Edinboro, PA Highland Games

I attended the Edinboro, Pennsylvania Highland Games on Saturday-my 2nd games of 2009 the first being the Ohio SG in June-one more to go! Ligonier in September. Edinboro was a small event as games go but was very enjoyable. A fine group of high school aged musicians performed. They are called the Chelsea House Orchestra "Celtic Music with a Twist". Lots of fiddles, percussion, and a few flutes and clarinets. They wowed the crowd and looked as if they were having fun at the same time! Check them out at http://www.chelseahouseorchestra.org

Heavy athletics were fun to watch as always! Lovely Highland dancing, fiddlers, great craft vendors, and men in kilts! No better way to spend a Saturday!

NEW VENTURE

I will soon be branching out and doing some consignment sales. Click the link for Magpie and take a look at this very unique shop. Thanks to all who have supported my work!  

New Soaps

I added some new soaps to my Etsy shop and thought you might enjoy seeing some pictures. 

CHICKWEED SOAP

Well, well. The chickweed soap looks lovely and pale green! I'll unmold and cut it tomorrow. Curing will take 4-6 weeks.

GREEN EXPERIMENT

My "green experiment" has nothing to do with the ever popular "green movement" but, instead, relates to my test batch of Chickweed Soap. Who knew that this common plant was a treasure trove of vitamins and a balm for a variety of sensitive skin ailments?! Chickweed has been used as a salad herb and is nearly evergreen. I picked an armload of it on Monday and allowed it to wilt for a few days. A portion of the bounty found its way into the small test batch of soap today. The remaining plants will be used to make an infused olive oil which will, in turn, be the main ingredient in a salve.

SHOES?!

I may have gone crazy!! I bought these shoes on a whim! I like the combination of tartan and flowers but wonder if I must carry a skateboard when wearing them?!

SHEEP STUFF

Well, I've put it off long enough! Must give sheep annual booster shots this week. While I have them confined, I'll deworm everybody and trim hooves, if needed. I'll have to shear before it gets too hot and before the flies are out in full force! The grass is greening up nicely and I'll be able to put them on fresh pasture in a week or so. 

CLEVELAND HANDMADE GIVEAWAY

I've decided to take part in a giveaway sponsored by my Etsy team, Clevelandhandmade. You can find the info at http://clevelandhandmade.com. There are so many talented members in the group and I'm sure that winners will be thrilled with their prizes! 

Soaping is done for now and I have shelves full of curing bars. Looking forward to a show in Chagrin Falls coming up on May 9. Depending on how things go there, will dictate how much more soap I need to make before shows later this summer. 

WOOHOO

I've made it into my very first Etsy Treasury!! I am so excited! You can find it at http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=48304

The house smells very spring-like today! I made my French lilac soap this morning. I'm very happy with this scent from Southern Soapers. Next on the list is my tea tree/mint soap with the dried mint leaves. It was very popular last year. I'm going to try a Cuban coffee soap as well.

Brothers at War

I am hoping to see this movie! Normally, I stay away from Iraq/Afghanistan "war" movies because they usually have an agenda-an agenda that is an affront to me as a USO volunteer and as the mother-in-law of a Staff Sgt. currently serving a year in Korea. This movie simply tells the very complex story of those who serve in our military. I appreciate the effort and hope that people will make the effort to see "Brothers at War". 

etsy treasury

I finally grabbed another Etsy treasury this afternoon. For those unfamiliar with the treasuries, I'll explain. You put together a group of 12 items from Etsy sellers-can be grouped by color, theme, location-pretty much any type of grouping you'd like. Then you wait until there is an opening on the lists and post your picks. I've done three now. The first one was "sheep thrills" and the second was all sorts of sage green items. The latest one is entitled "60 plus 1...hope" and features Israeli Etsians. The title relates to this year being Israel's 61st anniv.

