Please Quiet Down with the Fireworks.

I'm not really into fireworks. I mean, the kind cities shoot into the sky are dazzling, but I don't like the ones people use at home. As a kid, my nephew accidentally burned my side with a sparkler. Yes, a sparkler, you know, the firework that parents let their kids play with because they think they're "safe." Umm... sorry guys, it's still on fire, not safe. (sparklers are totally pretty and sweet looking but I still have a scar so I'll never be convinced they aren't dangerous)

The thing I hate most about these fireworks is that people stock up on them and keep them at home to shoot off whenever they feel like it, just for fun. I know it's already close to the 4th but since it's not actually July yet, please don't shoot off your fireworks. You see, my dear sweet boyfriend has PTSD and we were outside today since the weather was bearable, working on building our kitchen table (is it still a dining room table if you don't have a dining room?) and one of our neighbors shot off two fireworks.

Normally on the 3rd and 4th of July, Jake stays inside, playing video games with a headset on and the volume cranked way up. You know, because fireworks sound like bombs going off which takes him back to Iraq, raises his anxiety levels by a kazillion percent and just make for an all around awful day. So we prepare for it. But when people just want to shoot them off willy nilly, well, not cool neighbors, not cool. If it were possible to tell where it came from exactly I would've called the cops on them because I was so angry.

I get that it's the 4th of July, that it's a holiday weekend, that people want to have their bbq, drink their beer, and shoot their fireworks and have fun. Just wait until the appropriate date please. Also, it's been in the 90s for the past two weeks, can anyone say wildfire?

On a related note; I know it's irrational to get mad at these people for shooting off their fireworks. They're not doing anything wrong (except I think there are laws pertaining to when you can and cannot shoot fireworks), they don't know that Jake has PTSD, some of them probably don't even know what PTSD is. I still find it really frustrating though. I can't make Jake's PTSD go away, and I can't change the world around him so his life could be easier either which sometimes I find really frustrating/overwhelming/hopeless. I'm just thankful that fireworks usually only happen twice a year (the 4th and New Years Eve) and that most days, he only has to deal with the things inside our house and not the outside world too. Life gets so much more complicated when you have to deal with everyone out there, people you don't even know can affect your life. I kind of feel like everyone is a variable in some giant continuously changing math equation that we are all affected by.

It's late, I've had too many peanut butter chocolate bars and now I'm rambling. Time to publish and go to bed. :)

What I Love Wednesday {12}.

1. Hand Painted Blueberries Necklace by tuckooandmoocow.
2. Nicey Jane Collection at mimis.
3. Customized Couple's Magnet by matesrubbish.
4. Make It Do Embroidery Pattern by sarahjanestudios.
5. Dip-Dyed Sari Satchel by RachelElise.
6. Home Sweet Home Pillow House by Pinknounou.
7. Whimsical Origami Crane Necklace by FreshyFig.
8. Not sure where the tights are from but they're awesome. The shoes are here.

I might have to get that embroidery pdf pattern. It is so so cute! I also love the blueberry necklace but I don't wear necklaces as often as I could so I hesitate to buy any. Especially when I already have a favorite necklace.

I'm linked up at Lollipops.

Dog Treats.

We ran out of dog food and dog biscuits the other day. Of course, I didn't notice it until the evening, when all of the stores were already closed (rural towns shut down at 6 on Sundays). So I mixed some leftover chicken, rice, and celery to make Jewels a quick dinner. Since I was already making dog related food items I decided to try making some dog biscuits too. I did a quick google search and since I was out of peanut butter I settled on this recipe.

Ingredients:

2 tsp. dry yeast

1/2 c. lukewarm water

2 T. dried parsley

2 T. minced garlic

1 1/2 c. chicken broth

3 T. honey

1 egg

5-6 c. wheat flour

In order to get it to the correct consistency it took me closer to 7-8 cups of flour but that's probably because I had more liquid since I added the bacon grease that sits in a jar on my stove. It makes dogs' coats shine and Jewels loves the taste. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Mix water and yeast together, let dissolve. 

Add all other ingredients except flour, mix. 

Slowly add in flour, mixing as you go. 

You may need to knead the dough near the end, it gets thick. 

Once it reaches a stiff, thick consistency, roll out on a floured surface until it's 1/4 inch thick. 

Use cookie cutters to cut out biscuits. Dog bone shaped ones would be adorable but since I didn't have any, I used a hedgehog, baby bear, squirrel and whale/snail I got from Ikea. 

