Summer Greeting and Agenda, and Hazel Nuts

I've been too lazy for writing on my blog, but have enjoyed this hot dry summer.  What I was really pleased was that I was able to wear short sleeves almost every day.  We have had a wet winter, so we deserve this fine summer.

I feel I need declare my agenda for this summer (by the end of August) so that I complete my tasks.

I've been working out to open an online shop at one of the most popular art and craft selling sites but very soon, hopefully finish setting up this weekend.  Alongside I'd like to finish the next paper cut art for the Autumn, and also finish the next year's calendar of the plants in the UK.

Anyway, the autumn is approaching now.  While raspberry bush in our garden has been producing still red sweet aromatic berries, though, strawberry runners are growing endlessly and the hazel nuts are fattening day by day.  Why not the squirrel's family in the neighbour's bushy garden find the fresh nuts for their dinner!  

I got two young hazel about 7, 8 years ago, and planted in our back garden.  They had only 2 nuts last year for the ever first time.  This year, at last, they got plenty of nuts.  But the naughty squirrels have eaten the most of them lavishly.  I decided to crop some nuts for us before all the nuts were gone.  We haven't tried green nuts.  But cob nuts ( a sort of hazel nuts) are now in vegetable shops and some supermarkets.  

My children helped to crack the shells.  The nuts are moist and a bit soft.  I could slice them easily.

The sliced nuts were eaten with salad leaves, sprincled balsamic vinegar and virgin olive oil.  They tasted nutty but very subtle and green?,  how I can describe, green crispy vegetable rather than nuts.  I prefer, to be honest, ripe nutty fatty ones.  Yet they were not so bad anyway.

Illustration: Bento

This was the second time to display cabinets in the Cardiff Central Library (See on Facebook, Photos; Cardiff is the capital city of Wales, UK) for the Japan Day to raise awareness of Japanese Culture.  This years Japan Day took place on Saturday 31st May.

I used to display cabinets in department stores and individual shops when I worked for a confectionary and cake company in Japan years ago.  It was a sort of work, but 10 display cabinets at once!  But my friends came to help me to do a lot on the day of display.

Many other friends supported for the display not only on the day of display, by such as creating Japanese calligraphy (amazing!), making origami art (amazing!) and lending invaluable personal belongings.

By the way, this time I drew some illustrations to decorate a couple of empty lunch boxes.

(Please see in Portfolio: Illustration)

Bento, lunch box in Japanese, is a kind of food art, or a treasure box, filled with colourful foods.  I cut the illustrations into the right sizes, fits to each lunch box.

Nowadays in the UK, you can get a lot of Japanese ingredients in supermarkets, but I still miss the traditional lunch box which my mum used to make for her children every morning!

Elderflower Cordial Season

It was a few week ago now.  I took my youngest son as a company for elderflower hunting one warm dry evening after very wet week.  He is a great fun of elderflower cordial.  So was he very delighted to come along with me.

Here and there were the bushes with full of creamy white elderflower.  We cut them just as much as we needed, leave the rest for the bees and the others who might want to make cordials or wine (or champagne).  As the berries ripen in the Autumn, we need leave the flowers for birds and for us making berry cordial.

I like the sweet smell.  We cut the flower from the stems, ready for making cordial.

The flowers are put in a large bowl, together with lemon and orange peels, which add a zesty touch, and left overnight to infuse.

Next day the liquid is carefully strain with a muslin bag.  Sugar, lemon juice citric acid are pour into the liquid and boiled.

Bottled cordial is ready for this summer!

Saturday 17th May 2014, PADLT Plant and Craft Fair, Mobile Prints

Last November the Penarth And District Lesotho Trust (PADLT) was held their first Christmas Craft Fair.  I had a stall for my art pieces.  Although the fair was for the first time and only for 2 hours in the morning, a lot of people came in.  The atmosphere was warm and friendly for all ages.  So, I said yes to have another stall at their first Pant and Craft Fair when having been asked.

Being sold various plants for the summer made me think what kind of new stuff I should bring into the fair.  This is not like the Christmas fair, on which people tend to look for Christmas presents.

