string.

The recipe and project above are both taken from our August issue’s ‘Kitchen Therapy’ feature, which focuses on seasonal makes as well as making the most of simple kitchen tasks. The recipes and ideas are by Lottie Storey and the photography is by Kym Grimshaw.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More projects for summer…

More from our blog…

History | Spilling the Tea

Illustration by Josefina Schargorodsky

Gossip may seem like a modern phenomenon but, and don’t tell anyone else we told you this, it’s actually a much earlier form of social bonding

You might think of celebrity magazines, scurrilous internet rumours and hastily typed texts when you think about gossip, but in fact it’s so old, experts believe it to be related to the grooming we see primates take part in. Biological anthropologist, Robin Dunbar, argues that language has evolved directly from social grooming and that gossip is an important stage of this evolution. 

Before you worry too much about what chimps might be saying about you behind your back, however, here’s an interesting fact about (evolved) human gossip: the earliest recorded piece of gossip takes the form of a cuneiform tablet from 1,500 BCE Mesopotamia, which discusses a mayor who had an affair with a married woman. Some things never seem to change, gossip least of all. 

And since gossip is firstly - here to stay and secondly - clearly a vital part of being human, we’d like to share with you a few ways to gossip well from our feature, ‘Have you heard…’ from our August issue:

• Sharing happy news or praise helps to strengthen relationships and makes you feel good whereas repeating negative rumours can easily cause damage.

• Positive gossip will serve the good of the listener or group rather than just the gossiper. Consider if it’s information that others will find helpful and not just entertaining.

• Avoid workplace gossip unless you’re sharing a valid concern about someone. Office gossip has been proven to create a stressful working environment and can be detrimental to your job.

• Don’t talk negatively about mutual friends unless it comes from a place of concern. Friendships involve a bond of trust and it’s in your interest to uphold that.

• Before you share something about somebody (regardless of whether it’s good or bad), ask yourself if you think they would want you to be telling their story.

• Seek out harmless gossip with a podcast. Try Kelsey McKinney’s Normal Gossip, Katherine Ryan: Telling Everybody Everything, or The Rest Is Entertainment.

You can read the rest of the feature by Rebecca Frank in our August issue. But keep it to yourself, ok? 
Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More simple ways to self-care…

More from our blog…

Tipple | Strawberry & Mint Lemonade Cocktail

Fruity and refreshing, just what’s needed as the sun sinks below the horizon

Serves 6

175g caster sugar

Small handful mint leaves, washed

400g strawberries, hulled and

quartered

200ml freshly squeezed lemon

juice (4-5 lemons)

Ice

Small measure of gin or vodka

per person (optional)

Strawberries, lemon slices and

mint leaves, to garnish

1 Gently bring the sugar, 1 litre of water and the mint leaves to a boil in a saucepan, stirring until the sugar has fully dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the mint to infuse and the sugar syrup to cool.

2 Meanwhile, purée the strawberries in a blender and, if you’d prefern a smooth purée, strain it through a fine sieve to remove any seeds.

3 Combine the strawberry purée and sugar syrup in a large jug, add the lemon juice, and stir to combine.

4 To serve, pop a couple of ice cubes in each glass and pour the fruity cocktail over – you can also add gin or vodka for an alcoholic version. Garnish with strawberries, lemon slices and/or mint leaves.

Bartender’s note: This also works well with watermelon flesh or peaches.

This tipple is just one of the ideas from our August issue’s ‘Gathering’ feature, which this month is a picnic on the beach at sundown. The recipes are by Catherine Frawley and the photography is by Lisa James.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More drinks for summer evenings…

More from our blog…

Traditions | The Magic of Wells

Seeking water is a wonderful way to spend a warm day. But if you visit a well you might just find a little magic, too…

Wells have been a place of pilgrimage for hundreds of years, with those visiting them hoping to be healed, inspired or perhaps just hoping to indulge in a bit of magic. There are wells of many varieties all over the country so there’s sure to be one near you if you hope to make a little pilgrimage of your own. Here are a few traditional activities you could try at a well…

• Make a wish
Coins and pins have long been thrown into wells, to represent a secret desire or longing. To avoid leaving any trace of your visit, instead soak an item in the well water and make your wish.

• Tell the future
Young women with romantic worries headed to wells to throw in small objects, often stones, then contemplated the bubbles that surfaced. Each one represented a year to wait until they were married.

• Seek healing
Before modern medicine, the sick and injured were drawn to wells by tales of miracles. Treatment could involve drinking from it, walking around it several times or making an offering. Today, think of its effect as the soothing, spiritual kind of healing, rather than more grandiose claims of cures.

• Dream a dream
As a well can be seen as a liminal place – a portal between the earthly realm and the ‘other’ world – it’s an obvious place to tap into our own hidden depths, our subconscious. Historically, a way to access dreams was by sleeping beside certain wells.

You can read more about why wells are magical places in our August issues, where we have an extract from Clare Gogerty’s book, The Water Remedy: Folklore, Ritual And Wisdom (Calon).