Bake biscuits at 350 for 15 minutes, flip, and bake for another 15 minutes or until browned on both sides.

Once cool, put them in a jar or bag. I just put them in the empty bag from the last dog treats we bought since it has a ziploc type close. 

This recipe makes several dozen biscuits, you won't have to bake more for awhile. Plus, they smell super good when baking.

Jewels loves these, she keeps following me around begging me to give her some more. Crazy girl.

How To: Crochet a Rug.

Mine is still a work in progress, I want to make it just a little bit bigger but I LOVE it. It's thick, sturdy, and feels nice under my toes, which I painted just for this picture.

I've been wanting to crochet a rug for awhile so this weekend, I finally did. If you have ever crocheted before, this is super super easy. If not, there are only 3 stitches involved, I'll link videos of them so you can make one too!

I used an old sheet that had turned a little blue in the wash. oops.

First, cut strips of something, an old sheet, t-shirts, whatever you have lying around. These strips are a little wide. I would suggest 1 - 1.5 inches would be a better width.

If the fabric you used is pretty and you like it, then you're ready to go. If not, you'll probably want to dye it. I dyed four batches of different shades of purple. The first had one capful of Rit liquid dye in purple, the next had 3 capfuls, the next had 6, and the last had 10. I followed the instructions on the back of the bottle and opted to do my dyeing in a half full kitchen sink of really hot water. I then washed the strips in my washer and hung them outside to dry. If you have trouble getting the the color off your sink, use some dish soap and vinegar.

The strips lighten up after washing but they still have distinct colors which you can use to make a pattern or a haphazard look to your rug. 

Now for the crocheting part. You'll need to know these stitches:

Chain Stitch
Slip Stitch = sl st
Single Crochet = sc

I used a Q sized crochet hook. I've seen them at a few stores, they're the big giant plastic blue hooks.

Sorry if this is confusing. I sometimes have a hard time reading patterns so this is how it makes sense to me. If this doesn't make sense to you, look up a pattern on how to make a round pot holder or hot pad. It's very similar.

Chain 6, join with a slip stitch to form a circle. This is the center of your rug.
Chain 2, 2 single crochets into each of the remaining 5 stitches, sc in the same space as the ch 2, sl st into the ch 2 to close the circle.
Chain 2, 2 sc into next stitch, 1 sc into next stitch, 2 sc into the next, 1 in the next, repeat all the way around alternating 1 or 2 stitches, sl st into the ch 2 to complete the circle.  (basically it's just a sequence of stitches alternating and repeating like this: 1, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2)
Chain 2, 1 sc into the next stitch, 2 sc in the next, 1 sc in each of the next 2 stitches, 2 sc into the next stitch, repeat all the way around and close with a sl st. (1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 2)
Chain 2, 1 sc into each of the next 2 stitches, 2 sc into the next stitch, 1 single crochet into each of the next 3 stitches, repeat all of the way around, close with a slip stitch. (1, 1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 1, 2)
Keep going along these lines, increasing with each new row.

Once your rug is the size you want, fasten off the end by pulling it through the loop on your hook. Then, darn in the ends by weaving them through the underside and you're done!

Don't worry if you lose count of which stitch you're on, it doesn't have to be perfect, it'll still look good. It's a rag rug, not a sweater :)
I'd also recommend marking your chain two at the beginning of each row so you'll know where to slip stitch when you reach the end of the row, I just used a twist tie.

This project is awesome because it cost under $5. The dye was less than $3 and the hook was just over $1.

If anyone makes a rug please let me know, I'd love to see photos!


I'm linked up at Life Made Lovely.
I'm also linked up at Small Things for the Yarn Along.
I've also linked up at Homemaker in Heels. 

Crocheted Hangers.

I found these awesome crocheted hangers in one of the weird little closets in our house. I think they're awesome and one day when I have some extra time I'd like to try making a few. 

Scenes from a Thursday.

The obligatory tractor display.

Yay! Now that the sewer situation is under control we can finally be real people again and go out in public and do things, you know, since we don't smell bad anymore. The carnival is in town (a block from our house) because it's Fiddle Festival week so we went and checked it out. I really wanted to go on the ferris wheel but there wasn't one. What kind of self respecting carnival has no ferris wheel? They did have a bunch of other rides, although we opted to not go on any of them. Instead, we took part in the eating of lots of deep fried deliciousness.

