cooking!?

Ok, I am one who can not say that I have ever gotten great joy out of cooking, but I do cook when the need arises. So, today I am making a pot roast on my new roaster oven that my husband got for me. A bit of encouragement perhaps? So far, it is smelling pretty good. I used to not mind cooking when the kids were home, but, it has lost it's shine, or maybe the need doesn't seem to be there. Well, a friend called me awhile ago, and asked what I was doing because I sounded rushed or stressed, I told her that I was getting supper ready, and, no kidding, she laughed! True story! Thanks Nay Nay! I do make a mean garlic green bean thingy!

The Wall

Venetian Plaster

I did this wall for a friend of mine. This is three layers of plaster and surprisingly is as smooth as a babies behind. People think that this look requires a rough finish, but that is not true. As you apply each layer of plaster, it is smooth, one layer over the next, sanding {lightly} between each layer. You add paint to the plaster for each layer applied to the wall. You can add just paint or if you can get your hands on the pigment itself, you will have richer color. Menards actually sold me some pigment once. I haven't asked for any from them since, but I haven't done a wall since. I would like to establish an agreement with them somehow, in order to get pigment when I want it. Anywho.  After you have applied the third layer of plaster, you will probably be thinking,"what is this? I don't see anything so great about this!" The wall will look very dull and flat, with no apparent striations in color. However,,, this is where the magic happens!!! You are supposed to be able to use a flat trowel {same as used to apply the plaster} to burnish the wall. I found that it left gray marks in the plaster so I ended up using the bottom of a glass. I am trying to rig up something that will be motorized or something, to use instead of just a glass, because the first day that I burnished part of the wall, I could hardly curl my hands around the steering wheel of my car to drive home! Man, was I sore. great workout for your arms and chest, ladies! Well, what happens when you burnish the wall, is that you are compressing the plaster and all of the layers begin to show through each other. Plaster is actually translucent. It is awesome to watch happen. The wall becomes like glass. smooth, shiny and shows so much depth of color! Very beautiful. It has many benefits other than just beauty. It helps to keep your home warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. It also absorbs carbon dioxide in the air, and as it does, it hardens the plaster, making it more durable! Amazing!

This was about a 200 square ft. wall. It took me 3 days to put plaster on, you have to let each layer dry before the next. and it took me aprox. 3 days to burnish. Most likely because I was using a glass! whew! But to me it was worth it. My friends told me that a few people came over and asked to "see the wall" that they didn't even know!

Hmmmm, getting the hang of this.....I mean trying to.

Ok, well, I know that I said that I would be putting some, "how to" things on here concerning the grapevine and willow baskets, ah, well, did I also say that I am a procrastinator? I really am trying to work on that, but I just seem to get lost in,,,,what ever comes along, I guess. I think that I must be easily overwhelmed or something. FRUSTRATING! So, I thought that I would just sit here and get a bunch of pics with minimal explanations, and see if anyone is interested in more of a how to lesson.
   The holiday season is here and I know that everyone is kinda busy, so I will just keep putting things on here untill I get more of a grip on how to actually do a blog!
    Isn't it funny how it seems to take longer and longer to get the hang of things as we get older? Or is that just me, I don't know. I remember getting irritated about how older people refused to learn new technologies that would actually make their lives easier, and here I am, probably irritating the daylights out of my kids! Oh well, ye ol' life cycle! Later!

Mushrooms, mushrooms!

I did these mushrooms with plain tissue paper. I don't remember where, or who I learned it from, but they are a lot of fun to make and I think that they are really beautiful! There are different types of tissue paper that you can use, one is the non-bleeding kind, which is, ummm, tougher I guess. It doesn't tear quite as easy. the other is, you guessed it, bleeding tissue paper! It is thinner and tears easier, but, I think that I like it better. You can use 2 sheets of this kind, and sometimes I will combine 2 different colors.

origami tesselations

This is done with ordinary tracing paper. I found that tracing paper is very strong, and holds up great through repeated folding.

handmade paper from Dick Blick's art supplies. A little tougher to fold, but beartiful!

This is done with an origami cloth. Can't remember what it is called but comes in different colors and is fun to work with!

this is more handmade paper.

These are a few origami tesselations that I have done in the past. The patterns are from a book by Eric Gjerde, who is an absolute marvel in this area. I ordered the book on Amazon, and it is called, Origami Tessellations, Awe-Inspiring Geometric Designs.

Gluten

Well, I tried a new gluten free bread this weekend. I was pretty frustrated at first, mainly because of the terminology that I was unfamiliar with. (Could be that I am just unfamiliar with cooking and baking!) However! In the Gluten Free (GF) arena there are differences in flours. Like there is a huge diff between Potato Starch and Potato Flour. Do Not mix these up! Ok, I have that understanding down, but what the heck is potato starch flour???? I called a dear friend of mine who has been doing the GF thing for a while now, and, she wasn't sure either! Well, I finally discovered that Potato Starch Flour is Potato flour. Whew! Made me crazy there for a moment. Any who, the bread is a dill bread and I liked it! Great with cheese on it. I am using "The Gluten-Free Gourmet" revised edition by Bette Hagman. "They" say that you should get one cook book and stick with that one. I'm guessing because of the different terminologies some use, such as the potato flour vs. potato starch and potato starch flour ordeal. Anyway, I made the Dilly Casserole Bread. Here is a pic of what is left of my bread. I am trying to remember to take more pictures as I go,

grapevine and willow basket.

I will be posting some photos and instructions in the next week, on how to make a grapevine and willow basket. this is one that I made awhile ago.

Wedding Porch Designed with FOAM

My niece got married this fall and she wanted a natural organic feel to her wedding.   She was hoping to have it appear as if they were all just hangin out on a porch.  She came to me to see if there was a way to create this feeling.  

I of course LOVED this idea and my creative wheels began to spin immediately... I had foam on the brain!  Menards began calling out to me... 

Can you believe this is all foam??

It was a beautiful wedding and when the guests arrived in the evening, the lights were low and it was magical in there.  I will get more photos of the night sometime, so you can see what it really looked like when guests arrived.  

Fun, fun, fun!

(and a heck of a lot of work!)