Raku

On Sunday I went wandering through the show as usual, making the rounds. When I got to XAZ beads booth, I was surprised to find that Stan had retired and Amy, his former assistant is now the owner/artist. I wasn't sure what to expect, but as I perused the table, I was glad to see favorite bead styles still available, with new ones as well.
She has the colors NAILED, and is adding new designs as she has time...I got some little leaves that are absolutely wonderful!
The toggles on the website are extremely droolworthy, and I love the larger focal sized twisted and hammered nuggets...
My photos didn't capture the blue flash that a lot of these pieces have, I'll take some pictures of the pieces I bought and post them soon.

Beads....

surrounded by beads at the RMBS bazaar....
I held out a few things to list on Etsy and the website when I get home, come back and see, flowers, leaves in new colors, and some marvelous vintage brass pieces...

Pushki

Browsing through Etsy I found someone selling pushki seeds....of course I couldn't resist and ordered a packet. They arrived today, and I could smell them the minute I opened the envelope.....ahhhh! I haven't smelled pushki for ten years and it brought unexpected tears to my eyes. I think I will carry the seed packet around in my pocket for a week or so....

Vessels

Garlic

The garlic is almost all up....one variety is coming along a bit slower, not sure if it's the Oregon blue or the Siberian. True to form, I neglected to write down what went where, so I don't know for sure which one it is. I WAS careful to put a colored type next to a white one, so once they bulb out, I'll know what it is. I am really enjoying sneaking little bites of the tops, but it's time to stop....Pastor's birthday is next Sunday, so I think I'll take him a little bag of garlic greens--he loves garlic!

Tiny bunny trail

Ha, bet you thought I was going to talk about miniature rabbits, didn't you?

Au contrair, no mini buns here!
I've been working hard on orders, and it's been slow going...I'll make a few beads, go outside and dig a little, make beads, dig a little...etc. There is nothing like making orders to get the muse whining and stomping her foot, so I indulged just a bit last night....

Smoke

Spring smells different here, a mix of dust, smoke from burning weeds, and the usual whiff from the feedlots when the wind is right....all in all, mostly a dry sort of mix. Home was all moist, musty, ripe earth and sea smell, altogether a different thing.

The garlic is poking up and I've been sneaking a little piece here and there, it hasn't the heat of an onion top, but it's good.
Hopefully my back will do better with the warmer weather, I hate not being able to do everything I want...there's dirt to be dug!

We're canning the two year old beans, it will be nice to have beans ready to go in the summer, without heating up the house. We're done with the small whites, now it's time for kidneys, then the garbanzos. I'm tempted to try some dried peas, but I'm afraid that might just be really weird....anybody know?