Rose Flavored Jelly

I normally only make jam...i find jelly to be too fussy. You have to strain and spend a lot of time on how it LOOKS As opposed to how it tastes...and I generally find that annoying. However, in the case of roses, violets, and lavender...I make an exception and create jelly instead.

Strange flavors to some, I know, but I love them...as do many of my friends and family.

Of course, different roses bloom at different times. ..so, if you decide you want to make it you have to wait for the roses to bloom and then...once they do you have to be quick about it.

My favorite rose is one in my mom's yard. It blooms from the end of May to the beginning of June. And then it is done. Sad really. But it smells so heavenly it is perfectly fine that it only last a few weeks. 

So, for years I have been trying to keep its wonderfulness around longer. I made perfume out of it with vodka.. but I find that I use it all far too quickly! But then I came across a very old recipe for rose flavored jelly...with my love of making jam...it was a quick decision to make. 

The recipe is simple and it works great! (I found it on pintrest):

Gather 2 cups of rose petals. Make sure you use petals from roses that have not been treated with chemicals. 

Next, rinse the petals thoroughly. I usually do this twice just to be sure they are very clean.

Then, in a heat safe and non reactive bowl, pour 2 cups of boiling water over your rose petals. 

You will need to let the petals steep for at least 30 minutes or for up to 24 hours. I let mine steep for 24 hours as I wanted it to taste as much like roses as possible. 

Once the petals have steeped for as long as you wish you strain the petals from the liquid. The petals will have lost nearly all their color at this point. It looks very strange. 

After you have all the liquid in a bowl strain the liquid again through a fine strainer...just to get anything that might have slipped by. I like to use a very fine tea strainer--but that is just because I generally have that handy.

You will now have 24 hours to make your jelly. ..if you keep the liquid in the refrigerator. You could freeze the liquid in ice trays. This would give you a longer time in which to wait to make the jelly. I personally don't so the freeze me this mainly because the one time I did it I just used all the ice to flavor my water for several weeks...which was delightdul, but resulted in a lack of rose flavored jelly.

When it comes time to make the jelly you will need your two cups rose liquid, one 3oz package of liquid pectin, a half cup lemon juice (or lime if you prefer), and 4 cups of sugar  (I like to use vanilla sugar myself) and one tablespoon of butter (the butter is an "old farm wife" jam trick my mom taught me.)

Put the sugar, lemon juice, and rose liquid in a stainless steel (or other non reactive) pot on the stove, turn on high heat, and stir until the proto-jelly reaches a rolling boil you cannot stir down. 

Cut the pectin packets (I use certo...it sets up very well) and add to the proto-jelly. Stir for another 2 minutes. It is going to be foamy...very foamy. Keep stirring and add about a tablespoon of butter. 

Continue to stir. 

Once the two minutes have elapsed turn off the heat and continue to stir until all the foam is gone. (Most of the foam will be taken care of with the lack of heat, the rest of the foam will be taken care of as you stir because of the butter you added.)

Then jar and seal as desired. 

It is very tasty in my opinion...even if it doesn't taste exactly how they smell. 

Happy crafting!

Seckmea

Keeping Dream Catchers Unique

It can be difficult to keep an item "fresh" or continue to keep each one unique... especially when you have been making an item for a long time which is the case for me and Dream Catchers.

When I learned to make Dream Catchers I was taught to make a hoop with a 9 inch to 12 inch diameter and as close to circular as possible. But soon I grew bored with such a regimented size and shape. And I started to make them larger and larger. At one point I also started to change from nearly circular shapes to adding tear-drop shaped or oval-shaped hoops depending on my mood. The largest one I ever made was a three foot tall tear drop...it was incredibly difficult to keep the tension while I wove the net and I decided then that bigger may not always be better. In addition, I realized that not everyone has space for something that large in their homes.

