Unicorns

Someone I know loves Unicorns.

Real Hibiscus Tea - Hibiscus sabdariffa

Most people enjoy hibiscus tea.  Some even know the dried flowers are delicious eaten like dried fruit.  But few realize that the flower used for this is actually "Jamaican Sorrel" or Hibiscus sabdariffa.  I have been wanting to grow it for years.  And this guy is from some seed I bought.  He was the only one that came up, but I have high hopes for him! 

Help Bring My Sister Home

I started a GoFundMe campaign for my sister Phoebe.  She was born and raised in Santa Cruz and would really like to come back home, but she is stuck in northern California where there are no jobs and few places to live.  The area is so rural she can't even make the money needed to move anywhere, let alone back to Santa Cruz.  She has an rv that needs to be towed and stored.  She has a vehicle that needs repairs.  And she has a job offer.
Now we just need to get her here!

Facebook will not let me pay to boost a post that is linked to GoFundMe.
But they will let me boost a post from my blog.

And I have posted a link to the GoFundMe campaign here on the blog.

So I need you to go to my page for PedricksCorner and look for the post about Phoebe and the GoFundMe post. 
Even if you can't donate, you can like and SHARE the post!
Your friends cannot see that you like the post unless you share it.
Please, this is how posts go "viral", it is from people taking a second to share the posts they see.

If you donate, you will see updates to how the campaign is going and I will be certain to post about our success if we are able to get this done.

Here is a photo of Phoebe when she was on the women's swim team at Cabrillo College in 1993.

Blatant Bribery - First 10 to complete the instructions win a free Real Lavender Filled Pendant

If you live in the United States (sorry, this is a freebie and I can't afford to ship to you otherwise) and would like to earn a "free" Real Lavender Filled Pendant like the ones shown, then read on!

Here are the instructions:

1.  Write me a note via Etsy to tell me you intend to try for one of the ten free pendants I will be giving away to the first ten people who complete all the steps.

      Here is a link to my Etsy store:  https://www.etsy.com/shop/Pedricks

      I also have an EBay store, but that one doesn't count for now.

2.  Then you need to like/follow on Facebook, both the ArtisansOfAmerica page:
          https://www.facebook.com/Artisansofamerica

      And the PedricksCorner page:
          https://www.facebook.com/PedricksCorner

3.  To qualify, you will need to both like and share the next 15 posts to either page or both.  Only posts made by the admin to these pages count.  Not comments or other posts (just in case I haven't done a good job of blocking that).

     Just liking a post only counts as one, just sharing only counts as one, liking and sharing counts as two.  You will need a minimum total of thirty points to win a free pendant.

     Yes, I will be able to see when you do and I will keep track so that the winners can choose which lavender filled pendant they would like to receive.  I will write you via our convo's on Etsy to tell you if you are one of the first ten.  Unless you'd like me to announce it on the Facebook page for PedricksCorner.
      Please be aware that two or more people might want the same pendant.  First response wins.

4.  To earn extra bonus points, Google the term "Lavender Filled Pendant" until you find my pendants on Etsy and then share your results via a convo with me on Etsy or by pinning it to your Pinterest board.  Let me know when you have done this so I can like and follow your Pinterest board.
     You are welcome, encouraged, to do this more than once and I will count each time but no more than once per day.

Why am I doing this?  Because I want to grow fuchsias again.  And this is never going to happen unless I can sell enough lavender to "buy" myself the time to do it.  These lavender pendants have the potential to open my store to a whole new market of customers looking for jewelry.  Specifically, jewelry that doubles as a scent diffuser.  Diffuser Jewelry is actually a valid search term!

Here are a couple of my pendants, they are an entirely new idea.  No one else is making them.  And I will be adding one to two per day to my Etsy store until I have them all listed.  Even Christmas ornaments :)

Timing Is Crucial

The lavender season is winding down and it is time to focus on making fuchsia cuttings so they can spend the warm fall rooting before winter sets in and be ready for sale early next spring!
In order to do this, I need to be able to afford to spend the time and be here to monitor the tender cuttings from upright fuchsias such as the 'Royal Velvet' you see above.

I need to purchase a truck load of potting soil as soon as possible!
And I need your help to do this.

This is the time to be making thousands of cuttings.  Even if you are not interested in buying any of my lavender products, you might know someone who is, so I hope you will visit the Facebook page for PedricksCorner to like and share the new posts.

Here is a link to my Etsy store:  Pedricks
And here is a link to my EBay store:  lavenderwandsandpedrickscorner
And here is a link to the facebook page:  PedricksCorner

Updates to website will happen in a few weeks if all goes well and after I am able to get the cuttings made and planted.

Meanwhile!!  I was able to find Fuchsia boliviana 'alba' seed and it has finally come up.  Looks like I have about ten little babies to coddle into a size large enough to propagate.  I would LOVE to be able to offer live Fuchsia boliviana 'alba' plants to the public again!

Lavender Wands Season Is Going Great!

Lavender wands were first created by the Victorian ladies to preserve the lavender from their gardens.  When lavender dries, unless it is picked before it is in full bloom, the flowers fall off of the stems. 
When they weave the fresh lavender into these little ribbon baskets, when they dry out, the flowers are caught in the basket to be enjoyed for many years to come!

Growing long stemmed English Lavender and weaving it into wands is how I hope to finance the rebuilding of my fuchsia nursery.  In the summer, when my lavender is in bloom, this is all I do 24/7 as fast as I can until all the lavender is gone or is too dry to continue working with.

Last year I made over 2,300 wands!  How many will I be able to make this summer of 2018?
If all goes well, and I am able to sell enough lavender wands to enable me to spend time making and monitoring thousands of heirloom upright fuchsia cuttings, then I will finally be able to begin offering young starts for sale again.  Maybe even before winter sets in!

My newest addition to the 30 shades of double-sided sating ribbon I use, is vintage embroidered Jacquard ribbon.  The patterns are not printed on the surface, they are woven in.  I am only using these vintage ribbons on a few of my huge wands.  Out of over 2,000 wands per season and over 35,000 stems of lavender, there are rarely enough stems long enough to make more than about 100 huge wands.  And it has not been easy to even find these ribbons!  Some of them have come from Denmark, and a few of them all the way from Turkey.

So far, I have ten varieties with one more coming from Turkey.  I just hope it gets here in time to be able to use it this season.  The lavender is already beginning to dry out and there may not be any stems left that are long enough.  If you want to get someone something extra special, one of these would fit the bill!

To see all of the others, please use this link to my store on Etsy:  Pedricks
Or this store on EBay:  Lavenderwandsandpedrickscorner

Fuchsia splendens

Here is the smallest of three big Fuchsia splendend attempting to take over and being photo bombed by a Cistus flower with a native California Catalina Mallow in the background.  And you can't see him, but an Anna's hummingbird is vigourously defending all three from the Rufous who just show up for the summers.