Self-making paper hanging mobile of Field Maple sets for the fair are what I am going to raise money for the PADLT.

There are 2 different colour options.  The sheet size is A5, not large.  A thread with beads is included and double-sided tape was attached on the back of the sheet.  

The instruction is simple.  Young children can make with a help of an adult.  Each colour version is sold separately, but it will be a nice hanging mobile with 2 sets.

Apart from this special sale, I am going to bring some new screen prints and greeting cards as well.  (They will be shown in the next dairy.)

English (or rather Welsh?) Bluebells Blooming

Now Bluebells are blooming here and there in the UK.  Here, in the South Wales, in a small woodland near by our house, the bluebells have just started blooming.  English Bluebells, well, I have to correct to call them, especially the ones growing native here in Wales, 'Welsh Bluebells'.  A friendly gentleman with a friendly dog told about this to my friend and me on a footpath in one of the woodlands about a year ago.  And, I ran into him this week again, with his dog on a different footpath.  'We might have met around here before?'

I walked in the woodland with a hill after having said 'See you again soon!' when he went along outside the woodland.  On the hill top and on the slope they have just started blooming in the beech wood.  What I was pleased was that there were the white ones exactly the same place I found the last spring!  I would try to find odd ones, white milk vetches (Japanese: Genge), which have usually pink petals, four-leaf clovers and such as a young child.

In fact, the pretty white flowers of wood anemones started blooming before the bluebells in the early spring.  Unlike their fragile appearance they are actually strong.  They are thriving in the whole woodland.  I thought of early dog violet in our front garden, which scattered everywhere in a few years and hard to get rid of...  Nevertheless, I can't help liking both of them.

Outside the woodland (or, correctly between woodlands) the fields were freshly ploughed, ready for seeding, maybe wheat or barley, maybe maize; I'll see in the summer what will be.  It is hard to recognise in the picture, but a tractor was resting at the corner of a field.  A farmer might have been having his/her lunch in it right now, or went home for lunch.  It will be the busiest season for them.

Paper Cut: Early Spring Woodland

It's not early spring more, almost the early summer is coming.  But here is a scent of the early spring.

The woodland protected the plants from the harsh weather in the last winter, though, it was mild and wet.  The flowers were blooming here and there on the sunny spots around the woodland.  The wild garlic were showing their young soft leaves from the ground with the subtle but distinctive scent in the beech woodland.  Animals were enjoying the beginning of the lively season.

Early Spring Woodland 2014

(A3, from original paper cut, processed with GIMP)

Flourishing Spring in April!

After the foggy days the summer time began on the last Sunday.  We feel the evenings are brighter and longer.  The buds are growing everyday which make the trees greener, and spring flowers are splendid  everywhere.  I enjoy walking in my town, watching spring flowers like vibrant yellow forsythia, smelling the scent of magnolia.

The weather hasn't been very good, but I took a chance for a walk yesterday in the early evening as the blue sky emerged between thick grey the late afternoon.  It was a sunny pleasant evening.  There were some people walking leisurely without thick coat, who had the same idea like me in the meadow.  Birds, probably black birds, robins, blue tits and possibly skylarks, were chirping somewhere I couldn't see.  Other than that, it was a calm pleasant evening.

Blackthorn blossoms

The white flowers of blackthorn (sloe is better known) were full in bloom now.  I feel the spring has come when seeing them in fields.

Alexanders

The young leaves of carrot families are thriving vigorously.  Their fresh green colour brightens the smokey colour of the ground.  I always wanted to know one of them; the plants, above, which looks like celery, is Alexanders (smyrnium olusatrum).  The shiny light green stems attracted me to pick, but I resisted my temptation. (It is edible and I am a keen forager.)

Hazel

Hazel's green buds are growing and I could see their fine pleated young leaves stretching.  In a week their branches must be covered with pretty bright green pleated leaves.

In the end of my evening walk, around half past six, I reached at a farm.  Horses were grazing in the field in the evening sun, next to the farm.  Tranquil warm evening in the beginning of April.