Liquid Sunshine

Guess I'll never be a daily blogger, just don't seem to make the time. It isn't that I don't have the time, being retired pretty much lets me call my own shots. I looked at all the things I wanted to do "when I moved to AZ" and wondered why I hadn't bothered to do any of them in the last 11 years when I had total control of my life. So, I bought perennials for the flower bed, don't understand why I didn't before, since I've wanted a bed full of flowers for the last 20 years. Just think, if I would have planted a couple every year, my entire hillside up to the front door would be covered by now. I started last month to go to lunch and the movies once a week with a friend and I probably should volunteer for something. Maybe if I get totally involved in some of these things, the house will sell and I won't have totally put my life on hold waiting for it to happen.

I am so glad that when I got back from the store Friday that I got all the plants in the ground. I'm also happy that my grandson saw me working and without being asked, went out and picked up the branches and weeds that I had in piles, took them to the burning pit and then mowed the lawn. Kudos to him! Yesterday, son & grandson went outside, again without me saying anything, and did the weed eating.....Yeah! I went out and pulled more weeds, cleaning up my flower beds. I still have a lot to do, but it started to rain before I came in, and off and on, it's still doing it today.

So, I should be downstairs sewing my GGD birthday dresses, or painting the wood chest I got her, but I just don't feel like it yet. Instead, I spent a couple hours working on a Banner for my Etsy shop, only to find out it's way too big to post. I turned it into a business card instead, that I'll try printing out, if I have any blanks around. I will either come up with something new for the banner, or leave it alone. I need to take photos of the glass and start posting them, if I hope to sell some of it. I know I'll be spending a good bit of time posting stuff until I get familiar with the page setup.



I have used this profile & hand to create at least five different files. I made a cutting file for the Pazzles, the banner I can't use for Etsy, a business card, a scrapbook page with WordArt, and a greeting card. They all vary slightly, this last one the most, since I took a photo from my yard and used the dandelion gone to seed instead of a graphic file.

This is the card I created from the file.


I have my "Lazy Man's Chicken Cacciatore" in the crock pot. Broiled the chicken breast long enough to brown on the electric grill, dumped in a bag of mixed peppers, a sliced onion, teaspoon of minced garlic, and a jar of spaghetti sauce. Later I'll make a tossed salad, cook some spaghetti and brown some french bread. Dinner done in less than half an hour total!

I've got 5 new books loaded on my Sansa Fuse for listening to when I'm working on the yard, sewing, cleaning house, fixing meals or doing flamework. I should be good until next week when the library will let me download another five books.

Hopefully, I'll post sooner than I did last time....we shall see.

It's been a long time since I posted...I've been busy with sewing birthday gifts and making cards. One of my new and favorite places is Mojo Monday's Blog. http://mojomonday.blogspot.com/ Look them up, a new sketch is posted on Mondays, and for me, that's a great thing. I'm challenged when it comes to card layouts. I used my new Pazzles Inspiration to cut some flower petals & leaves in various sizes, then using chalks colored the petals. The small flowers are punches with the centers some fuzz I cut off of Pom Poms in the attempt to duplicate Flower Soft.



Today, I embarked on an experiment that has consumed the better part of a day. I had to go track down some supplies at the local florist and the Thrift shop. I've been wanting to try "Flower Soft" for some time, but it isn't available anywhere around here. If I order it, the postage is as much if not more that the cost of the item...so I'm not willing to spring for that. I've been told by a number of people that you can make your own with styrofoam.

-I had some Florist Oasis foam in green in the house.
-Called and found out the Florist in town had some pink and was willing to sell me part of a brick.
-Stopped by the local Thrift Shop and found foam in two densities...the more standard Styrofoam and the more dense white foam.
-In the attic I had some compressed foam used for packing a scanner
-Last type of foam I tried was packing peanuts.

After cleaning up my kitchen with a vacuum cleaner, I'm here to tell you, if you do this, do it outside. Styrofoam rather dense, packing peanuts or the regular Styrofoam is so static that it clings to everything. The compressed foam works the best of those types, but still retains somewhat of a round shape to it.

The item that worked the best is Florist Oasis foam used in cut flower arrangements. After looking for it on the internet, I've found that it's available in about 6 colors other than the standard green, but you have to order 4 bricks in a package (of one color). I'm going to keep calling around florist and see if I can find some of the ivory and buy a brick of that. I used a food grater (fine) and a little piece makes a lot! I then experimented with mixing the pink and green with Ranger Alcohol Inks.





The first photo is the Condensed foam found formed to hold things like scanners colored with Wild Plum. On the second photo, Right to left - FF-pink, FF-regular green, FF Pink with Current, and FF pink with Wild Plum. The second branch of colors is FF Pink with Stream, Reg Styrofoam with Butterscotch & Gold, FF Pink with Butterscotch, and the last is the FF Green with Meadow. Yes, it's a fun thing to use on cards and I'll make more with the Florist Foam, especially when I can find a brick of the white. It gives me a way to use the Ranger Inks that I invested in and an excuse to buy some more of the colors I don't have.

That's it for today...I need to cut a bunch more leaves and flowers and other things to use for toppers. I'm out of sympathy, get well and birthday cards so need to shore up my inventory.