Weekly Round-Up

Lately...

... I started a Twitter account: @jpariodesigns.

.... Belovedest, Auntie M. and I went to a tiny house tour.  We were mostly disappointed, as there wasn't much effort at being self-sufficient or energy-efficient.  However, I was pleasantly surprised to realize that the 384 square foot house didn't feel cramped, even though there were 11 people in it.
Belovedest pointed out that that was because most of the couple's stuff was up at their other house, which was just up the road.  So they didn't need to store, for example, things like: a vacuum cleaner, snow shovel, books, paperwork, extra food, entertainment, etc. there.  It was more like a little getaway cabin than anything else.

I liked the outdoor shower, though.

And I did learn that building codes vary by county DRASTICALLY in our state.

Auntie M. shuddered at the thought of cooking a full meal in this kitchen, and I think she's right:

Bees and Bee-Keeping in Pioneer Days

We saw this old-fashioned bee-keeping stuff at the Stuhr Museum and thought of a dear friend who keeps bees.

The honey harvest should be happening soon.....

Compost = Good soil

Here's the monster in our compost pile from a photo I took yesterday:

We don't even know if it is a pumpkin, a squash, or a watermelon!

Another Good-Bye Card

As you know, I collect used Christmas cards, and sometimes people give me other kinds of cards like Valentine's Day or Mother's Day cards.  

I love roses, and they are a frequently used symbol in connection with St. Teresa, our parish patron, because she promised to send "a shower of roses" on people who pray for her intercession.  (People have received all kinds of answers to prayers that came through roses thanks to the little saint of France.)

I decided to use roses cut from cards to make this new card.  I wanted it to be nice and large so that multiple folks at the party could sign it.

Cutting roses from cards rather than flower catalog worked really well.  The cards are more sturdy, and if there is anything on the reverse side, it doesn't show when the image is wet with glue.

 I trace the saying in pencil first.

 You'll see below that "strewn" has two 'n's.  That's because one was too far from the 'w' and looked like this: "strew n."  So I slipped another "n" in between and made plans to cover the extra with a rose.

 I added a light wash over the text by mixing paint with water.  I just used regular tempura paints, the kind that comes in a big bottle for 99 cents.

It looks rather blank unsigned, but I put it near the desserts at the party so I'm sure it soon got signatures!  :)

Book Notes: Fabric and Mosaic

Some craft books just say "ink" or "paint" or "dye" or "glue."

I want to know what kind, what specific brand works best.

Here are two books that do just that.

Easy Mosaics for Your Home and Garden
by Sarah Donnelly

and

Fabric Surface Design: Painting, Stamping, Rubbing, Stenciling, Silk Screening, Resists, Image Transfer, Marbling, Crayons & Colored Pencils, Batik, Nature Prints, Monotype Printing
by Cheryl Rezendes

Farewell to Dear Friends

Here are a few photos from the farewell party for Gen and Doug and their two little girls.

We will stay friends, even if you have gone off to that other country called Texas!

Here are the kids working on two spiritual bouquets, one for Anne S. who had a milestone birthday and the other for the departing family.

It was a great party, and reminded me so much of why I really love my parish family

Today's Harvest

Yes, we harvested two strawberries in July, weeks after they stopped bearing fruit.

(Those are Royal Purple Beans, which we love!  They turn green when cooked.)

And the strawberry plants are flowering again.  I'm confused......

Peas, once again, are a total dud.  They are already withering up and I think this is going to be our total harvest from at least 10 plants:

Did You Know?

"Although you can no longer buy Stanley's Snake Oil, other potions once marketed as patent medicines are still available (minus the health claims): Coca-Cola, Dr Pepper, 7UP, Angostura
Bitters, and tonic water."
-- Gene Stone, The Secrets of People Who Never Get Sick, xv

The book is a quirky compilation of the health strategies of 25 people who don't get sick.  From the common sense to the bizarre, and including the contradictory, it's an eclectic mix.

Pioneer Village

When I told my grandmother that we have been to Pioneer Village, she immediately remarked, "Doesn't it make you glad not to be a pioneer woman?"

Pioneer Village is the legacy of an interesting, probably somewhat eccentric, philanthropic man named Harold warp, who came from Minden, Nebraska, but went on to make his fortune in plastic in Chicago, Illinois.

The basic premise of the museum/attraction is to chart the progress of America.  The name "Pioneer Village" is somewhat of a misnomer because Harold wasn't really interested in evoking the Pioneer era.  He was interested in tracing how we got from there to here.  I think this is a pity because Pioneer Village is slowly getting run down and fading away, perhaps because people think it is the same thing as other nearby museums which focus on one period in history.  For example, in the Transportation Department, you start with covered wagons and gypsy carts, and move to automobiles and airplanes.  One of my favorites exhibits, the one I remembered from my childhood, traces the development of the modern kitchen.

Here are some photos from when we went there two years ago.

This is where we ended up when we got lost.

One of the obligatory parts of Pioneer Village is finding an item that you happen to own on display.
My mom has one of these.

I hope if you are ever tootling down I-80 you'll check out Pioneer Village.  Call first, to make sure it is still there...

Folded Flowers: A Book

I've got an idea for a canvas embellished with fabric and paper flowers.  This would be a good reference for the fabric flowers, once I have time to do the canvas:

Folded Flowers: Fabric Origami with a Twist of Silk Ribbon
by Kumiko Sudo

Slug Defense

So far, crushed egg shells around the base of the plants seems to be helping.

I always wear gloves when I sprinkle them since A) they are sharpish and B) my husband doesn't rinse them out when he puts then in the milk jug on the counter where we collect them.  (The full ones go into the shed.)

An Orchid for My Readers

Book Bag

I just finished The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman, which I enjoyed very much.

Now I'm reading a collection of letters from a trip Agatha Christie took with her husband.  The book is called The Grand Tour: Around the World with the Queen of Mystery.  It's a fascinating glimpse into the world of the English Empire and the 1920s.

Used Christmas Cards

I've been working on getting ready for the St. John's Craft Fair early this year.

Here are some of the circles I've been cutting out of Christmas cards:

You guessed it--that represents 721 circles.  I am guessing that over the past two or three years I have punched out approaching 3,000 of them.

Compost Pile + Pumpkin OR Squash

A mystery plant in our compost pile!

We planted a couple of old pumpkin seeds elsewhere, but we haven't succeeded with pumpkins or squash in all our years of gardening.  Where did it come from?  A bird, presumably.

I adhere to my Mom's definition of a weed ("Any plant growing where you don't want it") but Belovedest wants to leave it alone.  He says moving it will probably traumatize it so much that we won't get any fruit off of it.

But I had big compost plans!

Sunday Thoughts

Watch your thoughts; they become words.

Watch your words; they become actions.

Watch your actions; they become habits.

Watch your habits; they become character.

Your character is everything that matters about 

who you are.

Sporadic Round-Up

Since my last round-up I've....

.... visited Grandma Shirley in Omaha

.... played board games with my sister and nephew

.... followed my nose and found that the garlic was drying on the porch.  I feel very safe from vampires!

... visited some dear friends with cute kids

... had my first joint art show with my husband at Gianna's Java and Gelato, a coffee shop that is also a fundraising effort on behalf of women escaping abuse.

Thanks to everyone who came and helped us celebrate!