Saturday, August 27, 2011
STORYTELLER DOLL UPDATE . . .
This morning I added a shoulder bag to the doll . Inside the bag are 2 tiny "books" and I think it looks really nice on her!
Friday, August 26, 2011
WHAT HAVE I BEEN DOING ? . ..
Well, I just finished another "storyteller" doll. I love making these, and all of them are quite different from each other. As usual, this one was made with bits and pieces and scraps from my studio. The face is polymer clay on a form of crushed newspaper and masking tape.
The body is several layers of cardboard glued together, and then covered with a knit bodysuit filled with a polyester fiber to give her some softness. At the initial construction I attached a fabric loop to the back so that it can be hung on the wall.
Then came the fun parts: painting the face, stringing the necklaces and sewing the dress. Her hair is a raw silk yarn and her head scarf and waist sash were cut from a piece of brown gauze I have had for about 14 years!
Her underskirt is part of a lace and polyester slip and the design on the bottom of the skirt was made by using a stamp I had made and acrylic paint. She measures 25 inches long.
I love her! And, now I am wanting to make another one!
The body is several layers of cardboard glued together, and then covered with a knit bodysuit filled with a polyester fiber to give her some softness. At the initial construction I attached a fabric loop to the back so that it can be hung on the wall.
Then came the fun parts: painting the face, stringing the necklaces and sewing the dress. Her hair is a raw silk yarn and her head scarf and waist sash were cut from a piece of brown gauze I have had for about 14 years!
Her underskirt is part of a lace and polyester slip and the design on the bottom of the skirt was made by using a stamp I had made and acrylic paint. She measures 25 inches long.
I love her! And, now I am wanting to make another one!
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
CAN YOU SAY "TASTY" ? . . .
On our recent trip to Canada, and the fabulous day of winery touring, we stopped at one vinyard which had a wonderful cheese shop. The ladies in the shop were preparing canapes and offered up samples. Below is my recreation of the best one! 
The base of the canape is stoned wheat crackers (no, I am quite sure that refers to a milling process). Next is a lovely slice of Brie Cheese. Topping the cheese is a chutney made as follows: 
Finely dice a peach and a plum (or any such fruit that is getting too ripe). Add some chopped basil and then a bit of wine, whatever bottle you have open. Put the chutney in the fridge to keep cold until time to assemble.
So, this was our lunch on the porch today. We added some wine (since, of course, the bottle was already open) . I encourage you to try this! See, the plate is quite empty! As are the glasses:)
The base of the canape is stoned wheat crackers (no, I am quite sure that refers to a milling process). Next is a lovely slice of Brie Cheese. Topping the cheese is a chutney made as follows: Finely dice a peach and a plum (or any such fruit that is getting too ripe). Add some chopped basil and then a bit of wine, whatever bottle you have open. Put the chutney in the fridge to keep cold until time to assemble.
So, this was our lunch on the porch today. We added some wine (since, of course, the bottle was already open) . I encourage you to try this! See, the plate is quite empty! As are the glasses:)
It was soooooo tasty!
Friday, August 12, 2011
OH CANADA ... .
Earlier this week we took a couple of days to go north and fell right into the fabulous Ontario Wine Country. We stayed at the Capri Inn in the city of St. Catharines. a lovely room with a view over a river (?). We visited several of the 57 wineries in the region and it was a beautiful day for wine touring! This was our very favorite winery!
Here is Roy, getting up close and personal with a vintage wine press.
Here you can see just one of MANY rows of grapes. Rows and rows and rows and rows.....they just went on and on.
All of the vineyards and their attached wineries had beautiful gardens. And, many of them had quite extensive gift stores. One of them had a fabulous store of artisan cheeses. Samples came faster than you could taste them and we came home with several pieces of speciality cheeses. Of course, the wine tastings were wonderful too and we brought home a case of assorted wines.
The gardens were so pretty I had to photograph the flowers.
At one of the wineries we had lunch outside in view of all those grapes. We shared a lobster and shrimp baguette, lightly dressed green salad and a very nice Chardonney. Best lunch in a very long time.
Roy has his hands full of cheese!
And here I am under a grape arbor holding four really tasty cheeses.
