Love thy (awesome, veggie-growing) neighbour

- love
http://www.localharvest.org.au/

Lately

I did a yellow dye wash yesterday, it made me so happy to see all those butter-sunshine yellow clothes and fabric on the washing line. Everything is made prettier with a yellow dye.
I finished knitting a cowl which will be available in my etsy shop (link) when I update it eventually ;)
These moonbeads I made yesterday, will also be going into the shop if you're at all interested. such fun.

My Garden Journal

Yesterday I put in my seed order with Digger's Club - silverbeet, kale, parsnip, peas, lettuce, broccoli and... Microgreens! (inspired by M and N's microgreen crop planted in split bamboo!)
I discovered we already have leftover seeds for spinach, roquette, broad beans, carrots, coriander, parsley beets and basil. As I'm going to be here at home for the whole year I'd really like to take care of my garden properly and see if I can provide part of our winter and spring cooking needs. The plants still left in the garden from last year (namely tuscan kale and parsley) I'll let go to seed and see if I can salvage the seeds. Our herb garden of sage, thyme, rosemary and oregano is still going strong and has been for years and a hilarious rhubarb plant that never stops resurrecting itself when it dies every few months.
I'm waiting for a cool day to muck out the chook pen and add it and the compost/leaf mulch to the garden. There is rain and cool weather forecast later this week, I actually get tingly with excitement about rain! For now, in my fan-cool bedroom I am reading Dig, Organic gardening and consulting pinterest for tips and green-thumb advice to make sure I can properly care for my plants this time around.

8/52

::: new beads, fixed overlocker.
::: hey little guy
::: never seen Melbourne so busy

words from the belly

I have been pondering.
Tangled thoughts, intangible, I decided to be patient and wait for them to slow down enough to grasp.
Now I understand. Feel things with your belly said my mind, and my heart agreed.

To feel with one's belly, to me, means to sink deeply into the grounded emotion of a moment, to feel one's cells fill with all five senses of that moment. When I did that, I was looking through photos on my computer and I felt a welling up of emotion and a lump in my throat. It felt so raw, like watching a homebirth video or fighting the waves in a stormy sea. I could feel my whole body.

Today I was listening to Mary Lambert singing about self-love and the last line of the song resonate with me so much 'your sexiness is defined by concentric circles within your wood; wisdom. you are a goddamn tree stump with leaves sprouting out: reborn'. It's true, I find wisdom to be a fine old aphrodisiac. That last quote evoked realisations in me of our need for connection to nature, to gather  knowledge and understanding from nature as we were created to thrive with the seasons and systems of the earth. It is ingrained in us to trust in nature, to reach out and live within it. We are on a circular orbit beginning in nature, living with it, and returning to it.
now, I don't want to rant about our lost connection with the earth, but rather focus on a few inspiring quotes that almost made me burst with joy:

“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.” -Albert Einstein 

go Albert. and Ralph

"Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience" -Ralph waldo Emerson

what pearls of wisdom. learn to live slowly and live slowly to learn...

I think of Matt and Nirrimi, living quietly among the plants, growing their roots deep into the ground and letting their souls breathe. I am always inspired by M and N. 

I am so often mesmerised and in awe of the natural world's ability to live in harmony, to develop techniques for self-improvement and feed off each other.

I think i might even make this a regular post. words from the belly. 

love

liquid breakfast

I have been enjoying smoothies for brekky in this hot weather. Every morning since i got home (partly to remedy the fact that all my clothes are tight post travel), after the usual groggy but pleasant wakeup I pad into the kitchen to think about the contents of my breakfast smoothie. I actually get excited about it. I'm a big fan of green smoothies, but as I also love berries and summer fruit they usually turn a bit murky but taste lovely anyway. My staple ingredients are milled almonds and pepitas, a banana, water and a squeezed orange. I have my favourite recipes to add to this: spinach/lemon/pear/ice, frozen berries/peach/spinach/ice, mango/coconut oil/peach/oats/lemon, or any combination of those ingredients. yum.
this one was spinach, nectarine, banana, water, pepitas, lemon, orange. could have done with some ice as the friction made it a bit warm...

what was left of a berry/spinach/peach mix

yum, again.

Making (and swearing at) Ravioli

I had bright idea the day before yesterday, (i feel strange using words like 'ereyesterday' and 'nudiustertian' both of which mean 'the day before yesterday', so i won't). As i was pottering around the sunny house and perusing pinterest, I felt the need to make pasta from scratch. I have always been the idealist, picturing my some-day house with it's wide, farm-kitchen table, jars of herbs on the windowsill and a floury apron worn while i knead dough and stir multiple pots on the stove. I have never made pasta before, so I consulted pinterest (the well-photographed food makes me more inspired to cook) and began my adventure. I loved the visceral muddle of hand-mixing the eggs into the soft 'well' of flour, then the springy dough to knead. The first part went well and i let it sit for a while as i made the filling.
I had made two batches, one of spelt for mum and I, the other wheat for the boys. The spelt dough and I became friends, it behaved well as i rolled it determinedly and cut out little discs to fill with pumpkin, feta and basil (flowers!). The wheat dough and I did not become friends, however. I guess i was wrong to attempt pasta-making without a pasta-maker, but there may have been a bit of swearing and a lot of sweating in the overheated kitchen and I did not enjoy making the wheat pasta after all.
apparently it tasted good, though. I was worried it would be tough from all the crankiness i put into it.
also, I was let off the dishes thanks to my heavy slog, that was a perk.

7/52

place: 1000 pound bend for oh-my-god-i've-missed-you Melbourne Coffee
me: new exciting bathers (which i wear as clothes)

Inspired by Nature

I want to sew my inspiration from nature into cloth things to wear and to hold, I want to feel like I'm traipsing through Tasmanian forests when I put on that shirt and stooping to cradle a perfect cowrie shell when I wear that dress. I want to feel the excitement and wonder nature provides just when getting dressed in the morning. Clothes made of soft material that are easy to wear but beautiful, detailed but simple. Clothes that have come the full circle from nature and back to nature, worn in nature and worn for nature, for nurture.
I'll show you when something is born from this...

6/52

me: Australian sun, I didn't realise how pale I'd become!
place: cousins enjoying our pool