Thursday, November 8, 2018

The Final Stretch

Greetings dear friends & readers
I am on the final stretch as I head towards the Craft Fair this coming Saturday.
I will be at Site 31 so please do drop by if you are coming to the Fair, & if possible, please bring fine weather 
with you 😉!!


This final week has been very much about finishing up items, labeling & pricing, packaging ... & also making up the potpourri's that I love to create

Over the weekend it rained & was cold & wintery again ... I lit the fire & informed The Mr there would be no meals eaten at our dining table that day as I commandeered it for my citrus potpourri mixing & making.
The heat from the fire took the lovely citrusy fragrance right through our little house.

I managed to fill 25 bags with the mixture I had made up


My roses have been a little later flowering this year so I have been unsuccessful with air drying the beautiful red Dublin Bay rose I always like to use for my Cottage Garden Potpourri.
As a last resort, I decided to use my dehydrator to dry them ... this took only 2 hours to crisply dry the red rose petals.

I was able to fill 18 bags with the Cottage Garden Potpourri which I was thrilled about. 


Raglans main street is lined with these wonderful Palm Trees

One fine day in the middle of last week, The Mr suggested we take a drive out to Raglan
I did not need persuading as I was, once again, very close to tossing my sewing machine out the window!!!
Raglan is a small Coastal town that, despite becoming increasingly popular,  still retains that quaint old town feel to it.
I LoVe Raglan ... it is a wonderful place to visit & I also enjoy the picturesque drive out there ... it is about an hour from us here.


Even though it was the middle of the day, we always like to buy fish & chips at Raglan - the fish is Sooo fresh & tastes completely different to what we buy back here.
I always cart my tomato sauce with me as I love my fish dipped in tomato sauce.
We ate our lunch on a grassy verge down by the sea & let the wind "blow the cobwebs away"!
It was a great visit & just the distraction I needed to get me motivated again.




My veggie garden has been a constant source of pleasure for me these last couple of months, after being dormant for several winter months.
Every night I pick something & cook for our tea - this broccoli is one of my favourite varieties  (Green Dragon broccoli) 



Two weekends ago - Queens Birthday weekend,  I planted tomatoes, courgettes, several different varieties of lettuce, two pumpkin plants, apple cucumbers, capsicums & basil.



I try to pick a couple of leaves of silverbeet or spinach & toss in with whatever I am cooking most nights


Freshly picked Broccoli & Cabbage above - will be in tonights stir fry dish.


A couple of nights ago, while sitting stitching on the couch, I snapped these photos of the furry ones
I was amazed how in the space of about an hour, they changed positions so much, but still remained tucked up close to one another.
This was especially cute seeing as they had had a fur flying fight about an hour previously! 

Thanks so much for stopping by today dear friends,
I will be back next week to let you all know how the Craft Fair went  
With much love & friendship to you all,
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x0

29 comments:

  1. Best of luck with the fair Julie, I hope you have wonderful weather and a huge crowd with lots of money!! :-) That potpourri would have smelt wonderful thru the house. Love the photos of the cats! Your vege garden produce looks wonderful, we planted cabbages but the white butterfly ate them! Great to drive out to Raglan nothing better than fish and chips by the beach! Good thinking taking the very NZ tomato sauce container!

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  2. I can just about smell your potpourri from here! I wish I could come to the craft fair. Next trip down we will have to go 'fush & Chupping' to Raglan my friend.
    Fabulous veges, I picked my first zucchini this morning, boy was I excited!

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  3. The potpourri is fabulous, I can imagine the sweet scent of it
    And your veggie garden is gorgeous.. this is I didn't get success in my garden.. :(

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    1. Thanks so much Krishna ... the potpourri does indeed smell very fragrant.

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  4. hmmm.....I can so imagine how nice the house would have smelt with the pop purri wafting through. Divine. Raglan is a wonderful place - so nice to visit. Those fish and chips look so yummy! making me hungry at the thought. Wow, the veggie garden is really looking tops. What a great supply of food you are reaping from it. Sounds about right for the puddy tats. Sort out the differences then snuggle in forgiveness!

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  5. Sounds like you need a new machine ;-D Hoping to make it to the fair on Saturday, see you there x

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  6. The potpourri looks lovely Julie..I have quite
    a bit of it scattered about the place, especially
    in the bathroom..and the famous downstairs loo..! :).
    I do like things to smell nice..!

    Raglans looks a lovely place..love those palm trees!
    I'm lucky enough to live about an hour from the coast!
    There are lovely bays and beaches to visit..would'nt
    live anywhere else now! Though it's raining at the mo,
    first rain in a week, after nice dry frosty days!

    HaHa! And the furry ones look lovely..funny thing with
    pussy~cats, it's always a love~hate thing..Bless them!

