Bramble and Rose

My happy early morning task this week: harvesting the lavender. I really have an abundance of it this year, and I wish I had more time to make lavender simple syrup for cocktails and lemonade and bake the buds into shortbread. . . alas, this is turning out to be the busiest summer for us in years, but maybe I will put this out by the roadside for the walkers and horse riders going by every day, and dry the rest. It certainly is a calming start to my days, breathing in all this lovely, lovely scent💜

A new little pullover—pattern and wool both from the wonderful in Ireland. The color is called Beach Bunny, so even though it’s too warm for a sweater today (97 degrees Fahrenheit!), it’s got a good summer vibe. 💕

Local strawberries are ready to pick—and turn into jam…Mine is low in sugar and has a more intense strawberry flavor, enhanced by lime juice & zest and a good slug of Puerto Rican rum. Hence the name: Strawberry Daiquiri jam. It’s wonderful on English muffins or with scones and clotted cream—or even as the start of a cocktail! 💕

For local peeps: it’s $10 per jar and porch pick up in Bradford.

Can’t wait to go to this! Have any of my local peeps been in the past?

🎪Our Summer Vintage Bazaar is almost here! Soon you’ll be frolicking through our show field, hunting for treasures old & new, enjoying delicious food & drinks, groovin’ to live music and making more bazaar memories.

Vintage Bazaar - Summer Edition
June 22 & 23
Kimball Farm | Haverhill MA

VINTAGE + HANDMADE + HOMEGROWN

A batch of Blueberry Limoncello jam, ready for sale.

All my jams are made in small batches with the best ingredients—in this case, wild, blueberries, my own homemade Limoncello, and vanilla bean paste.

I’m thinking about selling them in the shady front of my house this summer. A jamstand. 💜












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Handmade Lotion Bars

Warmed gently between your hands, then rubbed on your hands, arms, or legs, they really moisturize and protect your skin. They are perfect for immediately after showering, and I also keep one on my desk and by my bed so I can use them often. They emit a light, therapeutic scent, and they last a long time. My family and friends love them because there’s no plastic container and no chemicals.

Pictured from left to right: Rose, Honey Lemon, Lavender

Ingredients: Our own beeswax, organic shea or mango butter, olive oil, a little fragrance.







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Handmade goat milk soaps, ready for market. Pictured are Honey Lemon—made using our own honey from our own hives.

Details:
Handmade Soaps
Handmade goat milk and olive oil soaps: Moisturize, lather well, and have a light fragrance. Honey, Lemon Honey, and Oatmeal Honey soaps are made using our own honey!

Lemon Honey
Oatmeal Honey
Honey
Lavender
Rose
Olive oil (no fragrance)

Ingredients: Goat Milk or olive oil soap base and a little fragrance—that’s all!

· Large Celtic-motif soaps: $10
· Small plain soaps (not shown): $5







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I’m spending the weekend prepping all my handmade gifts for next Saturday’s market. I hope you will come and help us support Emmaus House shelter for women.

https://facebook.com/events/s/mothers-day-makers-market-even/1154525809032436/






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I’m getting ready for the first market I’ve done since before Covid, and in addition to my homemade boozy jams, handmade goat milk soap and lotion bars, I went back to basics last weekend and made some of these little fabric corsages for Mother’s Day. Just simple little things, but so much pleasure in playing with color and pinking shears and button💜

These vendors are AWESOME

Looking for a special gift for Mother's Day? Come to the Mother's Day Maker's Market on Saturday, May 4, 11 am--4 pm. I'll be there :)

The rustic Valentine decorations I pulled together this year. It cheers me up this time of year. I sent heart-shaped, handmade soaps & lotion bars to my nearest and dearest too. And the husband and I are going to see “The Taste of Things” tonight at our local cinema. ❤️

The rustic Valentine decorations I pulled together this year. It cheers me up this time of year. I sent heart-shaped, handmade soaps & lotion bars to my nearest and dearest too. And the husband and I are going to see “The Taste of Things” tonight at our local cinema. ❤️

From December through March I make gallons of marmalade. Last winter, I liked a slightly-altered version of ’s pink marmalade recipe. I make batches and give most of it away to unsuspecting visitors, family members, friends—even the mailman. Most are still dubious. My husband, although always very supportive of my creative efforts, wonders why I spend so much time making marmalade and so little time cleaning the house and looking for more freelance writing gigs.

I have made marmalade from a can (MaMade) and added single-malt scotch (delicious); tried Florida orange (not so good) because I couldn’t easily obtain Seville oranges; Royal Navy-style lime marmalade with rum; and kumquat (wonderful). Others before me have written of the Zen-like experience of slicing the peel, stirring in the sugar and having your whole house pervaded with that tropical, humid, citrus-y scent . . . . there’s nothing like it when you’re looking out the window at four feet of snow.

Mostly, these days, I use MaMade and keep it simple. And on days when I’m feeling down, I make toast, spread it with butter and marmalade and somehow feel more sunny and hopeful. I swear it has healing properties.

