Carpets in Istanbul, and Aya Sofya

Istanbul

These crosses were on the ceiling of Aya Sofya. The design on top was added later when the building was turned into a mosque.

Inside Aya Sofya in Istanbul. Originally a church building it was later used as a Mosque and now it is a museum.

Handwoven Silk Turkish rug.

Carpet store in Istanbul, Turkey

The view from a ferry on the Bosphorus. (The Bosphorus originates in the Black Sea, traveling south and dividing Turkey) We went from the Asian side (East) to the European side (West)

Another town south from Istanbul called Kusadasi. This is where we stayed for a few days. One of those days was spent seeing Ephesus.

Ephesus, Turkey

Front of the library at Ephesus


The library in Ephesus

I thought this was a funny sign!

Daddy and I went to Turkey in June. We visited Istanbul,

Kutahya, Kusadasi and Ephesus. (Efes in Turkish)

Cay tea. This is a very popular drink that is served in retaurants and even on the streets of the Bazaars. It is similar to our regular black tea and is served without milk in these little glass cups.

They are shaped like tulips. To find out why click on the link below.

http://www.allaboutturkey.com/tulip.htm

Stray cats in Ephesus

Istanbul, Turkey

Different ideas on one picture

I was experimenting with different settings today on some photos
and came up with these. What do you think?

Selective coloring and "painterly" setting b+w

70s look

Impressionist painting style b+w

Birmingham, England

Gardening fun

Our grape vine. The grapes still taste tart and sour.

What do you do on a hot summer day after gardening? Play with the hose of course! :-)

July 4, 2009

Daisies

vintage cain's coffee cans

I played these ivories for 2 and a 1/2 hours today :-)

Interesting shadows

“Most certainly I tell you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and doesn’t come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

John 5:24

Around the house

sweet potato rolls

Baking in our kitchen

How to make SOAP -Part 2-

The molds I used for my soap:

A wooden square box, (the square bars)
a 3 inch PVC pipe, (the circle soap)
and the other round balls of soap were hand molded.

The soap is soft enough to hand shape in the first 2-5 days after saponification. The brown soap has coffee grounds and herbal tea leaves I added after the soap was made. The yellow soap (next to the brown) has herbs and tumeric in it. They are textured, "scrubby" soaps for the kitchen or the gardener.

I had fun experimenting with different essential oils. Most of the soap smells the same. (Refer to "TUTORIAL on soap making - Part 1- to see how I scented it.) But I added additional essential oils to the hand molded soap. (Wintergreen, Lemongrass and Citronella are supposed to repel mosquitoes, so of course I had to try those!)

If any readers have made soap before, or know friends who make it, I would enjoy hearing your techniques, ideas and tips. I am looking forward to experimenting some more with my next batch of soap :-)
Please leave a comment. Thanks!



I cut out the designs with a cookie cutter.
You could also cut the soap out as you would cookie dough.

The scalloped edged soap was created using a scalloped cheese cutter. I think it makes the soap look unique and interesting.