This is my bloomin' onion. It was huge and delicious. My friend Dani and I once spent a summer going to different fairs trying to find one and we never could. Guess we should've gone to a carnival in podunk Idaho.

Jake got a deep fried pickle. You have to be careful when eating them because the insides of the pickle get really really hot when it's fried. I tasted it, it's kind of weird eating warm pickles but it was good.

Of course, one deep fried pickle does not constitute a meal so Jake got some finger steaks as well.

Here's Jake's arm. He has a full sleeve with a dragon, koi, peonies, and a Japanese phoenix. I love all of the bright colors, especially on the phoenix and peonies.

Near the carnival they have a stage where bands play. Mostly it's just older people singing old country songs with their sweetheart. They have a little dance floor and it's really cute watching the elderly couples and little kids dance. People bring their lawn chairs to sit and listen to the music and I thought these chairs were so cool.

Doesn't Jewels look pretty? She's been shedding her winter coat for the past few weeks. I can't wait til that business is done and there isn't dog hair all over the place anymore.

This is me, mid sentence. It was 81 degrees out yesterday, perfect for drying clothes on the clothesline.

This is one of my favorite dresses, I just call it "The Lobster Dress." I bought it from Anthropologie a few years ago. It looks great with black heels and poofs out when the wind blows too. My favorite part is that it has pockets. I love that!

Our rose bush just shot up one day. I love how plants seem to kind of sneak up on you sometimes. Our peonies (on the right) were starting to die so I cut them back, that's why there is a pile of brown petals on the ground (I didn't quite make it to the gathering up and disposing of them part). Hopefully the peonies will bloom again!

I hope you all have an amazing weekend!


Edit: We went back after dark and got some cotton candy. Jake ate his half, and half of my half. What a butthead.  

Shady Repairmen.

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I don't normally watch Dateline NBC but one night there was nothing on and as I was flipping through the channels I decided to take a look at what that night's Dateline was all about. Chris Hansen was doing his To Catch a Predator thing but instead of creepy pervs he was outing shady repairmen. They took a perfectly fine house, had experts come in and make one simple alteration to the AC, plumbing, garage door, water heater etc., so that they wouldn't work. I mean, these were really simple, easily fixed alterations (such as, they unscrewed the cap off the AC unit). Then they had an actress call around to local repairmen, have them come take a look at it and get estimates on what it would cost to repair it. Of course, there are hidden cameras everywhere. It was insane watching these guys with their stories about how such and such was broken and she'd need to replace the whole thing for $$$. Then of course, Chris Hansen bursts out from behind closed doors and lets them know they've just been caught and will be shown on national television being a shady scammer repairman.

What does this have to do with anything? Well, the sewer is supposedly fixed (I'm not really convinced, we'll see after a few days) but the guy who fixed it, seemed shady. At first I thought that maybe he didn't know what he was doing, or that he wasn't particularly bright. Then I noticed how he never really gave a direct answer when asked a question. Jake pointed out to me that it wasn't that he was stupid, it's that he was looking for opportunities to add onto the already agreed upon price. All he accomplished was making himself seem less trustworthy. I think sometimes people forget that how they are perceived is important. He did the job, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend him to someone else.

Anyway, now that the drains can be used again, I have a lot of laundry to catch up on. If the weather is anything close to the 92 degrees it was today, my clothes will dry nice and fast. I really hope it doesn't get that hot again, I want to finally be able to go and enjoy the fiddle festival now that things have quieted down in my yard.

WILW: Bathroom Edition.

What do I love? I love a lot of things, but what I would really love right now is a shower. It's amazing how you start to not even feel human anymore as you get dirtier and dirtier. I mentioned in an earlier post that we were having sewer trouble. Our landlords have been out, snakes have been rented, couldn't find the problem. So a Mr. Rooter guy was hired, longer snakes were used, couldn't find the problem. Attached a camera to the snake, found the problem. We love the house we rent, it's charming and has some quirks. It's not a cookie cutter cul-de-sac home, it was built in 1920. That means the sewer is from 1920. They used cast iron pipes back then sometimes, which are now collapsed (hopefully in just one location). Anyway, we can use all of the water we want, it just can't go down the drain. Umm...do you know how difficult that is? You can't flush...at all.

