Pocket Pause

October 10, 2013

Sham-Pooch: All Natural Bar Shampoo for Pooches!

I’m super happy to announce that my popular bar shampoo for dogs, Sham-Pooch is now available on Etsy.

You may or may not be aware that i make natural soap under the business name Nude Soap. My hubs and i both have sensitive skin, so i learned how to make cold process soap using all natural ingredients and herbs so that we too could enjoy bathtime. I LOVE my soap, and so do many others, including some long time repeat customers. I’ve been battling with time management of late and made the difficult decision to scale back on that company in order to focus more full time on Fiber Friends. My website is still up, but i haven’t been carefully managing that online inventory with the real thing and many items are sold out. Although i’m not updating that website, i will continue to make soap and have a limited inventory in stock at all times – so please never hesitate to contact me with your request! I’m even happy to make a special batch just for you.

One item that spans both companies’ target audience is my super awesome Sham-Pooch. Pocket has always been a bit itchy and is, of course quite short, and thus easily soiled. Why should she be bathed in chemicals from a bottle while we enjoy all natural suds? Sham-pooch smells great, is easy to use, gets Pocket’s nasty dirt-chest white as rice and is so much less wasteful than shampoos (full of nasty chemicals) that come in bottles. Pocket is not the biggest fan of baths (and is seen in the photo below unbathed and dirty, fyi), but by using a shampoo bar instead of squirt on soap juice, i get to rub her all over while she suffers the onslaught of water. Mommy massages are relaxing and by rubbing the actual bar of soap around you get great lather and even coverage where you want it.

So, for now on i will try to keep Sham-Pooch in stock on Etsy and am happy to add a bar or 3 to any order. I also make another blend specifically for itchy skin that includes oatmeal and neem and will try to make a batch of that in time for the holidays. Soap makes for great stocking stuffers! Get yours now while it lasts!

Does your dog love or hate bath time?

2 Comments

Filed under Bath & Body, Dogs/ Corgis, Fiber Friends, Nude Soap

Tagged as all natural dog shampoo, dog shampoo bar, natural dog shampoo, sham-pooch

October 8, 2013

Chanterelles!

We went shroomin this weekend on the coast. I’d tell you where we found these lovely Chanterelles, but then i’d have to kill you. 😉

I do look a bit crazed in this blurry photo….

We cooked about half with a whole rabbit turned into epic herbed coney/mushroom gravy over mashed potatoes and the rest i’m saving to dehydrate. I’ve never dehydrated mushrooms before, but i really want to have some on hand for tossing into gravies and soups through the seasons. Chanterelles aren’t my favorite mushroom to eat, but they’re one of my favorites to hunt. I always find myself teetering on some mossy precipice with my hair full of branches and twigs. It’s like adult Easter egg hunting! I’ve heard there are some things you can do to these mild flavored mushrooms to intensify that flavor a bit, so i’m hoping some of my savvy readers will have some ideas for me:

Have you ever dehydrated mushrooms? Do you have any tips on how to maximize/intensify the flavor and store for ease of versatile use?

3 Comments

Filed under Cooking, Foraging

Tagged as chanterelle mushrooms, foraging, mushroom, oregon

October 7, 2013

Homestead Update: October 1st

Man, i have been having trouble posting these updates anywhere near the first of the month lately? Anyhoo – busy as a beaver, so here’s a quick overview of September’s progress.

Our biggest accomplishment was the finishing of our supremely awesome upper ‘lounge room‘ and laying all of the first floor laminate! Omigosh, our house looks so PRETTY! Which is hard to believe if you’d seen (and smelled) it “before.” We’re truly falling in love with this place. Which feels real good, let me tell you.

We also had a PARTY! I love hosting parties and surprisingly: i had the best turnout at this party, living in the middle of nowhere – much better than any i’d thrown in the big city. Go figure. Almost all the neighbors came and several expressed how much they appreciated having this gathering as an excuse to socialize and catch up. It was great to meet and get to know such great folks and to break the ice for future waves on the road and cups of sugar borrowed.

Other items accomplished in September:

Built a supplemental wood rack and began stacking our winter’s firewood – finally
Got the tractor running to the point of MOWING! The pasture will be rejuvenated! (more on that later in the week)
Ebenezer has been catching bellies full of voles, field mice and COTTON TAIL RABBITS!
I picked up a few rabbit customers
The rains returned – bring on the green
Plans for barn repairs have almost been solidified
We got the house really clean for the party – and then got it really dirty again

That’s about it! Get those Halloween decorations ready, y’all – it’s October!

1 Comment

Filed under The Homestead

Tagged as homestead update, october

October 4, 2013

Fiber Friday – Mobiles by Fiber Friends Touch Your Family’s Heart

Fiber Fridays are my days to feature a favorite knitting pattern or tip, highlight some of my past Fiber Friends customers, or feature one of my new products and/or provide some good info for potential customers wanting to know more about my process. Today, i’m featuring a very special mobile that touched my heart while i felted it and is about to have a very special place in the home of one of my clients.

Corgis and cat - mobile by Fiber Friends

I sent Dana some photos of her new mobile, and without even seeing it in real life, she sent me this wonderful note:

Miranda,

You are simply amazing! I really don’t know how you did it, and all before October 1st! Holy Smokes! You got Timmy (the cat) down to a tee, you can just see his confidence and his easy going attitude while living with 2 nutty corgis! The angel wings are perfect and Just Dandy’s eyes are just like I remember, staring into the deep clear blue ocean……

I hope you realize how very special this mobile is going to become for our family. It’s hard to put in words how it’ll wrap us all into a very big hug. I know the pictures are hard to give such a detailed piece it’s justice, seeing it for real will be so amazing.

Thank you for all your love, kindness, and for sharing your amazing talent with all of us! We are so blessed you can capture our best friend’s essence in such a unique and beautiful way.

Love,

Dana

Wowzer, that is some compliment! I often think about my business as being frivolous – creating unecessary ‘luxury’ items. Don’t get me wrong, i LOVE what i do – but i’m a very pragmatic, frugal, homesteader type who has trouble letting go of my money unless its on things like solar panels or water catchment tanks. Testimonials like Dana’s remind me that Fiber Friends aren’t just ‘knick knacks,’ they are often very special little reminders of family members lost, left behind, or just loved so much we need to have them by our side all the time. I know i love my dog like a child, and so do so many others. Our pets are often like our first children – and what better way to entertain your real child than with tiny versions of those fur-babies spinning high above his/her head?

I thought it would be fun to show a little ‘behind the scenes’ on how my mobiles come to life! It all starts with dialogue with my customer, a few sketches from me and a whole bunch of photos from them. I felt each critter, one at a time, then add the decorative elements and string them all up as balanced as possible. It’s quite the process, but so rewarding to watch it spin once it’s all finished!

Interested in ordering a mobile for your baby (or yourself – they look great in offices and living rooms, too!)? Check out this post for some ordering/pricing information and plan to have a bare minimum 3 weeks turnaround for your mobile. I’m still working with about a month’s waiting list and most mobiles take between 1 to 4 weeks to complete depending on how grandiose we get.