The brass restorations

The restorations will continue until moral improves. Here is a brass chalice from another church. The priest retired and these brass items were found. Several were in various states of tarnish and neglect. I gave a quick lesson to the parishioners and everyone picked a chalice to restore.

Before

and after.

Now this was a solid brass book stand. I was told about it a few years ago but the janitor at that church said he would try to restore it. Two weeks later he died unexpectedly. He had been a much beloved janitor to that church. So I was given the task of restoring this very heavy book stand. So far it's in pieces. I need to boil it and polish it. The tarnish is under the varnish.

There are no hurries as the parish got a new priest and he does not use this stand. So it sits in my studio until I have time to finish it. 

 

2024 Christmas cookie bake off

Here is the custom cookie decorating station I made for our church. These decorated cookies along with other donated cookies were boxed up and each family got to take a box home and give a box to a neighbor or the homebound.  Over 79 boxes were made and about 45 were given to those outside of church.

I baked and cut over 300 gingerbread and sugar cookies. Made the custom color icing bags.

The cookie boxes ready to be packed by the volunteers.

Used Boston gingerbread spice mix to pump up the gingerbread. Much to the delight of our German patrons.

Cookie people, ornaments and trees

All the cookie decorations , sugar sprinkles and eyeballs for the cookies. This was the 2nd time we have done this and it is very popular. Instead of a Christmas party, we have fun and share with the community.

 

Snowy January

Our horses we cozy in the lean too. Had to put up new walls right before the ice storm hit. Could not get them painted but the wood was coated in ice.

Ice on ice on electric fences. Trees were down and power was out. But the woodstoves kept us warm.

Our ducks love the snow. They go into the heated coop at night. In the daytime they frolic under the tarp where the food is.

Heavy branches under the weight of 1 inch of ice.

My truck under 5 inches of snow. Had to use a plastic shovel to clear it.

 

The reluctant vegitarian

 

So the holidays came with a vengeance along with church work, farm work and puppies. 

Meet Eos and Stella

16 lbs of 9 week old livestock guardians. Great Pyrenees/Anatolian mix. These two will replace our aging German Shepherd to watch the poultry and the farm. They had no vet care from a farm I bought them from. They were very wormy. That has been taken care of and they are growing everyday.

They will be spayed when they come of age. For right now they are balls of fury.

Full time outside pups. Yes, they are a full time job. And as pups they are ferocious and brave.

And as of late we are reluctant vegetarians as my husband has Alpha Gal the tick disease. It has been 4 years of dealing with this since diagnosis. And it is not going away. This means he can't tolerate meat from a mammal in any form. Not even butter nor milk. He misses streaks and and pork. But no, not anymore. Just fish and chicken, emu. I do not have it but I follow his diet, it keeps life simpler in the kitchen. I do not miss meat but he does. If he eats meat or byproduct he is down for a week, with bowels issues, lethargy, huge belly and illness. He gets very ill and has a rash that is ongoing. This tick disease is tough to live with here in the beef basket of the USA. But things are changing. Schools are feeding Alpha Gal students meatless lunches finally. But hospitals are not. I even attended a local Mercy hospital Alpha Gal seminar by their nutritionist who does not feed people a vegan option when in hospital ! She was young and a bit stupid but that is what you get here in the Ozarks in the medical field. The Ozark people are learning how to deal with this disease. Many go undiagnosed but there is a simple test, if you see your GP and insist on getting tested for it. Some labs refuse to test for it but you have to stand up for yourself. I am constantly reading and learning all about this disease and nutrition for those intolerant of mammal meat. I am always keeping a log of my husbands symptoms and events health related on my phones calendar, so the symptoms are always with me to share with the hospital or the doctor. That said, grocery shopping is a library trip of ingredients. You will have to read everything that you want to eat. Canned foods and frozen foods. Tallow is pork it is in canned beans! You have to become your own advocate related to everything you eat. I use Vegan ghee to cook with, can find on Amazon. 

This has no milk and no butter. It is safe to cook with. It is the only ghee I could find with no animal fats. I will be posting more cooking things and I learn more. Also, going out to eat is a gamble as most places use animal fats in all meals. We have had luck with Asian places to eat, but they are rare here in the Ozarks. We tend to just bring our own meals when on the road. We are a lot better off than some who can't even touch meat or breath the cooking smells. Going to be big change for peoples diets as this Alpha Gal spreads around the states. But sticking to veggies and poultry is a big win.

Fall in the Ozarks

Our woods are full of colors.

Sugar maple

2nd year mums.