Originally the hoop was covered in a neutrally colored hemp fiber...making the beads and feathers focal points. But soon I started to use other colors...and in some cases other fibers...I love bamboo yarn for the soft sheen it adds to the look of a Dream Catcher hoop.

And of course different feathers and beads add to the uniqueness of each Dream Catcher.

I have always tried to tailor the color and bead choices to the person I was making the Dream Catcher for (though, admittedly there have been times when I made something far more gaudy than the person would have normally chosen for themselves....I just love sparkle and color and have a hard time resisting them). This is why I love making them for babies...they find the abundance of colors and shiny objects interesting rather than reminiscent of a dragon hoard or crows nest.

But, a few years ago I was given a spool of copper wire...and I fell in love. (I have probably talked about copper already) It is so easy to manipulate! It has a soft warm shine to it and looks good with a multitude of other colored items! You can get the stuff that always looks like copper or the stuff that naturally ages to a verdigris petina. It also comes in different weights so you can use it for many different applications. You can also get it in colors other than copper...so many options...

So, naturally copper started to find its way onto my Dream Catchers. It is hard to restrain myself...but I remind myself that the other items on the Dream Catchers are also important.

And then there are bells...

Now, not everyone likes bells...so that needs to be considered. Also, not ever bell sounds the same or has the tone you want/like so it is good to check each bell and make sure you like it...and if being put with others, that you like how they sound together. I personally adore bells...especially tiny brass bells and I put them on all types of hanging decorations...I would wear them too...but they turn my skin colors.

Below are some pictures of Dreams Catchers where copper has been used in abundance...

Happy Crafting
Seckmea

Sensory gifts

I have a nephew who chews his nails so much they bleed. His mother, my sister, recently asked me to make him something he could chew on instead of his nails.

After some research we found some silicone beads meant to be used as teething devices. We bought several.

I then asked him his favorite color...and he informed me that he liked more than one color and proceeded to give me a list. After hearing his list I was reminded of this lovely over-dyed hemp cording I had. So, I showed that to him and asked his thoughts. He said it was wondeful (he has excellent taste) and I proceeded to make him a necklace and attach the beads.

This first necklace was a hit, but after he wore it for several days the beads came off. It turns out that version one was a bit to short for comfort and the beads weren't attached well enough to be chewed on for long periods of time.

So, after carefully considering the issues I created a second version. We will see if this one works better.

Dream Catchers

Dream Catchers are fun and easy to make...once you have had some practice. They are great gifts for children...especially if they have nightmares.

I learned to make Dream Catchers when I was 10 at Girl Scout Camp. My first one was a monstrosity of plastic beads, twine, and white "craft" feathers. It had a metal hoop as its core.

The first one I made didn't last too long. I had over tightened the weave (and as we all know twine is both scratchy and weak...plus, I also couldn't stop touching it...I hadn't even gotten it home before it exploded, sending beads all over the cabin and breaking my heart.

However, I was already hooked. I had to make a new one. A better one.

And so, I convinced my parents to take me to the craft store (my mom was admittedly very indulgent about craft stores) and I spent my entire summer allowance on colored hemp, fancy czech glass beads, smaller and more colorful feathers, a premade metal ring about 6 inches in diameter. I was very proud of the resulting item and it hung in my bedroom for years and I didn't think about making another one...for a while at least.

Then, one day in the summer of my 17th year...a girl I knew explained that she had learned to make Dream Catchers from her grandmother and her grandmother always made the "ring" out of a cedar branch that was woven into a circle...this was something that I had never considered... but I was intrigued and went about gathering the materials so that she could show me the technique.

It soon became apparent that with cedar as the base of the hoop there wouldn't be anymore "perfect" circles...but I rather liked that the new way created unique hoops.

With the new materials I also had to change the order of the steps because the hopps shape changed depending on the tightness of the weave, so I now covered the hoop after I finished the weave instead of before.

