An update on the potpourri I made last November. The Christmas one came out very nicely, with a very festive, balsam scent. I still have it out on the center table in the 'grand salon'. It's nice to walk by and refresh the olfactory senses with seasonal delight.
The Rose one also came out beautifully. The Arabian rose oil is such a treat. This one is in the downstairs 'loo'.
Sadly--or not--the flowery one was not a success. It lost all it's scent. A bit of a surprise when I opened that one and found that it was a dud. I think it is due to the quality of the oils I used. I had some that were found at the thrift store, so who knows how old they were. But that's OK because I was not entirely happy with the formula I came up with. I'll try again.
The Howe sewing machine irons. I turned my attention to them these past few weeks. As you may recall, they were in need of treatment, what with being absolutely filthy and rusted. A reminder of what it was like when I bought it home:
I went at it with some Gojo (without pumice!) and followed that with Rustoleum's Rust Reformer. The treatment uncovered some gold paint still visible in some of the letters, albeit quite worn. I don't think I will repaint the gold because I'm 'conserving' this machine, not 'restoring' it. I do like these old antiques to show their age and history. Here's how the irons are are looking tonight:
Much improved in my opinion. I will now focus on the wood top and drawers. My plan is to try a 50/50 mixture of denatured alcohol and lacquer thinner to even out the finish that remains after all these years. If that isn't successful enough, I will consider other possibilities. I'm also toying with the idea of doing a French polish on it once it's evened out.
I find my mind wandering towards garden things lately.
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