Lavender Sachets

Mid July, we went to the Lavender Festival on the McKenzie River. Loved every minute of being admit the natural beauty of Oregon fir trees and lavender bushes. We picked lavender to dry and just *NOW* made lavender sachets with it. (As you might have seen in this week’s earlier post about art projects this summer, it has been one we started but didn’t yet finish. Until now! Never too late….)

 

U-pick lavender is the best. I loved it even though I got stung by a bee on my thumb and complained about it for a week.

My bundle of lavender to dry.

Tusia had the hard part of embroidering flowers on a piece of plain fabric. She made four of them — they are all different and all so gorgeous and imaginative.

Then, I sewed them together, stuffing them and closing them tightly.

The purple stack.

Love all four! They are definitely NOT professional, but they are so fun and smell beyond good.

 

We all participated in it as a family activity, Cruzzie even sewed them on the sewing machine (until he lost steam). I am so excited to use these and have a little of Oregon back home in NYC!

No Cap Candles Co.

Super cool, my bestie’s daughter created a candle company as a class project for her school, Girls Middle School (in California). The assignment was in her entrepreneurial class, in order to teach the students how to create a business from start to end.  Rosie, along with three other friends, started No Cap Candles. This company is a brand of candles with trendy names, designed for teens.

 

As a supporter of Rosie, I of course, was going to buy at least one candle. But because the candles are SO creative, zesty, full of fun and spark, I had to buy one of each! How could I not! I am so so so impressed by Rosie, her dedication to this company, and how the end result is so great.

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Pressing Flowers

In our final days in Oregon, we went to a U-Pick Flower Farm (believe it or not, our first time at this gorgeous farm!) and collected the most insanely beautiful flowers.

 

Hot day, so Stevie would try to hide below the flowers. Didn’t really work, but hey, like the effort!

We wandered the flower farm for about an hour and picked the most gorgeous flowers.

Look at this dahlia! Unbeliveably beautiful!

Our final collection.

 

We went to the farm, not just to see the pretty flowers, but to create art with dried pressed flowers! It takes time — but we first needed the flowers!

 

Getting to work.

Putting the flowers to be pressed and dried.

Smooching the flowers for a week — stay tuned!

 

We loved going to this flower farm, and if you have a chance to do something similarly, definitely go. In the meantime, we will be waiting patiently for our flowers to be pressed and dried to create something (bookmarks)!

Basket Weaving Class

My mom is an avid crafter — even more so than me — so last week, she told me that she had accidentally signed up for two different zoom workshops at the same time, and so could I take one of them. Since I love crafts and had nothing else to do, I jumped at the chance. Basket weaving. A 4 (yes 4!!!!) hour zoom class where they taught you how to weave a basket. They sent a box with all the supplies – the needle, scissors, everything. The box is from Flax and Twine and I cannot wait to purchase more of these kits.

 

The box came with all the material.

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Lavender Sachets

Yesterday, after my long run, we had a lull in what activity we were going to do. I was not highly motivated to get the kids on a bike or take a hike (and they surely didn’t want to do it unless I encouraged them to do so), so my mom asked if we could drive out to the McKenzie River Highway and pick up some lavender buds to make some lavender sachets. So although I hate to drive, we have been LOVING listening to Taylor Swift in the car, so we jumped in to the car and went on our adventure. We went to get the lavender buds in order to make homemade lavender sachets (thank you, Mama for the great idea for the afternoon!).

 

Gorgeous fields of lavender.

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Upstate Plant Based Dye Kit

Readers of the blog know that I love tie dye, especially when it is done Upstate. I not only own a dozen pieces from Upstate, but they also did a collaboration with Natori that is to-dye-for (get it?). I am a huge fan, so when they recently came out with dye kits for you to do at home, I knew I needed to get one.

 

The kit. Plant-based dye kit in rose. Safe, easy, clean, and super duper fun.

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Renovation Post #3

We are officially five months into our home renovation project, and slowly, it is taking more form and becoming more like a real home! The lights are now in (not the light fixtures, but the electrical outlets and lights on the ceiling), the walls are in place, and the stairs connect the floors!!! Mind you, it is far from done, but I now have a better sense of what it is really going to look like, and I can’t contain my excitement. Take a look at the newest pictures:

 

The new entry way!

The new entry way!

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