Lavender Tower

I have had a Lavender bush in my herb garden for a few years.  I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve never done anything with it.  This year the bush did really well and I thought I should at least do something with the sprigs.  I’ve seen some super cute wreaths and ideas on pinterest.  I thought a lavender orb or sphere might be really cool, very 3-D and lots of texture …in my imagination.

Lavender bush #hertoolbelt

Using shears, I harvested some of the sprigs.  I’ve read online that you are suppose to harvest it after the morning dew has evaporated, but before the heat of the day.  This is suppose to give you the best oils and aroma.  People also dry the sprigs upside down so the essential oils will drain to the heads of the lavender.

lavender tower - harvest lavender sprigs #hertoolbeltI had a foam cone sitting around and thought I’d try out the idea on the cone before I went to buy a foam sphere.  You never know when these hair brained ideas will be a total flop!

Lavender tower foam cone

I picked a drill bit that was about the same diameter as the stems, mine was a 1/16″ drill bit.  Poke pilot holes into the foam for the lavender sprigs.  I trimmed the sprigs to have a 1″ – 1 1/2″ stem below the blooms.  Place the sprigs about every 1/4″ or so around the cone.

Lavender Tower - drill bit for pilot hole #hertoolbeltContinue around the foam cone.  (Confession:  I didn’t do the back 🙂 )  The lavender should fill in nicely, hiding the foam core.

Lavender tower - continue adding sprigsThe tower has a fun texture with all of the little purple blossoms, not to mention the wonderful aroma.lavender tower textureWell the finished tower may look like Christmas in July, but it’s kind of cool.  I really think a lavender orb will look even sweeter.  Happy gardening.

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Lavender tower - enjoy the wonderful aroma of your lavender in a unique display on hertoolbelt.comLinked to:

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Easiest way to disassemble a pallet and keep the nail holes

Today’s Tool Time is all about disassembling a pallet…but keeping the nail holes.  If  you’ve ever tried to take apart a pallet with a hammer, you know it is a pain in the rear.  Plus you probably cracked a number of your slats (that you wanted to keep.)  Using a reciprocating saw (sawzall) is a simple way to cleanly disassemble a pallet, not crack the boards and keep the ends of the boards with the nail hole character.  Use either a carbide tip blade or a metal only blade, either make this job slick and easy.

 

Reciprocating Saw (Sawzall) how to’s & tips

Today’s Tool Time is about the Reciprocating Saw also known as the Sawzall.  The reciprocating saw is great for difficult area that you need to make a cut.  Wood and metal saw blades are easily interchanged, and blades come at various lengths.  Cuts using the reciprocating saw are probably not the most precise or smooth, but it’ll do the job.

Note: I’m not affiliated with Ryobi, but I like their tools.

Check out more Tool Time videos on my Youtube Channel Hertoolbelt Channel

Halloween Witch Decoration

I saw this Halloween Witch idea at Swiss Days in Midway, Ut this summer.  The witch was definitely my favorite Halloween decoration I saw.  I wish I would’ve written down the booth name, so I could link to their witch, because it was cuter, with a lime green boa.  I had fun making this witch, and I know you’ll enjoy it too.  Here is a tutorial and template.Halloween Witch hertoolbelt

 

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