Workie workie, my bead space...

This is what I have been doing. It's not exciting. I have sorted all the beads into the sections on my desk. Maggie walks over them occasionally and gets tossed onto the floor. Don't feel bad for Maggie.


I make all kinds of things, but so far my beadwork is for sale at Etsy.com. I reccomend that you buy many things!

I ETSY!!!!

You what? Okay, for those of you who don't know (mainly my family) Etsy is a selling/buying resource for handmakers. People who handmake things, or want to buy handmade. Most of you know that I do this a lot.

www.LiciaPots.Etsy.com

So, check out my storefront and buy things. I will be putting up some cute little hats (in adult sizes too) and you can look at the price until your birthdays when perhaps the handmade angels will look down upon you and think, PUT A HAT ON THAT HEAD!

Now accepting e-mails about your favorite colors....

Glazed Lemon Lavender Bread

This is the best bread! Traditionally I give out Banana breads for the holidays, but this year I decided I wanted something with a little brighter flavor. So, as requested this is the recipe for Glazed Lemon Lavender Bread.
I made these in little bread tins, but breads are best baked in stoneware if you have it. If you don't, then you can order some from me when the pottery making starts!

Gather:

• graduated liquid measuring cup
• dry measuring cups: 1C, 3/4 C, 1/2C (opt for nuts), Tbs, tsp, 1/4 tsp
• 2 medium mixing bowls
• 2 wooden spoons
• small sauce pan
  
• loaf pans (or muffin tins or whatever)
• pastry brush (not entirely necessary, you can use a spoon if you want.)
• Shredder for the lemons
• reamer for the lemons
• mortar and pestle (or something to smash the lavender)
• skewer or chopstick
  

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 C all-purpose flour (unbleached)
  
• 3/4 C sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder (aluminum free is best)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 egg (find the brightest orange yolks possible, or get some from my parents)
• 1C milk
• 1/4 C oil (my preference is expeller pressed olive oil, but I'm picky.)
• 2 T finely shredded lemon peel
  
• 2 T lemon juice (from the lemon that you just peeled)
• 2 T smashed culinary lavender
  
• add 1/2 C nuts if you want, I don't.

Glaze:

• Lemon juice
• Powdered sugar
• lavender (culinary grade), yes you can pick some from your garden if you are sure it is free of chemicals and safe from animals... I choose to smash mine with a mortar and pestle. LiciaPots will be making mortar and pestle sets for your purchase at a later date.

Lets do this thing:

• Preheat oven to 350*.
  
• Use butter (works best) to grease the bottom and sides of the pan you choose to use. Recipe is timed for an 8 x4 x2 loaf pan. I use smaller pans and start poking the bread at 40 minutes to see when it is done.
  
• In a medium mixing bowl stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, lavender, lemon peel and salt. Make a divot in the center of mixture (see Rocky for more about how to make an excellent divot).
• In another medium mixing bowl add the egg and beat well, then add the milk, oil and lemon juice.
• Add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. (Using a glass bowl and spatula makes this easier since you can see if you missed a spot. )
• Spoon the batter into your choice of pan and bake for 50 minutes for a 8 x4 x2. Muffins? start testing batter at 30 minutes, small pans? start testing at 40 minutes... you get it.

A few minutes before you are ready to take the bread out of the oven (don't fret if you already did) place the saucepan on the oven over low heat. Add about 1 Tbs of lemon juice, 2-3 Tbs of powdered sugar and 1 tsp of crushed lavender to saucepan and stir until it just starts to warm but not simmering (again, don't fret about this too much). Remove from heat and set aside.

Remove bread from oven when a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Poke the breads several times with the skewer or chopstick halfway to bottom. Dip the pastry brush in the warm glaze and brush generously over breads. Or you can drizzle with a spoon.

Wait until you can just bear the temperature of the breads and eat them all up! Or, wait till the next day (ha!) and serve lightly toasted with tea. I like to make too many and share them with friends. They seem to like it.

Corner stump, why the house isn't square...

There is a little notch out of the back of the house. We though it was weird until a few things were cleared and we found this.
I'm assuming that it was a huge tree and they spared it when they built the house. It had been cut down some time before we moved here and now it is in the way of James' outdoor workshop. There are no easy projects.

There are several stumps around the yard which will someday be removed with all the changes. We plan on removing the ivy that borders the front of the yard at the street to put in a grassy (not lawn) wildflower type garden. Included will be our neighborhoods only "sidewalk". I hope people use it, that would be sweet.

We also recently collected some large rounds (of tree) from a neighbor that will need to be split and seasoned for next year. Er, this year, winter.

The projects continue.

Baby Hats!

Well, at least one. I have completed "Flower Power" from a pattern on Knitty. I cast on for it yesterday at Let It Rain during their Wednesday knitting group. See that, less than 24 hours later and it is complete! Baby things are fast! I think it keeps me going because there are all the colors that make me want to see what it is going to look like.
Isn't it cute! I changed some of the colors. The alternating squares had to be gold and purple since mom works at the U Dub. I also changed the blue to a red banding since I'm not one for too much blue. Plus, baby is a baby girl. I really like the green color! The flower took a bit of fuss, but all in all, so cute!