Yesterday Jake held the hose so I could at least wash my hair. This photo is of me wringing it out. The Mr. Rooter guy is supposed to come back today to replace the piece of pipe. Hopefully it's the only piece that is collapsed, otherwise they have to dig up the whole back yard (there's already a giant hole in the patio now). Tomorrow we're going to a campground to shower because it's like a jungle in my armpits and I'm not all about that. In the spirit of showers, here are some clawfoot tubs I've found on pinterest:

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Clawfoot shower, I love this! {pinned}

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I'm linked up at Lollipops for What I Love Wednesday. 

Pickled Garlic.

My family has a garlic obsession. We absolutely love the stuff. If a dish could even possibly be cooked with garlic, I add it. I love the taste, the smell, the way it improves the taste of just about anything. When I was pickling asparagus earlier this year Jake told me a story about when he was a kid. His grandpa used to pickle asparagus and he'd put cloves of garlic in the jars. Well, once they ate all of the asparagus, Jake and his brother would fight over the garlic so one year his grandpa pickled a whole jar of garlic for them so they wouldn't have to fight over it anymore. I thought it was a sweet story and the other day when I was at the grocery store I was reminded of it when I saw that garlic was on an awesome sale.

I peeled the skin off the cloves, rinsed them off, put them into clean canning jars, filled them with hot brine (leaving 1/4 in. headspace) and then placed them in a water bath for about 10 min.

Brine:
3 c. white vinegar
1 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. mustard seed
1 Tbsp. dill seed
2 Tbsp. red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp. pickling salt

I pretty much used whatever I could find leftover from previous brine and called it good. You could add red bell pepper, jalapenos, onion, or whatever you think sounds good. To make them sweeter you could use apple cider vinegar and brown sugar. If you don't want to do a hot water bath you should immediately pop them in the fridge. They should be ready to eat in about 3 weeks.

I've linked up at FTLOB for Tasty Tuesday.

25 before 26.

I recently turned 25 so I thought it'd be a great time to start a list like I've seen so many other bloggers do, of things I want to accomplish before my next birthday. That way you have a full year to accomplish these goals. My list kind of turned out looking like a lovestruck middle schooler drew it. Number 15 was the same as 13 so I had to change it. I guess it was getting late and I was spacing out, either that or I really want to learn to make plushies. Do you guys have a list like this?

To Make You Feel My Love.

To Make You Feel My Love is one of my favorite songs. ever. It was written by Bob Dylan and has been recorded by many artists. Garth Brooks has a great version of it (which was nominated for two grammys) but last night I heard the version by Adele and fell in love with the song all over again. It's the kind of song I have an emotional response to because I can feel it in my bones, the music, the lyrics, the magnitude of what is being said. Just beautiful.

Weekend Wrap Up.

This is a really old photo of me but it's one of my very favorites. Always take time to enjoy flowers.

Today is Saturday. I don't even have a job but I'm still thankful that it's Saturday. Saturday means sleeping in, being carefree, being lazy if you'd like, or having as much fun as you can fit into one day.

I'm happy it's Saturday because I've felt awful all week. I can't quite put my finger on what is wrong. I just feel tired, weak and achy (as soon as I typed "achy" I wanted to bust out singing some Billy Ray Cyrus). I don't want to sleep but I don't want to do anything either. I just want to be... to be left to rest. So that's what I've been doing, resting. Except for the bloody noses. I think there is a broken blood vessel in my nose because I keep getting bloody noses but only on one side. It's gross.

I've taken this resting time and used it to do a little crocheting. I am almost ready to open my etsy shop. Hopefully everything will be up and running next week. I can't wait!

I also planted some tomatoes and have tried some of the projects I've seen floating around pinterest. I'll give you a review on them soon and share my favorites. I love how easily it is to share projects there.

I've also learned how to make blog buttons. There are a lot of tutorials on the web about it but I found that none of them worked particularly well, there were a lot of weird code issues, so I copied the code from one I had a designer make me awhile back and then just changed the image part of the code. Easy peasy.

Have you guys learned how to do anything new and awesome recently?

Since I haven't been feeling well, I haven't really done the dishes in a few days and now we're having some weird plumbing issue but I don't want to call the landlord until I get the house straightened up. So my Saturday will be resting and dishes.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and Father's Day!

A Coupon for my Thoughts.

I haven't read this yet but I'm going to see if our library has it. {via}

There are money saving tips all over the web that are repeated over and over but I've recently implemented a few for BIG savings. Of course, it all depends on your lifestyle, so these options may not be right for you, but they work for us.

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First up, revisit your cell phone plan. Do you need all of those minutes and lines? We were able to change our plan to one with less minutes which resulted in $70/mo. in savings. It took all of about 10 minutes to do. Amazing! Why did we not do that sooner?