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More places to seek water…

More from our blog…

Competition | Win a Magical Unique Hideaways Escape

Win a £500 voucher for a unique getaway in the UK

Are you seeking a special getaway in a magical location? At Unique Hideaways, you’ll find a luxury collection of glamping retreats beckoning with dream escapes in beautiful spots across the UK. Simply enter our competition for your chance to win a £500 voucher to spend on your hideaway of choice…

Wild escapism and unique moments

Promising luxury comforts while life settles into a relaxed rhythm with nature, glamping with Unique Hideaways takes you to an enchanting haven in which to unwind. From leafy corners of the forest to salt-kissed clifftops, each hideaway resides in nature and is crafted for wild yet luxurious escapism.

Select your dream spot across hidden corners of the UK and fill your days in ways that speak to the soul. Be it moments enveloped in a cloud-soft duvet and the crisp pages of a book, reclining on a private deck under dappled sunlight with a glass in hand, or tracing trails past rolling oceans and wildflower fields, inspiration awaits at every turn.

Hideaways for every season

From the blooms of spring and golden sun of summer to the auburn hues of autumn and the frost-cloaked scenes of winter, adventure awaits throughout the year with Unique Hideaways.

Discover floating houseboats moored on private banks, treehouses with alfresco bathtubs, and quiet country cabins warmed by wood burners and framed by rolling fields… Just perfect for romantic breaks, dog-friendly sojourns, and getaways with family and friends, each one paints an idyllic portrait to let your mind and feet run wild and free.

How to enter

 To enter just click on the button below and answer the following question:

Q: What is the value of the Unique Hideaways voucher you could win?

T&Cs

The comp closes at 11.59pm on 30 Sept 2025. One winner will be selected at random from all correct entries and notified soon after. Subject to availability. The winner is responsible for transport to and from the property. The winner cannot transfer the prize or swap it for cash. Details of our full terms and conditions are on p129 and online at: icebergpress.co.uk/comprules. Vouchers are subject to standard terms & conditions. Please ignore and report any fake accounts claiming to be Unique Hideaways. Any accounts that contact you other than marketing@uniquehideaways.com are spam.

Gardening | Make a Veg Bed Posy

You don’t need to grow cutting flowers to be able to step outside and put together a pretty posy - the vegetable garden also has plenty to offer for an unusual bouquet

The pioneering florist Constance Spry would often use vegetation not generally thought of as ‘flowers’ in her arrangements: brambles and bindweed featured, as did various plants from the veg garden. So next time you’re picking for a posy, perhaps try the veg bed instead.

Try using:
• Chard and/or kale leaves
• Pea and/or climbing bean foliage and flowers
• Herb flowers and foliage, such as dill, fennel, oregano/ marjoram, rosemary and chives
• Red cabbage leaves
• Nasturtiums
• Fruit tree and shrub branches (in blossom, leaf or fruit)
• Globe artichokes and cardoons
• Sweet potato foliage
• Carrot flowers (leave some roots unharvested to flower the following year)

This idea for a veg bed posy came from our August issue feature, ‘Beautiful Veg’ which is all about letting your edible plot shine. You can read more from page 94.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More veg patch bounty…

More from our blog…

Playlist | Everybody's Talkin’

Our playlist for our August RIPPLE issue is inspired by our feature on why a bit of gossip can be good for you.
You can take a listen here, and order yourself a copy of the issue here.
We compile a playlist for each issue of The Simple Things, have a browse of them on Spotify.

How to | Fold a Paper Boat

Set sail on a local pond or even a puddle with these easy instructions

This paper boat technique is a bit of a classic but we’ve used step-by-step instructions from instructables.com where you can find pictures to help, if you like.

You will need: A piece of A4 paper. A paper folding tool for making your creases nice and crisp is useful but a ruler will do just as well.

1. Put your A4 paper in front of you, portrait style and fold up from the top to the bottom to fold it in half, leaving the ‘open’ end facing you.

2. Fold each top corner down diagonally to make the sails. 

3. Take the flap at the bottom of the paper and fold it up against the bottom of the 2 folded triangles. Take the corners of the rectangle that are sticking out over the triangle and wrap these parts of the paper around the edges of the triangle. Crease them so that they stay wrapped around the edge of the triangle.Flip the paper over and repeat Steps 1 and 2.

4. Pick up the triangle, then use your fingers to open up the bottom of the triangle. Pull the paper apart gently until it pops into a square shape. Make sure the bottom corners of the triangle fold over each other and become the bottom corner of a diamond.

5. Arrange your paper so that the bottom points of the diamond can fold upward. Fold up 1 corner, aligning it with the top corner. Then, flip the paper over and do the same thing to the other side.

6. As before, pick up the triangle, then open up the bottom of your new triangle with your fingers. Crease the paper along its edges so that it stays in a square shape.

7. Pull out the triangles to release your boat. Start at the top of the diamond and gently pull the two sides apart so that the seam running down the middle of the diamond expands. Crease the bottom of the folded-out sides to make the boat a bit stronger.

More from our blog…

More fun with paper…