Kimberly A. Cook

Military Romance Author

crafts

Fall Leaves, Pastry and Nuts

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The beautiful foliage outside my backyard this week. Glorious!

I love this time of year when the leaves turn incredible colors and the golden light in the morning looks like honey. And we all run around like the squirrels in my backyard foraging for snacks and treats for the coming winter.

We have a slight heat wave in Oregon this week and we are dashing around outside like crazy people to soak up the last rays of sun. We all hope for rain and snow in the mountains this winter. We need it. Wacky times and weird weather.

I’ve just completed a major writing project, updating all fifteen eBooks in preparation to publish them wide across more platforms. Holy pumpkin pie that about drove me to inhale straight Cool Whip.

One reward for finishing, was a day trip to Packer’s Bakery in Hood River to gather fifteen huge Gala apples to store in the refrigerator and big cookies for the freezer. Harvest time includes cookies in my rulebook.

Then I made trips to several craft stores to buy things I don’t need for the holidays, but they were so stinking cute. Because if you don’t get the Christmas stuff now, it’s gone. Then hopefully, the rains will come and I have fabulous excuses to stay inside to write and craft. With plenty of cookies. Like a bear.

I relish the simple pleasures as we head into winter, because a writer can’t listen to all the crazy all the time. Freaks out my muse. To say nothing of the potential weight gain if I stress eat too much pastry.

Which reminds me, I joined a monthly craft group, and we meet at an international deli. With incredible PASTRY. I have to be nice and purchase a treat with a drink, of course. Right? Don’t want to be rude.

My goal is to still fit in my jeans by spring. It’s good to have aspirations. And a treadmill.

But I’ve also been shopping for an advent calendar. For years I’ve gotten a craft one, but they stopped making it, and I need a change. Sweet Santa’s Workshop! The advent calendar selection includes chocolate, crafts, mini-books, shortbread, toys, dark romantasy, jewelry and even Highland cows! To name a few. This will require control and careful consideration. I only need one!

While I watch the leaves turn to vibrant reds and my squirrel customers scamper about the backyard, one thing is for sure when it comes to fall and the coming winter.

The early squirrels get the filberts.

Happy Fall, y’all!

I ration my customers filberts each day. This is Mr. Fluffy Tail. It’s the snacking season!

Who Is Building A Fairy Rock Garden?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                               (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

I am! It decided last Fall while looking at the tired corner of my backyard that’s overgrown with raspberries who refuse to grow in pots. Plus other cast off pots with blackberries. And the dumping area I use for my old potting soil; aka my backyard fence corner.

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The before mess in the corner.

 

I’m getting lazy and want more time to enjoy the patio and potted flowers instead of weeding all the time. On our trip to the Richardson Rock Ranch last Fall I even brought back a good selection of Rose Quartz for the Fairy Rock Garden. But it appears you actually have to take action to make this kind of thing happen.

So on Saturday of the long weekend it was time to charge the backyard mess and go for it. The ugly before picture a case in point above. I moved aside all the pots which will be downsized and then replanted The Fairy rose from a small pot to a bigger pot then moved/dragged it to a better position. The rose had a dirt and root clump the size of Nebraska. That was an interesting exercise in gymnastics, let me tell you.

Next up was weeding and considering the lay of the land. My hairdresser and I discussed using a raised bed on Friday for the garden. Figured I would need to level out the ground, which sounded like work. Went online for some ideas Friday night and got distracted on Pinterest. Found out there is quite the Fairy Garden underground, which was good for ideas.

While putting down the landscape fabric on Saturday afternoon, it dawned on me I could use some of the ideas from Pinterest and keep the lump of potting soil. Yeah! It would be the hill of my Fair Rock Garden with a Fairy home on it plus no digging dirt. Brilliant.

My goal is to use stuff/things I have and repurpose them. The stump in the middle of the Fairy Rock Garden will get a roof from my former cedar fence boards. I might even put roof shakes on from the pine comes left from the holiday wreaths.

Then I remembered my neighbor had given me a bunch of clay pots and those would make perfect Fairy Houses. (See Pinterest for rock, glue and Fairy house door construction on clay pots) Another old garden pot is the perfect shape of a large bee hive and I can spray paint it yellow. It appears I’ve become a Fairy Rock Garden real estate developer. Perhaps I do need another vacation, but I’m having fun!

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The Fairy Rock Garden development construction site in progress. Now to get white rock, 

 

I’ve made good progress but ran into trouble since I decided to go with white rock instead of river rock. Doing the rock math I need about a half yard. It comes in 50 pound bags at Home Depot. Good gravy, I have enough trouble hefting the 30 pound kitty litter bags. I need about thirteen bags! Nobody’s gym workout is that good. Must see about delivery……

Stay tuned for updates. Guaranteed this project will take years. Have you built a Fairy Garden?

 

Got Projects For The Fourth Of July?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                 (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

With the long weekend fast approaching, I love to plan projects I am going to get done with all that available time. What this means is I create a list of things to do I couldn’t complete in a month of time off, then with unrealistic high hopes if I manage to get one accomplished it’s a celebration. We all know life, laziness and must-see movies happen.

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Ahoy bark booty! A cache of hidden wood gold on the shoreline. 

 

So one project I will fess up to do next month is to actually get creative with at least one piece of bark I’ve collected. On the May trip to Suttle Lake for bark gathering the official orange bark bucket got filled to the brim.

