Last week was my birthday so not much got done on the vardo, although I did get the P side bench hinges in place. As Raven worked details in gold.
Yesterday Raven went to a metal concert, I canned stuff from the farmers market, 12 lbs of tomatoes made 2 jars tomato juice and 3 pints of thick tomato sauce. Next I did a couple pounds of Meyer lemons into marmalade, 7 jars of various sizes and a partial open one. I prepped a small batch of bread and butter pickles but they take an over night salt soak. I also picked the last of the pears to take to work. While I was in the orchard I picked a few granny Smith apples as the tree is loaded. I tried one, usually they’re a bit dry and tart for cooking, but after last weeks rain they’re juicy, still just a little tart but really good, wow.
I got up late today as it’s Sunday, a bit chilly, I fired up the canning water bath. I rinsed the B&B pickles a couple times. I need sugar and a cup of coffee, off the water, up to the corner store and back. I mixed up the syrup for the pickles using Joy’s recipe. Waiting for the canning bath water to boil before I dumped in the pickles, sterilized everything in the hot water, jars in the oven at 215 as it’s easier. Three pints even of bread and butter pickles.
I broke out the apple peeling machine I got at a yard sale, nifty device, one of the three spikes is broken but it still works with two. A hand crank and thread rod pushes the apple into a springed swivel peeler and round core cutter as the blade cuts a spiral of the flesh, you end up with a slinky of apple, cut in half for slices or one side for rounds. Lemon juice and cold water bath to keep the apples white. I threw them in a pan with some water to cook, mashed them with a potato masher into sauce, jarred and into the hot water bath. Plus a half cup open into the fridge as Raven showed up.
I had checked the email, she’d be late. The stuff was too hot to eat. I showed her the apple machine, she tried a wee bit of apple, she’s not a fruit person.
She broke out the gold paint for detailing, it’s very slow delicate work cutting in to the pencil lines with a tiny brush.
I worked on securing the main sink counter to the cabinet using two brass hinges and a barrel latch so we can still add and remove the stove as necessary, quite the challenge. I had to remove the 3 drain pipes and hot and cold above the valves to get the counter out, with pen marks to mark the hinge and barrel placements. I cut a doubled birch plywood extension from drawer face scrap on the table saw for the barrel to allow a 1/4″ of wood to secure the stove side of the counter. I secured the hinges to the other forward side of the counter top adjacent to the lines. I installed the counter into place, then marked with pen where the barrel will fit and the hinge holes for the outer hinge, the inner one is hard to reach so I marked the outer hinge lines. I drilled the barrel hole, good fit. I removed the hinges from the counter top and secured them to the sides, installed the counter. This is tough getting the screws into the tight space between the sink and blind. Finally I removed the table, bench and side panel, got it in. Ultimately, this doesn’t work as the end wood won’t allow the counter to open, although there is enough play to get the stove installed, which is the purpose, so it does work and secures the main sink counter. A bit hokey, but functional, it works, the stove will go in and out if required.
Raven knocked over the gold paint can, oops. I dug a large horse syringe from the trunk of my car, boat tools, and we saved some of it into a jar. She continued with the details off the driveway as a pallet.
The corners are looking good, intricate.
Three jars of apple sauce and more apples picked too, a good day.
8shotoflove8 