in love with puff balls

 Oliver

 Earnest

puff balls:  a favorite toy.  fun to carry in your mouth.  fun to bat around.  fun to hide under the fridge or other furniture.  fun to make your humans fish them out.  fun to take a nap with.


This is for the Brenda Photo Challenge Blog.  Come on over and post.  The theme this time is PETS.  "That would be ANY animal you've loved for years, seen in a field or on a farm and just loved it! Or even Aunt Gerdie's pet turtle!"
photos by me © 2009

Glacier Skies--SkyWatch Friday

Hidden Lake Trail--September 2008

Glacier National Park near Logan Pass--for more see these 3 posts:

Majesty

Along Hidden Lake Trail

Escape

Here is the link to Skywatch Friday.  You will find links to many, many sky postings.

photo by me © 2008

along the Hidden Lake Trail

Glacier National Park near Logan Pass--September 2008

See yesterday's post for a view of the lake and some links.

Some of the Parks' Rangers favorite questions (taken from Ken Burns' documentary):
What time do the moose come out for photographs?
How much does this cave weigh?
How much of this cave is underground?
How many miles of this cave are undiscovered?
Why did the Indians build their homes so close to the road?

Read the comments below for more fun!!!


photo by me © 2008

majesty

Hidden Lake near Logan Pass, Glacier National Park

My husband and I hiked the trail to this lake in September 2008.  What a magnificent place of beauty, Glacier is!  (I believe I will post more photos of this trail in the next few days.)  Anyone watching Ken Burns' National Park series?

more photos by me on this post.

LINKS:

a little more about the Hidden Lake Trail

about the Ken Burns' series on PBS--  a bit wordy, yet informative 

 

photo by me © 2008

Designs by Vanessa!

Enter Vanessa, the birdie lover 

 and this month's featured etsy blogger!
 When asked,  "What is your current obsession?"  She replies, " If you couldn’t tell, I’m a little obsessed with anything bird related. Birdies are slowly taking over our home – inside (we have birdie soap in our bathroom) and out (our welcome mat says “Welcome Every Birdie”). Back when we lived in TX, a bird family built their nest right in front of our door every spring and would fly away with new babies. Because I’m homesick for TX, I wanted to find a way to bring TX to AZ and that was the start of my obsession."

And thus, the bird themed items in her shop such as  this swallow necklace

or bird cards

On her blog, she posts her own art work, some fabulous finds, and tutorials such as this oh-so-cute posy shirt.
This is a sweet post:  a wedding anniversary photo

To find out a little more about Vanessa, check out this post.

Want to know more about the etsy bloggers?  Check out this link

my "studio"

Let me be honest right from the start. There are so many crafts I love and they tend to take over most of the house.  Some parts of my crafts have permanent housing; others must be taken out and put away again.  There are 3 major crafts that I do most of the time--tie dyeing, jewelry making, and paper crafts.  

I will focus on tie dyeing here.  I have been tie dyeing for about 18 years.  Over the years I have developed my own processes.  I have sold in many venues--from craft fairs, wholesaling, commissioned work (team shirts, costuming, chamois, etc), to selling out of my own store.   Early on, I discovered that teaching others is such fun!

My tie dyeing studio can begin in my basement (sorry, no tours!) where all my tie dyeing equipment is stored.  There I mix up the dyes.  I also have a table under a window where I do the actual dyeing.

My kitchen table is where I plan and draw my designs.  I use actual dye to paint the colors.

Now it's off the the family room to tie up the items.  Here I am in the process of tying up chamois.  (These are soft absorbent towels that swimmers and divers use.  I custom dye them for Kast-A-Way Swimwear)



Here is Oliver, my special helper.  Actually, I think he is looking for an opportunity to sneak rubber bands!

Back down to the basement to check on the chamois which must "cure" for at least 24 hours.

some completed chamois are below

If I hand paint a design (with dye), I sit at my kitchen table.

Here is a dress painted with dragonflies and roses that was first washed, dried, soaked in a solution, dyed, cured, washed, dried, soaked in a solution, dried, painted, cured, washed, dried.

Sometimes, my "studio" is somewhere besides my home.  I teach the tie dyeing process in many places--homes, schools, churches, businesses, parks...wherever.

On the right is a Girl Scout camp where I taught this past summer.  See this post for more photos.  It was so much fun!

Below is a class taught at a school.  I rarely am able to take photos while teaching.

Here is a Girl Scout Troop proudly showing off the shirts I helped them make!

This post is for the etsy bloggers' carnival which will be posted on Monday, September 28 by Edi at Memories for Life Scrapbooks.
Here is  the direct link to Edi's post with links to all participants (actually quite a few!).

PS  Here's my blogging spot. 

photos by me © 2009 except last one which is also ©.

Vegetable Jalousie

This recipe is so delicious! It takes time to chop and prepare the vegetables, but cooking it is a breeze.

PUFF PASTRY You can follow the directions on the package. But, this is how I did it: After thawing, I opened up each sheet, and cut into 9 squares. I placed the squares on a stone and baked for 12 minutes at 400 degrees.







VEGETABLES
4 T butter  
2 leeks, chopped
2 t fresh thyme, chopped very small  
4 t fresh rosemary, chopped very small  
4 medium cloves garlic minced or crushed  
@ 2 C green beans, chopped
2 medium green peppers, chopped  
1 medium yellow pepper, chopped  
1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped  
@ 2 C asparagus, somewhat chopped  
1 pound baby bella mushrooms, sliced  
12 oz vegetable broth

In a large pan, melt the butter. Add the leeks (milder than onions) and garlic. Stir and saute for about 5 minutes on medium to low heat till slightly tender. Add green beans and cook for @ 5 minutes till they start to become tender. Now add the rest of the ingredients. Stir and cook @ 2 more minutes. (The vegetables should be softened, but still have a "bite" and retain their freshness.)



GRAVY
I made a gravy for this, but cannot give you exact proportions. It is very simple and very delicious. I never measure, and no doubt make it differently every time.

butter  
chickpea (garbanzo bean) flour  (provides the flavor that makes this gravy special)                                                                                   
water  
tamari (soy sauce)
little fresh rosemary, chopped fine (optional)

In a sauce pan, melt the butter. Add chickpea flour and whisk. It will be quite thick at this point and will pull away a bit from the pan.  Quickly start adding water little bit by little bit whisking all the while.   Add the water to desired consistency (actually a little thinner since it will thicken up).  Add a small amount of tamari (for flavor and saltiness) and the rosemary if desired.
TO SERVE: Cut the puff pastry in half horizontally. Open up and place on plate. Spoon vegetables on bottom half of pastry. Drizzle desired amount of gravy on top. Add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

LINK for more information about chikpea flour.
To see more food photos, go to The Brenda Photo Challenge!
photos by me © 2009