I strained and bottled up my cranberry-infused gin this weekend . . . the equivalent of the sloe gin people make in England for Christmas, it’s simply fresh cranberries, orange peel and half a cinnamon stick in a quart-size canning jar with a bottle of your favorite gin (although tastes best if you use one that has a lot of citrus and spices , not herbs). Seal it up and let it marinate happily for 6-8 weeks. Strain through cheesecloth into sterilized bottles like these (I bought them on Amazon), add about 1/3-1/2 cup simple syrup, and that’s it.

We made gin & tonics last night, just substituting orange for the usual lime or lemon as a garnish/punch of citrus. Very festive, sweet and tart.

Yesterday I had a little giveaway, and I’m pleased to say my friend won 💕

I love drying oranges at this time of year. Not only does it fill my kitchen with the smell of Christmas, I love to have these for garlands to decorate mirrors, to use in mulled wine, and to decorate Christmas gifts.

They are super simple to make: just spread parchment on a baking sheet. Then slice your oranges about 1/4 of an inch thick put in the oven on 200 degrees F for four hours, turning over halfway through. If you have a dehydrator, that’s even better. 🧡

My favorite thing to do: wrap up a new baby order. This little set is for a little girl born to a lovely family who used to live in Chicago, and now they live in Atlanta. The mom is a good friend of my best friend in London — who ordered a special hamper to be sent when twins were born to this family in Chicago. I hope their brand-new baby girl stays warm and snuggly in this little cardigan, bonnet—complete with a Liberty of London bow. 💕

I made a small batch of raspberry jam yesterday, adding a touch of vanilla bean and a tiny splash of bourbon. Who would like a jar?

$10/jar Porch pickup in Bradford, MA. Message me for address if you're interested.

We have new neighbors—about 20,000-80,000 per hive, I’m told. I contacted the Essex County Beekeepers Association, asking if anyone needed a place to put some hives, and Beekeeper Dave replied. They moved in Friday night, and we are very excited. Nice to be doing our bit for the bees, who need all the help they can get.

(Also, selfishly thinking I might not have to buy those expensive beeswax pellets on Amazon anymore to make our candles:)



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e lavender around our pool and elsewhere is at its peak right now. I’m trimming it here and there to put together lavender bouquets to hang upside down and dry and hang in our closets. But mostly we’re just enjoying the scent whenever we brush by a plant, or it rains, or we’re in the pool, and we catch a waft of it on the breeze. xx





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The lavender around our pool and elsewhere is at its peak right now. I’m trimming it here and there to put together lavender bouquets to hang upside down and dry and hang in our closets. But mostly we’re just enjoying the scent whenever we brush by a plant, or it rains, or we’re in the pool, and we catch a waft of it on the breeze. xx





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Because of all the rain, I’ve had an abundance of rose petals, so I started drying them. For a few days, my kitchen counters were covered in tea towels loaded with light & dark pink petals—a lovely sight and scent!

I will combine them with Dead Sea salt and pour into pint-sized canning jars, ready to beribboned and given away at Christmas. 💕

Because of all the rain, I’ve had an abundance of rose petals, so I started drying them. For a few days, my kitchen counters were covered in tea towels loaded with light & dark pink petals—a lovely sight and scent!

I will combine them with Dead Sea salt and pour into pint-sized canning jars, ready to beribboned and given away at Christmas. 😊

Just playing around with color and fabric and old, dull, beige lampshades . . . What do you think?












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Just playing around with color and fabric and old, dull, beige lampshades . . . What do you think?

Gertrude Jekyll (pronounced JEE-kill)—my favorite rose—not only for the color and rosette-shaped blooms, but the very strong Old Rose scent. I’ve tried to grow one in every place I’ve lived, and they always die. Now I have 3, and they are blooming lustily in all this rain and coolness. I am very happy about this.💕

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I really love how this little cardi came out. I used Dirty Water Dye Works’ wool with a strand of cream silk mohair, and it just glows and is so soft! (See 2nd photo).

I’m keeping this one for the cedar chest. 💕

Knitting is my daily meditation. . . .I’ve been a knitter for decades, but it wasn’t until the pandemic that I began knitting every morning, as a way to calm my fears, reduce anxiety, and feel like I had control over something—anything. Over the months, stitch by stitch, I became a better and braver knitter. I learned brioche, started buying hand-dyed yarn from small businesses all over the world, and started making myself hand-knitted garments instead of knitting for everyone else.

Knitting was, and still is, very grounding. I still knit every day (to the detriment of my hands and wrists), and plan to for as long as I can hold on to the needles.❤️

Just what we need on these cold winter days . . . .you're welcome :)

Sticky Toffee Pudding – Flexi – Nancy Birtwhistle Official website of Nancy Birtwhistle, Winner of the Great British Bake Off 2014 - Get free recipes, latest news and updates from Nancy

We’ve been making beeswax candles in The Shed for a month now, and they’re still a little rustic looking, but they burn well, and the scent is heavenly.

Beeswax candles are special—have you tried them?

Here are 4 Benefits of Beeswax Candles:
1. Zero chemical compounds.
Because beeswax candles are all-natural, they don't produce any toxic byproducts when they burn, and they
2. Neutralize odors in your home.
3. Environmental friendliness. ...
4. Longer burn time.


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