In addition, her grandmother didn't use knots in the weave as I had been taught in girlscouts...I liked the new look and the fact that you could tighten or loosen it just before finishing to get exactly the look you wanted. Extra customization instantly! I was of course in love.

 Now, whenever I know someone who would like one...or a child who doesn't have one yet...I make one for them. Here are two recent ones. (As always...I tend to use a lot of bright colors and shiny things!---it can be fun to add rocks, shells, and other things as well)

* these pictures decided to not be in order

Happy Crafting,  seckmea

Capes: Revisited

Nothing says "great job" or "fantastic gift" than the request for the same item again...either for the same individual or for someone else.

Last week my brother requested I make a cape, like the one I made for his son, for one of his son's friends.

I was of course happy to do so. However, his vague "measurements" were less than helpful. Honestly, how am I, the artist, supposed to make the perfect super hero cape from "they are a little shorter than my son, but not much"--I tried to explain that I needed something clearer than that otherwise the cape could be too big (not such a problem as the child could then grow into it) or...too small (and that would be horrible).

I like giving gifts...it is one of the many things that I love about crafting...you then have items personalized for another person which end up making wonderful gifts they could not otherwise have gotten...it is a matter of pride to me that I give good gifts. If I make you something it is because I want you to use and love the item...I don't give too small capes to children...even if I don't know them. 

However, after consulting with my sister-in-law I was able to get a roughly good estimate of the child's size. 

I then went and got fabrics in two of the favorite colors (pink and purple) and decided to amp up the girly factor I would also add a ruffled satin ribbon detail. Of course, I decided this and bought the ribbon without considering that I would want to ruffle it by hand...so a cape that would have take a half hour...actually took over an hour...what can I say...I am a perfectionist and wanted the ribbon ruffled just so. 

I think it turned out rather well. I particularly like the ribbon. quite pleased. And have decided I will probably have to do that to a quilt one day...but one that I keep for myself of course. Once finished it languished on my desk for three days before I finally managed to mail it out to my brother...it was apparently a hit! and my reputation as a supreme gift creator and giver is still safe.

Special Inspiration

Inspiration is something that can strike swiftly. Suddenly, from out of the blue you have an idea, wholly formed, and the passion to bring said idea to fruition. And then, sometimes it is slow. You find one aspect of the idea but not the rest...and you realize you will have to coax the idea out of its hiding place...as is the case of this latest project I have been working on.

A while back I was given a lovely gift of an abalone shell...it is beautiful and reminds me of my second favorite environment on earth...the ocean. And it also reminds me of the wonderful friend who gave it to me. A gift like this is definitely something I cannot resist making into art.

But what to do with it?

It has been sitting, slowly gathering dust for months...and today, while at work...it finally came up with an idea or two. So, at lunch i quickly scribbled down my ideas on some scratch paper. Still not precisely sure if I will make it into one of the ideas I came up with or if I will go in another direction....but, perhaps I will start gathering the materials I think I will want to use and go from there.

Happy Crafting,
seckmea

Origami Boxes

As a child my parents encouraged all of my siblings and I to explore other cultures. Some of the ways we did this was through learning history and trying new foods. But my favorite way was learning about their art.

When I was12 my dad introduced us to Origami, the art of folding paper. He taught us to make a simple box out of paper.

I was never super fantastic at origami. I only really learned to make about 7 shapes. But I liked making the boxes as unique gift boxes for small items ... especially for family.

My younger brother Matthew however fell in love with the art form. He has mastered HUNDREDS of forms. Buying Christmas gifts for him has become increasingly difficult as most books on origami are far below his skill level (if he hasn't already done them all). And his paper preferences are subtle and hard to quantify for those who are not also origami masters. (And I LOVE paper...but I still sometimes disappoint him with my choices).

My brother still loves to make paper boxes as well. He uses them for gift boxes as well...but his are far more fancy than mine. He makes lovely roses to put on top.

The other day he asked my dad and me to help him make a bunch of them up. Here are the results.