Collar Necklaces

These little babies have been all the rage, and ever since I made this one last year (I haven't posted any of my own photo projects of it...), I've been wanting to make more. They're great to use up any leftover skeins and are easy and fast enough to pump out two in a day.

Introducing, Csipke and Betula!

Csipke

Betula

I love the simplicity of Csipke with the little eyelet border, and also love the scallops and fun orange slice pattern of Betula.  I can't decide which of them I like better -- they're both so sweet!

Winter

Winter has been good. Busy, yes, but quite good. The weather has finally turned to real winter, and it is the best.  Last night's winter storm produced 12-16 inches of snow on top of the snow we already had, so this area of MI has officially welcomed the snow season.  Perhaps I'll measure the snow tomorrow -- it is impressive!

male house finch

schooling and tea

Well, for as crazy as I was going with my fiber fanaticism, it did come to an end and not by choice. Part of training to be a naturopath involves other co-requisites like human anatomy and physiology, and so that is now taking up my life. Don't get me wrong -- I absolutely LOVE A&P. In fact, it is one of the only studies that I can easily and happily read the textbook in.  Yes, I am talking about those boring textbooks that cost way too much and have 1000 pages in them.  Somehow (thankfully), I love my A&P book.  It also happens that I love learning about the human body, so I think that that definitely helps. Regardless, not having time to play with fiber has been challenging.  I spent a good hour and a half last night knitting further on my fingerless mitts I've been working on, and boy, did that feel nice! It was definitely a treat to be touching mohair and silk, that's for sure.

On a separate note, I've been making lots of teas! They've been an absolute blast to make, and they're super fun to drink, too.  Here are a couple of pictures of my latest teas that I've added to the Apothecary section in my Etsy shop.

Women's Nourishment Tea

Immuni-Tea

Lemon & Lavender Relaxation Tea

Fiber

Fiber has all but taken over my life. I spend nearly every waking moment either spinning or knitting, though I do find that my yarn stash is growing, which means I need to knit more than spin! Ever since the truly cold weather hit here in MI, I have turned into a complete hermit, typically only stepping away from my fibery-fondness to do basic things like heating the kettle for tea and such. It's great.

We also found a suitable stud for Mel, our REW French angora.  His name is Archibald and he is a Cinnamon French.  We anticipate new, fluffy, fiber-filled babies toward the end of March. I can barely wait! Mel is a proven doe, so I am hopeful that she doesn't kill her litter like I've heard other bunnies doing.

One of my most recent projects in the fiber department has been a triple plied yarn of two different colors of angora (Elise is well-known in our household for growing different colored coats after each shearing) and metallic sewing thread. I plan on putting it in my Etsy shop just as soon as I get it skeined up and take some decent photos of it.

In the meantime, here is a little teaser shot.  You can't see the thread as well as I had hoped through the camera lens, but in person it is lightly glitzy and totally feminine.

and a little close-up...

I hope all of you are well, happy, and enjoying the season!

Elderberry Syrup -- The Recipe

The local artisan market went very well and I sold two bottles of my elderberry immunity blend syrup.  I am almost finished with my own syrup, so I figured I should make some more, and by popular demand, share the recipe!

Elderberry Syrup -- Immunity Blend

Ingredients:
1/2 c. dried elderberries
3 c. filtered water
2 Tbs roughly chopped ginger
15 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tsp dried and chopped echinacea root**
1 tsp dried and chopped astragalus root**
4 Tbs raw apple cider vinegar
2 c. raw honey

**Both echinacea and astragalus are optional in this syrup as the elderberries do a great job at being antiviral, but they do add some serious immune-boosting properties, and that's why I like to use them!

Instructions:
In a medium-sized pot, add all of the ingredients except for the honey and vinegar.  Slowly bring to a very, very light simmer -- you shouldn't see any little bubbles that are typical of a simmer.  Decocting the herbs in this way preserves their medicinal qualities.  Decoct for approximately 1 hour and then use a potato masher to mash up the contents.  Strain out the plant material and let it cool (it is important that it cools completely so that you don't destroy the beneficial qualities of the raw vinegar and raw honey).  Once cool, add the honey and vinegar and stir to combine.

For adults, take 1 Tbsp every hour when ill. For maintenance, take 1 Tbsp per day.

For children ages 6-12, 2 tsp hourly when ill or 2 tsp daily for maintenance.

For children 2-5, 1 tsp hourly when ill or 1 tsp daily for maintenance.


Enjoy!

Elderberry Blend Immunity Syrup

'Tis the season for colds and flu ... what in the world is a girl to do?



... Make elderberry syrup, of course!

The recipe I made is a classic elderberry syrup but with the addition of a couple other immunity-boosting ingredients.  I found some great, concise information on the herbs through Mountain Rose Herbs and thought I'd share them here.

Elderberry --  Elder is touted as one of the strongest anti-viral herbs. "It's flowers and berries have a long history of use in traditional European medicine...Elderberry's real claim to fame is as a cure for the flu.  Israeli researchers have developed five formulas based on elderbery fruit that have been clinically proven to prevent and ameliorate all kinds of influenza..." (mountainroseherbs.com)

Echinacea --  Echinacea (specifically angustifolia) "is herbal medicine's first choice of treatment for colds."  It works specifically through stimulation of the immune system.  "...administered in times of need, this helpful ally can assist the body's immune system in treating a wide range of disorders". (mountainroseherbs.com)

Astragalus -- "...research shows that simple preparation of astragalus...stimulate[s] the immune system in several ways.  It increases the number of stem cells in bone marrow, and encourages their maturity into active white blood cells. [Astragalus] appears to help signal the white blood cells known as neutrophils to migrate to places they are needed to fight infection.  [Astragalus] stimulates the "germ-eating" white blood cells known as macrophages, activates T-cells and natural killer (NIK) cells, and increases the production of immune globulins.  Usually taken with a variety of other herbs, astragalus...eases chronic respiratory infections..." (mountainroseherbs.com)

It's hard to not just drink this stuff for a little pick-me-up during the day.  It is so darn tasty! I decocted the herbs with a variety of mulling spices to come up with a mouth-watering, natural tonic for boosting your immunity. How perfect! It's good for you and it goes down easily, too!

preparing for the local artisan market

This upcoming weekend is the local artisan market here in Grand Haven, MI.  I've got lots of things to bring along (namely, nearly everything) in my Etsy shop, plus a couple of new things that I finished up over the past week and a half.  Some are not posted yet for sale, so I am going to consider this as an exclusive debut for these new knitted items. 

Aanka

Lisianthus

Bellatrix -- in cherry

Bellatrix -- in white

We had a super fun time with these photos I think especially because there were rabbits involved.  Who doesn't like rabbits, anyway?