Gardening

It's so much fun to peruse seed catalogs in February, planning and dreaming about your summer garden, but reality sets in pretty quick, especially with a new garden.  I picked an area that had previously been a playground for the previous owners which was covered in mulch.  I had my daughter and her boyfriend scoop up the mulch (saved for other uses) and netting underneath.  Fine so far.  It sat vacant until last week after some good rains.  Seems as if the rocks in the soil floated to the surface, so I had a job to do, for sure before I could plant. 

This is, unbelievabley, after it was roto-tilled by my neighbor!  And sorry to day, I almost ruined it with all the rocks - I actually saw sparks spewing from the blades. 

Ok, I know you're bored by now, but I gradually dragged rocks out of the garden space and made a border around the edges.  I have now planted tomatoes, peppers and lots of other stuff which I will post in the next couple days.  Each year will get better.  I keep telling myself. 

Survived Memorial Day weekend craziness

I've been too busy filling orders to blog this past week, but that's all behind me as I shipped off 3 boxes today and 2 yesterday.  Whew!  But I'm not done, because I have a bride who wants more stuff. 

I took some time off during the weekend of Memorial Day and had a wonderful time.  The weather cooperated beautifully.  Carla, my youngest daughter arrived Friday afternoon, and the rest of the gang got here later that evening from Philadelphia.  We cooked a half turkey on the grill that day, and it was demolished before our eyes!  so good!   The next day we made chicken Spiedies ( a local favorite).

Saturday, most of the gang headed up to Ithaca to shop and hang out.  Others stayed behind to relax in the sun. 

Sunday some of us went to Greenwood Lake and rented a boat.  It was truly great fun!  I was planning to just relax under a tree and read, but at the last minute decided to go out on the boat.  I felt like a kid again. 

 

 Monday afternoon, everyone left to go back to Philly except Carla, who stayed until Tuesday morning.  That evening, just she and I sat out on the deck chatting and enjoying the night air.  At least until we heard something rattling around in the recycle bins downstairs and we hightailed it back into the house!  We got a report that a bear is in the neighborhood, so we weren't taking any chances. 

 The weekend was stupendous with great food, and even greater relaxation.  I took the day off Tuesday after I took Carla to the bus depot, then it was back to work filling orders on Wednesday.  I just finished up the other day, and spent yesterday packing and printing shipping labels.  Now I need to start working on the garden.  A neighbor roto-tilled it the other day, but it's literally full of rocks.  Oh, what a pain, but I have to get some veggies in the ground soon or I won't have anything to put up this fall!  And I still have flowers to plant, and landscaping to prune and clean up.  So much to do! 

Memorial Day Weekend

I think I'm ready for the onslaught this weekend.  Shopping done, flower boxes planted, laundry clean, dog washed..  My daughters and their friends are descending on my country home for a long weekend of partying, camping, hot-tubbing, campfires, good food and all around relaxing.  I'm going to fill up the blow-up pool too!  I plan to put them to work hauling dirt for my herb garden and general yardwork before I let them relax.  Is that not fair?  I'll post in a few days when things get roaring fun.

I'm Such A Thrifty Country Girl!

I always thought I would have made a good farm wife, but life took me elsewhere.  But now I can fulfill my dreams of being as self-sufficient as possible.  I'm starting a garden, hang my laundry out in the sun, can and freeze local produce and generally try to live as close to the land as possible and save our precious resources.   

Recently I posted my dishwasher detergent recipe, so today I'm going to show you how I make laundry detergent.  I haven't bought laundry soap in a couple years since I started making my own, and I'm horrified at the price of detergent when I see it in the stores!  I can't imagine why people spend precious dollars on something they can make which works just as well, is more natural and with no chemicals to clog up our serwers or septic tank.  I don't even have a box to see what's in the stuff anymore, so go take a look at your box or bottle of detergent.

There are many variations for both liquid and powdered laundry soap, but they all use the same basic ingredients:  Borax, Washing Soda, bar soap, and water of course.  I found that the liquid, while a little more trouble to make, works better for me.   I've tried a couple recipes, but the
Dugger Family recipe works well for me.  http://www.duggarfamily.com/recipes.html which I am showing here. 

Homemade Liquid Laundry Soap- Front or top load machine- best value
4 Cups - hot tap water
1 Fels-Naptha soap bar (you can also use Ivory bar soap)
1 Cup - Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*
½ Cup Borax

- Grate bar of soap and add to saucepan with water. Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.

-Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.

 

After sitting a few hours or overnight, this is what it will look like.  Sort of like Jello.

-Stir and fill a used, clean, laundry soap dispenser half full with the gel and then fill rest of way with water. Shake before each use. (will continue to gel).  I use a plastic quart bottle.

-Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oil per 2 gallons. Add once soap has cooled. Ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.  I didn't add anything because it already smells so good!

-Yield: Liquid soap recipe makes 10 gallons.

