Father's Day Weekend

My father 

June has been a difficult month for me over the years. The anniversary of  my father passing away and Father's Day made it this way.  Melancholy about him not being here physically to share my life.  A plethora of things I would love to be able to sit down and talk to him about:  when I need his wisdom and advise, share my success, tell my good news to, & some many things.....  Family is precious, Count your blessings to still have your father in your life. 

 

 

 Here is a fantastic quote from Steve Irwin's daughter, Bindi Irwin 

"Dad is and always will be my living breathing superhero"

I am not saying I am sad for the whole month but it was really difficult to see the joy of friends when I was younger around Father's Day.  Yes I have fabulous memories and a few photos of him to cherish.  After his diagnosis with Cancer, he made sure to hug each of his children every day and tell us he loved us.  As I have written on this blog, many of my virtues and my strong character traits come from his fantastic example. My father led by example.  What I would give to have day with him now!?!?!    

 Black Live Matter

 

I know my father would support me in standing up for others.  His family emigrated to the US and he was first generation of his family born in the US. 

 

 I am glad we have a federal holiday for Juneteeth.  Is is a step in the right direction.  Please read this to learn more from Professor Price

Juneteenth

 

Garden

First Snow Pea harvest is always a celebration.because the growing season has arrived.  The greens: kale, collards, mustard & lettuces are doing well.  Need to plant some radish seeds.  One crop that did not make it was the parsnips.  Glad to have a great supply in the fall at the Rochester Public Market. The tomatoes and tomatillos are full of blooms and have started to produce fruits.  (pics soon)  Harvested several heads of leaf lettuce this week.

This beauty on the left is a new clematis vine for the trellis.  The variety is  Rouge Cardinal. Hoping for it to be happy here.  We have several clematis which were here when we moved in.  The prior homeowners we active gardeners and discovering what we had was fun the first few years we were here.  Happy to remove some holly which were taking over the front yard.

Surprised and excited to have this old hybrid tea rose spring back this year.  The rabbit we have in our garden decided to start eating this toward the end of winter.  I pruned off the damage and am keeping the plant well watered this summer.  It will be protected this year with a wire cage to prevent further damage

 

The summer solstice is technically next week.  On Sunday night Summer begins.  There are many celebrations for the solstice.  Google it for one in your area.  I will greet the beginning of summer with joy this year for the family I have and the time I have with them. 

 

 

 

 

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Spring in Rochester

 This week is the end of March 2021.  the year has started off well for Panda Wear.  There will be a big announcement soon.  Follow on social media  links below. Huge project has taken most of this month to complete.  Happy to be finished with it.  

Where do I live you might ask?  In Western NY, specifically Rochester NY.  With the Climate
emergency it is very different than when I was a child.  I have daffodils with the crocus blooming in March because of fluctuations from the high of 72 last week to the low of 20 in a few days.  On the plus side, planted mustard in the garden that are ecstatic to be in the dirt. Never was able to plant this early before.  Partly because of a slight drought for this month and the unseasonable warmth which allows my garden to be dry enough to plant.

 RBG   Ruth Bader Ginsberg

To honor Women's History Month, one of my Sheros is RBG.  Who inspires you?  What women are your Sheroes?  RBG quote :

Women belong in all the places where decisions are being made.  It shouldn't be that women are the exception.   

The group Art Force 5 has a fantastic project this month honoring Sheroes.  Art Force 5

Launched on 3.8.21, this year's Women's Empowerment Draft honors 32 Sheroes of college students in the USA.  Read more here 

Womens Empowerment Draft

 Black Lives Matter

Free the People ROC is the group in my area. We must end Asian Hate and the empowerment of  white supremacy groups.  The murders in Atlanta this month as well as the Attempted Coup 1.6.21 must be stopped!  We as a nation are better that this.  the past four years have ruled the fire of this racist segment of the population.  Plain and simple White Supremacy = Domestic Terrorism 

 FB page  Free the People ROC

I invite everyone to stand up, listen to others, be kind and speak up.  

#stopasianhate

#bekind

#blacklivesmatter 

#standup

#speakup

#listen 

My shop: Panda Wear Store

Facebook:  PandaWire Facebook
Twitter:  Panda Wear Gems  
Instagram: Instagram

 

Why shop Local (small)?  

For every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stay in the community!  Yes Over 2/3 stays in your local community! 

garden dirt soon

 Happy for the arrival of spring this past weekend. The official start of SPRING!  Spring Equinox began 3.20.21 at 5:37am on Saturday.  

Within two weeks I will have greens in the veggie garden.  So excited for digging in the dirt and beginning the season.  This is a prior year to show the beauty of the lettuce & snow peas in my backyard garden.  There is no better feeling for me than digging the soil and planting my homegrown seedling into the earth.  Mother Nature provides such a great bounty of sunshine and cooler temperatures.  My greens thrive in the wet and cool temps.  Should have a salad harvest by the middle of April.  Yes I transplanted some mustard today.  

Beautiful butterflies to remind us how fantastic the warm season is.  Hello first full week of Spring 2021. Looking forward to the return of the toads, dragonflies, butterflies, frogs, & migratory birds to my backyard garden.  

