Drying Herbs

I just completed a short article in e how on drying herbs. I'd like to invite all my readers to take a look at it. Feedback is always appreciated. Just click on the title above to view the article.

New Project in the Works

The yard has been calling. I've been trying to cut down a couple of shrubs that died due to too much rain last year. It's been taking most of my time and energy and I've still not finished.

The credit card holder is coming along nicely, but I've had quite a few soap orders lately and my table is full of curing soap, making it hard to bead. :(

I finally found some vellux. I've made one soft sided bead tray just as a trial run. It turned out very well. I've got 3 more cut out and hope to have them finished, photographed and put in my Etsy shop soon.

That's all for now. Soap, yard and house work are all becoming adamant that I pay them some attention. Hopefully I'll be back soon.

Blustery Warm Day

It's Monday and the wind is blowing. I've got plenty to keep me busy in the house so I guess that's not too bad.

I'm still working on the credit card holder. I'm about half way finished with the back and am holding my breath hoping I have enough beads of the right colors to finish it.

Several weeks ago I started on a Spirit Doll. She has butterfly wings to signify she's a Fairy. I'm almost finished with her, but she seems to have a mind of her own. I've been very scattered mentally lately, and every time I start to pick her up and work on her I either get distracted, or my thread ends up in knots with every stitch, or I can't make a move without sticking myself with the needle. I did manage to pick her up and work on her a little yesterday. That seemed to bring my mind a little more into focus at the time, but I'm still not getting much done.

The stevia and lemon balm I planted in a pot on mother's day has been whipped by the wind so harshly that I thought surely it was dead, but when I went out to water it this morning, there were new green leaves beginning to show on the stevia, and the lower leaves of the lemon balm were still alive.


For the first time since I've lived here, my wild roses don't have thrips on them. I used to keep them pruned back into neat bushes because it was so hard to mow around those long arching limbs. The blooms were always a deep almost black red and the scent was a deep spicy one that just didn't smell like a rose at all, but I loved the way they smelled.

I haven't been able to take care of the yard much the last year or so and they were pretty ugly in January, so I got out and trimmed all the dead wood out of them, but didn't cut back the live branches because these roses bloom on old wood. The first blooms were a pretty fuschia, with a rich rose smell. The more they bloom the deeper the color gets. They are now producing rich, deep red blooms not quite as dark as usual. The scent is definitely rose! I've even managed to harvest a few petals before the wind burned them. Maybe I'll have a few rose petals to put in pampering preparations this year.

Random thoughts scattered by the wind

The wind was not supposed to blow today. It is! Well this is West Texas, what can you expect.

Today is my first blog. I'm here to meet other beaders, promote my business and maybe have a little fun.

I'm working on a credit card holder from a pattern I made from a picture I took in my yard. It is even count peyote and is looking good! I'm about 2/3 of the way through with the front. I haven't decided how I'm going to make the back yet. It'll be a surprise!

Working in the yard is a definite need to, but I have so many other things going on, I think I'll just wait out the wind. ROFL I keep reminding myself "this is West Texas!", but the wind will slow down a little.