Dried Flower Wreath

So when someone gave me the simple request of making a dried flower wreath for them I had no idea these would be so popular, but within 10 minutes of her picking up the finished product, I already had four more wreath orders, just from people seeing her carry it around. Amazing considering that when I first started this wreath, I though it was pretty ugly. The flowers on the partially finished wreath looked like they’d been haphazardly stuck on there. But by the time I’d completed the entire circle, the wreath had come together beautifully. I guess it just needed to be fully flowered to make a show.  

You will need:

A straw wreath hoop

15-20 dried straw flowers (Helichrysum)

Several bunches of dried statice in at least three colors

6 stems of dried baby's breath

6-7 pieces of dried coxcomb flower

6-7 pieces of dried yarrow

A ball of yarn

A roll of 22-gauge wreath wire

Most of the flowers in this wreath dry pretty well using the air-drying method.

Start the project by tying one end of the yarn to the wreath. Gather a bunch of statice about 2 inches wide (all the same color) and place it on the wreath wrapping the yarn around it to secure it. Take a few straw flowers and put them next to the statice wrapping the yarn around them. Grab another bunch of statice (different colored than the first bunch) and yarn wrap that to secure it to the wreath. Repeat with another row, staggering the straw flowers and the statice so they’re not right in line with the first ones. Next add a piece of yarrow or a piece of coxcomb.

Repeat the steps above making another two rows of flowers then adding a piece of yarrow or coxcomb (whichever one you didn’t add the first time). Continue on in this manner, adding flowers and alternating the yarrow and coxcomb combinations. Also change the position of the flowers around: if one piece of coxcomb was on the top of the wreath, put the next piece towards the interior of the wreath and so on.

Every 4-5 inches, add in a stem of baby’s breath, allowing it to flail out from the wreath in an unruly manner. It adds charm to the finished wreath.

When the hoop is entirely covered by flowers, tie off the yarn. To make a hanger, take an eight inch piece of wreath wire and slip an inch of each end under several pieces of yarn on the back side. Bend the inch back towards the long part and wrap it around itself to secure it. You can also use u-shaped wreath pins to attach the wreath wire to the wreath as an alternative to slipping it under the yarn.

This wreath will last for years if it is kept out of harsh weather. It can also be sprayed with dried flower preserver to make the flowers less fragile.

Today was definitely what I consider a good day in my world. It was my day off so I let myself sleep in, and when I woke up, it wasn't even raining. That's a welcome change, because the last several weeks it's been nothing but gloom on my days off. The sun even came of the clouds for a minute or two.

So I got my entire field of pumpkins harvested. Usually I have my brother to help me, but he's working the night shift now, so he sleeps in the daytime. This year I did all the planting, hoeing (till the rain stopped me), and harvesting myself. The perks of that, however, include getting first pick of the pumpkins. I chose three perfectly shaped ones to save for my Halloween carving.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that there were way more pumpkins in that tangled mess of weeds than I had expected. And as added bonus, there were a bunch of gourds I hadn't even planned on because somebody (could've been me) mislabeled the jars when we were saving seeds last year. Ever notice how the stuff you don't mean to plant always grows better than the stuff you do? Got some really cool ones cause they crossed with the pumpkins having grown in such close proximity.

After harvesting I got to spend the rest of the day cleaning my room (a long awaited project!) while listening to Guess Who records (yes vinyl) on the $5 record player my brother very kindly got for me a couple weeks ago at the Rushville community garage sale. One of the speakers doesn't work and there's a bit of a whining hum in the one that does, but hey, it's a record player, enough said.

Ok, ok, so I'll admit to be one of the typical kids who thinks that the scratching, hissing, crackling, and generally inferior quality of a record sounds warmer than digitalized media, but let's face it, some artists really do sound better on vinyl. A prime example is The Animals. They already have that echoish sound we love and records just enhance it. It sounds like they're in some deep, echoing chamber. (Oh wait, that was John Bonham in the stairwell during When the Levee Breaks)

Hmm...this post started out as farming, but what can I say, I've always been passionate about my music and sometimes things just head that direction. And when I say "my music" I of course mean the great music that would actually be considered parents' music, but which I love just as much if not more than they do (and in the case of Robert Johnson, that'd probably be considered my Grandparents or even Great-Grandparents music, but I love it anyway!)

