-power outage found me reading in bed the old fashioned way-

-a storm was brewing yesterday-

new ride!

even though my shop is only about 1 mile from my house, i constantly found myself driving there.

i had a bicycle with which i tried to ride to my shop - yet it being a road bike on dirt roads - i had some troubles, to say the least.

so i found it on craigslist and was my birthday gift to myself this year.

please welcome:

we have already had some great rides to the shop, neighbors etc - even in the snow we recently had while my car was broken down.

here's to many adventures yet to come!!!

also - i am taking name suggestions…………….

salvaged vs. reclaimed

with the trend of salvaging, re-purposing, re-claiming, re-cycling, up-cycling, etc…
i have wondered what the difference between salvaged goods and reclaimed goods are.

according to thefreedictionary.com:

sal·vage  (slvj) n. 1. a. The rescue of a ship, its crew, or its cargo from fire or shipwreck. b. The ship, crew, or cargo so rescued. c. Compensation given to those who voluntarily aid in such a rescue. 2. a. The act of saving imperiled property from loss. b. The property so saved. 3. Something saved from destruction or waste and put to further use. tr.v. sal·vaged, sal·vag·ing, sal·vag·es 1. To save from loss or destruction. 2. To save (discarded or damaged material) for further use. re·claim  (r-klm) tr.v. re·claimed, re·claim·ing, re·claims 1. To bring into or return to a suitable condition for use, as cultivation or habitation: reclaim marshlands; reclaim strip-mined land. 2. To procure (usable substances) from refuse or waste products. 3. To bring back, as from error, to a right or proper course; reform. See Synonyms at save1. 4. To tame (a falcon, for example).

according to this - i feel like its pretty much the same. but i may be wrong.

do you actually yourself have to do the rescuing of materials when you use them to legitimately be called salvaged - like the wood i got from the old barn before my father in law burnt it to the ground?
what about the old church pews that were sitting in someones garage for years and years until they were given to Robert for my use? are they salvaged or reclaimed, or don't fall into the category at all?

is there a difference?
and if so - how?
what you all think??


what - if there is a difference - would you label things you make from goods you find that used to be something and somewhere else, that you are reusing to make something else with?

tax time - oh my

these last couple of days were spent going through all of Turner Construction's receipts 

and have sorting out all the tool/small equipment purchases for 2012 as our cat lay snoring away in her bed.

i have been learning how to use Quick Books, how to change all the wrong account numbers to the right ones per his accountant's wishes, and many other things i had no idea about, like converting estimates into invoices and balancing everything out in the end. i hear its important.Robert has now given me the job of doing Turner Construction's books from now on.i am not totally sure how i feel about it yet. on the one hand i am learning a lot of valuable skills and information that i will one day - hopefully - be able to use if my business gets off the ground. on the other hand it is practically torture for me to sit at a desk in front of a computer for hours on end. yet i also know, that if i do the books and keep up with it, it won't be hours on end as it has been these past few days.all in all, i am happy to be able to help Robert out in this way and be more involved in his everyday doings. and who does not like to spend time with Robert?

DIY - buttermilk

Robert had some venison in the crock pot. it smelled amazing.

this somehow brought up a hankering for corn bread in me.

when i went into the pantry there was no corn meal

mother-in-law to the rescue.

then, when i got back home and started adding the other ingredients i realized…

-i have no buttermilk-

after a short moment of panic i decided to just make it myself.

