Almond Joy

Ok, so I had this idea to make a soap like an Almond Joy candy bar, one of my favorites. But I can't eat them anymore.  I had a few bars of some coconut soap and some Almond Biscotti soap that I cut up. I also ground some almonds and grated a few squares of organic baking cocoa. And this is what I got. Isn't it yummy looking? I will for sure have to watch the guys now! Men usually think my soap is fudge.

It smells amazing! I used some already last night, just to see how it lathers. I can still smell it on me this morning. I used a white washcloth too. It had some light brown on the cloth, but it washed out. Lots of bubbles too! So I am pleased with how this turned out. And I have enough to make another batch later if this sells well.

I asked my husband to smell it before I told him what it was. He smelled coconut first, then chocolate. I had to tell him it had almonds too. But he liked it.

So here ya go, a soap that smells like Almond Joy! I wish you could smell it through the internet!

dying wool

Yesterday, I decided to try to dye some of my hand spun yarn. I went out and gathered all the cosmos flowers I had, plus some marigolds. Simmered them for a little while.

While the flowers were simmering, I got the yarn ready in the mordant bath. It had to simmer an hour.

Strained the flowers and got a beautiful orange color. Added the yarn and simmered another hour.

                                                            And this is what I got. I just love it!

Then today, I put 2 more skeins in that same dye pot. They are so much lighter, but still really pretty. I think I might really like doing this. I can see how it can be quite addictive.

I found some gentian violet the other day at Walmart. I saw someone's post on FB where they dyed some wool using this stuff. It's what people use for thrush. It is a beautiful purple-violet color. I want to dye some alpaca next. I'm washing more white alpaca so should have enough to dye soon.

1st dyed hand spun!

This is the first dyed skein of hand spun yarn. I couldn't get it on the other post.

Making bread again...

I quit making bread when I stopped eating flour and sugar back last year in March. I have been making this bread for a very long time. I think about 18 years.

A few weeks ago, I thought I might start making bread and rolls for the market. When I quit I sold all my wheat to a friend, so I didn't have anything. I had to start all over basically. Wheat berries are expensive too. And yeast. And olive oil. I have my own milk and eggs and honey, so that helps. But now I think I would like to get 50 pound bags of wheat.

The bread and rolls are selling good. I only make 3 loaves or 3 dozen rolls. I sell the rolls in bags of 6. They really are good.

So here is my grinder. It's very loud and sounds like a jet in my kitchen!

Then I mix up all the ingredients: milk, eggs, honey, olive oil, wheat, then yeast and more wheat. Then sea salt. It gets kneaded in this DLX for 12 minutes. Then I put it on the back porch, where it's warm, til it rises to the top.

Next, I either make loaves or rolls. Then they go back to the porch til doubled. Then to the oven.

Nice big loaves of good whole wheat bread.

Tonight I'll make rolls for the Tuesday market. It takes SO long to make this bread. I'll also make zucchini bread in the morning.

Bath salts, sugar scrubs and new soap.

I dropped my camera on the floor in my studio. It was a pretty hard drop on the wooden floor. I do believe my focus got messed up. So I apologize for the fuzzy pictures, because my eyes are not that good either.

I have been making some bath salts and sugar scrubs this week. These are lemon and lavender bath salts.

And these are lemongrass sugar scrubs. I also made some orange-lemon-lime sugar scrubs.

Then I made soap. This is not my idea. I saw it on face book . But I have been wanting to use some of my old soap somehow and this was a perfect way to use them. I just cut up the older soap into chucks. Then I add them to the new soap. So cool!

So yesterday I made Spiced Mahogany and Patchouli

Isn't this pretty soap? I just love it. I hope they stay different colors so the chunks will show up. I have no idea what they will look like in a week though.

Spiced Mahogany on the left and Patchouli on the right, on the drying racks. So pretty.

And another shot of the sugar scrubs. I can't seem to figure out how to take this off.

I am making zucchini bread and whole wheat rolls to take to market this afternoon. Supposed to be another hot day, in the low 90's. I haven't been to a market since last Friday. I need to make some money today!

Have a great weekend y'all!

Beans and tomatoes...

Last weekend, I got a lot of green beans from my niece. I canned 14 qts and did 2 qts of dilly beans. Then we have eaten green beans every day since. They are SO good!

Then a few days later, I made tomato sauce. It looks so good. I used my basil, thyme and rosemary with some garlic. There's probably more tomatoes that need to be canned again. I have a lot of orange tomatoes I need to do something with too. I might try roasting some.

Men and women. And the difference between.

 We got this huge truck load of wood chips dumped here a few days ago. I did ask and told them where to put them, since they couldn't get the truck into the garden. But it kind of went across the driveway. I couldn't get our truck into the yard at all. I did see where the truck that dumped it had to go over the part that was across the driveway.


So me and my husband started shoveling the part that was on the driveway, so I could get the truck into the yard.  I told my husband that I'd like to start putting some along the fence, in the garden, so I can plant stuff there. I even took a few wheel barrow loads over to the place I was going to start it.

Here's where I wanted to put the mulch. In the garden. On this side of the fence. So I can plant stuff. In the garden.

When I got back home yesterday, I see this. He has started putting the mulch here. In the driveway. Away from the garden. And on the other side of the tree. Hmmm...