-Top Load Machine- 5/8 Cup per load (Approx. 180 loads)

-Front Load Machines- ¼ Cup per load (Approx. 640 loads)

Baking Soda will not work, nor will Arm & Hammer Detergent - It must be sodium carbonate!!

You can also check out Planet Green's recipes, a little different proportions and they don't dilute the gel: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/make-your-own-laundry-soap.html I find that diluting the gel doubles 5 gallons of soap to 10 gallons, which can last up to 6 months, depending on how often you do laundry (there's only 2 of us, so it lasts for over 6 months)

Try it!  It's good stuff and really does clean your clothes!

Little Show in Lisle NY Today

As you probably know, I'm still a newcomer to this area of the state.  I moved from Manhattan last summer, so by the time I finally got settled, it was time to start thinking of the holidays and settling in for the winter.  I've done a couple shows in Utica, but nothing really local until today.  I'm starting to look ahead to the upcoming show season in my new neighborhood. 

I was perusing our local shopper newspaper (we call it the Weekly Reader), and noticed a small announcement for venders at a local flea market.  I called and reserved a table for a whopping $10.00 for today.  Well, let me tell you, it was fun and down-home and I made a lot of friends and contacts in the area.  I didn't expect to make buckets of money, but I made my table fee and more than I expected. 

The show was hosted by the Rebekah Lodge in Upper Lisle NY, a rather rundown building a couple miles from my home.  It was advertised as a flea market, bake sale and luncheon with homemade soup, sandwiches and hotdogs, and it was pretty well attended.

I had the lucky spot right inside the entrance with the show mascot sitting right across from me.  I think folks noticed her first!    She was just a bit creepy, but I got used to her.   The sale ended at 2 pm, so it was nice to have a rather short day.  But in that time, I felt welcomed as most of the other vendors came over and chatted with me, and many customers seemed to like my products.  I made up complimentary samples of tea lights which went over very well.

I'd like to thank the ladies at the Rebekah Lodge who made me feel welcomed, and I hope to meet many of you soon at future shows.  All in all, it was a very successful day, meeting many nice people. I can't wait to get out and about again soon, but I have work to do since inventory is getting low!

Oh, and watch out for stray cows! 

Eco-friendly Handmade Dishwasher Detergent

Just wanted to post a quick review of handmade dishwasher detergent.  Lots of folks like me make their own laundry soap, but few people make their own automatic dishwasher soap.  I thought this was worth trying since it uses some of the same ingredients as laundry soap (which I will post some other time).   This not my recipe, just one I found on PlanetGreen.  This is a website worth checking out.

I made up a batch today and tried it and I must say, my dishes came out sparkling clean.  Just like laundry soap, I'll never buy dishwasher detergent again.  I'm saving a huge bundle of money too.   When you see how easy it is to make, you'll wonder why people spend so much money on commercial products. 

Here's the recipe:

You can find washing soda and borax in the laundry section of your grocery store

1 cup washing soda (I used Arm & Hammer)
1 cup borax (20 Mule Team)
1/2 cup salt
1/2 cup citric acid (Fruit Fresh) or unsweetened lemonade packets

Mix and store in a mason jar or other tight fitting container.  Use 1 tablespoon per load. 

If you have a rinse dispenser, fill it with white vinegar for best results.

My dishes came out sparkling clean, no spots and no filmy residue.   Everything in this soap is eco-friendly, and since I have a septic tank, this is important to me.  And who wants to drain chemicals into their public sewer system?  Washing soda (sodium carbonate) is a natural substance made from salt and limestone and acts as a grease cutter.  Borax is also an ingredient that occurs naturally in the environment and usually mined.  Salt is well, salt.  Can't argue that.  And citric acid is also a natural ingredient.

These are some of the ingredients in the bottle of soap I have left.  These are only the emergency treatment ingredients, so who knows what else is in it:  sodium carbonate (that's ok), sodium hydroxide (lye, which is caustic),  sodium silicate (used to preserve eggs and pressure treated wood, really?  WARNING! HARMFUL IF SWALLOWED OR INHALED. CAUSES SEVERE IRRITATION TO EYES, SKIN AND RESPIRATORY TRACT), clorine bleach (is highly toxic to fish and invertebrates).  Well, yeah, I'm rethinking using bleach in my laundry now.  So the bottle under my sink also cautions against getting in eyes or on skin and breathing fumes.   No, not the kind of stuff I want in my dishwasher. 

So folks, do yourself and the environment a favor and try this soap.

New England Dinner

I generally cook about once a week, if that, but when I do, I like to make it memorable.  So I thought it would be nice to make Clam Chowder since soup is so nourishing on a cold rainy day. 

I decided to make New England Clam Chowder instead of Manhattan style, knowing that my dad, a native Rhode Islander, would probably come back to haunt me!   New Englanders have a true rivalry about which chowder is best.  Here's a bit of background on the issued of Manhattan vs New England chowders.  But I decided to take that chance anyhow.  To complement my chowder, I also made clam cakes.

