A DIY upcycled craft tutorial, review and giveaway in collaboration with A Slice of Green & Pulsin‘.
I first heard of the ‘Tiffin’ box through the cookery book Bombay Lunchbox by Carolyn Caldicott (2014). I’d been sent a copy to review and was immediately intrigued by the tiered stainless steel containers used to transport meals cooked at home to the workplace.
My husband visited India the following year and I insisted that he bring me back one of these tiffin boxes, and he did. It’s sat there on my shelf unused ever since.
I love the spiced Indian recipes in the cookery book, but do you know what? I’m not that much of a doting wife that I will cook my husband a meal and then drive to the other side of the island to deliver it to him, still warm, in said tiffin box. Besides, there’s enough room in said tiffin box with its four deep layers to feed an entire family.
I am always on the hunt for lunch box inspiration. My children have requested packed lunches for most of their school years and we’ve gone through a fair number of containers trying to find something that works; something sturdy enough to withstand whatever it is kids do to their lunch boxes to make them break so gosh darn quickly, but also something that is easily portable and roomy enough for a decent meal.
The newest lunchbox we’ve had the pleasure of testing out is the two-tiered round lunch box from A Slice of Green, an ethical company who source environmentally friendly products from around the world, helping us to live a more sustainable lifestyle. Retailing at £14 (plus £2.95 delivery) this tiffin box is affordable, and its made out of stainless steel so I think it might actually be able to survive coarse treatment from children.
I originally requested this tiffin box for my husband’s packed work lunches, but with an overall size of 8 cm x 13 cm it just wasn’t big enough, but it’s the perfect size for a ten year old.
It’s not leak proof though, which means it needs to stay upright. I was faced with the problem of how to transport a small, circular, non-leak proof lunch box to school and keep it chilled until lunch time.
The solution: the sewing machine.
I’m a mission to clear out some of the clutter in my house. I am a serial hoarder – I try not to throw bits and bobs out as, one day, they might come in useful; ribbons off boxes of chocolates and clothes tags, bits of coloured paper, scraps of fabric. One of these things was a skirt I used to wear all the time until the zipper broke. I had full intentions of replacing said zipper, but that was… oh, five years ago… and the skirt was still sitting in my to-do pile. I no longer wear skirts, so we upcycled the fabric and liner into a rather snazzy steampunk themed lunch bag – and it’s thermally insulated too!
Brainstorming ideas on how I was going to insulate the lunch bag without buying anything I eventually was struck with inspiration when I took my sewing machine off the shelf in the cupboard (where it’s sat unused for nearly a year!). Out fell my teenage son’s wet suit – a wet suit I bought him, second hand from the charity shop for pennies two summers ago when he had a go at sea kayaking with me. It no longer fits him, and so I upcycled that into a thermal lining! A quick look on Amazon shows that there are loads of neoprine lunch bags out there so this isn’t a new idea.
Two rainy weekend afternoons later and we’ve got Lady Amelie’s Steampunk Lunch Purse – a thermally insulated lunchbag custom made for her new stainless steel tiffin box. The lunch purse will keep her tiffin box upright, preventing leaks, and it’s a unique one of a kind creation – something she, as an arty person, appreciates.
For the embellishments we used a length of brass effect chain removed from a gaudy belt obtained from the charity shop years ago for a handle, a tiny brass effect key I’d bought a bag of off eBay as wedding favour embellishments (we had a Steampunk themed wedding!), a few old keys laying about the house and some cogs and gears from a Steampunk Jewellery Craft Kit my daughter had been gifted last Christmas.
A rather effective creation, don’t you think? There’s a one inch wide velcro fastening on the top inside edge that keeps the cold in from the two ice packs I put in the bag along with the tiffin box and a piece of fruit or bag of crisps for snack.
Insert random photo of rusty horse shoe, just because I like it:
So, we’ve got our lunch purse and our tiffin lunch box – what to put into it? Madame has peculiar tastes. Sandwiches end up coming home uneaten in favour of little nibbly bits – raisins, coconut slices, home bakes, salady bits, noodles.
