Beaded Hoop Earrings From a Pinterest Tutorial With Link

Last night, I tried another Pinterest tutorial for their Crystazzi beaded earrings. Crystazzi is a brand of glass crystal beads sold at Michael's craft store. I did not have the beads or sizes specified in the tutorial; however, I followed the patterns and added some variations to come up with the earrings seen in this post. All of these were handmade, following the basic techniques in this tutorial, just substituting different size and shape beads. For the last pair, done in coral, I added additional beads to make them bigger, after I got the hang of the technique. I would rate this tutorial excellent and very easy to follow. I did a version using very thin copper wire, as well as some using tigertail beading wire. If you use the beading wire, you will need crimp beads and a crimping pliers. Here is a link to the Pin. Click on the pin to follow the link to Michael's and see the tutorial. The tutorial is free, but you can buy the recommended supplies there: Pinterest Earring Tutorial

All of the earrings I made, along with other jewelry and scented drawer sachets, can be found online at Tundra And Taiga

Transplanting Sunchokes

Sunchokes Coming Up

Last spring, in the beginning of June 2014, I bought some sunchokes, a native, Michigan root vegetable from the Allen Street Farmer's Market in Lansing and I planted them in my yard. Most of the bulbs got dug up and eaten by squirrels, but 3 plants survived and grew to a height of about 6 feet during the summer. Today, I went out to mow the lawn, and I noticed the plants had proliferated. I dug up 7 bulbs with a trowel to take over to my community garden plot and transplant in a sunny place. Sunchokes are also known as Jerusalem Artichokes. Here is a link to a Wikipedia article about these plants: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem_artichoke

Sunchokes Dug Up For Transplanting

 Here are my sunchoke bulbs dug up and ready to plant. I could cook and eat them at this size, but I want to have a bigger yield. When I was in college at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, I was a student in the dietetics program and we prepared local, roasted sunchokes, mixed with potatoes, and they were delicious! We simply washed and sliced them into 1/4-1/2 inch coins, tossed them with sliced yellow potatoes, olive oil, coarse salt, and Italian seasoning, and then roasted them in the oven on a sheet pan at 400 degrees for about 40 minutes. They were nutty and buttery.

In a Nice, Sunny New Home

A Cold and Cloudy Week

Facing East

 It's been a cool and overcast week here in Lansing, with temperatures in the 40's-60's and lots of rain. Because of the rain, it hasn't been possible to get out and work much in the garden, but I headed over there today to see what was sprouting. Quite a few of the crops I have planted are coming up; however, it looks like there are plenty of weeds and volunteers from seeds in the compost or crops that were planted last year. 4 days ago, I put out tomato and pepper seedlings, and although I think it was too early, they do not seem to be negatively affected by the cool weather. There has been no frost, freeze, or snow though. The weather forecast predicts it will start warming up tomorrow.

Facing West, Wildflower Meadow Section

 This portion of the garden is a mix of native wildflower seeds to attract pollinators. I see some weeds in here, too. I plan to let this section grow as a cover crop and have it tilled up next year.

Turnip Greens

 Here are some turnip greens coming up. I plan to harvest the baby greens for salads and sautes, then thin the turnips and let them mature.

Lettuce, Flowers, and Herbs

Finally, I have some assorted potted plants here. The lettuce is doing well. I have dwarf sunflowers planted along the wooden beam on the left hand side of the picture, but they have not sprouted yet.

Beadsmith 1 -Step Looper Review: A New Jewelry Making Tool

One Step Looper Tool

I got my 1-Step Looper at Michael's craft store about 6 months ago for around 30 dollars, although, you can buy one on Amazon for 21.99 here: http://www.amazon.com/Beadsmith-1-Step-Looper-Pliers-Create/dp/B00BOZ79UO/ref=cm_cr_pr_pdt_img_top?ie=UTF8

This tool has 4.5 star rating for over 300 reviews. Personally, I love the tool and would recommend it; however, I would only give it a 4 star review for the following reasons. When I took it out of the packaging, there were no instructions, although, I did visit a website listed on the back of the box for tips and project ideas. I ended up figuring out the basics in about 10 minutes, but my loops weren't coming out right. I practiced and practices, and still, after about 50 loops, they were lopsided, crooked, or cut too short. Finally, I went to you tube and watched a short video. In the video, she suggests to pull back on your bead while squeezing. Now, this, made all the difference in the world and I was shortly making nearly uniform loops! If you buys this tool, watch the video. It is only 2 minutes long. The video can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUAG8JBltEE

The other thing that is mildly irritating about the product is that the finished loops are not closed enough. I have to go back and finish the loop with a pliers, a minor annoyance, since the finished loops look professional and uniform. Aside from a few minor hiccoughs with use, I am glad I purchased the looper and I would buy it again.

