The Wool is Here! The Wool is Here!

Yesterday the UPS man rumbled into the driveway and came out with a HUGE box. "My wool!" I squealed. Our processed wool had come back from the mill!Back in September you might have seen the raw wool.Off it went to Zeilinger's in Michigan for washing and combing. This was the first time we had gone to the extra expense to have it combed instead of just carded. We'd had it processed elsewhere a couple of times before (with just carding) and there had always been more VM left in it than I wanted to pick out before or during spinning. But this time it was different.

This fleece:Became this combed top:
Amazing, isn't it? I can't wait to spin some up! That is, if I don't just curl up and cuddle in it. :)

A Closer Look (11/30/09)

I've decided to change the format of the "closer look" posts just a little. Instead of "closer look" meaning literally a close view of something, it will mean, rather, stopping to appreciate the beauty that surrounds us. So here's today's shot:

Handmade Natural Soap

I mentioned in my previous post that I've been on a made-from-scratch spree. One of the things I did first in this spree was make a couple of batches of soap. I had made a batch some time ago, and liked the soap, but just hadn't tried it again. But deciding to give it another go, I dug out my supplies and jumped right in. The first batch was done without any fragrance oil because I didn't have any at the time. The recipe came from a soap book I found at the library.

My hands get really dry sometimes, and even using lots of lotions, they can still feel dry and uncomfortable and crack around my fingernails. The recipe said I could add ground oats to the mixture to make it more moisturizing, so I threw those in, too. Here's the result:I just poured it into some small plastic storage boxes to mold, and then cut it into bars with a knife. The bars aren't very even and the corner pieces are kind of a strange shape, but that doesn't really matter.

Getting all enthused, I ordered some fragrance oils and other butter-type ingredients for a "skin-nurturing" recipe from the book. I also enlisted the help of my husband, and we made a wooden soap mold. (He actually did most of the "making" while I did the "helping.") And ta da! Our home made soap mold!
Armed with more of the right tools and some fragrance (gardenia), I tried the new recipe and the mold:We made the mold where you could cut the soap into bars right in the mold. These bars came out more even, but they're not quite the shape I was going for. They're more square than rectangular, making them a little too big to hold comfortably in your hand. But I just cut a couple of them in half, and that worked fine, too. I guess the mold should have been a little longer in length or something. Also a soap cutter would work better than the kitchen knife I was using. This is kind of a learn-as-you-go operation, you see.

**IMPORTANT**Be sure to do your research before attempting handmade soap. Also be sure to follow ALL of the safety precautions recommended. And do your homework about any fragrance oils or essential oils you use. Essential oils especially should be researched before using them, as some of them have restrictions about not using them if you have certain health conditions.***

So, how does this home made soap work, you ask? Wonderfully well! Both batches make really nice lather, and the difference in my hands is amazing! It's probably not all due to the soap, because I've also been using some handmade hand lotion and sugar scrubs, but I could tell a difference before using them. More about them in a later post!

Made from Scratch

For some reason, I was recently seized by this urge to start making more things from scratch. This includes bread (well, sort of scratch, because I'm employing the help of my bread machine), soap, and hand lotion. Yes. Hand lotion. But we'll save that for another post.

Part of the reason for some of these projects was inspiration from a blog/website I recently discovered...Chickens in the Road. There are lots of recipes and how-to's, and all kinds of neat stuff.

This morning I mixed up some starter for sourdough bread.It seems to be doing what it's supposed to so far. See it bubbling up?

And then later, I tried a "Chickens in the Road" recipe for Apple-Streudel Ladder Loaf. Here it is after baking. I didn't get a picture before. I was too sticky. And buttery.

Please ignore the un-Martha-Stewart-like tearing of the parchment paper.

The dough recipe I used was the one in my bread machine book, but otherwise I followed the recipe for the most part. I did drizzle on a little powdered sugar glaze after it cooled.
So far I've resisted the temptation to try it...trying to wait until after supper. I'll let you know how it comes out!

After-supper update: The verdict? Yummy!! I think it would also be good to use more apple filling, spread it out on the dough rectangle, roll up jelly-roll style, and slice and bake as for cinnamon rolls. Mmmmm...maybe next time! :)

A Closer Look (11/23/09)

No guessing today, either...just a beautiful autumn rose to enjoy.

Farm Math...

Several sheep-who-like-to-stand-out-in-the-cold-rain

+

One shepherd-girl (using the term 'girl' loosely here)
holding-a-bucket-of-feed

=


Brrrr!

You folks with sheep know what I'm talking about, huh? This time there was a soaking wet sheep crowding in from both sides. Boy, talk about something that will wake you up! :)

A Closer Look (11/17/09)

I'm a day late with my closer look picture this week (probably a dollar short, too) but here it is. It's not one you have to guess...just one to take a look at. I believe it's a locust tree. Click for an even better view of the thorns. Ouch!