Make a wallet from recycled Has Bean Coffee bags

The new red & white Has Bean coffee bag/envelopes which the weekly subscription of beans arrive in are so much more practical. It actually fits in my small post box which the jiffy bag never did and I always had to be in on a Saturday morning to take delivery. They're less packaging and less waste and they look very smart too. Here they are displayed by Bob the Bunny.

As some of my readers will know, I like to recycle and I like to stitch and create things. 
This got me thinking, as I was about to discard the last few weeks bags, could I make something useful out of them.
I know, a tiny wallet to hold the loyalty cards of some of my favourite cafes.
I chopped up the bits of bag with the HB logo on which would make the outer surface of the wallet.

I then stitched some of these bits together, overlapping and using a zigzag stitch.

I was working to create a rectangular size of about 21cm x 9cm and here it is, I also zigzagged around the edge for neatness.

Next you need another rectangle the same size for the inside, I found this coffee themed oil-skin fabric.

With wrong sides together, stitch with a zigzag all around the edge to join the 2 pieces, exposing the right sides. You can see below that inside I have stitched a little red pocket to hold my loyalty cards.

The design of the wallet will be to fold over the right hand side with a small flap and then the left hand side will fold over that and close with a snap fastener, as you can see on the picture below.

Here is the finished wallet with a little embellishment on the front.

The inside, to store those precious cards!

And finally the back view.

Plastic bags & packaging with nice designs on are very versatile to chop up and stitch to recycle into something new.

This might turn into an occasional series of "More Than One Use for a Has Bean Coffee Bag", you have been warned!

In My Mug 150, live at The Attic, Harlequin, York

Yesterday was my exciting coffee afternoon at the Attic as part of the live video blog for In My Mug 150 with Mr. Has Bean.
The scene was all set, the laptop was in the corner, sampling table set up with plenty of water and Gordon and the team raring to go pulling shots.


It wasn't without one or two technical hitches for Has Bean, not being able to link up to as many people & shops as first planned but Steve made the best of it.


The coffees we were sampling were Indonesian....  Jantung Seed and Longberry, really rare coffee with only 3 bags of each varietal in the world, wow!


First we tried them as espresso (2nd pic), then with milk (3rd pic) and we gave our comments and tasting notes which in turn were submitted live to Steve. It was a great experience, my tastebuds are nowhere near as sophisticated as some of the people round the table but I did enjoy the experience very much.


After the main part we got to try them as brewed coffees with some lovely cakey nibbles.
Fab afternoon thanks to Has Bean, Gordon and the gang and met some lovely coffee obsessed people. We even got to take home some of the surplus beans from the tasting.


The 4th pic is my latte art as I'm sat typing this!


The 5th pic shows an old teapot I found in a charity shop the other day which I have been trying to clean up for use with the water pouring over the Chemex. However had a word with Gordon and as a cheaper solution for water pouring to the expensive Hario kettles he recommended a simple oil pourer and I sourced the last one in Barnitts!

Exciting coffee happenings

Last week I bought a new coffee making device. It is the Chemex, a wonderful, retro looking object (been around over 60 years) for making a fine, clean cup of brewed coffee.

Don't you think the box and the instruction leaflet look very 70's!


The Chemex method is very similar to drip through coffee, using a filter paper but the filter paper is much thicker. This means the brew flows through slower for a richer cup of coffee, you are only talking about 4 minutes brew time. Unlike a french press where the sediment is sat in the bottom, this produces a 'clean cup' as the grinds are sat in the top to be thrown away.

This photo shows the coffee at the 'bloom' stage before you add the remaining water. (All the coffee and water need measuring and timing to achieve perfection)

Here, the remaining water has been added and you simply wait for it to filter through.

That's it, pour and enjoy!


On the subject of coffee geekery, I am attending what's going to turn into a live video blog link up on Sunday. A selection of coffee shops & customers who use the Has Bean coffee have been invited to join in this event of sampling some rare coffee. During the coffee sampling, the shops taking part (Harlequins Attic York), will be connected to Steve at Has Bean, as he addresses the world on all things coffee for this special edition of his video blog! In My Mug 150. Can't wait.


http://www.inmymug.com/

New coffee experience in York

A couple of days ago I found out that my favourite coffee and tea house in York (Harlequin) were to open up their attic space to offer a new experience, coffee, beer and good food in the aptly named Attic Gallery Coffee Bar. 
This was music to my ears, I'm not so much interested in the beer but York really lacks anywhere to go for a coffee on an evening so this is a great idea. 


The weather was so foul today that I probably wouldn't have bothered going to York but when I heard the 'tweet' that the legendary Steve from Has Bean (who supply Harlequins lovely beans) was going to be visiting I thought it would be a great chance to maybe say hi and check out the new set up.


The attic space was lovely with harlequin coloured velvet cushions, I'll get an interior shot next visit as it was quite busy. Gordon, owner and expert barista, was at the helm and the place had a good atmosphere. I hadn't noticed Has Bean Steve until I clocked the red shoes on the person at the next table and it was mr & mrs Has Bean, how spooky! We had ordered a brewed coffee in a Chemex and it was Steve who did the prep which lead to a fascinating chat about all things coffee. I can honestly say that Steve is as passionate about coffee when you meet him as he comes across in his video blogs.
Gordon very kindly gave us a complimentary brew of another varietal which I can't remember the origin but as described by Steve, full of cherries and red berry flavourings with intense acidity. Wow, there's just so much to coffee when you meet the people who really know their stuff.


Had a really nice afternoon and I hope the bar does well for Harlequin, can't wait to visit again. It is open on Thurs, Fri & Saturdays, here's the link for their opening hours, well worth a visit if you love your coffee and I hear the beer is pretty good too.


http://harlequinyork.com/

http://www.hasbean.co.uk/

Parcel from Has Bean

Yippee, a parcel has just arrived from Has Bean coffee. I have bought an espresso & cappuccino cup and Steve's new espresso blend called Blake which I'm looking forward to trying as it is a more traditional espresso, earthy & slightly darker roast to his others. 


And, odd as it may seem from a coffee place, got myself a pack of Earl Grey. This is my favourite tea and seeking out a good flavoursome Earl Grey is always tricky so I thought I would sample the Has Bean tea. One of my favourite Earl Greys is Booths supermarket own brand which I usually only get to stock up with when visiting the Lakes.