 

24 hour repair

So a friend of a friend contacted me based on restorations I had made to church vestments.

Her husband was going to a synod and needed to look his best. The stole he was gifted was too long and dragged the ground. I was the only person they knew who has experience with vestments. Also they needed this done overnight as he was flying out the next day. I had a full week at church and had a guest over. My plate was full but I did have my evening free. It was Halloween night. I love to eat candy and watch scary movies but not this year. I got busy right after dinner and it took 4 hours to finish.

I took one panel apart to see how it was made. 

Shortened and cut and repositioned. The back lining was the most difficult. This one was built a bit more complicated. The bag of pearls we a cool find on ebay. A mix of glass and real pearls pulled from vintage jewelry. I use to embellish and restorations. 

The metal work was easy to restore and stabilize into the embroidered fabric. 

I was able to get it taken apart and put back together before midnight. I turned back into a pumpkin and went to bed. A full day well done.

 

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Our church office for years (more than10) looked like this. A desk and piles of boxes. I added the green curtains and the welcome sign as there was nothing but blinds. Yes, very depressing.

Whole wall of nothing and a closet and a printer. At least the cement was covered in rug squares.

 

This is now our church office. It has taken months of recon work, volunteers and many hours searching for this to happen. I added two English library desks, Persian wool rugs, handmade red oak bookcases made by a local craftsman and donated wingchairs.

Need to add new curtains and a computer but this is now the new office that people see when they come in. Beats the warehouse of boxes. We now have a pleasant, multi functional work space and conference room. Decorated in the style the priest in residence preferred. I like more modern but this works. The only thing that this room cost was $300 for the rug and $400 for the walnut desk in the back. The rest was donated. I need to add new curtains/hardware and I will be done with decorating. Yes, it is Maximalist but that is ok with me. This has a welcome clawfoot desk and a work desk for the priest. Plus there is the secretary office in back that leads to the conference room. Just need a fainting couch for the back office and it will be done. The couch is for people who need to lie down. Long hours and some physical breaks require a couch in some offices. There used to be one in this front office but it was over used and had to go. The clock is a wind up vintage that chimes and has a choice of tunes. It weighs over 6lbs. This space is workable office for the priest and people stay out of his personal residence, rectory. 

my flock of ducks

French Hens we added to our flock of egg layers. Sweet gentle giants.

A flying squirrel we rescued. It spent the night on a heating pad and was released the next day.

 

Pony Up

The before of the pony I restored

I dug out the bondo and restored the Wonder Horse saddle, brass pole and stand someone added later.

Primed and painted body with gold mane and tail. 

Almost done. I added gems stones and clear coated the entire pony.

I had to hurry as the owner's husband of this gifted horse was dying of cancer. It was finished and returned a week before he passed. It was restored with things I had on hand. The colors were chosen by the owner. My studio is a wreck as the weather got cold and I had to get things pushed inside. I do not have a studio building so I have to move everything around for each restoration project. When I am sewing, beading, staining or carving multiple projects things get piled up. Every piece of furniture is on wheels to move as needed. 

 

Tiny Beads in hinoki

 I am working on restoring this very old Japanese lacquer box. It has been used and restored at other times. The inside is all hand done maki-e or gold dust over the lacquer. The outside is a built up scene made with built up layers of lacquer that was covered in gold at one time. The wood on the outside is hinoki or Japanese cypress, very fragrant wood. The hinges and lock have been added to and changed. The box had green velvet lining added to the box at some point in its life. And inside the crumbling velvet were tiny aluminum beads that I threaded onto a needle. Something was made with these and stored in the box. The velvet liner and all the tacks I pulled out to show the gold maki-e inside the box in good condition.

So we have modern over Indian style of latch work here. Just a pile of bad restoration.

Sun and time have been hard on this box. It is in very good condition under all this age.

A closeup of the maki-e inside the box in good condition. And the tiny aluminum beads found inside the box.

Under all that tattered green velvet liner the brilliant gold lacquer and the tiny beads.

Back to now

These are buttons from the 1930's made out of indigo and abalone and carved. I removed the leather buttons from a jacket and sewed these antiques on.

The original buttons that came with the jacket on the left and the new to me 1930's button on the right.

 

Restoring the wood and brass tacks on this vintage cross for a friend. The tacks gave no hold on this heavy figure. So I took it apart, re-stained the wood and reapplied the gold and will put in epoxy and new brass nails.

One of my female Muscovy hatched out 14 baby ducklings this week. I am happy they are thriving on our farm. This duck breed is quite hardy.