1 TBLS of white vinegar or lemon juice per cup of milk

wait 5 minutes

voila:

-buttermilk-

the cornbread - gluten free - was delicious. even robert liked it.
he is always so apprehensive of my gluten free baking.

new life

as a little christmas present i received an amaryllis bulb from a dear dear friend. 

it looked so dry and dead.

when we got back from Germany i planted it in a pot.

watered it.  waited.

it is so amazing to see life spring up from within.

i cannot wait to see it grow and -one day- bloom.

my other job

when not working at my studio or at home - i am a line/prep cook at the Inn at Willow Grove.

here a few snapshots of tonights doings:

-salmon spring roll with parsley puree, tomato and bacon-

-roasted beet salad with charred beef, horseradish, scallion, blue cheese dressing-

-arugula salad with pomegranate, manchego, chile-pecan brittle and lime vinaigrette-

-'happy birthday' apple tart with hard sauce on side-

legs

-red legs for stools - made from salvaged oak fence boards - finished-

-and some white legs - still need a few coats of milkpaint-

i love it here

-the view from my shop is ever changing, always gorgeous-

a love-hate relationship

-i love my dust collector - it does amazing work-

-yet cleaning is out is a big pain in the ass-

-so much dust, beautiful as it may be-

-a few sneezes later - all packed away in 3 large dog food bags - curtsey of my neighbor tom- 

if you have a ding in your wood….

-once in a while you get a ding in the wood-

-a damp cloth and an iron will do wonders-

-the grain will raise up-

-sand it down - you will never know the difference-

fixin' things

-installing a new battery in my car-

-it was cold- 

-freezing, actually-

-installing new dishwasher-

heat!

on cold days like today,

 i am so thankful to have this little wood stove up at the shop.

it burns my scraps that i've saved all year round and keeps me warm.

most of the time.

stool sample

this is the test stool. the seat is a little smaller and the legs a little shorter than the final stools, 

as i was trying to get all the angles to work together just right.

and most times - when you cut something off to make it right - it just gets a little smaller

last week

fresh off my newly dried computer from last weeks doings:

its alive!!

with the GREATEST pleasure it is announced: 

i am writing this post from my formerly drenched Macbook Air!!!

it spent the last 3 days in a pillowcase, 

swimming in 6 lbs of rice, 

double bagged on our dining table.

i am so very relieved that this worked, you have no idea.

…..now for backing it up on my external hard drive…..

broken chair, spilled vase, drenched....

just as i was about to write my post last night - the pictures of the day had JUST finished loading off my camera - a silly husband attacked me. the chair went crushing away from underneath me, and we were both smack down on the floor - laughing hysterically.

Robert got up to take a picture of me still lying on the floor with pieces of chair scattered all around me when i noticed my leg was getting all wet. a vase full of flowers found its way down in the mess, too. OH my!

all of this was pretty funny until i saw that the water was seeping off the table THROUGH my computer and onto my leg. as the beloved Forrest Gump said - shit happens.

the macbook air is now propped up like a teepee over our heating vent where it has been all night. so today i am going to try what i find recommended on the web (http://macsparky.com/blog/2009/7/23/macbook-scuba-what-to-do-when-your-macbook-gets-wet.html): stick it in a pillow case, place it in a sealed plastic bag filled with rice and hope it sucks the moisture out over the next couple of days.

will keep you posted on the progress.
no pictures from yersterday, sorry - and i was so productive, too!

for now - its off to yoder's to try and find a LARGE bag of rice.... :-(

birthday gift

last night when i got home from a quick trip to see my friend Emily Wingo and her adorable kids in Richmond, VA, i had this baby waiting for me at home that my dear Robert gifted me for my birthday:   

its both beautiful and terrifying to me at the same time: the pressure is now literally on!

old church pews and a girl named thursday

-pews in rack-

-book i am currently reading-

-pews milled- 

-drawing of stool seat-

Robert got these old church pew bench-seats from a customer who was closing down

…..something…. they are about 16-18 feet long and made from old growth pine. 

I milled the first one yesterday and will be making some stools. 

also, Thursday Next is a badass.

WHY??

I decided to start a blog…. never thought I would say those words…. but here it is.

I find myself not taking enough pictures of the things that inspire me or of what I am working on. 

so this is my little journal of doing just that: a picture or two or three will get posted every day of something I did or saw. be it projects in the studio or at home.

unaltered pictures i take with my VERY dusty canon PowerShoot. 

I hope you will enjoy.

Happy New Year - 2013!

    

-fireworks in Binz, auf Ruegen-