Ah, summer...

Here I sit on a Monday morning, reading various blogs, listening to On Broadway on XM Radio. I have a list of things to accomplish, but there is no particular hurry because it's officially SUMMER!!

The last day of school was a week ago last Friday. And as soon as possible, we packed up the car, the dog and ourselves and hightailed it up to the boat. Hence my non-posty-ness last week. There should be Off the Back of the Boat photos, but we keep forgetting the damn camera. This weekend, I promise.

I love these early days of summer holidays. The summer still seems to stretch out ahead of me, with plans and projects yet to experience and accomplish. It reminds me of being a kid, when time slowed down to a crawl and summer lasted forever. Now, of course, time moves much more quickly and I realize that before I know it I will wonder where the summer has gone. But today, September seems a mile away.

Today, I have a house to myself and nobody to tell me what I should do. So many choices: reading, writing, chatting, crafting, cooking. Or maybe doing lots of nothing at all. Time well spent, indeed.

Attention, Crafty People!

You have got to check out these fabulous fabrics!!

These make me wish I:

a: sewed
b: had a small child
c: that someone would make me jammies with this

Farmer Girl

I have tomatoes! They are small and green (the largest is slightly bigger than a golf ball), but there are eleven of them all told and I am thrilled!



And apparently, I also have another crop. Last summer we got a new porch, steps and walkway in front of our townhouse. Nearly all of my planting were destroyed, so, among other things, I planted a flowering spirea shrub next to the steps. Early this spring, I noticed another plant beginning to grow in that area. It looked like it might "be something" (gardeners will understand), so I let it grow.Perhaps, I thought, Grant put some wildflower seed there.

Fast forward to our two week holiday and then our return. I walked up the stairs, and suddenly, I knew exactly what that mystery plant was.



You see, way back in October, I had a small pumpkin sitting on my front porch. In time, said pumpkin began to collapse and I moved it to a patch of dirt next to my steps. Same patch of dirt where my spirea plant would eventually call home. Now, it shares it home with a giant pumpkin plant, already boasting several flowers.

I am reluctant to remove it. I hope it won't hurt the spirea, but even so, I can't resist the idea of growing pumpkins in my front yard! I will have to warn the neighbours, though.

Cheese please

I did it. I made something that actually resembles cheese with my own two hands. Yes, my kitchen looks like a bomb hit it. A cheese bomb. There are curds and whey everywhere; I will never recite "Little Miss Muffet" without having flashbacks. In fact, I have practically a gallon of whey, which I suspect is not quite the thing, and only a tiny bit of cheese. But it looks and tastes like mozzarella. And I learned a lot by just diving in and taking a stab at it. Next time, I predict more cheese and less mess.

Yay for me!

Reality check

As mentioned previously, I have been on a kick of reading about food and eating. This weekend, I finished reading Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, which chronicles her family's year-long effort to eat food entirely produced locally, most of which was grown in her own garden, chicken and turkey yard. I had already been inspired by The Omnivore's Dilemma to search out sustainable farm operations here in my neck of the woods, but Kingsolver really got me thinking. I even tentatively tested Grant.

"What if, instead of a cottage on the water, we retired to a farm and grew our own food?"

The answer was an incredulous "Ummm, no?"

Which is wise, because one of my failings (and I have a few), is a general lack of the work ethic and patience necessary to a real gardener. Every year, I plant pretty plants in my home garden, usually of the floral or shrub variety, and every year, the weeds enjoy relatively free reign in my plot of earth. I just don't have the passion to spend endless hours digging and tilling and weeding, even when it means beauty and/or food. The likelhood of successfully growing my own food is marginal, at best. This summer will mean a pot or two of herbs, nothing more. I really do accept this.

So, mostly, eating locally means it's me and the farmers' markets. But Kingsolver has made me realize that there just might be some things I could do all by myself. One is to take all the produce I can buy in summer and can it for the winter. Tomatoes, pickles, chutney...all of these are within the realm of possibility. All I need is a weekend or two...and maybe a friend to do it with.

But the thing that really fired my imagination is making my own cheese. Apparently, homemade cheese is significantly less lactose-heavy. I might actually be able to consume ricotta again! And make my own cream cheese and mozzarella. Cheese! I could make cheese!!!

Honestly, if I can make candles, I should be able to do this.

Important stuff I got to do today

• Go to the gym
  
• File the bills
  
• Make bath salts
  
• Clean out the bottom cabinets
  
• Shovel the front of the house
  
• Play with the tile pattern for the backsplash
  
• Watch a movie
  
• Snuggle with my husband
  
• or perhaps....