  

connecting

Cut some violet-scented soap this morning and made a melon soap. I'm looking forward to doing a few more shows this year. I really enjoy meeting people and introducing them to "real" soap. I have become convinced that supporting local artisans, crafters, and farmers is crucial for our well-being as a community. It's very cool to meet the person who grew the apples, made the jewelry, sewed the tote bag, painted the picture, or took the photo. Guess it's all about connecting!

chocolate soap debacle

I am embarrassed to say that my experiment with the chocolate truffle soap was not a wild success! The molded bunnies look like that old square of Baker's chocolate you find in the back of your cupboard! You know, all nasty and whitish. It's not soda ash which can be a problem but is just simply ugly! The soap smells good and lathers well but it IS NOT pretty! I'll either just use it myself or rebatch it-I hate rebatching but I hate wasting the soap even more. So, I made a batch of "Fruit Punch" scented bunnies and then a batch of vanilla bunnies. No more bunnies for the near future! 

twins?!!

My second ewe had twins yesterday afternoon. I use the word "twins" lightly because they are about as alike as day and night! The first one was a big lamb. In fact, I had to pull him because mama was not making progress after an hour or so of strong pushing. She was exhausted. After she cleaned him up and I clipped and iodined the cord, she pushed two times and little brother popped out with little effort. He is one of the smallest lambs we have ever had here. However, he was up and looking for a meal with-in a few minutes. Today, they are jumping around in their "mothering-on" pen and pausing for liquid refreshment quite often. I had a difficult time taking pictures-the little stinkers just won't stand still!

My house smells like HI-C fruit punch! I made soap for my friend today-combined "Ginger Pear" and orange fragrance oils. Used a little bit of colorant. After pouring into the bunny molds and my big wooden loaf mold, I went out to check the sheep. No one seems to be in active labor. I'll check them at 3pm, 9pm, and about midnight. Grand-daughter has settled on "Dopey" for first lamb's name. She'll be here on Thursday to see him. 

Drummond

Thought I'd add a picture of my ram, Drummond. He is quite handsome as you can see but is a baby when it comes to shearing, shots, and hoof trimming!

surprise lamb

Surprise! Found a newborn lamb in the sheep pen with proud mama on Friday morning. I didn't expect lambs until the end of this month. The little guy is doing well and was testing out his legs last night by hopping and running about the pen. His mom has had a single lamb every year-I'd like to see twins but have resigned myself to singles from her. Her sister always has twins. The ewes are Clun Forest sheep which originated in the Clun Forest between Wales and England-dark face and legs. Papa is a Cheviot cross (Cheviot Hills-between Scotland and England) and is white-faced. Hence the little one's spotty appearance. 

The chocolate soap is curing and turning more chocolate-colored every day. I'll make the fruity scent this coming week.

Made it through yesterday without having to make a chocolate run. I haven't checked the "chocolate truffel" soap yet-will unmold later today. I made Balleymaloe Irish stew for dinner last night-had to remove soap from fridge before putting in the leftover stew. I was afraid the soap would take on a stewy scent. Both smell good on their own but would be icky if combined!

Will finish a diaper bag today and list it on my sewing etsy shop (http://www.lydiasneedle.etsy.com) I love the colors-pale teal. I have to finish the little cosmetic bag that fits inside the larger bag. The small bag is annoying to make-I'm always having trouble with the zipper and end up doing it twice. 

I can't stand it! I made "chocolate truffle" soap this morning and now the whole house smells like Hershey PA. My problem is that I have not one edible piece of chocolate in the house. I believe this could be designated torture by the Geneva Conventions! I'm trying something new with this batch of soap. I put it in the refrigerator to prevent it from going through gel. I wanted to preserve all the chocolatey goodness and also wanted to prevent a partial gel. My house is really cold today and I figured that even if I wrapped the molds in their usual wool blankets, they would cool down very quickly. I also am using a Pringles can as a mold for the first time. I think I'd like round soap but have no clue as to how I'll wrap it.  

I have a full week coming up! I have to start on my spring soap scents including an order for 8 "bunny" soaps for my friend, Barb. She plans to give them to her grandkids for Easter. I'll make a fruity soap as well as a "chocolate truffle" soap. I thought that the chocolate truffle scent would be fun for the kids-they are old enough not to try to eat the soap! I am forced to make patchouli soap because of all the requests I've had from all of the old hippies out there (you know who you are!). Now, I don't mind patchouli at all but people seem to have a love/hate feeling for the stuff.

Sheep pen cleaning is on my "to do" list-lambs should arrive in about a month.