Thursday, July 18, 2013

harvest 2013: lavender wands


Now here's a happy sight: the return of the lavender wands. It is so incredibly satisfying to sit and weave one of these per evening (more than that and my eyes - and patience! - are strained!), thinking of how I longed for them as a child, wishing I knew the secret. It's actually quite easy, and if you'd like to make them, Dharma Trading Co. kindly supplies a tutorial on their website. I went back to my neighbourhood cake decorating store this year and dug around until I found a spool of silk ribbon that I could purchase to use for these this year. Silk ribbon really is my favorite: it's very delicate and lays very flat, so the end result is very smooth. Dharma also sells woven silk ribbon if you'd like to buy some for making your own (bonus: you could also get some acid dye and dye it a very pretty colour - which is half the fun, isn't it?).

These are good for keeping insects - like moths - out of your clothing. The flowers of the lavender are all tucked inside the bulbs of the wands, and if the scent starts to fade, all you have to do is gently massage the bulb to release more of the lavender oil. I have one of these that is almost two years old and still going strong! The only thing you have to be careful of are the stems - they're sharp and fibrous, and could snag delicate clothing. So, tuck these wands into drawers that aren't overfull, or where it will be easy to keep the ends tucked into corners of the drawer, away from sweaters or other knits that might snag.

These are bound for Florida, to a favorite lady-friend =) Miss you, Lady C!

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