homemaking | Song Dog Journal

Even after the flowers fade, in what is left there is so much variety of texture, so many shades of brown and tan and silver and gold, such strange symmetry and asymmetry, such a spectrum of design. Winter bouquets are the perfect way to showcase the subtle beauty of the season. Sarah and I headed this morning towards the mines where we were hiking yesterday, armed with scissors and sacks and our cameras, to go a-gathering.

It didn’t take long for us to fill our sacks, and it took less time than that for us to be already running late to help with Christmas dinner. Nevertheless, we gathered plenty – Heads of bee balm, little blue stem, coneflower tops, dead spikes of hairy verbena, and other grasses. We stopped once or twice on the way back to cut some yellow rabbitbrush, which seems to grow more on the open hill sides and hill tops, than in ravines.

Mason jars are perfect as vases, and heaven knows we have plenty of Mason jars all over the place! I thought about using some of the old blue jars, but I think the clear glass ones are less obtrusive, for this sort of bouquet. I filled the bottom of the larger jar with pieces of lichen and moss-covered bark. Adding a jute bow, they became festive centerpieces. Jute is like burlap – Rustic, serviceable, and delicately beautiful in its drabness.

It is something of an exercise in simplicity.

And I like simplicity.

Laura Elizabeth

When a family of six moves from a four-bedroom, 2100-square-foot home to a two-bedroom, 800-square-foot home, some serious downsizing must occur. For months leading up to moving, our packing was as much figuring out what not to take as it was figuring out how to pack what to take. It turns out it really is possible to live a) out of boxes, b) with most of your books packed away, and c) with significantly fewer things. I have come to not really like things. Yes, I have my selection of special things, but so often, things are just a cheap way to spend hard earned money.

With two (small) bedrooms and six people, there was already a math problem. We’re planning on utilizing the Miner’s Cabin across the driveway, as soon as it is cleaned out, and currently one of the six is still in Illinois. One of the bedrooms is being used as an office, which leaves…well, one bedroom, and a very spacious loft.

So Sarah, Anna, and I have turned the loft into a surprisingly workable bedroom and living room. It still needs a little work, but with the beds tucked away under the eaves (we learned quickly to instinctively duck when walking around the loft), the whole middle of the room is open and airy.

An old double bed that was apparently built into the loft (it isn’t coming out without the help of a chainsaw) was turned into a day bed, and we’ve already used it for some cozy girls’ movie nights. Our clothes are still in boxes in the one remaining corner, and concealed behind an accordion screen. We had plenty of book-sized packing boxes which Anna and I turned sideways and stacked to use as makeshift bookcases, since it isn’t standard to make ones to fit under the eaves. Some people might not like the idea of sleeping with the mattress on the floor, but all of us have found it surprisingly pleasant. Our corners are cozy and quite personalized. And there is really nothing more pleasant than falling asleep to the sound of rain pattering on the tin roof, just a foot or two away.