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Next, trade your t.v. service for netflix & hulu plus. We have direct tv and apparently signed a contract but you can suspend programming for up to 6 months. You won't have to pay during that time but it doesn't count toward your contract time either. It's really hard to get out of a direct tv contract but if they change terms of your agreement at any time you can call and let them know you don't agree with the new terms and want to cancel. However, if you pay before disagreeing with the terms, you've inadvertently agreed to them. A payment = agreeing. So, we've suspended our t.v. and signed up for netflix through our xbox. If you love your t.v. shows, sign up for hulu plus as well. That will save you around $60/mo.

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When you're grocery shopping, buy in bulk and shop the perimeter of the store. Try to avoid prepackaged goods as you're not only contributing to landfills with all of that packaging but you're also spending extra money. The bulk section is your best friend. Go visit the deli, buy a big chunk of cheese and store it in a glass jar in your fridge. Buy your meat straight from the butcher. It might take a little extra time or planning but it is so much healthier and less expensive than processed foods. Also, this can help to avoid impulse purchases. 

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This one is hard at first but skip eating out. Seriously. I went through our bank statement once and was astonished at how much money we spent eating out. Insane. If you aren't using any personal finance programs, I'd recommend mint.com. It'll show you exactly how much you're spending on things like gas, clothes, food, coffee, and any other category you'd like to make. 

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My great aunt writes a great letter. She writes to family, friends, and the odd company. I've taken up where she's left off. Before we moved I purchased a can of Green Giant peas, when I opened them, the inside of the can was rusted and the peas were rotted. It was disgusting. I called the 1-800 number on the can, very politely complained, gave the nice lady my information and a month or so later received an envelope full of coupons for money off any Green Giant product. But Jordan, that isn't writing you say? That's true, but this experience then led me to write an email when I bought a case of Ball Canning Jars and some of them were chipped. Today I received a $2 off coupon in the mail from Ball.

I'm not saying exploit this, or complain about things that didn't really happen, but if you have the time, send a quick email when a product you purchased isn't up to par. Be polite, tell them how great their products normally are. At first I kind of felt bad about complaining but then I realized, hey, I paid for this and I can't use it which is not okay and the company ought to be aware of their quality control issues.

Over the past week I've sent a handful of emails to the manufacturers of some of my favorite products, not to complain but to tell them how much I love their product. I think it's just as important to let someone know when they're doing a good job (maybe even more important) as it is to let them know what could be improved upon. I don't know if this will result in any coupons or savings but I'll be sure to update you if it does.

Father's Day Cards.

Earlier this week I made some father's day cards. One for my dad, my step dad, and Jake's dad. I wanted them to be guyish and fun. I had to dig through a lot of paper and stamps to find something that wasn't girly. Apparently I am more into floral designs. I finally found some though and this is what I came up with:

My dad is a carpenter so this tree paper is perfect. I didn't want to cover it with some other image or stamp but I wanted to put a heart on it, similar to how couples carve their initials into a tree. I used a corresponding plaid paper under the cutout edge.

This card is for Jake's dad. The bear seems kind of jolly, maybe he's supposed to be menacing but he seems jolly to me and Jakes dad kind of looks like Santa Claus so it works in that respect.

This card is for my mom's husband. I don't really have a reason for using the raccoon other than I had already used the bear and was running out of guyish stamps. The important part of this card is the sentiment. I was already out of the house when he married my mom but he's always been a really nice, stand up guy and I'm glad he's in my mom's life.

I hope you remembered to send your pops a card, if not, a phone call would probably work just as well. My dad wouldn't even know that it was Father's Day if I didn't call or send him something, he's oblivious when it comes to holidays.

Also, this makes 4 letters/cards I've sent out so far for The Summer We Sent Letters.

Family Heirlooms.

When things are passed down from generation to generation it gives them extra special meaning. Something that was once cherished by your mother, grandfather, and even further back, has been lovingly treated throughout their life so that they could pass it on to their loved ones. Jake and I both have family heirlooms that are very precious to us.

Jake's great grandfather was a painter and as Jake is the artistic one in his generation, it was decided by the family that he would inherit his great grandfather and then grandfather's paint sets. I find these sets to be so inspiring, one is for painting on cloth, another for glass. The one for painting on textiles has some of the coolest vintage stencils in it.