Yet another snow day

I feel like I hit the lottery! It feels very odd to be home right now- it is not currently snowing and the roads I can see out my window look quite accessible. But there is a system on its way into town and my school district decided that discretion was the better part of valour. Still, looking outside, I keep feeling like it all was a mistake and I am going to get a call any minute saying "Where the heck are you??"

Until that time (hee), I am considering how to spend my day. Grant asked me to pull out our tax information, which is tremendously boring, but since he had to go to work today, it seems an advisable chore to keep my marriage a happy one. I also need to do some research on how to do my US tax return. I am thinking about trying to file on my own instead of using an accountant, but we will see. Paperwork is not my passion.

I think today would be a good day to make some more bath salts. I was not terribly happy with the batch of lavender I kept for myself the last time; I hope the lavender salts I sent out were a bit more scented. I need to look over my supplies and possibly make some new orders. Grant wants to make some shower gel using the essential oils, so I may need some more. We are still tweaking our recipes to try and improve our product.

I really should take advantage of the break in the weather and go to the gym. I worked out yesterday and was totally proud of myself for doing my upper body stuff on my own. My current workout plan is to meet with my trainer once a week, work out at least one other time on my own and take my Pilates class on Saturday morning. The check in with my trainer each week helps motivate me to go on my own. I really need that incentive, because left to myself, I would never work out. My attitude towards exercise is not one of love. Not too long ago, after listening to me moan and groan my way through an exercise, my trainer commented "There must be something you actually enjoy about your workout." I thought about it and replied, "Not really." She was astonished and a little sad, I think. But the truth is, I do enjoy some of the exercises, particularly the ones where I feel buff and strong (yes, biceps curls, I'm looking at you!), but there will never be a time I like any of the abs exercises!!

Anyway, if I am going, it should be soon. Then I think I will come home and watch The Devil Wears Prada. And see if Project Runway episode 10 is up on YouTube.

Musings

I have been pondering the future of Smelly Stuff as an internet business. As those of you who got packages know, the shipping was ridiculously high. In order for me to cover the shipping costs, I would have to charge a fairly high price for my products and I question whether or not I could build any kind of clientele with higher prices. Still, I have an idea that I would like to bounce off you guys.

I am thinking that I might offer an initial jar of bath salts at a fairly high price. The jar would be larger than the 16 oz one I used this time. I would probably buy a nice glass jar about 26 oz to use. Examples are below. Then I would offer refills, which I would ship in a ziplock bag.

















I think in order to make this work, I would charge about $35 for the jar and one free refill. Refills would probably be about $12 each. Initial shipping would be $10. I think I could charge shipping the refills for about $7.50. All of these are significantly below the actual cost of shipping, but I should be able to make that up in the pricepoint.

So, testers, what do you think?

Want to smell nice?

I need some volunteers. As you know, Grant and I have been making our own scented candles and bath salts. We are feeling confident enough about the results that I am considering opening my own Etsy store to market them, but I want to explore some shipping options to make sure that it will be economically viable.

So, I am looking for three people who would like me to ship them some candles and/or bath salts at no charge. I would appreciate feedback on the products themselves as well as how the shipping worked. I will ship to the first 3 people who respond. Please let me know if you want both products or just one.

Also, I am playing with some name ideas. How does Scentillations sound to you guys? I would like to play on the scent/smell option, but have decided that Smelly Stuff by Allison may not fly. (Smelly stuff is what my husband and I call anything that is scented!) I am looking for any brilliant ideas you might have.

How we did it

Yeah, I really just wanted to see the before and after in the same post. But for those of you *cough*Amanda*cough* who might want to know a few more details about how this first vanity became the second vanity, here ya go!

As I mentioned earlier, the vanity is one of those melamine monstrosities that turn up in so many apartments and townhouses. The previous owners had stenciled them with the leaves you can see in the first picture. Not bad, but really not our style. We took off the doors and sanded them first. Then we cleaned them with TSP, which is very toxic, so be sure to use gloves! Then we sanded again with finer grade sandpaper. Once the doors were smooth and clean, we attached moulding to the edges (Well, I should say...Grant attached it!) Then we primed the doors using a alkyd primer. We did the same to the side of the vanity.


