Felted Soaps

I am linking up to Leighann's Pinterest Party over at Living With Three Hobbits and a Giant. I often spend a good bit of my free time searching Pinterest and Etsy for peacock related things. When I came across these felted soaps on Etsy, I knew I had to make some.



Felted soaps can be used to clean pots, wash hands, or as your shower soap, depending on what soap you use, of course. The felted outside acts as a built in wash cloth, and also helps conserve soap. When they soap is all used up, you can use the pouch to make something else. I was thinking a coin purse would be a natural upcycle. You could make them color coded for kids, coordinated to your bathroom colors, or in an array of choices to give as gifts.

I have seen many variations in how they are made, and what the final result can look like. This video highlights a process to make them look like smoothed river rocks. Very cool, oui? I felt that video was the most helpful in explaining the wrapping and felting technique. The soaps I made after watching are much nicer, with a better felt. Thin wispy layers of roving is the key. As well as a gentle start to felting.

I chose to felt some round soap with bright colors, much like the first ones I saw on Etsy. As a sidenote, do you ever feel bad looking at Etsy as a way to get the creative juices flowing? Back to the point. I bought some round soaps from Whole Foods, in two scents, almond, and oatmeal. I bought the wool roving at Michael's, but in the future, I would be more likely to buy from the local yarn shop in the next town.

It took about 20 minutes for each soap from beginning to end, and I am so pleased with the result.


Fancy round soaps from Whole Foods


Some little hotel soaps Kim has brought home from travel


A bar of Lever2000 with Julia's favorite colors.

I can see myself making these for teacher gifts, and I think I will make a bunch to have on hand for other random gift occasions. Here is my problem now: I am obsessed with bar soap. Every store I go to, I check out the bar soaps to see what they offer. Big Lots has a surprisingly diverse selection from Cashmere Bouquet to Palmolive bar soap. Also, I kind of can't wait for the farmer's market to open so I can get some handmade soap to felt.

Little monsters

I love my little Joe. He is eight years old, sweet, gentle, loves animals, and snuggling. He is genuinely, and naturally funny, and he makes me laugh all the time. His face might be a special plasticine blend by God, because he makes the craziest faces. He has his Monkeyfriend, a stuffed monkey he has carried with him since he was born, and he does this subconscious thing where he taps Monkeyfriend against his head when he needs to calm down. Just to be clear, Monkeyfriend doesn't go to school. A lot of times, other boys his age do not "get" him because he is not aggressive at all.

But Joe has a little monster that lives within. A monster who doesn't see how blessed he is. Who complains because his set of toys isn't complete. The little monster asks for a toy every time we go to Target, and tries to manipulate when we say no. He always wants to win; the imaginary race to the door or being first controller when playing the Wii, it's not a pretty thing to watch.

The Little Monster has been active lately. He doesn't understand how getting one present this Christmas is so much better than many kids will receive in the town where we live, let alone the devastating poverty of the Third World. The Little Monster needs his eyes opened. It's time to arrange some service projects.

I didn't tell you all, because it is really sad

I have to change my little "About Me" bio over to the right.  My yarn stash has died a horrible death.  I opened up a couple of bins, and somehow a bug had gotten in and eaten through my yarn balls.  Whatever wasn't destroyed could harbor eggs, so it all had to go.  Stupid fiber loving bugs.

New Year's, goal setting, and why I hate resolutions

But not necessarily  in that order. or maybe I will. I'm going to surprise you!

Happy New Year, ya'll! Only 11 days late! Our family rang in the New Year with another family we are close to, and had a great time.  Learned a new card game too, which is always appreciated.

Now down to nuts and bolts.  Brass tacks. The point. I don't like New Year's resolutions.  This idea that the beginning of a subjective calendar year is the only time for self reflection and assessment is kind of ludicrous.  This is why I like to make major life changes about three weeks after the New Year.  Last year I quit smoking, so I am coming up on one year.  Are there changes I would like to make in my life?  Of course, but I think I am going to go about this in a baby steps kind of way.

Last year I decided I wanted to try reading the Bible in one year, which I didn't do.  Somewhere around August, I accepted that it was going to take longer than a year, because I hadn't been consistant with it.  I am currently four months behind schedule, but honestly, if I read the Bible consistantly for a half hour to an hour a day, I could finish by February. Then will I start again? I am not sure. Our shepherd group is considering a read through, but I will not start with them.  I would pick up when I am done where they are currently.

Which leads me to another goal: Quiet time in the morning.  I could give you 50 different excuses as to why I "can't" do this.  But honestly, it's laziness.  I used to get up way before the rest of the family to get ready for work for two years. I got up at the very last minute, 6:40am, but that is earlier than I get up now.  What if I started off getting up at 6:40am, and then perhaps earlier as I get accustomed to it?