My shop:  Panda Wear Website
Facebook:  PandaWire Facebook
Twitter:  Panda Wear Gems  
Instagram: Instagram

 

Why shop Local (small)?  

For every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stay in the community!  Yes Over 2/3 stays in your local community! 

 

 Black Lives Matter

Free the People ROC is the group in my area.

 FB page  Free the People ROC

I invite everyone to stand up, listen to others, be kind and speak up. 

#bekind

#blacklivesmatter 

#stopasianhate

#standup

#speakup

#listen 

 

 

Jewelry Safety and Precious Metals

Since February 2009 the Federal government in the USA has required manufactures to have their products for sale to children tested for lead. 

I am often asked why I use gemstones and precious metals in my work.  Why not go the the local craft store and by the cheap stuff on sale?  I use precious metals gemstones in the creations of the jewelry because I make a quality product.  I want my work to last, not be disposable & throw out after wearing once or twice.   Precious metals do not need certification at this point.  The materials used to create them are known.  For complete safety I do not sell or market my work as children's jewelry. 

For more information about safety in Jewelry and there hazards in our home. Made Safe. 

their blog on jewelry jewelry blog

I have often written about my process and the materials I use.  My precious metals blog Metals 101

Honesty and discourse of what someone is buying is a integral part of my business.  the earring have have surgical steel earwires; as the copper patinas(turns green), your ears do not. I always tell people jewelry is a body decoration and do not swim or sleep in it.  

For Education  Search 
 I Can't Breathe
Black Lives Matter
and read from fact checked news sources.  As a supporter I need to speak up.  Please join me. 

Just finished reading this last week &  I am humbled.

when they call you a terrorist

a black lives matter memoir

Black Lives Still Matter!

Seeds of Kambaba in Sterling silver below.  One of my gavotte gemstones to cut.  

  Buy Local from the Maker 

My shop:  Panda Wear Website
Facebook:  PandaWire Facebook
Twitter:  Panda Wear Gems  
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For every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stay in the community.  

We are in this together. Wear a Mask, Stay home, Stay safe, Flatten the curve, Fasts Matter.  

Celebration of Fruits

Happy Garden 

Celebration of Fruits in this happy garden.  The red & black raspberries are doing well.  Watering  them frequently helps.  Most years the first tomatoes are early July.  the wait on them had been LONG this year.  The darkness on the top of the fruit belongs.  these are Indigo Blue tomatoes from Harris Seed.  Surprised they are the first ripe fruits of 2020 on my tomatoes. We are growing 7 varieties of tomatoes this year. 

Add caption

My cucumber vines are extremely happy this years. They climb a trellis which is over four feet tall and they have completely overgrown.  This is necessary here in my Rochester, NY garden to keep mildew away and to keep slugs off my fruits.  Hope to have some to harvest in the next 10 days.  The two recent rains have helped with over 2 inches each in the past two weeks.  We use soaker hoses to keep the vegetable garden alts watered which keeps our water use to a minimum.  It gives a deep soaking on the roots of the plants and helps prevent issues from wet foliage. One of the smartest changes int he garden for us.  in under 2 hours we have the 12" by 35' garden watered.  during the heat wave we do this every other day. 

For every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stays in the community. Black Lives Matter!  Flatten the curve. Wear A Mask. Stay Safe.

Sterling Silver Pendant 

       Buy Local from the Maker 

My shop:  Panda Wear Website

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For Education  Search 
 I Can't Breathe
Black Lives Matter
and read from fact checked news sources.  As a supporter I need to speak up.  Please join me.

Garden Design Day 2020 SEASON

My favorite day is the 1st day digging into the garden for the the initial seeds of the season. It is about 2 months away. to prepare for the 2020 Veggie garden, I was working on the design last week. Today, we ordered some seeds of a few varieties we ran out of from last year.

Harvest 2017

Bell pepper seeds will be planted today. Our garden is planted for success.  We use a three year crop rotation to rest the soil and increase production for the Vegetable.  Hoping Mother Natures helps this years by giving a good freeze for the 6 weeks necessary to kill the pests from last year. The yo yo temperatures and wet spring increased disease last year and made it difficult for local farmers to plant crops.


PBS article about the difficulties last spring.  "For farmers, record flooding and a wet spring mean many fields can’t be planted" 2019 Wet Spring PBS Newshour

Looking forward to the seeds sprouting and the growing to begin in my plants. Several inches of snow on the ground now & below freezing temperatures outside.  Yes it is winter in Rochester, NY.

1/19/20 NOW members

Last Month I was able to attend the Womens March in Seneca Falls.  There were three fantastic days of sisterhood in this historic area. This is part of our NOW, National Organization for Women,  group on the 3rd day of the event at the First Presbyterian Church of Seneca Falls.  Yes that is me in the feminist t shirt left of center.

Relatively new style in copper per customer requests for more copper please.  Also have copper bracelets, anklets, necklaces & tiaras.
       Buy Local  from the maker.

