Bind & CrEATe

Art has been found in many parts of my life. This year, I want to focus on trying new crafts, extending my talents beyond bookmaking. I will make a craft a month, any type is allowed. Some months I will make more than one craft or piece of art. Those will be listed beneath the photograph.

Click on the image below to read about the craft of the month. To read all of the posts in succession, click here.

Other January crafts: word of the year painting, valentines with secret pockets

In July, I made this stained glass lamp.

I’ll admit: I was scared. Feet above the ground, a harness and metal rope was the only thing holding me up. But I took the plunge and, while on my July vacation, I went zipling in the Caribbean.

I had no idea what zipling was until this summer. I heard about it through my roommate. Turns out we have a mutual friend in West Virginia that gives guided zip-lining tours. Being the adventurous one, the roommate said we had to give it a try when we went to St. Martin. For those of you not versed in zipling (like me, back in June), it consists of a pulley suspended on a cable that enables a person to propel from tree to tree (see roommate above ground below).

Zipling has become a popular vacation activity. Nestled away in the woods of St. Martin, the roommate, her sister and I found ourselves at Pic Paradis, stepping up to pay $50 to “go flying.” It was some of the best money I’ve ever spent. Going into it, I tried to act cool. But don’t let my gangster-style pose fool you. I was entirely worried about my safety.

There was no reason to be. The tour was guided by a young man named “Mojo” who had been living on the island for more than eight years. His name was accurate; he knew what he was doing. Mojo led us from tree to tree, poking fun as I struggled on the rope course. I had no idea the challenge that would be involved, and I found myself breaking a sweat during our entire 1.5 hour-long tour. Thankfully, we were surrounded by goodness.

So think about this. You’re in the middle of a beautiful island, surrounded by nature, with two of your closest friends. They ask you to go flying. You say…

yes. a million times over, yes.

and be thankful for your experience to soar.

This week, I’m thinking of my grandma. I saw her, yesterday, at the funeral viewing of her sister. At 93, my great aunt Ruth passed away with little pain in the arms of her own daughter. Yesterday, I drove to my hometown for the viewing and quickly became a fly on the wall. I listened to stories of the past, learning how much the hardworking lifestyle impacted the way my aunt and grandmother grew up.

Aunt Ruth didn’t like to clean, so she taught her 13 children how to do it. I’m guessing that she probably taught them how to cook as well. Like my grandmother, she lived her entire life on a farm. Hearing the stories from A. Ruth’s children placed me back into my past, and I vividly began remembering the amount of time I spent in the garden with my grandma – weeding, picking greens and getting them ready for supper.

There are things to be learned when you have your own garden. Like how purple beans will turn green once cooked. Or how dirt feels between your toes. You see, there is a garden growing in my city backyard. Thanks to my roommate’s diligence and hard work, we are able to eat organic lettuce, swiss chard, tomatoes, peppers and more. While she puts in the patience (weeding, watering, etc.), I have taken on the role of cooking those goods.

Over the weekend, I walked into the backyard and picked the swiss chard and purple beans (that turned green). I leisurely created this meal using additional ingredients from the cupboard: kidney beans, couscous, olive oil, a bit of salt and pepper. It was simple and earthy, and has been providing sustenance throughout the week when we haven’t felt like cooking.

Oh, Aunt Ruth. If you could see this meal, what would you think? I’d like to think she’d be proud. But knowing that German in her, she’d probably think I’m some “crazy vegetarian” who should be helping her roommate weed the garden [for goodness sake.]

For several years, I was a much different person. During those several years, I ate many beans.

In completely uprooting my life over a year ago, I’ve found that a lot can change. Jobs come and go. Relationships end. People leave your life. But favorite foods? They can stick around for a lifetime.

In this new life, I still eat beans. I still eat beans in large quantities. Black. Pinto. White. Garbanzo. Garbanzo. Garbanzo. I can say with great volition that I have never met a bean I didn’t like. They are the staple to every meal, especially as I navigate my mostly vegetarian lifestyle.

But this time, I want a little change. Which is why I’m beginning the Great Bean Challenge.

There are many rewards within the virtues of patience, pain and endurance. I want to take idea that into my life as a cook. I recently bought the above-featured beans in their purest form. These dried beans and their containers cost me around $12. For a low cost, I have enough beans to eat myself into the winter.

This is a new challenge for me. In order to have beans ready, I must be mindful. I must take time to process.  Modern-day conveniences will make this easier, certainly. But I look forward to the challenge of taking something in its most pure form and melding it into my own. I look forward to getting back to the root of something.

Through my daily living, I’ve found that there are always opportunities to take something from your past and make it new. The beans have stuck by my side, and now they’re getting a wholesome upgrade.

I look forward to sharing my successes (and potential failures) when it comes to cooking these buggers from scratch. And I certainly look forward to any suggestions readers have to share.

Part of the mission behind Bind & CrEATe is creating my own life, whether that be through food, crafting or otherwise. I’ve found that when it comes to food, buying in bulk seems to be key. I spent nearly $7 on the largest container of strawberries I’ve ever seen, and I was not disappointed.

Earlier this summer, I walked in on a friend who was making her own jam. It looked easy. She was slicing strawberries into a bowl and had a packet of Sure-Jell sitting on the counter. I had no idea you could make your own jam using incredibly basic ingredients (strawberries, sugar, pectin). So I picked up a binding agent at the store and decided to get to work. The first step was slicing and pureeing strawberries until I had two cups of mushed red goodness.

I then added three cups of sugar (instead of four, which the recipe called for) to sweeten up the mix. Four cups seemed too much for me, and after reading some reviews online – many agreed. While I let that sit for 10 minutes, I made my Sure-Jell as recommended by the box. However, I must admit, I got distracted and ended up burning it a bit, hence the tiny black specks in my batch.

The recipe could make multiple jars of jam, but I decided to use larger containers and divide it into two. I then placed each jar in the freezer, as recommended. When I’m ready to consume, I’ll have my very own jam that will keep up to month or more in the refridgerator – and a year in the freezer. So I have to ask – why did I wait so long to make my own jelly?