One of their favourite lunch box things is cold egg noodles drizzled in sesame oil and sprinkled with sesame seeds. They like that they get to take chopsticks to school with them when they have this. Simple and easy to prepare.
I confess that when it comes to packing lunch boxes I am running out of ideas. My husband will eat anything that I make, so that’s good, but the two younger children seem to becoming more and more fussy. Sandwiches return home uneaten, only certain types of fruit will be eaten on certain days (the pattern for which I am yet to decipher!) and heaven forbid a hard boiled egg end up in my youngest son’s lunch box. The end of the world, I tell you, even if it is squashed into a little bento teddy bear shape.
One thing he certainly does like is snack bars like these little fruity oat bars from Pulsin‘. Full of natural organic ingredients they can liven up any lunch box, and they’re reduced in sugar, vegan and gluten free too. They come in three flavours: strawberry; blackcurrant & apple and orange chocolate chip (my favourite) and retail for about £2.75 for a box of six.
Pulsin’ have been on the go for a number of years and this year they’ve been nominated for the best vegan snack at Veg Fest. You can vote for them here, if you fancy.
Do you make packed lunches? What things do you have great success with? Let me know in the comments! I’ve got a fab giveaway too – you could win one of these fantastic stainless steel lunch boxes from A Slice of Green and a mixed case of nine Pulsin’ bars including three kids’ fruity oat bars, three raw brownies and three organic snack bars. To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter entry form below.
Print Recipe
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Print Recipe
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| Servings | Prep Time |
| 1lunch purse | 2hours |
| Servings | Prep Time |
| 1lunch purse | 2hours |
- 0.5 metre patterned cotton fabric I used an old skirt
- 0.5 metre thermal lining I used an old wetsuit
- 0.5 metre lining fabric waterproof would be ideal
- 0.6 metre thick ribbon plus extra for embellishment
- strong cotton thread
- 9 inches velcro 1 inch thickness
- 0.5 metre thick brass chain
- Steampunk embellishments
- super glue
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Ingredients
Servings: lunch purse
Units:
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- Find a side plate that measures about 1/2 inch larger in diameter than your lunch box (or, if your lunch box is square or rectangle cut a shape 1/2 inch larger) from each of the patterned cotton fabric, the thermal layer and the lining. I used a 7 inch circle side plate.
- Cut a rectangle 8 inches deep by 23 inches long from each of the three fabrics.
- Pin, right sides together, the long edge of the rectangle to the outside edge of each of the circles and sew a 1/4 inch seam with a sewing machine using a strong, good quality, cotton thread. Zig zag around the outside edge of the seams to provide extra reinforcement.
- Pin the right sides of the short rectangle edges together. Sew with a 1/4 inch seam and again, zig zag the outside edges for reinforcement.
- Keeping the lining bag with the right side on the inside, pin to the thermal layer around the top edges. Sew and zig zag.
- Pin the velcro along the inside edge of the top, about 1/2 inch from the top edge, and sew with a strong thread.
- Turn the patterned cotton fabric layer so that the pattern faces outward, and place the lining layers on the inside, pinning along the top edge. Sew along the edge with a 1/4 inch seam.
- Carefully place your length of ribbon along the outside edge of the bag so that 1/2 inch of it shows. Pin the other edge of the ribbon on the inside, taking care that it doesn't cover the velcro layer. Sew with a matching thread just on the inner edge of the ribbon on the outside of the bag, through all the layers.
- Sew your brass chain handle on, or alternatively, sew on some matching ribbon and tie the handle on with that.
- Embellish as desired with steampunk cogs and gears and a few old keys, if you have them. Super glue makes a short job of this.
OTHER LUNCH BOX IDEAS YOU MIGHT LIKE
Roasted Red Pepper, Spinach & Feta Egg Muffins by Celery & Cupcakes
Green Hazelnut and Chocolate Brownies by The Hedgecombers
Smoked Salmon and British Asparagus Crustless Quiches by Foodie Quine
Asian Turkey Picnic Wraps by Feeding Boys
No Bake Chocolate S’mores Cups by Kerry Cooks
Eats Amazing – a blog entirely about feeding children fantastic packed lunches and healthy treats!
