Its that time of year again! I spent about two weeks planning what to get this year. I knew that we would have to do a lot of containers since you are suppose to rotate your crops. I might have went a little overboard but I can’t wait until I get to fry up my first eggplant along side some squash. Its been a few weeks since they all have been planted and already we are getting a harvest.
What we got:
- Eggplant
- Zucchini
- Yellow Squash
- Cucumber
- Strawberry
- 3 different kinds of Basil (lime, Greek, sweet)
- Chives, Oregano, Lavender, Cilantro, and Parsley
- 3 different kinds of tomato (one for pastas, a big boy variety, and a cherry)
- 2 different kinds of peppers (green and jalapeno)
- And a Fig Tee – for B
Lately I have been incorporating more fresh fruit into my diet. Like these pancakes with blueberries.
Lately I have been making B some tea out of this mug I made for him for V-Day. I love you a latte B.
Lately I have been thinking of more happy little clouds and wide open spaces.
Lately I have been on a painting streak.
In the spring and summer I usually pick back up on my painting since the extra daylight gives me additional hours of good working time on the weekends and weeknights. Inspiration struck me from one of the Instagram photos taken on the way to Colorado last year and decide to try my hand at painting it. One of the neat tricks that was learnt from my art lessons was if you are paining from a photograph, turn it upside down. Your mind will then focus on the shapes and colors instead of the whole picture.
I start by sketching out the image first with a blue pastel then mix my colors, choosing the most dominant colors for the background.
I use a lot of different techniques – wet on wet, dry on dry, blending. I don’t really pay much attention to it and do what looks best to me.
Beside ocean waves, clouds are my number two favorite to paint. When I’m working on them I hear Bob Ross’ voice in my head “Happy little cloud”.
B and I love candles and have both collected a few over the past years. Instead of tossing them out I started stashing them in our Buffet in our dinning room. After seeing a pin on Pinterest on how to reuse the old wax by converting it into layer candles, I gave it a go.
What you will need:
- Wicks and Wick holder (found at craft store)
- Chopsticks
- Metal Tongs
- Large pot to hold candle
- Old towel
- Clean Container ( I used a Fossil tin that my watch came in for one and a canning jar for another)
- Find a good place to setup – either a counter or table and lay down the old towel. I recommend doubling it up if its a thin towel.
- Fill up the pot half way and put in your candle to melt the wax.
- In the mean time -put the wick in the container and thread through the wick holder. If you are using a wide-mouth container like my Fossil tin then you will need to lay the chopsticks across and the wick holder on top.
- Once the wax is melted then grasp the container using the metal tongs and pour into the new container. Let it harden enough so that the wax is cloudy instead of clear.
- Start the process again with the next candle. Once wax is melted then pour on top of the harden wax. Its pretty easy just be careful not to burn yourself with the wax.
You can get creative in how you use the wax – organize it by color or by smell. Just make sure the bottom layer is pretty hard otherwise the wax layers could mix.
My Mom and I took a short weekend to visit my sister and brother-in-law in Colorado. While we were there for only two days we got to sight-see some good stuff. Since we packed lightly I couldn’t bring my camera so the photos were taken using the Hipstamatic app on the iPod touch.
We started off visiting Manitou Springs for lunch. If you are a granola mountain hippie this place is for you! I’m 1/4 granola so I enjoyed it as well. There was an awesome bead shop that had unique items and some cool clothing stores, and even a store dedicated to rubber duckies. The highlight of Manitou is getting to try the different Mineral waters- visitors tip- some of it is pretty strong so sip slowly.
Next stop and my favorite was the Celestial Seasonings Tea Factory Tour in Boulder, Co. We went on Saturday when the machines weren’t working but it still was a neat tour. You got to smell all the spices that are put into their teas and even try free samples. I walked away with a new tea mug and some bath tea from their gift shop.
After that we stopped off in downtown Boulder to grab lunch and walk around. It had quite a few book shops and coffee places, so being a bookworm and coffee addict, I instantly fell in love. Also the art gallery and little boutique stores left me wishing we had more time there to explore. I’m hoping B and I can revisit soon!
B and I found this chair outside waiting for the trash I fell in love with its wide seat base and thought it would be perfect for our entry way. It is missing an arm and instead of replacing it we left it alone to add to the character. It had some old paint on it that I sanded off and was in desperate need of new caning.
