Oh, the zinnia of it all!

I just adore zinnias. I have been too busy lately to make regular bouquets of flowers but I finally cut as many of the zinnias as I could from the garden and was pretty pleased with the large bouquet and the rich colors. When I finally get my backyard in shape, I plan on having lots more space dedicated to the planting of zinnias!

Saturday Still Life

Bouquets of flowers from the garden.

A mixed bouquet of hydrangeas, calla lillies and aglaia daisies.

These are cone flowers otherwise known as echinaceas from my garden.

I couldn't decide which photo I liked better. Plus, I just love these flowers.

Some more flowers and greenery from my garden as well as the first squash minus what has been already eaten (I did try some batter fried zucchini blossoms stuffed with mozzarella cheese with little zucchinis attached this afternoon-delicious!) . We also made some frutti di bosco jam as well as some pickled beets. I was lucky enough to find golden and chioggia beets at the farmers market on Saturday.

Viola

No, this isn't Provence but the Lavender Hollow Farms near Escalon, California. Some gardeners I know won't plant anything that isn't edible. However, I don't subscribe to that philosophy. The soul needs to see beauty.If the gardening muse in you needs order, straight rows of lavender will soothe the mind. In the early morning, the fragrance is also a sensory delight. I couldn't resist walking down the rows of lavender and trying not to disturb the bees hard at work.

Wouldn't you like a spot like this in your garden?

Ummm... Purple. I also bought some lovely lavender and grapefruit lotion, lavender butter cookies and a couple of plants. The cookies were delicious.

I love the color purple (viola in Italian and also the name of the soccer team in Florence, I like them, too.) I wish I had more space to grow lavender in my backyard but at least I won't have to go far for a fix.

Wild Horses

This is the third quilt I have in progress. It is almost ready to go to be finished on the long-arm quilting machine. I've been waiting to finish this quilt for about 5 years. I say waiting and not working on as all I needed was just a bit of off-white bandanna fabric seen under the backing on the pieced front. I still have to sew on a strip to the backing as it has to be 6 inches longer than the front and it is a tad short. I'll get it back in about 4-6 weeks after I take it in then just have to hand finish the trim. Someday, I suppose I will hand-quilt my pieces but not until I have a lot more time! (Although, I am debating about hand tying yellow thread here and there on the front to look like grass.)

Dov'è dov'è Marco Materazzi?

Alla spiaggia con la sua piccolina figlia?

(Photo di BlackBlue_Blood@photobucket)

Sognando di Parigi?
(Photo di Dejan Dex)Perchè, non era alla partita contro Chievo oggi. Perchè no, perchè no, chiedo? Mi manchi. Senza te, le partite sono noiose e qualcosa è persa. Sei un protagonista molto divertente a guardare. Se giocherai forsè Inter vincerà? Chissà!

(Photo di Sports Illustrated)
Ha dimenticato Mou?

Saturday Still Life

Homemade soap

This is the second batch of homemade soap. The first batch turned out wonderfully but I gave most of it away in my excitement. I have the kind of skin that suffers from dermatitis if I buy the wrong kind of soap. I even buy baby soap and baby laundry soap to avoid it. No whiteners, brighteners, fabric softeners or spring time freshness for me. Right now my skin is wonderfully soft and supple and doesn't seem to require lotion to stay that way except for my hands because I am using up the last of the store-bought, liquid hand soap. I cannot believe what a difference there is even between the homemade soap and the Johnson's Baby Wash. We are still in the experimental stage of trying different recipes although, I definitely have at least one keeper, a complexion bar. The soaps are made with with a variety of oils including olive, palm, shea, macadamia and coconut oil.

This is the natural state of soap without colorants. I do put fragrance and essential oil in the soap because I think it is part of the soap experience and it hasn't bothered my skin.

I also love the different soap molds but they are a lot more work than a simple bar.

The only downside is that there is no instant gratification to soap making! After it's made, you have to wait for all the lye and oils to saponify and that can take at least 3 weeks. Hence, the soap supply. I don't want to run out because I can't go back.