OTHER STEAMPUNK BLOG POSTS FROM ELIZABETH’S KITCHEN DIARY
Origami Steampunk Wedding Bouquet Tutorial
Dark Chocolate & Bourbon Vanilla Steampunk Cupcakes
Watches, Clocks & a Wedding
Steampunk Treasure Chest
Steampunk Costume
GIVEAWAY
A Slice of Green have kindly offered one of my UK readers to win a one of their two tier stainless steel lunch boxes worth £14, and Pulsin’ have provided a selection of nine of their products: 3 x kids’ fruity oat bars, 3 x raw brownies and 3 x Beond organic snack bars, worth approximately £8.70. To enter, simply fill out the Rafflecopter entry form below!
HOW TO ENTER
For your chance to win a Stainless Steel Lunch Box & a Selection of Pulsin’ Snack Bars enter using the Rafflecopter form below. Come back and tweet about the giveaway every day for more chances to win!
TERMS & CONDITIONS
This giveaway is open to UK entries only. Entrants must be age 18 or over. The winner will need to respond within 30 days of being contacted; failure to do this may result in another winner being selected.
The prize is offered and provided by A Slice of Green and Pulsin’, respectively. The prize is to win a Stainless Steel Lunch Box & a Selection of Pulsin’ Snack Bars. There is no cash alternative and the prize is not transferable.
There is no entry fee and no purchase is necessary to enter this giveaway. The promoter (Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary) reserves the right to cancel or amend the giveaway and these terms and conditions without notice.
Entry into our giveaways will be deemed as acceptance of these terms and conditions.
If you need some help using Rafflecopter, here’s a quick clip to show you how. Rafflecopter will pick the winners at random from all the entries received. I will be verifying entries and any automated entries or those who have claimed they have made the mandatory blog post comment and really haven’t will be disqualified. It’s mandatory! Please make sure your comment is eight words or longer or Google views it as spam. >>>>> All entries with comments fewer than the mandatory 8 words will be disqualified. <<<<<
Closing date is midnight (that’s 00:00 hours, 12 am on Sunday night/Monday morning) on Monday 5 September 2016 (GMT) and the winner will be announced shortly afterwards.
Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary was sent review samples of the products photographed above. This is not a paid post and all thoughts and opinions expressed are our own. Links in orange are Amazon affiliate links and if you click on them and subsequently make any purchase of anything at all from the Amazon website we will earn a small commission and you will be directly helping support our family. Thank you for supporting the brands who make it possible for me to do what I love – mess up my kitchen and share recipe stories.
Mum of three, daydream adventurer, OU Life Sciences graduate, occasional crafter, ex-pat Canadian & quite possibly Britain's most northerly food blogger.
Loved it! Absolutely loved it!
I love this! Big fan of Steam punk so this is right up my alley! 😀 That lunch box is amazing too – it’s like a smaller tiffin, and would be perfect for my husband! Need to check it out! But the lunch purse? That would be for me!
Veggie sticks like cucumber and carrot with a dip and cherry tomatoes are always a favourite!
Josh doesn’t like much variety, its either a cheese and ham sandwich or a cheese and ham wrap.
Robyn Clarke recently posted…Play Time At Smyths – Baby Annabell
Cheese and ham sandwiches, crisps, a club bar and a banana or orange
My son is just 11 weeks so too tiny for a packed lunch, but me and hubby need lunches when we work sometimes and I love a good couscous salad!
Chantele recently posted…Little Dude at 2 Months old
My son is a cheese fiend, so he often has a little tub of cheese chunks mixed with grapes, raisins, etc in his lunchbox.
A sandwich or roll – either ham or cheese
Yogurt, babybel, crisps, something fruity ( fruit, raisins, fruit stick or something similar)
A favourite in our house are homemade blueberry flapjacks, even tastier when our homegrown blueberries are in season.