My shops:  Panda Wear Website
                   Cabochons and Beads

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April Showers in Spring Garden

We always welcome  April showers in our garden.  It is the time when we see the garden come back to life from the ground. Almost overnight there is so much bright green everywhere. The crocus on the right were sprigs of green right before the flowers appeared.  

Well before these crocus thought of springing out of the ground, the planning began for the Vegetable Garden.  We use crop rotation to keep the group from becoming overwork.  When the snow was still falling,  back in early February, the layout began.  

The first seeds went int the garden in Much.  Thank you peas for being able to withstand the fluctuating temperatures of late March & early April.   

Shortly after the peas were planted the Mustard & Mesclun went into the garden.  These seeds were started in early March. Happy to say the first harvest will be this week for fresh greens from the garden.  Welcome to home grown in April.  The best thing when making a meal is to have fresh from your own backyard garden. 

Why would you want a garden you may ask?  

• Flavor
• Convenience
• Pride / satisfaction of success
• Control of the process
• Non-GMO crops 
• Fragrance
• Beneficial guests in the garden

We welcome input from our readers.  The best way to know exactly what people are looking for is to have them request it. We do our best to accommodate customer requests.  Copper teardrops are one answer to  -  more copper pieces please.  These are a new earring design that is proving to be popular.  Shown in all natural copper, teardrops catch the light as they move & are very lightweight.  They are available in both large and small sizes.  

Happy dance for this design and a few others recently in copper.  More on the new copper pieces in a future blog post.  

Custom cut gemstone cabochons are one of our passions. This plume agate showcases the beauty Mother Nature puts into her work.  We take pride in discovering the beauty inside each stone and showing it to you.  These gemstones are available to be set into a special piece for your gift giving pleasure.  

Another way we share the gems is to sell wholesale to other jewelry designers in the area and worldwide.  

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Note:  Website prices are retail.  Please send PM for wholesale inquiry along with your business credentials.  

Dog Days of Summer in Rochester, NY

 

Wrote this back in early August.  I went out to water the plants and it was not posted.  Ab it late but the beauty of the plants are shown. 

This was a visitor to my garden toward the end of August. I believe it is a red tailed hawk.  Hope he is eating the mice and squirrels that seem to be enjoying my root crops.

The summer season ended with a drought and federal disaster area for my county and the surrounding area.

Dog days of summer here in my gardens photos.  New York was in early drought stages, is early August  Seems like we just planted the garden.  We have a happy and prolific garden due to water wise gardening practices.  My most prolific plants have been the early spring crops: cilantro, greens, lettuce, peas, radishes.  As the heat arrived:  lettuce, mustard greens, collards, kale, cucumbers, & yellow beans.

My bush beans are quite happy with the heat wave which lasted the entire summer.  My several days a week watering with recycled rubber soaker hoses keep them happy. We have about 10lbs of beans in the freezer for later, the most ever saved.  They are still producing which is unusual,  normally we take the plants down in mid September.

Another of the prolific vegetables are the bell peppers and the broccoli. A different variety, Jalapeno show below.  Especially with the cooler fall temps now and the much needed rain this past week.  The broccoli has taken off and we are eating it a few nights a week.

Apparently the heat is not done here, yet.  High of 79 forecast for the end of this week.  Grilled dinner outside on the deck is what we will be doing.   Mine as well enjoy the unseasonable warm while it is here.  The leaves are certainly falling and it will back to true fall weather.

The Holiday season is here.  Panda Wear is accepting holiday orders thru 11/1/16 for delivery in December.  Please order early.  

My shops:  Panda Wear Website
                   Cabochons and Beads

Leaping toward SPRING

Hi Everyone and best wishes for February 29, aka Leap Day. We all got to enjoy an extra day this year! Hello March 1st.  I feel the winter coming to an end and spring is in the air.  Here are a few photos from last years garden. 

The seed catalogs arrived about a month ago so throughout February I’ve been reading and planning my vegetable garden design for 2016.  Decisions had to be made on which vegetables to plant, how much space they needed and which ones to put aside for another time….the BIG question every year.  Some years it’s an easy decision however this year there were several new things which would be great to grow, but space is always a big consideration.  

Only 20 days until the FIRST day of SPRING.  The seeds have now been planted and the waiting begins.  I’m counting down the days until the seedlings are big enough to go outside. We started the lettuce and cooking greens so they can be enjoyed earlier this year on the table.    
 It’s so exciting to look forward to a fantastic 2016 growing season, I just wish the garden was larger.  Happy to report the first seeds are sprouted today, March 1st.

One of my custom cut free form stones set in Sterling silver.  The wire and design accent the best parts of the stone and compliment the new owner of this piece. To find my work:

My shops:  Panda Wear Website
                   Cabochons and Supplies

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 For all the new readers of this blog,  I am an avid gardener and lapidary.  Most of my inspiration comes from nature as can be seen in my work.  Whether it is the arch of a branch, the stem of a bush or the pattern of a flower... I picture designs I make with wire and gemstones.  As a lapidary, when I am cutting a stone my design can take shape based on what I see in the natural stone. Roses and snapdragons from the garden.   

Happy growing and enjoy your day.