The High Point of Autumn

I am truly a child of Autumn (never mind the fact that I was born in the spring). Autumn is really when I'm happiest. It seems like nothing can go wrong, and even when things do go wrong, it seems to be much easier to take when the lovely weather of the fall is there to smooth things over.

There's always a high point to my Autumns. Naturally Halloween is my highest point, but there's also a specific point about the nature of the season itself that I always hit at least once during the fall. Between my house and the barnyard there is a patch of trees that we call "The Fort" due to the fact that my siblings and I always played there. At the end of the the fort is one of my favorite ash trees (still the best climbing one around), which stands at a fork where the two paths that travel through the fort meet. The high point of the season is when those ash leaves turn that bright yellow, tinged by just a hint of peachy-green and fall to ground. They cover the forest floor right where the two paths of the fort meet and roll down the hill towards the cow water barrels.

There is something indescribably irresistible about running over the soft, dry dirt of the fort paths when those ash leaves are covering the ground just right. It happens every year. This year it was today. To make thing even more perfect, it was a warm day, perfect for barefoot ash leaf walking, with just the right amount of cool breeze. Talk about being one with nature; the high point of Autumn for sure. If there was one day I didn't want to have to go to work at the indoor office, it was most definitely today. Oh well, gotta pay the bills somehow until I manage become totally self-sufficient. And hey, it's quite possible that the high point will still be there tomorrow.

Ok, that's enough of my seasonal sights ranting. The car's all packed for market, it's pushing 1:00 in the morning and I gotta get up at 6:00, so I think I'll be heading to be bed now, as the full moon shines its bright silver rays through my open window. God, I love this season.

So last night at 1:30 in the morning, when everyone else is sleeping, I'm outside in the moonlight running around through the woods and the open meadows behind my house like some Medieval sorceress. I'm not in any form a werewolf (at least as far as I know), but there is something about the full moon that just makes me want to run outside under its light. Maybe it's the bit of Celtic blood in me. So last night, after making sure no one was looking, I geeked up, put on my confessor's dress and ran out into the night. With the bright light of the full moon I could see for miles and running around with those long flowing sleeves, I hit that point where I didn't have to just pretend I was in the Celtic sorcery days, I felt like I was actually there. And yes, I did have an excuse ready just in case anybody happened to catch me in the act of running around costumed up on a night other than Halloween; it was research for the fantasy story I'm writing, based in a land where the moon is always full. Sometimes you actually have to become your characters before you can write about them.

Lovely day. No sun, as usual on my day off, but I did manage to complete my last order of beeswax votives and make the first batch of grape juice for the season. Delicious concord grapes mashed into the best grape juice ever. There's really nothing in the store as good as homemade. Making Your Own Grape Juice

Overlock vs. Sewing Machine Thread

I do a lot of mending on my clothes, probably more than I should. I routinely keep mending clothes long after they've attained the status of rags. More than once my mother has said she will pay me to just buy a new shirt, but hey, you really can't replace a favorite, so I keep on mending.

In my long mending history I have used all kinds of threads and found that some work better than others. Waxed quilting thread (aside from being the greatest innovation in quilting since the needle!) is actually quite useful for mending as it never twists up like unwaxed thread. It can be a little stiff to work with when trying to mend holes, however, so it's best used on bigger rips.

Recently I stumbled onto the wonderful world of overlock thread. What really caught my attention was the fact that a spool of overlock thread cost the same as a spool of regular thread, yet was about 3 times as big as a spool of regular thread. I took one home and decided to try it.

I quickly realized that overlock thread is definitely thinner than all-purpose thread, so using it on a sewing machine would be out of the question (not to mention the fact that it would be very difficult to fit the huge spool on the machine spikes). Mending, however, is a different story.