I have no doubt we will be going back. There are so many vineyards to visit! So many cool
labels, so little time. It was a wonderful trip and we stopped at Niagara Falls on the way home. Stay tuned for the requisite "falls" photographs!
Here is Roy, getting up close and personal with a vintage wine press.
Here you can see just one of MANY rows of grapes. Rows and rows and rows and rows.....they just went on and on.
All of the vineyards and their attached wineries had beautiful gardens. And, many of them had quite extensive gift stores. One of them had a fabulous store of artisan cheeses. Samples came faster than you could taste them and we came home with several pieces of speciality cheeses. Of course, the wine tastings were wonderful too and we brought home a case of assorted wines.
The gardens were so pretty I had to photograph the flowers.
At one of the wineries we had lunch outside in view of all those grapes. We shared a lobster and shrimp baguette, lightly dressed green salad and a very nice Chardonney. Best lunch in a very long time.
Roy has his hands full of cheese!
And here I am under a grape arbor holding four really tasty cheeses.
I have no doubt we will be going back. There are so many vineyards to visit! So many cool
labels, so little time. It was a wonderful trip and we stopped at Niagara Falls on the way home. Stay tuned for the requisite "falls" photographs!
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
A RAINY WEDNESDAY IN NW PENNA IS FOR BAKING . ..
Cooling on the table is a peach and raspberry tart! The peaches were bought frozen in bulk at our local farmer's cooperative and Roy picked the raspberries in our woods yesterday. I don't really have a recipe for you because I generally just wing it for these. I confess to a frozen pastry round for the crust.
I combine peaches and raspberries and some water and some sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and lemon juice. I cook it for awhile and then thicken it with corn starch. That's it! I bake it at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
Postscript: The tart is resting comfortably on a cake stand I made when living in Mountainair, NM where I took a pottery class. I have been waiting for a chance to use it!
Postscript: The tart is resting comfortably on a cake stand I made when living in Mountainair, NM where I took a pottery class. I have been waiting for a chance to use it!
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
" CLEAN OR DIRTY " ....
"Are the dishes in the dishwasher clean or dirty"? This happens just way too often. The question is usually followed by an inspection and/or discussion. This is such a time waster! Now I know you can buy a cute little something to stick on the dishwasher to answer the question. But, you can also make something without even going near a store. Making something without spending money makes me so very happy!
I took a magnetic sheet advertisement off the side of the refrigerator and covered the right side with a layer of white Gesso. After it had dried, I divided the space roughly in half (precision is not my thing as you all know by now) and painted it in two contrasting colors. Then I drew some free form letters with a Sharpie and painted them white. Tada!!! If you have a similar situation in your kitchen, take one of those useless magnet sheets and make one of these. Fun, useful and free!
I took a magnetic sheet advertisement off the side of the refrigerator and covered the right side with a layer of white Gesso. After it had dried, I divided the space roughly in half (precision is not my thing as you all know by now) and painted it in two contrasting colors. Then I drew some free form letters with a Sharpie and painted them white. Tada!!! If you have a similar situation in your kitchen, take one of those useless magnet sheets and make one of these. Fun, useful and free!
Saturday, July 23, 2011
MEET JULIENNE . . .
I have been making small loans to women in third world countries through the KIVA Loan Program. Julienne is my sixth business partner! It is a real "feels good" moment to be able to help other women. If you are inclined to do this, I encourage you to go to www.kiva.org and read about the program.
Quoted from the KIVA program page for Julienne:
"Julienne is a 54-year-old Rwandan entrepreneur. She has three children between the ages of 17 and 33 years old. She is a widow. Since 1997, she has been selling traditional cloth called bitenge. Her business is going well and it has enabled her to look after her children. She will use this loan to buy more bitenge, from which she will generate more profits. With the profits she will pay school fees for her children and continue to provide for her family. "
Quoted from the KIVA program page for Julienne:
"Julienne is a 54-year-old Rwandan entrepreneur. She has three children between the ages of 17 and 33 years old. She is a widow. Since 1997, she has been selling traditional cloth called bitenge. Her business is going well and it has enabled her to look after her children. She will use this loan to buy more bitenge, from which she will generate more profits. With the profits she will pay school fees for her children and continue to provide for her family. "
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