This to-do project was on my list for about a year now but kept putting it off because a) I thought it was going to be tough and b) knew I had to hunt for the supplies to do it. Come to find out it was easier than I thought and I found a cool local store that had all the supplies. After doing some quick research on YouTube and The Google I found some helpful links and videos (see end of post).
Here are the supplies you need:
- Cane Web (enough to cover your project with some overhang)
- Cane Border aka Reed Spline (they actually come in different width sizes so make sure you get the right size)
- Rubber Mallet
- 2 to 3 Clothes Pins
- Wood Glue
- Razer Blade
Step 1: Clean Out the Grooves
Before you get started make sure the groove is all cleaned out and the old border cane is removed. You can take a piece of sandpaper, fold it in half and run it along inside the groove. This was the hardest part for me. I eventually had to resort to my Dremel tool with a sanding bit to clean out the grooves.
Step 2: Soak the Cane Web
I filled up my bathtub with luke warm water and laid the entire sheet of cane web in the water. I left it for about 30 min. This is really an important step in the process. I twill help the cane web become more malleable and it won’t break with you are trying to hammer the web into the grooves.
Step 3: Layout the web and cut to fit your project leaving an 1/2 to 1 inch overhang. When you start hammering in the web that overhang is important.
Step 4: Hammer in Cane Web
Take the Clothes Pin and separate it from its clip so you just have one side. Use the smaller end and insert it in the groove ontop of the web. With your mallet start tapping it in. Start with a small amount of preassure and build up. You don’t want to hit it to hard or you could break the web. Work your way around the groove.
Don’t jump forward and start hammering in another spot. I found that when I did the web started getting crooked and even broke in a few places. Also don’t worry about any small bumps in the web or if it looks loose. When it dries it will firm back up and the small bumps should disappear.
Step 5: Hammer in the Border Cane
Start by running a small strip of woodglue down the groove. Then overlay the Border Cane and hammer in. You may find that using the side of the clothes pin worked the best. It covered more surface. The tricky part for me was the corners. I didn’t exactly get them to match up but enough that I was happy with. Some of the caning sources I found gave some good instructions.
Step 6: Cut off excess Cane Web
Using your Razor Blade cut off the excess web as close to the border as you can. Then take some of the sandpaper and lightly sand any rough areas you feel with your fingers.
Step 7: Let Dry
Leave it for a day and let it dry.
Caning Sources:
http://www.seatweaving.org/Tips%20&%20Techniques.htm – they also sell supplies
http://www.woodcraft.com/Category/1002244/Caning-Supplies.aspx – where I got my supplies
YouTube Video: Chair Caning-How To Prewoven
Since memories are tied to our senses one of my favorite was of my Grandmother and her big soft molasses cookies she served at her house. My sister and I would race inside for and afternoon snack and my Grandmother would pour us a glass of cold milk and pull out an old Christmas tin from her refrigerator filled with perfectly shaped flower molasses cookies sprinkled with sugar. I remember thinking about her rolling out the dough in preparation of our visit, cutting each one out with a flower cookie cutter, baking them and letting their cinnamon/clove fragrance fill her house. A few years later my idyllic image was broken when I realized they were none other then Archway’s Molasses cookies that she pulled out of package before we arrived.
My sister and I with my Grandmother
Nonetheless I enjoyed the memory of sharing those deliciously soft cookies and have since looked for an opportunity to recreate it. I checked our local grocery store and they don’t carry that brand however I have stumbled across a recipe from allrecipes that is darn close.
Recipe Source: Big Soft Ginger Cookies by AMY1028
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup margarine, softened
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. Shape dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and flatten slightly.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.
- Serve warm or from tin in the refrigerator with a tall glass of milk.
I love the week between Christmas and New Years. It has always been a time for me to relax, do some projects around the house that I have been procrastinating on all year, and spend some quality time with B and our 4 legged kids. It is also a time where I get to look back at the past year and how blessed we were and look forward to the coming year (except the whole getting older thing ..I will be turning 30 this year).
So while we were up in Colorado we decided to shoot some Christmas pictures. This actually is our first year to do them – usually around Christmas we are way to busy but I became inspired by the surroundings. B brought his fancy camera equipment along and I picked out the settings. We decided on the one above but took so many it was hard to choose a favorite.
Everyday we went on a hike with the dogs. Hannah kept running off so we tied a really long rope to her. If she ran to far ahead we would grab the rope and haul her back. Occasionally she would get it snagged on something and we would hear a small whine to come and untangle her.