I remember clam cakes as a child when we visited New England every couple years.  I recall seeing roadside stands, or clam shacks,  selling clam cakes, chowder, and lemonade, usually nothing else.  I remember we would often stop at a clam shack for a salty order of clamcakes when we were out and about and got hungry.  This was before the days of fast food chains around every corner.  

Since we didn't live in Rhode Island, my mom perfected a recipe early on so we could continue to enjoy them at home.   I've included it here:

 

NEW ENGLAND CLAMCAKES

2 c flour
1 1/2 t salt
1/2 t sugar
1T baking powder

Sift all the above into a bowl.
Mix 1 can (6 oz) including broth with enough milk to make 1 1/4 cups.  Stir 1 unbeaten egg and the clam and milk mixture into the flour until it is thick.  Drop batter by tablespoon into hot fat to deep fry.  Turn to brown both sides.  When brown, lift out and drain.  Sprinkle with salt if desired while still hot.  Makes about 2-3 dozen. 

Oh, and did I mention I'm highly allergic to the iodine in shellfish, some more than others?  Delicious as it was, I'm paying the price.  I'll be fine tomorrow.

planting, Juilliard trip, mailing list, laundry, newly redesigned website

Well, hello again. The weather has been fine, and during this business downtime, I'm busy working on my yard and planting the shubs and trees I recently bought from the county co-op. That's about 35 bushes and 15 trees plus some perennials. Most have been planted and I'm hoping they survive. I bought Butterfly bushes for along the driveway, American Cranberry bushes to plant along the road and across the yard for privacy, and some shade and native trees.

I also started hanging my clothes outside to dry in the sun. There's really nothing better than the fresh scent of sun-dried clothes!

I'm excited to announce my new website, totally redesigned with an whole new look.  What do you think?  http://dewonapetal.com/  I also started a mailing list for my infrequent newsletter for new products, upcoming shows and general news. By no means will I spam your inbox with useless emails, so don't be scared. I won't be doing regularly scheduled emails right now and will only send an email if I have something important to relay to you.   Sign up for our newsletter

In other news, I made a trip to the city recently to see my daughter perform at Juilliard in Dialogue of the Carmelites.  It was stunning.  And I got the grand tour of Juilliard.

http://opera.broadwayworld.com/article/Dialogues_of_the_Carmelites_to_Perform_at_Peter_Jay_Sharp_Theatre_421_20100310

Peter J. Sharp Theater lobby:                                    New wing, staircase

hallway, Drama Dept

Warming up

Lobby

After show party

Memories, memories, keep them close.  Til next time...

Spent the past few weeks rebuilding my website, not by choice

A couple months ago, I bought an external hard drive to save all my pictures and files since my computer was pushing 10 years old.  I knew it was going to die soon, so I thought I was doing the right thing, saving all my business and personal files and a few thousand pictures. 

So the computer did die, and I think it was fully infected with worms and viruses and what have you.  All our protection was even infected we suspect.  So we went out and bought a new pc that day and destroyed to old infected hard drive.   So I go to use my external drive on the new pc and it suggested I put a password on it, so I did and confirmed it twice (it's an easy password).  Right after that, the new pc stopped recognizing the password, so all the files and pictures I had saved are now inaccessible.  Rest assured, I have consulted many teck geeks and stores, and have called Western Digital many times, to no avail.  There is no way to reset the drive or transfer the data.  My only choice is to reformat the drive if I want to use it again, but that's not even an option.   Every day I remember something else that is on that drive and it makes me ill.  It's important to note that the new pc also corrupted the password for the router too, but we could fix that. 

So you see, I had to rebuild my website since I couldn't update it without my web files.  And pictures.   I've managed to lift pictures from here and there to rebuild the site.  It's been a major pain in the rear, but on a positive note, I think it's the best looking site I've ever built!  http://dewonapetal.com/

I've also started a newsletter which I intend to use infrequently for important announcements only.  I hope you'll consider signing up for it.  I promise you won't get daily or even weekly emails. 

In other news, business is a little slow right now, so I have time to work on other projects like getting my garden ready, planting shrubs and trees, and doing some business bookwork.  A couple major projects are in the planning stages right now.   I'm also working on a new line of Essential Oil candles, so I'm pretty excited about that.  The summer show season is fast approaching, so I hope to be out and about to meet my customers soon. 

I recently vended at the Indie Garage Sale in Utica NY which was a huge success.   Shows can be a lot of work, but the effort is always worth it when I can meet my customers.  I tried a new table set-up this time, but I still need some taller display shelves.  And eventually, I'll need to buy an outdoor tent, preferably with sides for upcoming outdoor shows. 

So things are good.  Need some candles?

Snowy Winter and other stuff

I've been busy and very neglectful of you, Blogger.  I apologize.  So here are a few pics to update you on what I've been up to.

Making color samples: 

examining footprints in the snow:

hauling wood for the stove

Relaxing (daughter and friend)  I only go out at night

Enjoying the snow

homemade soup and English muffins.