The first coat of the paint was a creamy white melamine paint by CIL called Baker's White. You can use any oil-based paint, but this paint was very easy to use. We put on two coats of the cream base. Then I mixed one part of CIL's Huron Grey (also melamine paint) with 3 parts of glaze. We applied this with a brush and then wiped it off with a rag. The wiping leaves colour in the cracks of the moulding and leaves a slight streak on the flat surfaces. I think if you only want the colour on the moulding you would just paint that. This is the simplest kind of a patina finish. You can also use a dry brush technique to apply the second colour- that gives more of the effect of the paint wearing away. Then we reattached the doors and added new hardware.

We are quite pleased with the transformation. Grant isn't one hundred percent sold on the patina finish-- he thinks it makes the cabinet look dirty and he hates that he worked so hard to make the moulding fit and the patina shows all the cracks! But I am happy with the patina look and I love the mouldings. We have decided that we can do something similar in the kitchen, which will be an ENORMOUS undertaking. Still, we think we can save at least $1000 by going this route, so it will be well worth it.

New Bathroom

Cupboards. Formerly plain white melamine, now sporting molding and a patina finish.


Silver framed mirror to match all the new brushed silver fixtures. We decided to leave the other cabinet the way it was, but it may change.


Old artwork, new place.


Another view, including the new faucet and toilet roll holder. Please note roll goes over (I made Grant change it!)

Purple Haze

So the purple paint I chose for the bathroom was just a bit too intense. It was exactly the colour on the paint chip, but the difference between a two inch square and a whole wall was HUGE. I think if it was a bluer purple, I would have been okay with it, but the majenta pink tones in this colour was just a bit much to imagine facing first thing in the morning. So we went back to the paint store. The problem is that the paint guys can darken a colour, but lightening it means buying at least a quart of white paint. We did. The white paint did lighten it, but not nearly as much as we had hoped. Still, we slapped the new paint on the walls and I am much happier with it. I noticed today at the store that they sell little tiny cans that you can use to test a colour with. I think next time, I will try that first. Much easier on the heart.

We also bought all the stuff we need to transform the cabinet, plus a new faucet, towel rack and mirror. So far, our expense has been about $400 for paint and all the other stuff. If we had decided to buy a new vanity instead, we would probably have spent at least $350 on that alone, so I definitely think we will come out ahead by getting creative.

Not exactly "Before" pictures, but these should give you an idea of the transformation. This is the purple we are keeping. Just imagine how intense the first one was!

The vanity we are transforming. Plus the beginnings of a first coat of purple. The shower curtain was the inspiration for the palette.

The other cabinet. We are simply painting this one.

The original mirror, now in the hall. You can't see the crack in the corner, but it's there.

Random

For those of you wondering: no, I never actually got fully plastered last night. I had three glasses of a nice Italian red with dinner and decided to cap it off with glass of Irish whiskey. I felt pleasantly buzzed, but never truly drunk.

I have been very productive already today. I went to the gym for Pilates, then I went to the hardware store to pick out my paints. I also bought a new faucet for the bathroom and a new towel rack. So far, the bathroom reno has cost a bit over $200. Next, I have to find a new mirror and start the cabinet part of the project. The mirror part will have to be soon--I am not sure how much longer I can deal with using the mirror in the hallway.

We have a few hours at home, and then G and I are riding a horse and carriage for the Santa Claus Parade. It's very cold outside, so I may need to bring along some of that Irish Whiskey for warmth. Hee.

Tearing down the house

I was planning to take a picture of the bathroom before we began its transformation. Unfortunately, while I was at work today, my husband decided to tear off all the wallpaper and take down the slightly cracked mirror. This is relatively typical of him. Those of you who have met me and Grant would probably be surprised to hear that he is the impulsive one of the family, but it would be the truth. He's the guy who decides on major purchases in a heartbeat; he's the one who starts projects when I am still in the planning stages and he's the one who decided to make a pass at that girl on the Internets (that would be me...just in case you were concerned). So, I could take a picture now, but all you would see is walls and cabinets.

I think I have chosen the base colour. I have a shower curtain that I love, love , love in a muted garden pattern of mauve, green and taupe tones. I think the walls will reflect the mauve. I haven't completely decided if I am doing a plain paint or a faux finish, although I think it will stay plain. The cabinets will be ivory with an antique patina finish. We are replacing the mirror, the sink fixture and one of the towel racks. I may or may not try painting the counter.

But none of this is happening this weekend. We have the Christmas Tree Lighting at City Hall Friday night, the Santa Claus Parade on Saturday and we are seeing George Carlin on Sunday. Busy, busy, busy. So, we will have to manage for a week in a stripped down bathroom.