This is extra special. It's Jake's great grandfather's painting box. It's full of the paints he used, his charcoal and flint, pastels. It's really a thing of beauty. A palette fits in the top of the wooden box and there are compartments inside that are just overflowing. I love the worn handle and the locks that wont stay shut.

As for me, my great aunt has handed down to me some of her fabulous clothing collection (she's given me some killer shoes too). My auntie turns 95 this year (I didn't tell you that) and she's from an era of tailored, handmade clothing. These pieces are amazing. I love that her initials are sewn inside of them. I don't really wear many of the pieces often but I do on occasion and am keeping them safe for whoever they will be handed down to next. 

I love that these things were so special to someone that they took extra care with them. They loved them, they were made happy by them, and now we love them too. It's like we get to love and care for them for just awhile until they go to belong with someone new.

What does your family pass on? Are you taking extra special care of something you love to give to your kids someday?

I'm linking up with Lollipops for What I Love Wednesday.

Fine Jewelry Tips & Knowledge Part Three: Gemstones and Purchasing Tips.

When I purchased this ring it was a semi mount (no stone) with a 4 prong head. I wanted more of a band than an engagement style ring so I had the jeweler bezel set a genuine yellow sapphire in it instead. I absolutely love and adore this piece because I got to help design it and the yellow is so bright in the sunlight. 

So, not everyone likes diamonds, or perhaps you have diamonds and might be wanting something else, a gemstone perhaps? Well, genuine gemstones can be very expensive as well, sometimes more so than diamonds. 

Here’s what you need to know about gemstones: there are genuine ones and created ones.

Created stones are real (some people think they’re fake) but they have been grown in a lab, and not out in nature. Because they are created in a lab, they are “perfect” meaning that they don’t have the flaws that natural stones do. Natural gemstones generally aren’t as clear or bright as a created stone but they are worth a lot more money, and I mean, a lot. Created stones are very inexpensive to make and don’t really have a lot of resale value. 

When purchasing gemstone jewelry, you want to be sure what kind of metal it is set in. Because the price of gold is so high, stores have begun to set gemstones in P4 which is a mixture of platinum, palladium, white gold, and silver (mostly silver). It’s inexpensive because it’s not very good. It tarnishes, is not strong, breaks a lot after having been sized. 


Some stones have a very high difference in price between natural and created (sapphires, rubies, etc.) but other stones(amethyst) are in such abundance that natural ones aren't very expensive. 

Random Tips Time:

If you see something you like at a jewelry store but it’s not quite what you want, ask the salesperson if it’s possible to make changes. I’ve seen someone purchase two pendants and have them made into earrings, post earrings made into dangling earrings, the top of a ring made into a pendant, etc. Don’t be afraid to ask, sometimes the changes aren’t even very expensive. 

If the store has a good extended warranty program, especially one that offers stone replacement if they fall out and are lost, seriously consider purchasing it, even if it’s $200 and especially if it’s something you’re going to wear everyday and has diamonds. Jewelry breaks, and you don’t want to have to be the one to pay to repair it.

If a salesperson is overly pushy, leave. If they say they don’t get paid on commission, they’re very likely lying (I'd say 99.9% get paid on commission). If they say it’s only on sale until the end of the week, unless it’s some kind of closeout sale, they can get you that price on it for at least a month and sometimes for a lot longer. 

Check the back of the tag. Sometimes the sale price will be on the back of the tag. It might have some symbols around it but look for a number. Each jewelry store is different but you can’t really expect the salesperson to remember the sales price for every piece in the store, they have a system. At the store I worked at, one side would have the barcode with the retail price, the back would have all the specs of the stones and the lowest price we could go written like: *1495* which would mean $1,495.

Jewelry is marked up and marked up and marked up. NEVER pay the price on the tag, ever. Here’s an example for you: I once bought a ring that is appraised/retails at $3,600, we sold it in the store for $1,800 - $2k, with my employee discount I paid $1,086 and the company still made a profit. 

Sometimes a salesperson will point out the flaws in one style and the benefits of another. While what they’re saying might be true, they may also be saying these things to get you to purchase something that will give them more commission. Do your own research and trust your gut. You don’t have to purchase that day, you can come back, if that store sold the piece, they can order it back in. 

Always have your finger professionally sized by the place that you're purchasing from. If a ring is really wide you'll need a larger size than if you were going with a ring with a thinner band.

