Soap Making

I bought a soap making kit from the car boot sale and had a really fun afternoon making the soap.  The set consisted of soap compound, fragrances, marigold petals, lemon grass, Irish moss, 3 soap moulds, pipette and the instructions all for the bargain price of £1. 

 

I wanted to make some for a small gift for my Mum and had dried out all of the lavender from the garden which is one of her favourite things.

 

 

The smell was a real delight.

 

There was enough of the soap compound to make 12 soaps, so I cut it into quarters to make three at a time.

 

 

The compound was cut into small pieces and placed into a microwavable jug and microwaved at 10 second intervals.  It didn't take long to melt at all and then I added a small amount of the fragrance and poured into the mould.

 

 

I then added the lavender, with hindsight I was a little too generous.  Once it was cooled it was left in the fridge for another hour and then removed from the mould.

 

 

It was a fun pastime without the worry of chemicals making the soap yourself.  I will definitely be getting some more soap compound so than I can experiment with the additions.  Pearl or opaque soap can be made by adding talcum powder.  Some additions such as oatmeal or ground almonds can be added to make it a body scrub.  It would be nice to experiment to make some toppers for Christmas gifts.

 

See you soon.

 

 

 

 

Suprise Visit

We had a lovely surprise Friday evening when Victoria our eldest daughter arrived with her little family.  It was so lovely to see them.  It did leave us chatting into the early hours of the morning, enjoying each others company.  Good job I had baked some scones for the weekend..

It isn't very long since they were here last and yet Hector has grown so much and now laughs, one of the most beautiful sounds in the world.

 

He loves his ripple blanket and Victoria always uses the dribble bibs I made for him.  Who can resist a smile like that?!?!

 

 

We had a trip into Skegness and watched some of the street entertainment, always a joy when you have someone to share it with.  Wilbur loved the pantomime characters and is arranging his next visit around the workshops he wants to do.

 

 

We enjoyed the music and the holiday atmosphere...

 

 

Back at home we played some traditional games in the garden which included making Granny run with the kite, be a monster, follow my leader and the old time favourite What time is it Mr Wolf?  The dog is still in training on how to play tag, he is not doing too well, he still has a lot to learn.

 

 

I was grateful that the weather stayed dry but disappointed when you see the temperatures around the rest of the UK, there have been times when it felt more like a winters day than a summers.

 

I have finally made a start on the garden and managed to get the lawns both at the front and the back mowed.  The washing is hanging out to dry and I have made a start on weeding the vegetable plot and planters.   I will take you on a tour on my next post, when  I have tidied up a little.  Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.

 

See you soon.

 

 

Five on Friday - Completed Tasks

After a rough few weeks of dealing with medical professionals we seem to be back on an even keel, thank goodness.  We had a quiet Bank Holiday weekend and a well deserved rest.  We did however, manage to complete the projects started from the week before with a few additions.  All in all a very productive week.  Once again I am joining in with the Five on Friday weekly get together, pop over to lovemademyhome.blogspot.co.uk/ to catch up with everyone.

One

I have now completed the cards that I need for June which includes a Birthday card for Mum and a Fathers Day Card.

 

Two

 

The cupboard door is now aligned and has been lifted into the bedroom.  The colours are perfect for the guest room and matches all the other décor in there.

 

 

Clothes hangers were painted and adorned with a lace shabby chic flower to give it an extra dimension.

 

 

Three

 

The children's clothes hangers were finished and added to the Christmas cupboard, I usually buy them an outfit for over the festive period so this will be the perfect thing to hang them on.

 

 

I will distress them a little later once the paint has settled.

 

Four

 

The burlap picture is now complete, the buttons were stitched on a card secured on the back to hide all the stitches.  It is the perfect match for a chair that I had done previously.

 

 

Just need to decide where to hang it.

 

Five

 

Finally I have had a few sessions of jam making to stock up the cupboard.  We are great fans of jam with scones, an easy make for when we have visitors so nice to have some in hand.

 

 

Blackcurrant, some of which has already gone to my parents as it is one of their favourites.  Made using tinned blackcurrants, a really cost effective way of making it.

