majoring in phloxophy

the sweet husband's garden is full of blooming phlox right nowand today's cloudy weather is perfect for some flower portraits

it's not really tea

they're "shrubs"it was something I heard on the radio from a local blogger(Cook Local)she was talking about a drink she makes for parties and get togethersit's another choice for her friends who don't drink alcoholand when paired with foods it's as interesting as wineperhaps a more elegant choice than diet coke, lemonade or iced tea


now don't get weirded out: It's made with vinegarbut by the time you actually drink it the vinegar is no longer vinegar
here are the links to her recent posts about shrubs: (and recipes)Rosemary Orange Drinking VinegarShrubs (or Drinking Vinegars)


they're easy to make, and once made, will keep in the fridge for several monthsone jar will make about 25 servingsthese pictures are of my shrubs after the first stepthe green one is lime/basilthe middle one is rhubarband the last one is cherry blueberry


I'll show you a finished one next week .... and I'll be happily sipping it mixed with sparkling water


... and that's my tea on Tuesday post for today ...what are you having for tea? Or not?if you've posted it on your blog, just mention it when you leave a commentand we'll be happy to come around and ooh and ah over it :)

I am partly to mostly unplugged in this month of August. Stop by for tea on tuesdays or random summer snapshots. I will make the rounds and see what you're up to ... but to be quite honest I have been too lazy for much else :)

seattle love

a day trip... downtown ...it was a perfect day

hens and chicks tea

I'm taking my tea in the company of hens and chicksthe weather has finally turned summeryand the garden is where we all want to be
august is a special time for usthis year we will have been married a sweet sixteen yearsand it's been eleven years since we moved to the pacific northwestit seems that we mark the years with months of august

a life without love is like a year without summer- swedish proverb

what is your tea today?

thank you, as always, for stopping by!happy tuesday and happy august too!

christmas ornaments

... aren't just for christmas trees



hang them in your garden for a little bit of bling under a shady tree

bricolage moo cards

I needed some business cards - quickand I prefer the "moo" sized cards(roughly 1x3 inches - "roughly," because they are a UK invention = metric)the size is perfect for bloggers or etsians, since all you need is your web address


I used the "bricolage" techniqueor as Thomas Edison said:"to invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk""bricolage" is just a fancy word for making something out of bits and pieces and odds and ends
making something out of nothing
I don't have pictures for the step by step, but basically what I did was:pre-print what I wanted to say, using a mailing label formaton the reverse side - adhere ripped pieces of magazine images, paper scraps and book textlightly gessoed over all of itstamped randomlyused bubble wrap and paint to add texture
and ended up with this:


2 sheets of heavily glued, collaged, painted, messy card stock


but wait, that's not allonce you cut them into smaller shapes, you have magic!each one a mini art pieceafter cutting them down, I went back and added gold edging (gold leaf pen)and in any bare spots, I added a few more bee stamps


mission accomplished - business cards in one day!these are to promote my husband's gardenhe's on the local garden tour this year, so I started a garden blogthat's three blogs now ... call me crazy :)