new plants – temporary recycled planter

I purchased a couple of  new plants for spring. I figured that they could live in their plastic planters for another month or so before I transfer them to new pots… but those ugly green plastic things didn’t sit so pretty on my windowsill. So, for the next few weeks the plastic planters will sit nestled inside of  empty tomato cans. Wallah, beautiful!!

So…. accidents happen!!  For example, when your dog throws up on your comforter and it says “Dry Clean Only” but there’s vomit on it, and it’s gross, and you put it in the wash anyway, only to realize later why you should have followed the instructions.

See the picture above, well that is what my comforter now looks like. A bag of stuffing and some fabric. After a nice wash and dry in the machine, all the batting clumped to one end and the fancy patchwork comforter was no more.  I cut open the fabric, put the batting in a bag and shoved it to the back of my closet.

Meanwhile, my dog had taken to lying in the pile of fabric as sort of a makeshift bed. After doing a little spring cleaning (and washing his dog-pile bed) I decided to whip out the sewing machine, put the batting to good use, and make my little guy a real bed.

Around my home there’s always a use for an empty jar!

A wonderfully warm weekend inspired a little backyard clean-up/mini-dance party.

One of my friends recently lost her tooth, and while washing away the winter debris we talking about the tooth fairy and how she would have really liked the awesome recycled fairy houses we made a couple years ago. So, instead of pining over past projects we got busy on a new one…

To begin, we spent some time scavenging the yard for sturdy sticks, dried leaves and debris we thought might make a nice home for our magical friends.

The structure of the house is a simple tee pee design. We collected sticks of almost-equal length and started tying them together with a piece of twine. Add a few more branches and continue to wrap until you form a nice framework.

Use dried leaves to create walls around the tee pee frame (areal view of the tee pee below).

click the pic for another tasty pet recipe! woof.

Let’s preface this by saying – I have extremely sensitive skin.  Because of this, once I find a product regimen that doesn’t dry my skin or cause breakouts, I’m not quick to stray. As far as face wash goes, for years I was hooked on an alternating system of Dr. Hauschka Cleansing Cream and MyChelle Dermaceuticals Fruit Enzyme Scrub. Then, one day when the Hauschka was empty, an amber jar of  ‘cleansing powder’ appeared in its place (I was not the primary product-purchaser in the household at the time) and I freaked out.

My first thought was… WHAT??… Where’s my Cleansing Cream? and,  How on earth am I supposed to clean my face with POWDER?? But I gave it a chance and was surprised to discover that the ‘new stuff’ was phenomenal. Although, in a house with two women, spending $20 a pop on a 6 oz jar of powder that disappeared in less than two weeks, was bit of an expenditure.

Luckily, the ingredients were clearly printed on the label, and with a little experiment and some help from our friend at the beauty counter at Integral Yoga and Natural  Foods, we came up with the magic formula.

The ingredients are simple: Organic Oat Flour, Lavender and Sweet Orange essential oils.  Add one cup of flour, 10 drops of Sweet Orange and 10 drops of Lavender oil to a lidded container, close the lid tightly then shake vigorously!!  Like jumping up-and-down kinda shaking. And wall-ah — you’re done.

I keep my magic powder in a glass jar in the bathroom with a little scoop. To use, simply place a small mound (see top pic) in your hand, add water, work into a paste and apply to your face as you would any other cleansing product.  I’ve been using this formula for two-plus years and I’m extremely satisfied.  (**I do still alternate with the MyChelle scrub once every two or three days).

Those who know me personally are often entertained by stories of my troublesome little dog. He wears diapers,  jumps on counter tops, dumps the trash, opens doors, barks at everything and everyone… and is the biggest love in the world. They also know that I cook for my dog.

Since I am often asked about his meals, I thought I would share a simple ‘everyday’ pet food recipe that is healthy, lean and inexpensive. My recipes are rough, so bear with me; just give it a whirl and you’ll see how easy it is.

To start with you will need a large casserole pan with a lid.

• a pound of ground chicken or turkey. the vet told me to use lean meats, no beef for my breed.
• bag of frozen mixed veggies: carrots, squash, cauliflower, peas, corn, broccoli, beans, almost anything goes. Please read the label and make sure there are NO ONIONS or added salt in the veggies.
• 3/4 bag or box of uncooked pasta. I usually use omega3 enriched elbow macaroni, but sometimes I just use what is available at home. This dish was prepared with gluten-free rice pasta, which is also a great alternative.
• roughly 3 cups of water.

Begin by adding a little oil to the bottom of the pan and browning the ground meat. Once brown, add the entire bag of frozen mixed veggies, dried pasta and water. Stir and then cover with lid. Cook for about 10 minutes on high heat, stir. Lower heat to a simmer for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until all the water is absorbed and the pasta is tender.

Let stand for 10 or more minutes to cool and then, to break down the pasta and veggies, smash everything together with a hand held potato masher.

There are many alternatives to making homemade healthy dog food for your pet, this is just one very simple recipe that works for my household. Of course, frozen veggies can be substituted for fresh, and white rice (not brown, trust me) can be used in lieu of pasta.

The most important thing you can do is speak with your Vet about what constitutes a healthy diet and serving size for your breed, then get on the internet, do a little research about foods that are dangerous for dogs (like onions, grapes, garlic and avacado), and go from there.

Remember, as with any change in your pet’s diet, do so gradually to avoid stomach upset. Mix a little of the old food with a little of the new food and wean them off.

If you sit around like I do, daydreaming of museum-sized photographs filling your walls, then maybe you should try rasterbating!! (no… it’s not dirty, notice the “r”)

Rasterbating, also known as tiled printing, is a way to take a large image and break it down into smaller, page sized pieces, which can later be reassembled into a whole. So, instead of spending thousands on a 30×40 print, you can get an artful effect for the price of a new cartridge of printer ink and some photo paper. (really, you could use any sort of paper that suits your fancy, I just so happen to have boxes of glossy photo paper laying around my house so I went with that)

Here are some easy-to-follow instructions… clicking on the image will allow you to see the full-sized details:

Since I happen to be a bit of a tech-nerd, I did all of the image tiling myself via photoshop & imageready… but for the not so tech-savvy, there is this great website (although it looks like the website is down right now, so I might just have to write up some steps for the photoshop novice) that will help you through the technicalities.

It’s getting hot again, so I’m saving my leftover espresso for icy drinks. Instead of using a plastic pitcher, which not only has the danger of off-gassing, but also holds on to strong scents & colors, I used an old jar.

Pickle jars and tomato sauce jars are the perfect size for summer beverage containers. Store anything from iced coffee to margaritas or lemonade in an empty, sterilized glass jar.

Using a Sharpie, label your brew on small strip of masking tape and affix to the jar.  Stay hydrated!!

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