Charl loves Cheese and pickle sandwiches and any kind of berries
My daughter likes sandwich with meat, strawberries and yogurt, sometimes she prefers biscuits instead of yogurt 🙂
My son loves a sandwich, an apple, a pack of raisens and a yoghurt
She loves breadsticks and also fruit
my son loves to have egg mayo sandwiches and kiwi fruit
My little boy loves raisins, grapes, a banana, and a sandwich
My children like variety, so I have always alternated between sandwiches, wraps, pasta salads and home-made pizza squares.
In our packed lunches we have a sandwich with cucumber on it,a healthy yoghurt and a piece of fruit.
my daughter likes one sandwich, packet of crisps, a cheese dipper, a frube, a kitkat and a small yoghurt
I like your blog and would like to win, but I don’t have kids? I make my own packed lunch though, if that counts?? Favourite is spicy cous cous and red cabbage coleslaw salad, sounds weird but tastes great and easy to make a few days worth at once 🙂
My daughter likes chicken pieces in brioche bread, and although she asks for fruit, there’s always some reason why she didn’t eat it grrr!
my son is a strange one, he loves continental meats, crusty bread, gourmet yoghurts!
I believe my grandchildren like fruit and cheese and a bottle of water.
They love having chicken wraps
We we always try and pack healthy lunches including nuts fruit and other healthy snacks
Pasta or rice salad, fresh fruit and carrot sticks with hummus
Cheese sandwich, yogurt, crisps and a banana for his lunch. Thank you for the chance xxx
They tend to like the cold past salad I make them as it’s different from their friends and the veggies are nice and crunchy
my daughter loves fruit salad…melon, mango and red grapes…her favourites!
My son likes grapes and tomatoes plus sticks of cheese in his lunch box.
they like sandwiches, yoghurts, raisins, grapes and a drink
I make a fruit salad of strawberries and blueberries in small Tupperware box ,cheers for chance
Dairylee sandwiches,crisps,grapes,blueberries when they are in season,and yoghurt
Mine love humus with vegetable sticks. They would much rather have this than sweets and crisps.
my son loves his ham sandwichs , and strawberry yoaurt with a homemade flatjack yum yum
mine like pasta or sandwiches and fruit and a packet of crisps and my son lves a pot of jelly
Pasta and fruit
cubes of cheese, cucumber sticks, sandwiches and fruit
My little boy loves fruit, so grapes, watermelon, oranges, pears etc, along with jam sandwiches, pom bears etc 🙂
Tuna and sweetcorn wrap, babybel cheese, carrot stick, fresh orange juice and grapes
sliced cheese and crackers with carrot sticks and apple slices
Tuna sandwiches. carrot sticks, cheese, crisps, yoghurt and fruit.
Love the bag! Cheese spread sandwiches are the favourite at the moment.
Jess Powell (Babi a Fi) recently posted…What I Read in August
My little one is only 1 year old but he loves cream cheese sandwiches, courgette and ricota pancakes and sweet potato fritters.
That bag is brilliant! I wish I was as creative as you. My boys are quite good with their fruits and veggies. They always get plenty along with a sandwich or wrap and a yoghurt
This lunch purse is really clever, perfect for a picnic for example. I love to sew, this inspired to start again 🙂
Cecilia Keinapel recently posted…Trendy Kourtney Heels From Chi Chi London
No kids of my own, but when I was younger cheese sandwiches were pretty much all I would have in my lunchbox! Great idea to sew a tiffin box bag to prevent leaks – it was one of the things that had been putting me off.
Lots of fresh fruit, especially blueberries and cut up carrots too x 🙂
Cheese sandwiches are there favourite and then grapes on the side!!