Whereas a sewing machine only sews single threaded (at least in the case of the bobbin), when I'm mending, I always bend the thread in the middle and sew with the two layers. Therefore the thinner overlock thread is plenty thick enough when doubled up. In short, if you mend by hand and use the double thickness method, you can get three times the thread for your mending buck by using overlock thread. Just don't use it on a regular sewing machine, or you may find your project literally "bursting at the seams."

In Loving Memory...

This morning started off on a sad note as we were forced to put down our cow Valentine after he fell and badly injured himself. A good friend of 14 years, he's not just a cow to me, anymore than someone's child is just a kid to them. In my family cows are not merely livestock. The only profit we seek to gain from them is the manure they produce to fertilize the garden. They are pets as truly as any cat or dog. My animals are my life, my family, and so too was Valentine. He will be missed, but I take comfort in knowing that he has had one of the best lives of any cow on this planet and he lived a good, long life. Goodbye my sweet Valentine.

Valentine: 1996-2010 (Wednesday, September 8)

Costumes

The butternut leaves are starting to fall. It can only mean one thing, Halloween will soon be on its way. Yippie!!! So, I've started making costumes. I'm hoping to get enough ready (and enough time) to rent them out this year. So I've started by making a Peter Pan costume out of alova, my favorite material of choice. Here are the instructions if anyone wants to try it themselves.

This top and hat is easy to make can be worn with any pair of green pants.

Alova is an inexpensive material that has the look of suede or leather, particularly when brown shades are used. Though called alova skin, it is in fact synthetic and is not made of animal skin. Aside from trying to achieve a fake suede look, however, this fabric lends a rich texture to almost any costume. The best part is, this material does not fray so there is no need to finish stitch the edges. I used alova to make this Peter Pan costume.

Trace a large T-shirt (just the body, not the sleeves) onto a piece of dark green fabric and cut two pieces of the green fabric. Widen the dip of the neckline on both pieces. With the right sides together, sew the sides and top of the two body pieces together leaving holes for the sleeves and the neck.

Cut four rectangular pieces a little larger than the sleeves of the T-shirt used for measuring. These sleeves should reach the elbow of the person who will be wearing the costume. Put two of the rectangles right side together and cut one end at a diagonal. Sew the sides of the pieces together leaving both ends open then sew the sleeve pieces to the body piece. The shorter end of the sleeve goes on the bottom side of the sleeve. Do the same with the remaining two sleeve pieces. Now turn the entire shirt right side out.

On the front side of the newly made shirt, cut two inches down the center neckline. Fold the collar open, bending it to each side and secure each side of the bent collar with a stitch. Then continue cutting straight down the center for another 3-4 inches. Cut lace holes on each side of this center slice.

Cut a 1/2 inch piece of fabric and tie a knot in the end of each side. Lace this through the holes on the front of the shirt starting from the bottom and going up. Leave the ends hanging loose. Cut points around the sleeve ends and the bottom of the shirt. Use a piece of green cord as a belt.

To make the hat, cut two pieces of cloth in the shape of a half heart. Sew the two pieces together leaving the straight edge open for the wearer’s head. Turn the hat right side out and roll the edges up, securing with a few stitches. To finish, sew a feather onto one side. A plastic knife or a bow and arrow also make a nice addition to the costume. Wear this top and hat with a pair of green leggings or some other form of tight pants.

On the front side of the newly made shirt, cut two inches down the center neckline. Fold the collar open, bending it to each side and secure each side of the bent collar with a stitch. Then continue cutting straight down the center for another 3-4 inches. Cut lace holes on each side of this center slice.

Cut a 1/2 inch piece of fabric and tie a knot in the end of each side. Lace this through the holes on the front of the shirt starting from the bottom and going up. Leave the ends hanging loose. Cut points around the sleeve ends and the bottom of the shirt. Use a piece of green cord as a belt.

To make the hat, cut two pieces of cloth in the shape of a half heart. Sew the two pieces together leaving the straight edge open for the wearer’s head. Turn the hat right side out and roll the edges up, securing with a few stitches. To finish, sew a feather onto one side. A plastic knife or a bow and arrow also make a nice addition to the costume. Wear this top and hat with a pair of green leggings or some other form of tight pants.

