Drifting on currents of air and gravity above Norway.
Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Fungi Fun!
The dye pots have been out again and this time we have a perfect excuse (not that we need one!) as we have been dyeing all sorts of textiles for Jane Southgate to use in her artwork.Sam whose alter ego is Peg the Dyer at Kentwell Hall has been leading the dyeing and working with Jane to get the correct colours. We love to dye with plants at HH and are particularly fond of the purple feather reed heads that grow around here. They are ready to use in the summer but the season is so short that we have been experimenting with drying and freezing the heads so that we can dye with them all through the winter too!
The dyebath made from the reed heads looks just like Ribena!We are extremely proud to be sponsoring Jane's latest projects at Thornham Walks and Lackford Lakes in Suffolk but we made it clear from the start that we would expect her to join in when we came to dye the yarns and fabrics...
Here she is supervising the madder dye bath, that fleece hanging on the line behind her is from the Gedgrave Flock www.gedgrave-wensleydales.blogspot.com a lovely curly fleece!Even though the reed head dye bath is the colour of Ribena the shade you get at the end is this - actually my camera struggles with this and it's much greener in real life!
As well as the fleece and yarns from the Gedgrave sheep Jane is also making good use of the Colinette 'Point 5' yarn that we sell at Halfpenny Home and this is the shade 'Turquoise'. I'm pretty sure that it's not what the Colinette designers would have expected their gorgeous hand dyed yarn to be used for...
Jane is planning to make a hundred of these...can you imagine them all swaying in the breeze? The star of the show (so far) for me has to be this bracket fungus, the bottom part has been dyed with woad and the curly lid is the fleece that we dyed with madder. Everyone who meets it wants to hug it!
Jane is using natural fibres only as the artworks will stay in situ for a year while nature does it's own recycling...
The moss which is knitted in moss stitch!
Mushrooms!
The mushrooms knitted with Colinette 'Skye' in the colourway 'Star Anise', lovely! Jane wants us all to knit a mushroom for this and has written a pattern for them, so if you would like to knit one let us know and we'll send the pattern, yarn (and if you need them, some double pointed needles!) to you.Wednesday, September 29, 2010
SEA HAAR
The Unseen Sea from Simon Christen on Vimeo.
I like fog more and more with every passing year. Comforting, moody, cool, quiet, private.
This image, courtesy Wikimedia Commons, is of fog droplets jumping around at just below freezing temperatures.
Here's a high-speed image of the same fog, shot fast enough to slow the "particles" down and stop them in space. Like air champagne.
This beautiful true-color image posted by the Earth Observatory is of sea fog off Scandinavia in March 2003.
This one is too, from a day earlier.
In really cold weather, usually below −35°C/−30 °F, ice fog might form. Sometimes ice fogs triggers light pillars, as seen in this photograph. What looks like a lens flare on the camera is actually a pillar caused by the reflection of sunlight from ice crystals that happen to have nearly horizontal, parallel, flat surfaces. Therefore it really is a lens flare, only the lens is our atmosphere.
The photograph was shot somewhere in the Arctic, courtesy NOAA.
The photograph was shot somewhere in the Arctic, courtesy NOAA.
The droplets of a fogbow are so small, according to APOD (whence this photograph hails):
"that the quantum mechanical wavelength of light becomes important and smears out colors that would be created by larger rainbow water drops acting like small prisms reflecting sunlight with the best angle to divert sunlight to the observer."
Writing like that is exactly the reason I have a job.
Photo from here.
In Scotland and northern England sea fog is also known as haar or fret. Old Saxon words.
Most haar condenses around the nuclei of salt particles, which are the by-product of salt spray, which is the by-product of wind and waves.
Photo from here.
In a recent discovery, researchers from Scotland's Dunstaffnage Marine Laboratory found that haar also condenses around the iodine particles released by kelp. The kelp emit iodine when stressed by sunlight and evaporation. Thus they help make weather they like better.