Now you've done it...

I opened LiciaBeads! The plan is to make "semi" custom jewelry. Existing patterns in which people can choose their colors. I have found that sometimes it is hard to see the selection of beads and choose. I have just started with the basics. I can, however do all kinds of other beaded things, so if you want an actual custom piece of jewelry, stitch markers, or whatever, let me know.

In any case, check out LiciaBeads.com and let me know what you think. I made some business cards.

Last year, I completed this hat. It's my first completed hat that will fit properly. It's a useful hat. Blue, with a folded cable brim. Knit side to side as I didn't have any correctly sized circulars to knit it in the round. I picked up stitches to complete the top of the hat in the round on short DPN's. No pattern... I like that once a few simple things are learned, I can knit without a pattern. So far, only hats.

I ordered yarn from Elann (which was very highly rated) so that I can make some of the Flower Power hats featured on Knitty. Looking forward to alternating colors.

In other news, we are getting outside. James has removed the shed behind the house, which was used for warm cozy kitty firewood. Beneath it was a surprise (although we are getting used to stump surprises). There is a huge stump base that could have been the reason that the house was built with a notch out of the back. Now that the tree is gone, it's just a strange little incomplete part of the house. It will be an outdoor shop so that James can build things with his loud tools.

Since removing the shed, the back room is much brighter and even gets evening sun.

Happy 2008.

How many Rum Balls, is too many Rum Balls?

The Christmas shopping (crafting etc.) is complete. Although I do have a tendency to add additional little bits and pieces to the gift's. We started baking a couple of days ago and passed out all but a couple of the goody bags to friends and neighbors. James made some dark chocolate crinkles which baked up with pretty little snow capped tops. As is customary, I had to take a photo. He also made his Chocolate Oatmeal Crispy Chewies (which I just love right out of the oven), and extra rummy rum balls ,yummie!. I made some glazed lemon lavender breads and crazy chewy popcorn balls.

As we "speak" James is in the kitchen making an Apple Pie. I'm going to make some Italian Chocolate Bread when he is done.

Tomorrow we will get up early and go to the Young's to visit and pass out gifts and eat too much. Then we have to book it home to feed the cats and drop off gifts and pick up gifts and food. After that we will go to Grandmas for the usual dinner and gift exchange. I hope I didn't forget anything....

Because I am pretty sure that Krista (and other peeps) will not be perusing this website tonight, I am posting the gift photos. I started making pillows for Krista in 2006. It is still on her wish list, and I had all the fabric and trim that I needed to make them, so I finally completed 3. On the forth one, the needle broke. So, three it is.

The teaser photo from an earlier post is revealed here. Several weeks ago I asked my mom what she wanted as a gift. She said nonchalantly, "mittens". I don't know if she remembers or not. I asked this because her list seems to always consist of random non-gift type items such as: undergarments, socks, shampoo, etc.

A couple of weeks ago when we had the knitting get together I taught her how to knit in K2P2 ribbing. She doesn't know that she is making a scarf to match her gloves. Maybe I will let her choose the color next time, because I'm pretty sure it is not her favorite... there's always next year.

I did make some lip balm this year. It was rather easy once all the proper tools and ingredients were obtained. The hard part was finding them, which I would not have been able to do without the internet. Its peppermint and has a very subtle feel, applies thinly that is.

Dad gets a hat that I am not sure will fit... made with donated yarn from Krista. I am working on another hat of my own design (it's a 2 needle hat since I don't have the right sized circulars). I'll try to remember to post a photo.

I also plan on making a gift for Maggie. She would like a little blanket to sleep on so that the chair doesn't get so hairy. Luckily she is not expecting it to be on time for Christmas. Rocky gets to play in the paper when we are done unwrapping.

Pretty little beads

So I have been working on photographing my beads. It seems to be harder to shoot jewelry than other stuff. I cut up a cardboard box to try to make a light tent. It worked kinda. What was even better was using one of those plastic clothing bins with the semi-clear sides. After I was satisfied with that, I kept trying to find a good background for the beads.... this is the photo that I got after a few days of fiddling.


I think it looks good, but I can only take little tiny photos because I am using the back of a black CD as the background. What I want is some Black Ice, or white ice.... http://store.tabletopstudio-store.com/blacri.html

I have been looking around for something that would work and I cannot find anything glossy enough. I might just splurge someday if I start selling on the net and buy something. I also want a bust... the kind you display jewelry on. Don't be rude.

So, aside from working on the Ginkgo newsletter, and knitting, and making cards (hurry up), that I what I have been doing.

HEY! Anyone want to buy custom beaded jewelry, let me know. It's a good idea!

Knitting with the peeps...

So, there was tea and goodies, thanks all for visiting.

I only got a couple rounds of the sock done. However, Shelley learned to cast on and K2, P2 ribbing, as did mom. Very exciting, now you know how to fish!

I'll see how far they get.

I have decided to start another project for someone who shall remain nameless. It is another project that I cannot put up until after Christmas. I will be using some of the yarn from Krista. There is much work to be done. So I had better get on with it!