Monday, September 2, 2013

Getting Things Knocked in the Head

Have you heard that phrase? It means to get things finished, to accomplish difficult tasks. Today I finished the infinity scarf! The pattern is at Lacy Crochet -- click over. I added some beading along one long side.
It's not really this blue:
Nor this green. It's in between. It turned out really well, and I'm pleased. It'll be for sale Saturday.
To keep the energy going this morning, and to celebrate Labor Day, Adam made apple fritters. (The recipe is here.) We watched The Great British Bake-Off last night, and it inspired him.
Saturday afternoon I made some lip balm for the market. They look like this when they're finished:
The company I buy these small jars from calls them mushroom jars.
I had 13 jars, and I tried to make the right amount to fill only those jars, but I had some left over. I looked around for something to put the remainder into. Julia and I each already have a nice pot of lip balm in our bathrooms. Then I found my little seashell soap mold. "Why not?" I thought.
You can see they turned out perfectly!! They're really lovely. But ... what in the world do I do with lip balm shaped as little seashells? I mean, that's not how you usually use lip balm, y'know? They should be in something.
(Sorry this one is fuzzy.)
The soaps I made in that same mold didn't turn out well. I'd love to be able to use it for lip balm. If any of you have any bright ideas about how I can package this balm for selling, please let me know!
The not-so-lovely soaps
This morning Beau wanted to participate in school. He's fond of biology, I guess.
And speaking of doggie pictures, here's one from Saturday's farmers market. My friend Phyllis, who bakes doggie biscotti, holds a treat bag of biscotti while her dog Sophie, and Sandy and Beau, look on earnestly.
So we've been busy. I've already started another scarf, made with ribbon. It's the time of year when I should be knitting or crocheting at every available moment.

8 comments:

Pom Pom said...

Your scarf is beautiful, MK! I'll have to think about the lip balm packaging, but it IS very pretty!
Oh, the pups look so fun! Sandy is the perfect size and Beau is a cute little rascal!

Sarah said...

While I enjoy knitting year round it sure seems like I want to do it even more as fall and winter creep in :) I love those little mushroom jars.

Unknown said...

I know that some people use solid hand lotion bars. Would that work or is the lip balm too soft.

GretchenJoanna said...

I have no ideas about how to package the balms - but I have a question: How long do the natural beauty products keep without going rancid? Have you had a problem with that, or do yours always sell promptly? A friend used to make me various things, which I always used so sparingly that they went bad before I finished half the bottle.
Of the commercial products I've bought, Burt's Bees will turn rancid, but then I often have left them in the car and it gets hot...

Carolyn said...
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Carolyn said...

I'd put those seashell lip balms into individual glassine bags or make envelopes of parchment or vellum - something translucent. Then you could add a cute tag that said something like "lip balm from the bee and the sea." They'd be nice in a guest room basket, or in a tiny dish in the bathroom. I'll bet if you displayed them like that on your table, the customers would be delighted and come up with ideas of their own of how to use them. I would rub a little shell on my lips. Just because they aren’t portable doesn't mean they aren't useful.

M.K. said...

Excellent suggestion, Carolyn! I'll look for bags that will work. I should transfer the creativity to the buyer a little! :)

Carolyn said...

Exactly!