::tidbits of green:: from the RYD home front!

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Hello everyone!

How are ya? I know, I know…. long time no blog! What gives?!

With the end of Summer so near we’ve been sulking up a every last bit of the sunshine and I took a little impromptu bloggy break.  The weather has been extraordinarily HOT …today’s temp reached 110 degrees. Our clothesline was gettin’ all the action today.   Seriously, wish we had a solar oven, right about now.

It’s on our wish list and what’s funny is our town is known for having the most sun in the nation… 300 days of sunshine through out the year!

A little known fact we definitely need to take advantage of.

I’ve also been busy getting our outbuilding fit for homeschooling and so far so good… I will post separately on that subject soon. Definitely an amazing transformation going on and I’m beyond thrilled to begin our adventure.

Anyhoo… here are some tidbits  taking place at the RYD home front…

My grandma always told me… save your pickle juice and pickle hard boiled eggs!

Since we have green beans coming out of our ears so we put a few from some salvaged juice from 2 jars of Bubbies pickles!

Pickled green beans here we come.

can’t wait to fill up some reused glass jars with fresh dried herbs from our garden

:: parsley AND :: basil 2 kinds of each!

using the sunshine to dry our laundry… haven’t used our dryer much this summer!

Clean sheets and towels…ahhh!

Been busy makin’ all things homemade  (dry skin salve, deodorant, and toothpaste) including a few other things…

…deets to come!!!!

Mmm, lunch lately… easy peasy & perfect in this summer heat.

with apple slices + almond butter = Mmmm!

an Ani Phyo recipe!

a little love, a little laughter, a little a little … won’t you?

the fair is in town… a really big DEAL around here… we’ve already gone 2x!

Ah, the last of our beautiful Summer desert sunsets… feeling the autumnal shift lately at certain times of the day…

i heart autumn

<3

Change  is comin’ on for us and I feel it.

another fun highlight:  waiting on pickles that are wildly fermenting

( a NO vinegar recipe)… just a few more days!

& so you know the garden is fairing well and I hope to bring you an update on that soon too!

The last few days of August are going to be busy- busy.

I may be absent … but I’ll be back– promise! 

p.s. stomach yuck is just about gone! phew!

What have you been up to?!!

the {upcycled & recycled} a new dress a day, flip flops, oh my!

Happy Friday!

We made it…woo-hoo!

Here are a few links for your {upcycled & recycled} reading pleasure…

365 days, 365 items of clothing, 365 dollars.... follow Marisa on her journey, at New Dress a Day a blog dedicated to turning thrift store dresses into fashionable ones for one year! What a sewing genius, if you ask me and what an excellent goal.  She’s got some RAD skills, yo! I admire what she’s doing and her lovely talents.

In the summer, you can usually catch me sportin’ a pair of sandals or flip flops or sometimes barefooted in the garden. I HEART the company Simple Shoes. They make eco fashionable footwear and I want to score a pair of Flippee’s! Don’t they have a fabu collection of shoes?! A few pairs are on my wish list. LOVE!

I’m really diggin’ these cutesy upcycled caps … I want the “Clark” version…but they’re SOLD OUT! boo. Guess, I’ll have to settle for this one, instead!

and last but certainly not least…an Independence Day craft idea for your tots. Sparkless Sparklers! yay!!

That’s all for this week, folks

Hve a wonderfl start to your holiday weekend.

the {upcycled & recycled} 365 Ways to Go Green!

Hi everyone!

Hope you all have a great weekend. TGIF!

I’m sure many of you, like myself, have wondered what to do with an item… as in how to reduce, reuse and recycle it!

you know; commit an eco action and feel like a planet saving hero…right? Right!

Today’s,  planet saving hero, is a friend of mine; whom I had pleasure of meeting on twitter.

His name is Mike, otherwise known as Canarsie BK across the web … he’s down to earth… AND

he’s determined to show you just how easy it is to go green… all year long.

His non intimidating sustainable acts prove eco friendly can be simple & fun.

Be sure to follow Mike’s journey and get an eco glimpse of his 365′in ways filled with plenty of fantastic 3R’s (green) ideas.

Today, he uses a tea bag to clean tiles... check it out!

the {upcycled & recycled} APRONS!

Upcycled Plastic Bag Apron

Hola, lovelies!

What have you been up to?

I’ve been parading around in my grandmother’s aprons lately. I LOVE aprons. I love the warmth an apron provides, how it keeps my clothes clean, the pockets and just the overall feel. They’re very 50’s housewife, but I appreciate that quality about them. I inherited 2 full coverage ones after my grandmothers death several years ago. It’s fun to channel my grandmothers energy and embrace what it might of been like while she was wearing it.  In addition to my grandmother’s, I also have a very old apron which belonged to my grandfather’s mother, it’s red and white checkered, special and dainty. When wearing an apron, I’m more connected to thy womanly self. It’s strange…but so true!

I love to express my urban homestead-ness through an my apron(s). It feels right and gives me inspiration.  I’ve always been drawn to aprons… is that crazy? Vintage aprons, especially! They help me drive the creative force that is sometimes lurking inside.

I’m hoping to find the time in the next couple weeks to get an apron made using upcycled materials only.

A few links, perking my interests at the moment!

Make an apron from plarn (fused plastic)

Aunt Loretta’s Up cycled Tablecloth Apron

Upcycled Coffee Bag Apron

Upcycled Mens Shirt Apron

A Cafe Apron Tutorial

and I of course, also heart the Angry Chicken’s blog…

Tie One On!

I’m really liken’ her latest theme challenge too and can’t wait to see the winning apron.

Okay, peeps, enjoy the links … and tell me…

do you tie one on???

Have a marvy weekend.

Chow!

the {upcycled & recycled} Part Two: Birthday Crown

Hola, friends!

Is this week over, yet? cuz, TGIF!!!

Last week, it was all about the birthday banner I made for the boys…

This week, I present you with the honorary birthday crown! Tristan absolutely loved wearing his crown on his birthday. I think it was the best part of his day. It made him feel special!  I don’t think  it mattered much to the birthday boy, but I wanted him to have some embellishments on the crown. Since he is an Earth Day baby,  I had the idea of cutting up one of his organic onesies depicting our planet and will sew it on eventually (timing was not good this year). I do like the simplicity of the crown though.

I used the same pair of jeans as I did for the banner and used a felted wool sweater for the front piece. One night, after finishing up what I wanted to get done on the banner, I realized I could also make a crown. The crown idea just came together in my head… I didn’t follow any tutorial or pattern. I just went with my sewing instincts. But, here’s a fabulous tutorial done by one savvy, AND very creative green mama.

For the most part, I’m happy with the way it looks.

Oh and I was hoping to share the final product with you sans pins (banner and crown)… but my lovely D40 took a dive on me yesterday! Clark managed to get it off my desk and it fell on the ground. Now, I hear a little jiggle on the inside of my camera! Fun! So, as soon as I can upload pics again… I’ll edit the ones here, asap.

Birthday parties don’t have to be filled with all the party hats, treat bags, and other party disposables etc.

If sewing isn’t your thing, you can find birthday crowns and felted party hats (and other eco party supplies) at Green Party Goods!

I’m planning to make a birthday crown  for Clark as well. I figure they shouldn’t have to share this one. For now, I’m laying off the birthday projects and focusing on others…

this project is definitely going on the sewing list!

Hope you have a great weekend!

What are you up to??

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