by Krista | Sep 21, 2017 | Spring
The kookaburras are hollering loudly this morning, letting me know that the sun will be rising soon. A quick glance out the kitchen window reveals tree branches etched against a brightening sky. The kookaburras were right. They always are.
It’s been a week of building good things, inching closer to my goal of a business that supports us well and brings me joy.
A couple of months ago, my friend Lizzie asked me what it is that I love doing. It took me a while to figure it out because I’m interested in, well, pretty much everything, so to narrow it down to what makes me light up took some time. But at last I did, and as soon as I spoke the words my whole body said, YES!
I love sharing stories and art with the world. Both my own and those of my clients. That makes my heart swell in excitement, sets my eyes all sparkly and my face all glowy, perks me right up and floods my imagination with ideas and plans.
So that’s what I’m building. A safe, jolly, and love-filled place where stories are told, art is made, and both are shared with the world through gorgeous books, beautiful Etsy shops, and personalized social media that is easy to manage and fun to do.
I love it so much.
There’s something about bringing someone’s dream to fruition that fills my heart with excitement. To see someone realize that their handmade jewelry, paintings, or knitting are valued and worth sharing, makes me rather teary. To watch someone discover that others need and want to hear their stories, brings the best possible lump to my throat. Because these things confirm what we all hope but sometimes doubt:
We matter.
Our stories are worth telling.
Our creative work is meaningful.
I love my clients so much. Hilarious and talented women who think it perfectly sensible to have our business meetings with iced tea in a garden, cuppas over Skype, or a picnic in the park. I love watching them grow from “what’s Instagram?” to having their own Etsy shop and blog, managing Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest with ease, and, most of all, seeing their faces light up with confidence and joy knowing that not only is their dream a reality, but they have the tools and skills to keep it thriving.
This week I’ve also been building for me.
I met up with a wonderful woman who helps run a market in Toowoomba. She’s definitely a kindred spirit, and I love the supportive, community mindset of the market. Soon I’ll be giving demonstrations there on how to make herbal remedies, cheese-making, and other fun things. I’ll also be opening my own market stall where I’ll get to share my tea, art, and books with the community.
I continue to build my tea shoppe, growing, harvesting, drying, and storing tray after tray of elderflower, borage, spearmint, lemon balm, pineapple sage, and other beautiful herbs that nourish and support good health. The borage is making me especially happy this week, for those bright blue starry flowers are so gorgeous. And it always makes me smile to know that borage was used in medieval times to give strength and courage. A cup of courage tea.
I’ve also started writing a new book, the first in a series, and I’m having so much fun as I choose the recipes, pictures, and stories that will fill its pages. I’ll tell you all about that soon.
The sun is up now, and so is Bear. It’s time for cuppas and breakfast and chats about our day. I’m off to visit my dear friend Bernie to work on the wonderful book she’s writing, and Bear is building new bee frames for our hives. It’s going to be a good day.
What work is bringing you joy this week? xo
by Krista | Aug 26, 2017 | Winter
I do love a weekend that feels like a weekend. One where you actually get to rest and take care of yourself and be companionable with your loves and eat good things.
After long days and late nights of writing and photo shoots, it’s been sheer bliss to set all that aside this weekend and just be us for a bit.
Yesterday was a movie day, watching excellent ones like “The Zookeeper’s Wife”, “Woman in Gold”, and season two of “The Last Kingdom.” We luxuriated in comfy clothes, special treats, and a complete avoidance of anything that required concentration. It was just what we needed, and we woke today feeling relaxed and happy and inspired.
We don’t often get to cook together, but we did this weekend, churning out cheesy pumpkin pancakes, garlicky hummus, loaves of bread, and wholemeal crepes.
Crepes are one of my favorite things because they’re so easy to make delicious things with. Our favorites at the moment are savory aged cheddar and tomato with lots of black pepper, and luscious fresh strawberry ones filled with sour cream and sprinkled with pineapple sage.