    Have a great day on Saturday Julie..Wish l could pop
    over..but..it's a hell of a walk..HeHe! But!..as the
    song says..'I'll say a little prayer' :)
    ´*•.¸(*•.¸♥¸.•*´)¸.•*´

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  7. Your preparations are going well. I wish you a wonderful weekend with lots of buyers! Boy your vegies look great...they taste so much better. Nothing nicer than fish and chips beside the ocean xx

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  8. Hi Julie! Prayers for a fantastic show. You have so many lovely things! I wish I could smell the potpourri. Aw, the kitties! They are so lovely!

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  9. oh your pot pouri looks lovely, we just have so little space here that I haven't got round to buying a dehumidifier but we plan to move next year so it might be a hobby in the future. I would love to make my own pot pourri. Good luck with the Fayre.

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  10. Good Luck with the fair, Julie. Wish I could come to buy some of your lovely things. I'm going to have a go at making some pot pourri soon and at work, we are air drying rose petals for my boss's daughter who is getting married on 29th December. The church doesn't allow paper confetti so we have to make tons of petals for folks to throw instead!

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  11. Hope you have a very successful day at the craft fair. All your work is so beautiful, I'm sure you will. I will be visiting New Zealand soon but not soon enough to come along to the fair. Hopefully I may find other fairs on whilst I'm there. Raglan looks amazing, thanks for the tip, I'm hoping it may be near to our planned route.

    Best as always

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  12. Wish I lived close enough, but that is out of my reach. Love the kitty pictures, they look so cozy.

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  13. Hope you have a fabulous, successful day Julie. Aww those pretty kitties, so cute. Hugs,xx

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  14. I feel like I can smell those lovely bags of potpourri!
    I wish you well with your sales at the craft fair. I can't imagine you NOT doing well.
    Your little getaway to the coast sounds like a perfect breather when you need a break but don't have time for a big trip.
    Oh, those kitty photos had me chuckling. So cute. :)

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  15. oh your potpourri looks amazing, especially the cinnamon and orange one.

    Going to the beach for fish and chips is on our weekend agenda too, I think it will be our Saturday night plans! It never fails to help clear my mind and bring perspective.

    Best wishes for a successful craft fair!

    xx

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  16. Hi Julie, Wishing you a great crafting fair week-end. Both the potpourris are beautiful and I imagine smell so lovely. The pictures of the kitties cuddling are so cute. Isn't that just like kids. Fight and make up! Lovely garden you have there! Nancy

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  17. Thank you for the good and very helpful information. It is very interesting. I love all the things you share and see your beautiful creation. Thank you for sharing with everyone.
    ฮวงจุ้ย

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  18. Your potpourri looks so delicious. I do love citrus. Good luck with the fair today do tell how it goes. What a veg. Garden.
    Your day at Raglan sounded bliss.
    As for your kitties, they are so cute . Good luck dear Julie.xxx

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  19. You have been hard at work, Julie, but I'm sure that will pay off at the craft fair. I love the dried orange slices in your potpourri! A productive veg garden is a wonderful thing too. Meg:)

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  20. Oh you will be packing up as I write this, hope it went well for you Julie, nothing beats fish and chips, and from Raglan even better, my first job was at the Dinsdale Fish Shop on Whatawhata Rd.
    Silverbeet brings back awful memories from childhood sorry, still can't eat the stuff. Now you can relax like those cats of yours, well til Christmas anyway. Have a great week. Chris xoxo

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  21. Hooe the wether is fine for you and that the fair is a great success, you certainly have worked so hard

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  22. I hope you have a successful day at the fair, Julie. I would be lovely to go but it's a little bit far for me! LOL! Those fish and chips are making me hungry.

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  23. Yes Raglan, the place to go and refresh your senses!!!

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  24. I have read this the day after your craft fair. Oh, I do hope the madding crowd bought everything and took their pretties home with them. There is nothing quite like a scenic drive to stop one from tossing the sewing machine out of the window. AND....there is nothing quite like fish and chips to make the journey even better!

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  25. I hope the fair went well Julie and there were plenty of people there. Sounds like you had a great daytrip to Raglan...you cant beat the fish from these little seaside places can you? I'm sure I can smell your pot pourri from here - it really is the most delicious mixture :-)

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  26. Hi again, Julie! I'm so happy that the craft fair went so well! I hope you are being nice and lazy like the kitties, recovering from all the hustle and bustle! I bought some cinnamon potpourri at the grocery store today. I bet it doesn't smell as lovely as yours does!

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  27. Hi Julie wow wish i could see your market table as i know there will be many beautiful items,hope you do well my friend . What wonderful healthy looking veggies,cheers Shez xx

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  28. Hello Sweet Julie, this is such a fun post. I love your potpourri mixing & making . . . I'm sure that your home smells delightful and your filled bags are so pretty. I know they will sell. Loved tagging along on your road trip, too and the fish and chips . . . oh my, how yummy :)
    I am a gardener . . . I love spring and planting and getting my hands in the warm earth, so while we are under frost and snow this season I can come here and enjoy your bountiful supply of green vegetables. They are not only wonderful nutrition but they are so pretty.
    Have fun at the craft show . . . wishing you great weather and loads of excited buyers.
    Keep Smiling!
    Connie :)

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