If you get a ring stuck on your finger, go in and have a store associate help you get it off. They have experience with it and you don’t want your finger to get bigger and have the ring stuck so badly that it has to be cut off. If you want to try at home first, try soap, oil, or hand sanitizer, relax your finger, have someone help you. The best way is to have someone else try and wiggle it off of you gently while they pull the skin under the ring back toward your knuckles, so they’re pulling your skin in one direction and the ring in the other, it really helps.


Take off your rings when doing dishes or using chemicals, it can wear at the gold or the chemicals can linger between your finger and the ring, giving you a rash. Take off all jewelry before you shower or go to bed. Tips and prongs are often broken while people are sleeping from getting stuck in the threads on sheets. It's all about maintenance. 

Lastly, have your jewelry cleaned and checked often. That way any issues can be spotted and attended to before you lose a stone, your clasp breaks, etc. And please, when you go to take your ring off to hand to the sales associate to clean, do not stick it in your mouth to wet it to get it off your finger. Don’t lick it either, ask for lotion. 


This was post 3 in a 3 part series. Here are parts one and two.

Chevron/Granny Ripple Blanket.

For Jake's birthday a couple weekends ago we went to Western Days in Twin Falls, ID which is like a mini fair. There are stalls trying to sell their wares, food booths with elephant ears and deep fried oreos, inflatable toys for kids to jump on, a train made out of 50 gallon drums, and metal bands. Yes, we went to see some local metal band. Metal bands are not really my thing so I took my crocheting with me. I had just started a new project I was really excited about and didn't want to stop. Needless to say, I think I embarrassed Jake a little and had a few people scratching their heads, love it!

I'm working on a granny chevron blanket for our bed. If you're new to crocheting, this project would be great for you. There are only a few stitches involved (the beauty of a granny anything) and the pattern I am using by Elizabeth Ham is awesome. The very best part is, she has a tutorial on youtube and it is 16 parts. 16 whole videos to show you exactly what to do, and she goes nice and slowly which is why I think it would be good for a beginner. There are no surprises, she tells you exactly what to do. I didn't watch all of the videos, just enough to get the hang of it and then went on by myself. I love it because it has two of my favorite things, granny stitches and chevrons!

Here is a sneak peek of another project I'm working on that I am really excited about. I can't wait until it's done so I can share it with everyone!

Sunday Stroll.

Jake and I went for a walk through town today. It's beautiful outside and everyone is getting ready for the National Old Time Fiddle Festival that begins in about a week and a half. We're very excited for the festival, it'll be our first one and we've heard the music is phenomenal.

Jake picked these peonies from our yard for my kitchen. Definitely an upgrade from the dandelions, they're beautiful. He also got me some daisies from the neighbor's yard. Not the little ones we made daisy chains out of in elementary school but nice big pretty ones. I don't think our "neighbors" will mind since the house is unoccupied.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Saturday Snapshot.

This is a photo of Jake climbing an old dead tree on his first time visiting me on the Oregon Coast. Everyone from back home has a photo of themselves with this tree. I love this picture of Jake because he makes climbing a dead tree look sexy. I can't wait until the next time we can go visit the ocean, and see my family again.

I've linked up with Yellow Songbird for Saturday Snapshot.

Fine Jewelry Tips & Knowledge Part Two: Metals & Men's Rings.

After having decided on what type of diamond you want the next thing you'll have to consider is what kind of metal you want your stones set in.

Gold karats are different than diamond carats. The varying numbers in gold karat indicate how much gold is actually in the gold. 24 kt gold is pure gold, the smaller the number gets, the more other metals have been included. Those other metals make the piece sturdier. 24 kt gold generally is not used to make jewelry, it's too soft and breaks frequently. For a ring I would suggest nothing over 18 kt. Personally, I like 14 kt gold. I feel like my tips and prongs are secure and strong and I don't have to worry about stones falling out. 10 kt gold is used to make jewelry as well but generally is not used for bridal because it's less gold than it is other metals. It can usually be found in created gemstone pieces. The higher the gold content, the more expensive the piece. 

Gold comes mainly in yellow or white although some do prefer rose gold. White gold is made from yellow gold. If you're allergic to nickel, forgo white gold. Over time, white gold will start to look a little yellowish, especially the shank (the bottom of the ring). It is an easy fix, send it in to be rhodium plated, it'll be bright white again when you get it back.