Today we’re pottering, feeding Jemima her bottle, watering gardens, planting cuttings, and thinking of ways to use all the lovely citrus dear friends gave us. I have baskets of lemons, limes, mandarins, tangelos, and oranges stacked on the veranda and kitchen table. I’ve juiced some, zested others, and feed all the peels to the pigs and sheep, who adore them.
Now I’m warm and comfy on the back veranda, tucked under a blanket, watching Jemima chase a very patient Apollo who guards her faithfully even when she tries to nurse on his boy bits. She then gets a firm growl and a little nip, and off she goes to nibble grass instead.
Our ewe, Emma, and her baby, Lillypilly, wander the farm yard, munching through freshly fallen leaves and whatever bits of green they can find before finding a shady spot for a nap.
The goats are back from grazing in the dam yard and are waiting for me to throw them their daily pellets when I feed the pigs, Pancetta and Prosciutto. I guess I’d better do that before settling in for a bit of inspirational reading.
What is making you happy this weekend? xo
Wholemeal Crepes
Ingredients:
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 tsp vanilla salt (or regular salt)
1 cup wholemeal flour
1/4 cup butter, melted
Directions:
1. Place all ingredients in blender and blend for 10 seconds. Remove lid, scrape down sides, and blend for another 20 seconds.
2. Pour into pitcher and refrigerate until ready to use, at least 1-2 hours.
3. Place frying pan over high heat and heat for 30 seconds. Add 1 tsp of vegetable oil, and swirl to cover.
4. Reduce heat to medium-high heat and pour about 2 Tbsp crepe batter in center of pan, swirling to make a thin circle.
5. Cook until bubbles form on top (40-60 seconds), gently slide spatula under crepe and flip. Cook another minute, then remove to serving platter. (First crepe is always messy, so just plan on eating that one straight away.) Repeat until batter is used up.
6. Serve warm or cold with filling of choice.
by Krista | Jul 14, 2017 | Winter
The farm is dark and quiet this afternoon with thick clouds overhead like a muffling blanket. It’s a day to stay warm inside with hot mugs of tea, cups of smoky ham soup, and writing projects to keep me busy.
I’m home again from Abbey Medieval Festival where we spent 8 amazing days living in our medieval tents, cooking over the fire, and visiting with dear friends by lamplight. These events are always a lot of work, but those moments with loved ones are precious indeed, and make every late night and early morning well worth it.
One of my favorite parts was having the time to make medieval medicines and medieval nomad food over our camp fire, feeling like a proper witch as I stirred big pots of healing concoctions with long handled wooden spoons.
I simmered elderberries with cinnamon, clove, and star anise to make an immune-boosting cordial, and boiled hawthorne berries into a strong syrup sweetened with raw honey from our own hives. I made Bedouin wheat stew with slow-cooked meat and wild onions, smoked cheeses, and brewed yarrow tea to soothe aching heads. I foraged plantain leaves from the Abbeystowe grounds and mashed them with a mortar and pestle for a poultice and steeped jasmine flowers to calm rattled nerves.
I sipped and sniffed and tasted, adding a bit more honey here, an extra spoonful of dried herbs there, until everything was just right. Then I decanted and bottled and poured into bowls, getting it all on display for my demonstrations on medieval folk medicine and medieval Bedouin food and cheese-making.
It was so much fun and I loved every bit of it.
My newly printed books arrived in time to sell, and I loved sharing them with so many people eager to learn about the past and experiment at home making things to feed and nourish their families.
It was especially great meeting people from all over the world – Iran, Romania, Egypt, Germany – and hearing their stories of the foods and remedies their ancestors passed down through generations. One lady even brought me a bottle of one of her healing drams – ginger, calendula, and other herbs steeped in port wine. So delicious and soothing to my throat that was downright weary from two days of talking.
Now I’m home and ready to share my books with you luvs, too. You can order online directly from me through my Etsy shoppe here (worldwide shipping available). If you would like a signed copy, let me know in the note who you would like me to address the signing to, and I’ll be sure to personalize before I ship it.
