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Thursday, September 27, 2018

POMANDER BALLS (wedding decor)

I was thrilled to receive a custom order from a bride requesting pomander balls for wedding decor.   She wanted three "soccer ball" size to hang from the gazebo where she and her groom would be exchanging their vows.

She had found me through my Etsy shop and loved the burlap and lace variety I showed for flower girls.  After several email conversations with her....we nailed down exactly what she was looking for!
She wanted to incorporate her wedding colors of burgundy, orange and white.  The white was mostly achieved through the lace and emboidered tulle, and it was easy to find burgundy and orange silk flowers since all the fall decor was in abundance with the Halloween and Thanksgiving holidays right around the corner.

My pomander balls begin with styrofoam balls, you can find these at your big box craft stores.  What I wasn't prepared for was the cost of the 8" variety!  I usually use either 4" or 6" for my flower girl variety.  The 6" are under $6 and of course, the 4" are less than that.  The 8" are $13.99 each.  Wait. What?  And....unfortunately, styrofoam products do not go on sale.  The good news is I was able to use the 40%  online coupons (although it did take 3 separate trips) to save some money.   Believe me...I checked everywhere trying to lower the cost, and this was the best I could do.

The next step is a lot of cutting....the burlap, lace, and embroidered tulle.  You can see one of my stacks in the picture above.  You'll also get a sense of how the project progresses with the ball in the background.  It's a slow, but methodical process of "hole punching", folding, and gluing the fabrics into the ball. 
You'll see from the close up pictures, the variety of flowers, pearls and fabrics that I used to create the look for these babies.  I also needed to add a sturdy means for hanging them in the gazebo, so I braided some jute and white cording to create a long loop.

I wish I would have kept track of my time, since I really don't know how long it took to finish these.   I can tell you I worked off and on on them for over a week. 

I love the way they turned out....the next order of business is to get them shipped.  I hope my bride loves them as much as I do!

Tuesday, September 11, 2018

CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHIP ZUCCHINI BREAD

Several years ago I shared my zucchini bread recipe on the blog.   Since it took me such a long time to master the recipe (especially in high altitude) I shared it along with the many tips/tricks I learned along the way.

Just the other day, my husband brought home a home grown zucchini that a friend gave him, so I decided to make some bread.  But, instead of my usual recipe, I chose to try a chocolate chocolate chip variety.  Holey Moley!
I have to say this bread was so goooood!  Moist, chocolately, but not overly sweet.

I used my original recipe and added ¼ cup of cocoa powder.  That's it!

The zucchini was so large that I was able to make four loaves.  One of the chocolate chocolate chip varieties went right back to the friend who gifted the zucchini to us, the second is being devoured by my husband and me, and the other two loaves are my "original" recipe.  They're already in the freezer ready to be enjoyed at another time.

You have to try this.....I promise you will not be disappointed.
Enjoy!

Monday, September 3, 2018

BOTANICAL TOWER

As I was looking at ideas for our backyard landscaping project, I stumbled across this "botanical tower" idea.   After some sleuthing, I found a company that made these for over $300!  That didn't include the shipping or the lanterns.  Knowing I had a master woodworker in my life (a.k.a. my husband), I promptly added it to my "honey do"/"wish list".
All he had to go on, was a picture....but, since I've done this to him on many occasions in the past, I knew he would be able to figure out the design, construction and materials to deliver something pretty dang close to what I was looking for.....and for a fraction of the cost.  The materials were approximately $40, and I was able to find the lanterns on Amazon for just under $20 each!                                   Our project began in mid-June and involved removing a large portion of the lawn and replacing it with rock.  We added five large boulders and then I slowly started adding in the plants.   Everything I added is drought resistant which is critical here in Colorado.    I'm thinking I may find myself replacing a few next spring since I may need to also focus on rabbit resistant options as well.  We always have some rabbits in our yard, and I see evidence of them chewing on a couple of my brand new plants!

We've lived in Colorado long enough to know it's going to take a few seasons for my vision to take shape, but as these plants start to mature it's going to be beautiful.  I chose several ornamental grasses, along with some flowering plants and ground covers:  purple salvia, sage, Red Baron grass, Karl Foerster grass, yellow day lilies, red yarrow, purple and pink creeping phlox, blue fescue grass and pink ice plants.   


It's going to be fun to look back on these pictures in a few years time to see how these little baby plants have grown.  I specifically chose what I did for the variety in size, shape, height and color.  As for the tower.....we positioned it so it's best vantage point is when sitting on the back patio....and I intend to spend plenty of time appreciating it in the years to come!