Another very hyped and popular choice is Platinum. Personally, I am not a huge fan. It's not that there is anything wrong with it (other than it being extremely expensive) but I've found from people coming in to get their rings cleaned and checked that once they scratch up their ring, I cannot get the scratches out no matter how long I buff it. Once those scratches are there, they're there to stay, and if I'm going to spend that much on something, I want it to look nice. The benefit to platinum is that it is very strong and I would very rarely have a customer come in with a missing stone in a platinum setting.

Diamonds should never be set in sterling silver. Silver is not strong enough to hold your stones throughout every day wear. If someone tries to sell you diamonds set in sterling, know that they're nuts and run the other way. (I love sterling for other things, such as turquoise, but avoid it for diamonds).

Also, some stores have recently begun to carry something called P4. It's made up of platinum, palladium, white gold and silver. It's mostly silver and this stuff will tarnish. They have begun using it because the price of gold is soaring and the economy is bad so it's a cost effective alternative to white gold. Except that, in the short time we had it in the store while I worked there, I have never had so many issues with jewelry. We were constantly sending P4 jewelry out for repair after repair. I would say, avoid this stuff if possible. It's basically a fancier name for sterling silver.

My ring is set in 14kt white gold. Although we're not married Jake has a ring too but he wears it on his right hand. I think he was jealous of my pretty jewelry and wanted his own. His is a tungsten band.

Now onto men’s rings: try to get one with a comfort fit shank, they are much more comfortable to wear and won't cut into his finger so much.

Gold or Platinum: see above.

Titanium: It’s strong, it is possible to be cut off a finger in a jewelry store but it is very difficult. The issue with titanium is that it is scratchable and the scratches cannot be buffed out. Cannot be sized so if he gains or loses weight, you must purchase a new ring.

Tungsten: This is also very strong and has some heft to it. It cannot be cut off in a jewelry store but a hospital could cut it off if need be. I’ve never seen one come back in scratched. If you are wearing a ring and your finger gets smashed, the ring will shatter rather than squish and cut your finger off like gold or titanium. Cannot be sized.

Ceramic Carbide: These are similar to tungsten but in black. Again, cannot be sized.

If you’re going for a titanium, tungsten or ceramic carbide ring, try to stay away from ones that have an inlay of another metal such as silver or gold. Those metals are not as strong and will wear and eventually fall out leaving your ring looking rather funny. This happens very very frequently. Don't think this means the ring has to be boring though. There are lots of different finishes applied to these rings and they can hold diamonds as well.  

Spinner rings: I have seen a lot of these break, and I mean, a lot. Usually what happens is either side that is holding the spinning part of the ring in, will pop off and then the spinner can be taken off of the inner ring. If you buy one, get a service plan on it that offers replacement.

Check back Tuesday for general tips and tricks from purchasing gemstones to getting a good deal and knowing when a salesperson is full of it. 

Limoncello!

Have you seen Under the Tuscan Sun where Diane Lane's character goes on a motorcycle ride with a handsome Italian to his little restaurant on the beach and he explains to her how to make limoncello, a delicious refreshing lemon flavored drink? If not, don't worry, I have the directions for you right here.

Ingredients:
You'll need a bunch of lemons, somewhere around 15. Sometimes lemons are kind of small so you'll want 15 medium sized lemons or more of the smaller ones.
1 fifth of grain alcohol (everclear)
4 1/4 c. water
1 1/2 c. sugar

Peel the lemons with a vegetable peeler. You only want the yellow parts so if you get any of the pith (the white part under the yellow) cut it off with a paring knife or it will impart bitterness to your drink.

Put them in a jar and add the alcohol. Let it sit for a month, shake it once or twice a week.

When 30 days has passed, put a coffee filter over the top of the jar and drain the alcohol into a bowl. We don't drink coffee so I didn't have a coffee filter and tried to use muslin instead. That was a complete failure so I ended up straining it. Just be sure to get everything out of the liquid.

Heat the water and sugar on the stove until the sugar dissolves and then let it cool. Add the sugar water mixture to the alcohol. It will immediately change color and become a very pretty light yellow.

Pour into two bottles (or more if you have small leftover wine bottles or something). I used one I had from Ikea and the bottle from the everclear.

Put in the freezer (it won't freeze) or store in a dark place. Serve cold on a warm summer night in a cordial glass or other small glass.

The best part about this recipe is, after you peel 15 lemons, you have 15 lemons you can juice to make some awesome lemonade. This is the recipe that I love. The key is mixing the water and sugar on the stove and having the sugar dissolve 100%. Then I added some fresh strawberries and Jake drank it all within two days. The best!

I've linked up at FTLOB for Thirsty Thursday.