Here's the abstract of the paper:
Brown algae of the Laminariales (kelps) are the strongest accumulators of iodine among living organisms. They represent a major pump in the global biogeochemical cycle of iodine and, in particular, the major source of iodocarbons in the coastal atmosphere. Nevertheless, the chemical state and biological significance of accumulated iodine have remained unknown to this date. Using x-ray absorption spectroscopy, we show that the accumulated form is iodide, which readily scavenges a variety of reactive oxygen species (ROS). We propose here that its biological role is that of an inorganic antioxidant, the first to be described in a living system. Upon oxidative stress, iodide is effluxed. On the thallus surface and in the apoplast, iodide detoxifies both aqueous oxidants and ozone, the latter resulting in the release of high levels of molecular iodine and the consequent formation of hygroscopic iodine oxides leading to particles, which are precursors to cloud condensation nuclei. In a complementary set of experiments using a heterologous system, iodide was found to effectively scavenge ROS in human blood cells.
Photo from here.
And since sea urchins stress and control kelp (by eating them), and since sea otters control sea urchin populations (by eating them), then urchins and otters are important players in the fogweb too—at least in the Pacific.
Photo from here.
The paper:
- Frithjof C. Küpper, et al. Iodide accumulation provides kelp with an inorganic antioxidant impacting atmospheric chemistry. PNAS.
How Clean are your Dishes?
Phosphates pose a threat to aquatic life and can end up in drinking-water reservoirs. In response to new laws, more and more makers of dishwasher detergents are reducing the amounts of phosphates in their products. But, according to a recent article published by The New York Times, "Cleaner for the Environment, Not for the Dishes," consumers claim their low-phosphate detergents aren't getting the job done.
Launched in 1991, Shaklee Basic-D was the first patented phosphate-free dishwashing cleanser. Today, our Shaklee Get Clean Dish Washer Automatic Powder Concentrate is a patented, high-performing, phosphate-free dishwasher cleanser. Its enzyme-activated formula removes tough stains without the need for prerinsing, leaving dishes sparkling clean. Shaklee Get Clean products do not contain phosphates—and never will.
Shouldn't everyone you know be using a phosphate-free dishwasher concentrate that leaves dishes sparkling clean?
Learn more about Get Clean products that are both safe for the environment and effective.
Help us get the word out by sharing this with your friends and family—they'll thank you for it!
This was a message from our Shaklee Corp.
I have been using these products for over 11 years and LOVE them!!!
I especially LOVE the dish detergent and liquid.
If I am washing a pot or pan, I seriously only use a couple of DROPS of liquid and it gets all the grease off!
And for my dishwasher, I use Shaklee’s detergent and I NEVER PRE-WASH/RINSE my dishes. NEVER! They come out CLEAN every time. I am so grateful for this because it saves me SOOOO much time!
According to this cost comparison sheet, it only costs 18.9 cents of Dish Wash Automatic Concentrate per load of dishes. CHEEP! Did you know that Cascade Complete costs 28.4 cents per load and Seventh Generation costs 40.4 cents per load?
To order or learn more about these safe dish products, please visit my online Shaklee shop today!
Have a great day!
Bonnie :)
Sunday, September 26, 2010
We Cleaned Out the Garage for Fall
We were busy this weekend!
We entertained some relatives, organized, took the kids finishing and cleaned out our garage.
Here are a couple of pictures of the kiddos fishing…they had a blast!
Now, here is what we did for fall cleaning.
We started out by taking pretty much EVERYTHING out of the garage.
Then we washed the garage floor. We normally use Basic H to clean it but this time we used Basic G because we found a lot of mouse poop….I know, totally gross! So that’s why we disinfected the WHOLE garage!
Then we put everything back where is goes.
Ahhh! It feels sooo good to have a CLEAN garage!
How is your fall cleaning going?
What did you clean this weekend?
