My first attempt at steam distilling rose geranium for essential oil/hydrosol

plant material turning a yellowish color as it steams

 

 

 

Various Projects I'm Working On

The entire house has become one big, dirty, greenhouse/lab/art studio.

Assembling the essential oil steam distillation "lab"

Potting up an assortment of moss, tiny corsican mint, trailing dichondras &  contrasting ground covers that will look cool spilling out of pots & creeping between them. This is in the atrium, which is an open, glass-enclosed room in the center of the house. Good humidity.

Coffee table I found on the street that I'm making "yard art" out of.  The white is primer.  I'm going to paint it a deep maroon with light "barely lilac accents (there are swatches in the foreground). On top is rose geranium I harvested yesterday that is wilting a bit before I distill it.  The whole house smells incredible already!  I'm thinking of putting a piece of beveled glass on top to make it more weather-resistant & to create a space to display oddities underneath. The edges of the table are higher than the surface, which would fill with rain water like a bowl & rot the table if I don't cover it with something.  Thought about decking it out & putting it back on my neighbor's doorstep just to freak them out.

The unholy project mess in the livingroom. Outgrew my bedroom desk.  Collecting books on plant propagation, beekeeping, sustainable farming, politics, organic chemistry basics, seed catalogs galore, files... It's no wonder I'm spending 16 hours a day working.  Oh...um... the hideous simulated wood grain coffee table & embarrassingly pink couch are NOT mine!