My daughter loves packed lunch, she loves her chicken sandwiches, rich tea biscuits & ready salted crisps. Not very adventurous I know, she’s such a fussy & plain eater 🙂
Fruit, lots of fruit..especially bananas ,grapes and apples
This is amazing! I would never even think to make something like this let alone actually be able to make it
Toni | Gym Bunny Mummy recently posted…20 OF THE BEST FREE STOCK PHOTO SITES
This lunch purse is so adorable! You’re very clever. And I love the lunch tin. My kids love a packed lunch. Beastie loves variety – little amounts of lots of things. However, whatever I put in her lunch, I have to make sure I always remember a salad bowl full of all her favourite salad veggies: cucumber, tomato, peppers, sweetcorn and lettuce.
carrot sticks, hummus, mozarella wraps, fruit and a nut bar
My little one loves egg and cress sandwiches and grapes
I don’t have children, but I make a packed lunch for myself everyday. I usually have a small fresh salad with yogurt and fruit for afters. Occasionally I’ll indulge with a packet of crisps as well.
This lunch purse makes me want to get my sewing machine out! I rarely use it anymore… I’m a fan of homemade lunches having raised 4 hungry sons (and committed to healthy eating), so I appreciate this post on so many levels! Lots of great lunch ideas, and the Pulsin’ fruity oat bars look like a perfect item to have on hand.
Tamara recently posted…Tropical Black Beans and Rice
They’re not too fussed as long as there is a Babybel!
I didn’t think steampunk could do lunch, but wow! Brava! I would love to own one of these.
Mine love yoghurt coated raisins, but we have recently started to make our own using different flavours like toffee yoghurt raisins and they’re a real winner!
My little guy loves cheese and pickle brown bread sandwiches which is good…he also has apple juice and a yoghurt.
This is wonderful! After I saw it I had a conversation with someone about repurposing wetsuits in to wine cosies.
Helen @ Fuss Free Flavours recently posted…Healthy Cold Brewed Green Iced Tea
Variety is most important, sandwiches everyday gets boring
my daughter loves sandwiches my sons all have nut snack packs or cranberries
Peanut butter sandwiches with fruit and juice is a favourite here!
cheese sandwiches, cucumber and crisps always go down well
They like lots of fruit and nuts in their lunch box 🙂
Cheese sandwich, apple and banana, little carton of pure orange juice, tiny box of raisins and a bunch of grapes. Maybe a kitkat or penguin biscuit!
My kids love a selection of nibbles in their boxes – like raisins and trail mix
no children, but hubby loves rice or pasta salads
My kids like wraps, crunchy veg sticks, hummus and olives.
That is fabulous Elizabeth. Amelie must be the coolest kid in her class! xx
Vohn McGuinness recently posted…Comment on Roddas cool bag1 by Vohn
my kids love wraps or pasta salad and fruit salad and breadsticks
What a cute idea! My daughter would love to make this lunch purse and she’d love to use it too!
How very clever! I visited on one of the stops on my honeymoon and loved everything about it! I wish I’d picked up a tiffin box too! I’ll bet your daughter has the coolest lunch box/bag at school!
They have sandwiches, a yogurt, some fruit, a chocolate biscuit and some juice.
they love hummus and tuna sweetcorn sandwiches
My daughter likes sandwiches, crisps, a little something sweet like a chocolate mousse or a “chocolate teddy bear”, a yoghurt and a banana 😀
Love your lunch bag! My Daughter’s both LOVE cheese so anything cheese flavoured or pure cheese is well received
mine love having raisins and they love their sandwiches but have to have the salad in a seperate box because they don’t like them getting soggy
Sharon stanley (@Shandy2008) recently posted…A novice compers story
Carrot sticks and hummus, yoghurt, fruit, sandwiches and homemade biscuits.
They’re not a fan of sandwiches, so prefer cheese and crackers, along with some fruit and maybe a cookie.
Home-made houmous and salad in pitta breads. Home-made flapjacks.
Fresh fruit some sandwiches and a lovely drink,they always love this
How fantastic! A sandwich, fruity yoghurt and a snack bar 🙂
I love it!! It is so clever!!!
This makes my brown lunch bag look kind of sad now =(
Such a very creative idea if looks amazing! Those pulsin bars look brill too 🙂
Melissa Zia recently posted…Lush BB Seaweed Fresh Face Mask
Such a cute and unusual bag, I love steampunk style things!