Thrift Store Sewing Material

I'm big on recycling, no matter what it is, so one of the things I try to do when I'm sewing is use as much salvaged or recycled material as possible. When I say recycled material, I'm not referring to material that has gone through a recycling process, rather I'm referring to the vast quantities of unwanted clothing that people get rid of every day. Rather than buying new material, getting it from a thrift store is a way to recycle. Not only that, it can also be a great money saver.

At first glance, sewing material in a thrift may not be obvious, but upon closer inspection, it is revealed that everything in the thrift store is material, albeit in a preformed garment. This allows for double convenience. One can either purchase a large item of clothing with the intention of cutting it up to use as material, or the actual garment itself can be used as a starter for something else.

In my area there is both a Salvation Army and a Volunteers of America, so the selection of "material" is wonderfully large. I recently found a huge long sleeved T-shirt with a rather ridiculous picture on the front side (probably the reason it was in the thrift store in the first place!) for a new costume pattern I was trying out. While the hideous front was useless, the entire backside and the large sleeves were prime for the taking. The thick knit material would have cost a lot more in a regular fabric shop, but I was able to purchase it for only 50 cents, which was great as I didn't have to worry about wasting money if my experiment didn't work out.

Even better was the white linen tablecloth I found to make a confessor's dress for the Renaissance festival. I had been looking in the thrift store for a white dress to use as a base, but as long-sleeved dresses are rather scarce to come by in the summer, I had no such luck. It was not long, however, before I found myself in a section with sheets, blankets, and a white linen tablecloth. I ended up getting for $4 at a thrift store what would have been around $20 of linen at a regular fabric store, and as an added bonus, the edges were already finished, so I didn’t have to worry about them fraying. I already had a black tank top and leggings to wear under it, and I was able to get the sleeve trim and lacing for the costume for a $1 at JoAnn Fabrics, bringing the total cost of the dress to $5.

 

As for finding clothes that can be used as starters, a simple blue dress was the basis for my cousin's costume. The gown itself was already sewn, all I had to do was add a few ribbons to the sleeves and the front to make it look "Renaissancy."

 

 

Naturally there are many times when a visit to a traditional fabric shop is necessary, when a certain color, type, or size of material cannot be found in a thrift store. However, it is always worth the time to look in the thrift store first. As an added benefit, purchasing material from a thrift store like the Salvation Army or Volunteers of America supports the organizations that help people. It’s a win-win situation for everyone.

Water Conservation

Anyone who lives on a well knows the importance of water conservation. Not only from an environmental standpoint, but also from the short term point of view that if you waste water on a well, sooner or later you will run out. And when that happens you have to haul water, which can be a costly and very time-consuming venture, not to mention the time and pain spent trying to prime a pump after the well has run dry.

Here are a few tips for conserving water, which benefit country folks living on a well, as well as everyone else in the long run. Given that much of our planet's fresh water stores are locked up in glaciers, it might serve us all best to share and conserve our water.

"If it's yellow let it mellow, if it's brown flush it down"
This hippie slogan is probably the first and foremost best way to conserve water. While it may be common enough to flush the toilet after every use in a house that has public water, those living on a well generally have a heart attack if someone flushes the toilet too often, due to the fact that hauling water is a less than fun chore. While trying to limit the number of flushes is probably not a good idea in public restrooms, in the privacy of one's own home, implementing this idea will greatly reduce the amount of water used by many gallons.

Bathe in the Swimming Pool:
In drier areas of the world, being able to take a brief shower once a week would be a huge novelty, but in developed places of the world, people often shower daily, sometimes multiple times a day. The water loss of this practice is immense. A simple alternative is the swimming pool. Many of the same people who would take showers everyday have swimming pools in their backyards providing a large, clean water source to use as a "bathtub." One can wash in the swimming pool just as easily as the shower, especially if they are going to be swimming in it anyway. For years in my family, we have washed our hair the swimming pool during the summer months to keep the well from running dry.

Not everyone has a pool, so in lieu of that, an alternative is to try showering every few days instead of everyday, or at the very least, every other day. This is particularly relevant on a stay-at-home weekend. A simple wash up instead of a full shower can be sufficient on the off-shower days. As an added bonus, going a couple days without washing ones hair actually increases hair's heath.