So here's another thing I could work on: use of electronics, tv, email etc., and the consequential constant multi-tasking I end up doing.  For example, it is 12:20am right now, and I am writing this blog post while also trying to watch a tv show with Kim.  First of all, WHY AM I NOT IN BED?  Second: why am I not spending this time completely with my husband, so we can discuss this show and both know what the other is talking about? Ok I stopped and watched the rest with him, because it was the part I wanted to see the most.  Sidenote: HBO kind of made me not hate the NY Rangers.  So, back to the point.  I would like to multi-task less, and therefore be more present in my own life.  I need to reevaluate the rate at which I consume media, the internet, and email related activities.  I wonder what is normal?  I think I will filter through wisdom.  The big Wisdom.  God's wisdom.

 And that is really the point, isn't it?

 

Our First Christmas at Home

In the nine (almost ten) years Kim and I have been married, this is the first Christmas we have spent at home. We have enjoyed creating some new family traditions, while keeping some old.

Christmas Eve at Church

We had a hard time doing Christmas Eve services at church in years past.  Often, it was just me who trekked out to church after the kids went to bed.  Last year we went with my sister's family in Pennsylvania, but now that we are home for Christmas, we were able to go to our home church, Reston Bible, and it was fantastic.  It was really more of a worship service than a traditional service, and our good friend did some teaching with the kids, and it is always a hoot to watch him.

Italian food for dinner?
You know what is awesome about Italian food, besides the taste? You can fix it ahead of time and pop it into the oven when you get home from church.  We had stuffed shells this year, but I think I will do lasagna next year. I didn't take pictures of the food, because I had a migraine and Julia was starting to feel unwell by then.

Surprise Balls

Surprise balls are my new thing.  It is a way to take a bunch of small items and really turn it into an event they will remember.  If I handed my kids a puzzle eraser, a tiny toy dinosaur, an itty bitty yoyo, other assorted tidbits and a Bible verse and that had been it, they wouldn't have been too thrilled.  But wrap it up with strips of crepe paper they have to unwind to find them all?  Priceless.  I think it will be a Christmas Eve tradition for sure.  Julia's scripture, which she unwrapped one verse at a time throughout the ball, was:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
(John 1:1-5 ESV)

This is my Julia unwrapping hers.







Hanging stockings

Hopefully I will be done by next year, but I want everyone to have their own handmade stocking.  We hang ours by the window, and open them after the rest of the presents on Christmas morning. Some of the items we put in are smaller, less expensive items, but we also put more expensive small items, like DVDs in there as well. I guess it will just depend on the year.

Overall, it was a very nice Christmas. I feel like the emphasis was on Jesus, the gift giving didn't get out of hand, the food was good and not stressful, and there is little I would change about it. Mostly, I would plan better for things like stocking stuffers throughout the year. I know I will be keeping my eyes peeled for surprise ball items, but not just for Christmas. I could do them for birthdays, and just plain surprise days too.

What are some of your Christmas traditions?

Well it finally happened.

You know when you talk to people who have lost a great deal of weight, and they say something like "I saw the pictures from my daughter's wedding and realized I needed to lose weight"? It was the hubbie's childhood friend's wedding, and the one picture I have seen shows me I need to lose weight.

When I was a kid, weight was never an issue. I was very active, and had a fast metabolism. I never stopped eating like I had a fast metabolism, though. If I want a brownie, and we have some I eat a brownie. As a teenager, I wasn't overweight, but I started to gain weight when I was 19. I think that was when my metabolism started to slow down. But I wasn't conscious enough of what the problem was to address it then. I really started to gain weight AFTER I had each kid. After Julia was born I put on about 30lbs, and never tried to lose them. After Joe, I put on 50lbs right away and just kept going. I've never been really successful with weight loss, to be honest. The concept of watching what I eat, or exercising over a long period of time in order to live a healthier lifestyle? Foreign to me. It's like Greek to me.

I was going to do a 5K in December with a few friends, but I didn't even bother signing up for it because I know I won't train for it. I can't even walk up to the bus stop with Joe. I always drive up. It feels like too much. I probably need to lose at least 90 pounds. Can't I just do a lose 10 pounds a week diet? Make smaller goals. I hear that all the time. But I've never been able to meet the small goals. I get discouraged and give up. I feel like I am getting discouraged and giving up before I even start.

You know what I would rather do? I'd rather just convince myself that the dress wasn't flattering, that I really don't look like that. Honestly, that is probably what I will end up doing.

Failure, repent, success, wash rinse repeat.

Today was a weird day. All day long, I felt like I was failing, then stopping to repent, then doing well. I was cranky with the kids, with Kim as he was packing for a trip (horrible, right?), but then I was just getting right back into things and doing great again. Then I would lose my temper again.

Wash.
Rinse.
Repeat.

Lamentations 3:22-23
Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Julia and I were doing a worksheet together this evening, and she asked me (randomly I might add) why we do not do any burnt offerings or sacrifices.

"Because Jesus lived the perfect life for us. He obeyed all the commands in Leviticus, he paid it all with his perfect human sacrifice."

Thank you Jesus. Especially on days like today.