Wishing you a beautiful weekend with your loves. xo
by Krista | Feb 23, 2015 | Summer
It is a gorgeous Summer morning, clear, bright, fresh as a daisy. Just the sort of morning to rejuvenate flagging spirits and put the vim back into life.
I’m Celebrating Good Things today: new winter boots from Germany, a homemade fruit mince tart, the impending arrival of baby goats, great visits with friends over the weekend, leftovers to eat, and the healing power of creativity.
I’ve begun researching and interviewing for my next book, the story of a Hungarian Jewish woman who survived the Holocaust and the Hungarian Revolution, then escaped to start a new life in Australia, all by herself with only one change of clothes to her name.
It is a deeply emotional story, one filled with tales both heart-rending and laugh-out-loud hilarious. Above all it is inspiring, a gripping reminder that no matter how dark life gets, we can always choose love.
Researching such things can be draining, and the subject of the book and I have to take regular breaks from the darkness to reconnect with beauty and happiness. It’s such a gift to get to share all these moments with her, to cry and laugh together, then emerge to cook delicious things and potter in our gardens and create beauty through handicrafts. She bakes and brews and knits. I can’t knit worth a hoot, but I can wood-burn, so that’s what I’ve been doing.
It’s therapeutic for me to curl up in my chair burning designs or hang out in Bear’s wood shop cutting, drilling, shaping, and sanding, basking in the scent of freshly cut wood. I’ve added a few things to my Etsy shoppe, and hope to add more this week.
As the Summer winds to a close, there are still a few late Summer treasures to be found in my gardens. My favorites are the bushes of fragrant basil and rambling vines laden with gorgeous heirloom tomatoes that taste like sunshine. Picked while still warm from the sun, the tomatoes are delicious mixed with fresh buffalo mozzarella, torn basil leaves, and a simple dressing of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper.
What is your favorite creative outlet? xo
by Krista | Feb 16, 2015 | Summer
It’s a beautiful morning, soft and still, and I’m all rested up after the launch of my book: “Freestone: a mostly true history” at Freestone Memorial Hall yesterday.
It was an amazing time with animated conversations going on wherever you looked. So many people came they lined the walls and organizers had to bring in more chairs. It was so fun to see dear, familiar faces who came out to show support, and meet some lovely new folks and people I’d only known by name through my research for the book.
The committee did a spectacular job organizing massive amounts of baked goods, tea, coffee, and lemon water to keep the masses fed and watered, and lining tables with old photos to elicit laughter and good memories.
The launch itself was short and sweet. I gave my speech and was understood in spite of my foreign accent, and was honored to present a copy of “Freestone: a mostly true history” to friends from the Warwick library.
Afterwards everyone milled around chatting up a storm as I signed stacks of books and met even more great people. It was such a warm, community feeling and I was thrilled to be a part of it.
Many thanks to Liz Hill and the Freestone Hall for these photos of the book launch.
As folks made their way home again, Bear and I got in our car and headed back to our farm, beaming but exhausted, thankful for the journey that accompanied this book, relief at being done, gratitude at being able to celebrate it with such a great group of people.
If you would like a copy of “Freestone: a mostly true history” there are two options. If you’re local (ie – in Southern Queensland, Australia) you can purchase a copy at “Art on King” in Warwick. If you’re a bit farther afield, you can purchase a copy online by clicking here. If you buy in Warwick, only soft covers are available. If you prefer a hard cover or PDF version, please order online. (All proceeds go to the Freestone community.)
If you’re local and would like me to sign your copy, I’d be delighted. Just drop me a note and we’ll make arrangements to meet up.
Now it’s time to get back to work. 🙂 I’ve started my next book, the biography of an amazing woman who survived the Holocaust and the Hungarian Revolution, and moved to Australia with only one set of clothes to her name to start a new life. I can’t wait to share her story with you.
What is one of your favorite biographies? xo