Don't wash clean clothes:
Many people wash their clothes every day, no matter clean they are, or how short of a time they were worn. Washing machines not only use large amounts of water, but also large amounts energy, as do the dryers that are often used after the washing machines. Certainly there are certain items of clothing that merit everyday washing, but some items do not require daily cleaning. Pants are a perfect example. They do not absorb body odor as a shirt would, and unless they are actually dirty, they can go for several days without washing. The same is true of a sweater or any type of over shirt. If they do not smell, and they are not dirty, why waste the water? In a family with several members, this can probably save at least one load of laundry a day, and think of how many gallons of water a week. Washing sparingly also helps increase the life of clothing items as washing can be very hard on them. It also save money on laundry detergent.

Same beverage, same glass
Dishes need to be washed every day, but water can be saved by making efforts to have fewer batches of dishes. Most people drink something throughout day when they're thirsty, whether it be water, juice, pop, or tea. If you find yourself drinking the same beverage each time you get thirsty, try keeping a glass specifically for it. If you drink juice throughout the day, don't get a fresh glass each time, use the same one throughout the day. Better yet, use the same glass for two or three days before washing it. It can save water and dishwashing time (which a lot of people despise anyway).

Get a rain barrel:
Collecting water in a barrel is a great way to save water for the backyard garden. It is especially easy to do by placing a barrel beneath the outlets for the eavestroughs or rain gutters on a house to collect runoff from the roof. This water can then be saved in the barrel and later used to water the gardens by hooking up a simple garden hose.

City Dog Visits the Farm

My sister has friends visiting this weekend for Labor Day, and they brought their dog with them. Being from an area far less rural, this was Nalah's (the dog's) first trip to a farm and I think she thoroughly enjoyed it. The first thing she did was discover the wonderful joys of fresh manure. Having never experienced it before, she spent about ten minutes just rolling and thrashing about like a beached fish, coating herself in as much manure as she possibly could.
This was also her first encounter with cows, sheep, and horses. She was rather frightened by the large animals at first, but her fear soon turned to curiosity. She ran stood at the fence barking, but decided it was close enough, so she slipped inside. That was where she met the charming, wooly monster Ziah (aka Bully the Sheep). Ziah is not one to suffer intruders so he started chasing Nalah around the pasture as fast as he possibly could, running with two feet at a time.
Nalah quickly ducked back out through the fence, but decided she was having a good time annoying this strange white creature. She continued to bark at the sheep, sticking her head in through the fence every few minutes tempting the sheep to come and get her. Ziah accepted the invitation continuously ramming himself into the fence just as Nalah pulled her head to safety. The two of them must have spent a half hour bantering back and forth.
After finally getting board with that, Nalah spent the remainder of her time running circles around the huge garden, rolling in the grass, and enjoying the novelty of drinking water out a stream. She is still afraid of the cow, however.

Today I have officially given up on my pumpkin patch. It's not that I've given up on the pumpkins themselves, they're still there, it's just that I've given up on trying to rescue the patch from the weeds. When I first started it, I had the thing clean as whistle, all the weeds hoed out properly, it was great. But you know, the best laid plans of men and mice and all that...fast-forward two months later and the patch now looks more like a jungleland interior than a viable crop. I suppose it might have had something to do with the fact that work got busy which left me with only two days of being at home. For a while I squeaked along with that, but then the rain started and for some reason, the rain always seemed to fall on my two days off. So a couple weeks of rain and no hoeing and suddenly the patch is drowning. I went up there today to try and uncovered the buried treasure that was once my pumpkin patch, but found it too depressing. I knew I was never gonna get the patch back in shape in one day, the mosquitoes were driving me insane, and I had several orders to fill this week. Plus I rationalized that the pumpkins have already formed on the vines. If they can't make it on their own now, no amount of hoeing is going to save them. So I gave up. I'll still have plenty of pumpkins come fall, I'll just be picking them out of the weeds. On the bright side, the pumpkins themselves look really nice this year. Planted them in the prized manure patch; always produces a good squash crop.