the sea, crystals and the sun were my inspiration today.  i wanted to literally weave them all together.  so, i did.  with purple bakers twine.  i do believe i will go on a scavenger hunt collecting trinkets in my art studio, along the beach and find crystals that wish for a new  home in these magic little hanging art altars.

it was really hard to give this post a title.  most awkward name ever. can you come up with another? still giggling because i don't know what i just made.  but, i am in love with it!  i think you should make a thingamagigga yourself!

i used to macrame when i was younger.  hemp necklaces, wallet chains, hanging plant hammocks.  i i loved taking any type of string, twine, or yarn and being able to make a 3d object with it.  so, naturally, while slurping oysters and sipping white wine on a sunny day last week, a light bulb went off!  i came home, washed the shells through the dishwasher (they came out so beautiful) and i got to wrapping them.  was funny at first, trying to remember how.  but soon i was one handing knots while holding the others in place on the shell.  you could also do this by tying regular knots but you will need some prior knowledge on knot work or a lil youtube  scour to get started.  

if you are like me....you'll just try and giv'er a go.  so, i'll post a wee DIY diagram on the square knots i used for this.  i used 8 strings so that you are working with 2 knots (4 strings each) on either side, then splitting them and adding to your new knot with 4 strands (using 2 each from each of the previous knots) and then splitting again...and so on...that will make your wrap around your shell.   it'll all make sense once you try it out.

what i love about this project, is you can add anything to the shell or whatever little container you choose.  i love air plants because  you can pretty much use any medium to place them in and they are sooo easy to maintain!  i used sand from the beach.  you just need to know proper care for the air plant you use.  here is a great site...air plant care.

let me know how yours turn out!!!!

oh dandelions!  aren't they beautiful?  those abundant vibrant yellow blooms that turn into "wish flowers" granting wishes made with close eyed visions and eye lashes batting?  seeds flying in the wind...wishes gliding on hopeful breezes.  CUT!!! what are we talking about here? every time my son goes out to harvest his wishes i see the seeds in matrix vision...all the new plants springing forth before my eyes.  you should have seen how many we had on our uncut lawn about  a month ago. good thing i do secretly adore them!  even better that i found a recipe a few years back for this dandelion fizz that knocked my socks right off to utilize this years lawn harvest.  it is sooo good! like magic really....divine sips of sweet sunshine on your lips.

the best part of this recipe is that you get to cut the heads off those flowers before they turn into "wish flowers" and reseed, replacing your grass with yellow fields of dandy times.  hmm, that sounds really awesome actually.  and now that this fizz is in my life...might just be what happens.

i am excited to try this recipe with other flowers and herbs.  very similar to elderflower cordial, in fact.

dandelion fizz recipe

6 cups dandelion flowers

5 quarts water

4 cups sugar, honey or other sweetener

2 lemons (less lemon or none if you use honey)

first off, collect  flowers.  you wanna make sure you are picking them from a place out in nature that has not been sprayed with anything but rain and sunshine.  i employed my little guy, Loji, and his best bud, Jasper for this job.  i had already gathered a pot full of them, but it was soOoooOo beautiful out, i thought we'd have some really sweet outside times.  they had so much fun!  they wanted to keep going and going.  so, i let them.  they filled up an entire backpack with dandelions.  i quadroooopled the recipe.

only cut the flowers that are in the direct sunshine.  i saw this tid bit in a recipe i had found it an old old herbal book (not the one where this recipe comes from) and love it.  i think it's really sweet and that it is why it feels like you are drinking sunshine when you sip'a'da'fizz! 

now, go through and be sure to snip the flower right at the stem. you only want the flower head in there. 

clean dandelions if necessary, there was an ant or two (okay, mabe 20) in mine trying to come to the party but i swooshed them right off with a quick shower.

put flowers in a heat-proof container made of glass, ceramic, enamel, or stainless steel.  i used a large crock.  love them. i want to marry crocs when i grow up!  

bring water to a boil and pour over dandelions.  cover, and leave over night, or at least for 12 hours.

strain flowers through a cloth.  you can use cheese cloth, a piece of muslin, a clean tea towel, a nutmilk bag, or...i'll let you in on a little secret...raw foodies sell special nutmilk/strainer bags online for about $11+ each...did you know that you can get the same product, pretty much, at a hardware store for pennies? they are called paint strainer bags.  i think they are just a few dollars and i get mine 3 to a box. boom. 

now, add sweetener, lemon juice and rind.  i used local honey. i think you should too. 

heat and stir till dissolved but do not boil.

strain into jugs or jars and leave to cool.  be sure to cover the jars.  fruit flies are not invited to this party.

pour into clean, dry bottles with tight screw caps and wait for as long as you possibly can. store in a cool dry place.  don't forget about them...enjoy them within a couple months.  they could, you know, explode on you if you leave them lonely in your pantry for too long. 

brew will do it's thang, ferment and become fizzy.  there will be some alcohol content in it; as that's what fermentation does, but no more than kombucha might have.  brew is ready to drink in 3-4 weeks!  summertime enchantment is what you'll experience popping one of these beauties open. super special moment!  enjoy!

after a day or two of weeding our garden beds and cleaning up the winter debris, we got all our seeds out.  i went to "seedy saturday" where heirloom seeds are sold and traded and brought home the beginings of a bountiful harvest.  we got out the egg cartons i collect to plant our seedlings for the year.  my little man always helps me with this on the spring equinox.  there is something so magical about this for me.  we have such sweet convos about the changing of the seasons, what we loved about winter, what we are excited for about spring, and looking forward to in summer.  i always braid in notions about how the seeds we are sowing in spring will be so fun to enjoy all summer.  we talk about what we will make with the fruits and veggies that will grow and the picnics, bonfires, and potlucks we will share them with our friends.  i love this day.

i cut down the center of the carton, separating the two halves and cutting off the little side tab to recycle it.  then i stack the two together and fill with organic soil.  loji loves doing this part.  i usually leave cleaning the porch off after winter rains and pine needles dropping until after we plant our seedlings. he also likes poking holes with his pinky and placing seeds in them.  he tries to convince me that all we should grow is watermelon and corn and i explain to him, or try to, because i halfway agree with him, why that isn't what we are doing.

then because the soil isn't packed down at all and you want to keep it pretty loose for the seeds to sprout, but don't want it spilling all over the sides...we water the first few times with a spray bottle. i used a sharpie to write on the sides of the egg cartons what seeds were which.  i usually use popsicle sticks to label them, or clothespins that have snapped apart, but was pretty much fresh out.  so, a sharpie it was...

then, i put them on baking sheets or pans so that the watering doesn't make a mess and put them in a sunny window.  it takes only a day or two to start seeing the sprouts.  loji and i make bets which will come up first and run to check every time we think about them.  radishes and brussel sprouts won the first round this year.  if you have a good farmers almanac use that or google where you live and what gets planted outside when.  i also use this step to help loji learn to research things that interest him and help him find out things he'd like to know.  today we will be planting our lettuces, arugula, kale, cilantro, dill, beets, broc., and brussel sprouts.  since the cardboard of the egg crate will be a bit moist, it is so easy to tear them each individual sprout in an egg cup right off and plant the whole thing right in the ground.  before i do this, i pinch a little whole in the bottom for the roots to easily grow right through.  the carton itself mulches right into the soil and actually protects the youngster in the ground a bit.  love this time of year.  kinda giddy like a school girl.