Damn. I just realized I am going to have to convince him to put the mirror back. I have no place to put on my makeup. Men just don't think these things through!

Why I blog

I have been tagged by the lovely Meghan to give 5 reasons why I blog. My first reaction to this question was a simple "Hell if I know!", but in the last several days I have endeavoured to give it some actual thought and here is what I came up with:

The Remembering: I think the writing that I have been most proud of in this blog has been the memoir pieces. When a memory from my life pops its head up and demands to be shared, the words flow effortlessly. Well, almost effortlessly. But the pieces seem to write themselves and the memories come back to me so strongly that I feel like a time traveller. As I grow older, reflecting on who I am and what made me becomes more important. But, I have no children to tell my stories to. I guess this is one way to say "Hey! I was here."

The Sharing: Which brings me to the second reason: sharing bits of my life, important and mundane, with people who care. Moving 3,000 miles away from your friends and family is probably never easy; doing it after your 40th birthday means you leave behind the easy connections you have made over a lifetime. Making new friends at my age is not easy, but my creepy Internet friends make me feel a little less lonely.

The Writing: I hate to write. And yet...there are times when I just have to write. Writing has made me stop and notice more. I experience events differently, I read books differently. I appreciate language more. I admire the craft I see other people practicing. I begin to see my own style and form. I compare my own writing unfavourably sometimes, but the striving to be a better writer never goes away.

The Not-writing: I love that I write entries constantly in my head even if they never actually get written. Knowing that I have a place of my own to write my thoughts makes me reflect more about my life. I like having a life story always playing in my head.

The People: Bloggers are great people! Being a part of this community, even if I am only the most minor of players, makes me proud. I love reading your words and sharing mine.

The last part of this should be to tag other people, but since I am fairly late to this party, nearly all of the bloggers I stalk have already been tagged by someone else. Unless....

Has anyone tagged The Bears??

Essential Reading

Thank you to Phantom Scribber for linking to this. If you don't know why the Supreme Court's recent decision about abortion is a huge backward step for women's right to control their own medical decisions and their own body, Cecilia makes it very, very clear.

Bath Salts: part 2

Made a second batch of bath salts, this time using French Vanilla fragrance and some tweaking of the original recipe. I probably should have simply stuck to the lavender fragrance but I wanted something a bit different to try. Currently, I am the only test object available and until I ascertain that my concoctions will not cause an allergic reaction, I will refrain from using my devoted readers as guinea pigs. Anyway, I used half dead sea salt and epsom salt, a bit more oil and what I thought was considerably more fragrance than my initial experiment.

Conclusion:
1. Tiny bit too much oil. I like to feel soft but the sheen of oil was a bit more than I like.
2. Still not enough fragrance. I like to actually smell the perfume when I am bathing.
3. Grinding the salts works, but I need to be careful not to over grind.
4. The combination of salts may or may not be affecting the fragrance issue. I will have to be a bit more scientific in my methods.

I promise samples as soon as I figure out the fragrance issue. I am proceeding somewhat carefully on that front, as my devoted husband prefers me rash-free.

Craft Central

Here is the workstation that Grant and I set up for making candles. This batch is Georgia Peach and smells absolutely yummy. The ones farthest from the camera are the container candles, the ones in the metal are votives. We are still struggling a bit with the second pour of the wax; the first pour usually shrinks a bit as it sets, leaving a slight (or not so slight) well around the wick. The candles closest to the camera have just been poured, so you can see the difference between the hot and cooled wax. The first couple of times we didn't have enough wax for a second pour, this time we filled the candles too much. But they are burning pretty well and smell great!

I also am experimenting with making bath salts. The first batch I made wasn't nearly fragrant enough once they dissolved into the bath water. They sure smelled strong enough before. Most of the recipes I have found suggest 5-10 drops of fragrance, but that is obviously not enough. I also prefer a finer salt, so I decided to try using an old coffee grinder to make the Dead Sea salts finer. That experiment worked well, but I realized that with finer salt, I would have a harder time distributing the fragrance throughout the mixture. My solution was to mix the fragrance (considerably more than the recipes suggest) with oil. I used Sunflower oil with a bit of Vitamin E oil and mixed about a tablespoon with about a 1/4 teaspoon of fragrance. I also discovered that the best way to mix it all up is to use my hands. They smell very nice, thank you. Anyway, my bath last night was better, but I think I want to experiment with a bit more oil and maybe a tiny bit more fragrance.

I feel like a scientist. I will try not to blow anything up.