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My Mom, bark gathering assistant extraordinaire, helped me fill the bark bucket in no time flat. Somehow the pieces seemed to get bigger as we went along. The brisk wind off the lake might have had something to do with that too. 

 

So then I had to dry the pieces out and buy a bigger glass container to store the bark, and before I am overrun, make something.

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My fancy new-fangled bark drying apparatus; paper and banker box lids on the patio table. Check out some of those amazing specimens. Living the dream!

 

In addition, I need to plant the fuchsia starts my Mom gave me since they now have roots. Bought special potting soil, have baby pots to plant them in, but need to actually put them in the dirt. So the project list grows.

But for now I wanted to share some of the latest official bark gathering photos so you can think about your coming projects for the Fourth of July. Got a holiday to do list?

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And this is where my special bark pieces come from girls and boys; tree logs fall into the lake, the bark gets soaked off and washes ashore and voila! Naked logs!

 

 

 

Can You Build A Tin Man?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                 (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

Last Friday I had lunch with one of my favorite people, author/editor/buddy www.cindyhiday.com and we met at my favorite Café in the antique shop. This place is my home away from home and I always find treasures and creative ideas which reboot my crafty creative cup. And I get to eat goodies!

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Don’t you just want to hug him? A smile would be nice. He got his heart!

 

Prowling the aisles I came across this amazing Tin Man some talented person made out of cans. Isn’t he adorable? Someone really made this work. Complete with his heart. I had to take his picture. He was on sale, but since I own my very own ruby red slippers, I figured someone else would come along who needed the Tin Man.

That is the fun part of the creative process, you never know where ideas will come from. Who sat around and saw a soup can and thought, “That’s the Tin Man!” Then acted on it and actually built him? Even more fun to ponder is the author who created the Tin Man out of thin air! Imagination rocks.

When you’re going about your week and happen upon some interesting items, give a thought to other ways they might be used. Exercise your imagination. Who knows, you might come up with a Tin Man too!

Can You Say Bead Bonanza?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                 (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

Returned from a girl’s four day road trip to Las Vegas last Saturday. While my poor little creative brain is still on total sensory overload trying to process everything I saw and experienced, I wanted to share a few pictures of my view of Las Vegas.

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Most folks go to Las Vegas to gamble and see shows, but I prefer seeing exhibits, lights and animals. We took in the Elvis Exhibit from Graceland, the M&M’s Store, and the white tigers at The Mirage.

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One amazing thing which caught my eye was above my head in the Golden Nugget Casino in downtown Las Vegas. Having a bead addiction, I about lost it when I spotted this chandelier. These three pictures don’t do it justice, but I had a wonderful time getting closer to try and determine the crystal and bead patterns with my zoom lens.

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With so many things to see, hear and experience in “Sin City,” you know I found the biggest piece of bling I could find on a ceiling. Now if I can just figure out how to make one of my own. I’m sure Spec Ops Cat would love to play with these beads!

I will share more of my fun Vegas finds with you next week, so stay tuned. Or in my case, what happens in Vegas ends up on WordPress!

 

Sorting, Winter Projects And Too Many T-Shirts?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

Spent part of Halloween weekend sorting my clothes closet for trash and treasure. Found some of both. What started this adventure was tight jeans. Some fit, some don’t, so I did the grand jean try-on rodeo. Once that was done, then I sorted shoes, sweaters, workout pants and things snowballed.

Bead treasures to sort. Bring on the rains. Okay, not all the rain in one day.
Bead treasures to sort. Bring on the rains. Okay, not all the rain in one day.

One of the excesses I came across were t-shirts. How many does one person need? Add the fact I only wear them for yard work or gardening and I have way too many. Some oldies but goodies I’ve worn so much they’re rags, so those might become a pillow. Or not.

It was a trip down memory lane looking at the different sayings, symbols and jokes on the shirts. Not parting with the Harley t-shirts. Not yet. I used to buy these shirts travelling, but I’ve moved on to refrigerator magnets and now even those are out of hand. I have to rotate the stock on the frig.

My reward for all of this sorting and cleaning was to escape into my office/craft room and play with my latest bead and yarn purchases. Turns out I hadn’t sorted the last batch of goodies from the July bead show. Finished that since the bead show is here again this month. Bead therapy, that‘s what I call it.

Geode tragedy. Special glue and determination will get me through. And leftover Halloween candy.
Geode tragedy. Special glue and determination will get me through. And leftover Halloween candy.

I also girded myself to assess the casualty from my thunderegg trip. I’d bought my largest geode pair yet at the Richardson Rock Ranch. I fell in love with it.

Unfortunately, I was carrying several bags when unpacking and of the two small bags slipped and hit the floor. The geode missed the carpet and landed on the kitchen floor. Argh! One half broke apart, a tiny ding in the other.

The special rock glue is here now and it’s time to try and figure out this puzzle project. Not today, but this winter. Plenty of time for indoor craft projects now that the dark and stormy nights have arrived.

Got winter projects? Too many t-shirts? Sort away all!

Spec Ops Cat kept trying to find a quiet spot to sleep while IO was sorting, cleaning and vacuuming. The indignity of it all.
Spec Ops Cat kept trying to find a quiet spot to sleep while I was sorting, cleaning and vacuuming. You can tell from his expression he’s not happy about the indignity of it all.