 

 

Traditional strawberry using fruit that had been reduced in the local supermarket.

 

 

Pear and ginger, using some pears up that had been lingering in the fruit bowl, waste not want not...

 

 

This was an experiment using a very large tin of oranges but worked incredibly well.

 

We have tried and tested them all strawberry came top for my husband, the pear and ginger for me although we were quite partial to the blackcurrant and then the orange with the added port had a lot going for it...

 

 

The rain has stopped today so I am hopeful of getting some jobs done in the garden.

 

See you soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Car Boot Treasure

Thank you so much for all your wonderful comments wishing me well.  I am certainly feeling a whole lot better, the pain is no longer unbearable so at least I can function properly.  I get my ears syringed next Monday so hopefully that will complete the treatment and I will be back to normal.

Due to where we live there is always such a horrendous build up of traffic on a bank holiday and the height of the summer season.  We therefore have a tendency to stay local to avoid the traffic jams and crowds.  We did manage to get the lawns cut and a little weeding, it was certainly nice to get into the garden and potter.  A neighbour of my parents had a variety of surplus plants, he popped them on the drive for anyone who wanted them for free.   We did pick up a couple to plant in pots for the patio,  a lovely way to get rid of surplus growth.  There are several allotments locally and there has been talk of a swap shop been started to exchange seeds and plants, a really good idea that I hope gets started.

We did have a stroll around a local car boot sale and got lucky with a few things, it certainly passed a couple of hours as we were chatting to friends and neighbours who we don't see very often.

I have been wanting to try my hand at making soap for awhile but whist I love the idea of experimenting  with smell and texture I was reluctant to use chemicals so when I came cross this wonderful box it is the perfect start to my new adventure.

 

Everything I need to make soap, that will pass away a couple of hours on this very wet and windy day and for the bargain price of £1.

 

I also bought a set of postcards for 10p, I thought they may be useful to make cards or beautiful additions for a scrapbook.

 

 

£1 bought a packet of quilt clips, a great addition to the craft room.

 

 

Finally £20 bought a beautiful set of  Oakwood Staffordshire Tableware.  I do need to find some plain plates and such to add to the set but I am thrilled with it for everyday use. 

 

 

 

 

The storm that has been passing through has been horrendous here with damaging winds and torrential rain my heart goes out to all the people holidaying here no fun with children that is for sure.  What is weather like where you are?

 

See you soon.

 

 

 

Five On Friday

This week has been busy mainly dealing with medical professionals so everything I have tried to do this week has remained unfinished.  I have a terrible earache, whilst there is no infection I have compact wax that needs to be loosed prior to having them syringed.  Dad is back to having the community services visit and my husband has had a increase in his medication which all takes time to order and have delivered.

 

Not a great week, who knew earache could be so painful.

 

Two

 

I have started to make cards that are needed for next month but still have a Fathers Day card to make and a Birthday card for me dear Mum to complete.

 

 

I did manage to use some buttons on a couple, which made me smile.

 

Three

 

My husband and I have finally got to work on the cupboard that we bought some time ago.  It is now painted and had the new handles put on.   Just some minor adjustments to the doors as they are not shutting properly and it will be complete, ready to be lifted  into the bedroom.

 

 

I posted about buying this cupboard on 16 Aug 2014 but am having trouble linking back so that you can see the before picture.  I am ashamed to say it has taken so long for us to do something with it.

 

Four

 

I have started to make a piece of artwork, using  printed burlap to cover an old canvas.

 

 

Some gold buttons and an old brooch completes the new look.  Just need to add the twine at the back for hanging.

 

 

Five

 

Finally I am in the process of making some hangars for the Grandchildren for little additions to their Christmas stockings.

 

 

A start has been made painting them and I have sorted out some Cath Kidston stamps and fabric to finish them, giving them a vintage shabby look.

 

 

A topsy turvey kind of week, with nothing really being accomplished. 

 

I am joining Amy over at Love Made My Home for the weekly get together.  Hopefully everyone will have accomplished far more than me.  Thank you for your wonderful comments and for your lovely e mails enquiring where I was, sometimes life just takes over like this week.  I will catch up with everyone as soon as can.

 

See you soon.