Oh I love it – you are so clever! What a great use for an old wetsuit too! Kaz x
Ickle Pickle recently posted…Unique Life Planner Review
Such a cute idea! Erin has a couple of pouches right now and some Organix snacks in her box.
Lyndsey O’Halloran recently posted…Turtle Bay Press Preview
Ooh I can’t bear to make packed lunches! My kids last school did fantastic lunches and over here in Paris the kids get a three, yes three course lunch. Lunch break is 90 minutes – no rushing while we eat please!
But having said that, the Tiffins are perfect for lunches (a few million Indians can’t be wrong). I loved the fact you made the bag as well – wow!
Tooting Mama recently posted…Guest post: Relax and revive with restorative yoga
That is such a cute and unique purse for your lunch! I love the embellishments on it xo
Rachel recently posted…Disney Fashion with Lyst
Indian culture with their dabbawallas is quite interesting. One day, one day I’ll start making kids lunch boxes. You’re putting me to shame for now!
Michelle @ Greedy Gourmet recently posted…La Masia del Mar
What a great idea. I’m not really crafty so wouldn’t be able to create something quite so beautiful but I do think that it looks great as does the lunch box too.
Michaela | Adventures of a Yorkshire Mum recently posted…How To Use The #PowerOfFrozen To Entertain The Kids This Summer
I don’t have kids but when I’m making a packed lunch to take on a car journey it usually involves a pork pie
What a great idea. So creative. I love it.
My friends little girl is really easy to pack up for lunch she eats most things 🙂
what a great idea! I love the colour and fabric. Well done 🙂
Nikki recently posted…#Life … The Love Horoscope Guide!
What a good idea and it looks so cute at the end, love the fabric!
I love all the thought and care that went into this lunchbag and of course the steam punk embellishments. Inspired!
Jacqueline Meldrum recently posted…Grilled Halloumi & Red Pepper Burgers
How clever are you. The Lunch purse looks great. My kids will pretty much eat anything in a packed lunch but their favourite is tuna pasta
I adore your insulated lunch purse! It’s gorgeous in design, and the neoprene insulation is very clever. I love tiffins but rarely use them. They’re great for family picnics though, rather than only for lunches. And train journeys – as a kid when we visited India, if we did any long train journeys, there would be a tiffin packed for eating on the train!
Kavey recently posted…Shakshuka Boats | Tomato & Red Pepper Baked Eggs in Tortilla Cups
My son is very fussy and likes Ham and cheese sandwiches, strawberries and apples
try something different every day fruit cake salad
fruit cake salad – I am intrigued! 😀
Elizabeth recently posted…The No Waste Food Challenge Summer Collection
I’ve made lunch bags for my kids to take back to school with them too. They are also getting fussier with age!
I’d love to hear what style you made their bags – did you make up your own pattern?
Elizabeth recently posted…Veetee Rice Hamper Giveaway
You are so enterprising. I love how creative and practical this is. Bravo
Aw thanks for your kind words Sally! 🙂
Elizabeth recently posted…Fine Italy – The Portofino Menu
This is so cool! I used to sew stuff all the time, mostly bags, and really enjoyed it – I really need to dig my sewing machine out again 🙂
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche recently posted…Paneer satay bowls
I find sewing so incredibly therapeutic, but it’s something I usually only do in the darker months when it’s too cold to go outside adventuring!
Elizabeth recently posted…Fine Italy – The Portofino Menu
I hate thinking of ideas for pack lunches, my kids often have sandwiches, but we also have thermos flasks so they can have things like pasta and sausage casserole too
Sarah – Craft Invaders recently posted…A simple Willow Wreath
A thermos flask is a great idea so that they can take something hot too, love it!
Elizabeth recently posted…Courgette & Poppy Seed Muffins
That lunch purse is so pretty. Love the chain.
Thanks Stella – I thought it was a rather effective embellishment! 🙂
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