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Turn Off The Tap To Save Water
I thought that I would quickly show you several ways to save water and save green!
We could always use another reminder. And I am pretty sure that we all LOVE saving $money$! Right?
Turn Off The Tap To Save Water
A few easy strategies. Old habits die hard, but learning to adjust your water use practices could have a decent impact on your overall water consumption. I've got a couple simple strategies that'll get you slowing the flow in no time.
•Water on, water off: Don't let the water run endlessly as you brush your teeth or wash your hands. Instead, turn the tap on "half-blast" to wet your toothbrush or hands, then turn the water off while you scrub your pearly-whites or lather your skin. Turn the tap back on only when you're ready to rinse—employ the half-blast method again.
•Cup-style conservation for shaving and brushing: When brushing your teeth or shaving, try using a cup. Simply fill an average glass with water (and shut the tap off when you're done). Dip your toothbrush or razor into the cup to wet it. Continue as usual, then use the cup-water to rinse.
•Face-washing eco-wise: Get your face clean without gallons of water by using a washcloth. Turn the tap on briefly to wet your hands as well as your facecloth and then shut the flow off again. Apply soap to your wet hands and scrub like normal. When you're ready to rinse, use your wet cloth to remove the soap, then give it a quick rinse under the tap.
•Cool down with a pitcher: If you're in need of a cold glass of water, don't run the tap until you get the desired temperature. Instead, plan ahead by filling a pitcher with water and putting it in the fridge. This way, you'll have cold water on demand without sending many, many gallons down the drain needlessly.
•Water warm-up savings: If you've got to wait several minutes before your shower or tap water warms up, consider using the warm-up water for other purposes by putting a bowl or pail under the faucet. You can water your plants, rinse recyclables, or feed your pets with this otherwise wasted H2O.
•Sensible shower use: If you've got a shut-off valve on your showerhead, use it to turn down or stop the water while you soap up, shave, or apply shampoo and conditioner.
I hope you found these tips as a helpful reminder!
What water saving tips do you use?
Bonnie :)
Please visit my Online Shaklee Site!
While the cat's away.....
I was really sad to have missed the inaugural Humble Jumble, due to a pre-planned "glamping" expedition to North Norfolk, more of which to follow another day! Our lovely friend Beth had taken on role of chief Humble Jumble organiser and what a fab job she did! Here is her account (accompanied by lots of lovely pictorial evidence) of the first ever Humble Jumble....
"We knew as soon as we saw it that the Ark would be the perfect spot for Humble Jumble. Seeing it full of beautifully laid out tables and decked in bunting was pretty exciting come Saturday morning.
We hosted six stall holders, who between them offered a wonderful mix of old, new and handmade goodies. Sam was there with her brilliant pic n mix bunting and traditionally felted accessories.
Claire was there with her beautiful hand made jewellery and Marion had a table full of lovingly crafted bits from toys to gorgeous pincushions and delicious preserves and brownies. The Scoffin ladies were as popular as ever with their amazing baked goods, cheese scones and mini carrot loaf cakes in particular flying out the hatch!
Everybody had some jumble too, from lovely toys and clothes, to vintage plates and homeware from the brilliantly named "Rumble in the Jumble"!
The first visitor came through the doors at 11am and we had a steady stream of visitors for the rest of the day....although we took advantage of the lunchtime lull to keep up our energy levels with some tea and Scoffin for ourselves!
Nicola brought Halfpenny Home to us at 2pm, with a bowlful of lovely pastel balls of wool in order to teach a granny square crochet class in the lounge. The sight of everyone getting crafty whilst sat in the afternoon sunshine was definitely a high-point, and a lovely, lovely way to round off the day.
Everyone seemed to have a good time, and the good news is that the stalls are already filling up for the next one, which I for one, am already getting excited about".
Roll on 16th October when Humble Jumble rumbles into Needham Market again!This time I shall not be missing out!
Jacqui x
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