Earrings I Made Using The Looper Tool; They Are For Sale Here https://www.etsy.com/listing/232703277/green-swarovski-crystal-chandelier?ref=shop_home_active_2

Krissy Likes It! Catnip Iced Tea

Krissy Paws The Fresh Catnip Tea

 Whew, today was a busy day down at "Las Vegan Ranch", my community garden plot. My sister and I did a lot of planting, raking, hoeing, and watering. We planted tomatoes, peppers, melons, beans, corn, squash, and more. I am worried it is a little early; however, we have no frost in the forecast for the next 10 days and if it turns cold, I can cover the seedlings with plastic. The big success of the day, though, was my organic catnip iced green tea. I harvested some fresh catnip from the plot and tied it in a bundle with twine, washed it, put the herbs in a pitcher with 4 green tea bags and a pinch of sweetener, then filled it up with hot water from the tap and put it in the refrigerator to steep while it cooled. I served it in a mason jar over ice. Our cat, Krissy, went absolutely crazy for the fresh catnip!

Tomato Cages On Left

Basil, Chives, and Mint

Herb Plants Donated By Meijer

 This post is an update on my garden progress as of May 6th, 2015. I blogged yesterday about the Garden Resource Center giving away free herb plants, and I have a picture of "The Mother-lode" above, a collection of chive, mint, and basil herbs that were donated to the Garden Center by Meijer stores. I also got a small amount of more cool season crops to put in, such as lettuce and cabbage. Unfortunately, most of my greens and early crops I planted last week have been eaten by bunny rabbits.

Garden May 6th 

This shot of the garden shows a small square pen in the foreground. This is the herb garden area with the basil planted in it. I also have dill and fennel seeds planted there in the ground. Below, is a picture of the catnip that was growing on the plot when I first leased it. The person who gardened there last year planted it. I dug some up and planted it at my house and it has really taken off! I plan to brew some catnip iced tea soon and give some to the felines.

 Cantip

 Here are my heirloom tomatoes and peppers at week 5. I plan to put them in the ground today, which is a little early, but there is no sign of a cold snap in the weather forecast and plenty of rain in the days ahead. For tomatoes, I have a mixture of Brandywine, Black Krim, Purple Cherokee, and Early Girl. The peppers are Jalapeno, Poblano, and sweet red peppers.

Heirloom Tomatoes And 

Urban Beautification In Lansing, MI Eastside Neighborhood

Lansing, MI is a town filled with old trees, historic homes and distinctive neighborhoods. I live in the Eastside district and I also rent a large community garden plot there. Currently, there are 80 community gardens that are being leased in the city by the Ingham County Land Bank, plus additional shared gardens organized by the Garden Project. This morning, I drove to the resource center to pick up some plants. Along the way, I snapped some photos from my car that are representative of some of the neighborhood houses. It is a mix of residential and light industrial, with mostly older homes. Some of them are in a sad state of disrepair or abandoned, and that is where the Land Bank and Garden Project is stepping in to revitalize the area. Here are some pictures of the blighted areas. After the first set of pictures, I will show 2 of the larger community gardens that are built where there used to be abandoned homes. My garden is on the block with the last picture, showing the house with the red van. 

Now, here are the photos of the community gardens that are being integrated into the neighborhood. The great thing about this project is that excess food grown in the gardens is also donated to a food bank and distributed into the community, plus the gardens are a great place for people to volunteer and socialize. I often see senior citizens working in the gardens, chatting, and giving gardening advice. These 2 particular gardens are located on Marcus Street, behind Foster Park.

Finally, here are some pictures of the Garden Project Resource Center, also on Marcus Street, in the rear of Foster Park. I was able to pick up some free plants today that were donated by Meijer, mostly herbs like mint, chives, and basil. You need to register online to use the Garden Center and it is for home gardeners and community gardeners. So, if you want to spruce up your home with some flowers or grow your own food, you can register online to obtain free plants and borrow tools from the Garden Center. They have friendly volunteers that have plenty of advice about gardening and cooking your produce.