Spring Housecleaning The DIY Way!

For my semi-annual rip-the-house-apart-and-clean-everything-behind-it-and-put-it-all-back-again cleaning, I decided to try some earth friendly and homemade cleaning products. I've always wanted to try it. They're cheap, easy to make and better for the environment than the store bought chemist-made stuff. But do they work? Well, let me tell you how it went down...

After some extensive research, I decided to go with baking soda, white vinegar, castile soap and some essential oils. Obviously, you can find baking soda and vinegar at the grocery and everybody knows what they are (and if you've answered no to both, maybe you shouldn't be trying this). Castile soap is a plant based soap that is good for the environment and tough on dirt (haha, I sound like a cheesy commercial). You can find it in the organic aisle of your grocery store and in some stores in with the cleaning supplies. Mrs. Meyers and Dr. Bronner are two good brands and they have some wonderful scents. I got Mrs. Meyers lavendar this time around, but I'm thinking next time I'm going with Dr. Bronners almond. My grocery store carries essential oils in the organic aisle, but you can also find them online. Amazon has TONS of them. I picked sweet orange and spearmint for this because the were two of the cheapest and I wanted to be sure this worked before I tried the more expensive oils. One of them was $25.00 for a 1/2 ounce! It will be a cold day in the underworld before I ever spend that! I do not care how fantastic it smells!

Let's start with castile soap. I've been using castile soap for a year now as a countertop cleaner and I love it! Castile soap is concentrated, so it needs to be diluted. About four tablespoons to eight ounces of water is a good ratio. I also used it to scrub down my cabinets, floors, walls, bathroom counters, microwave, fridge, outsides of the toilets and my wooden bannisters and railings. Mix it with a little baking soda to make a paste and scrub down sinks, tubs and tile showers. This stuff smells great and everything is so clean! 

I used the vinegar in a spray bottle with some newspaper to clean my mirrors and windows and they looked amazing! And the vinegar smell really doesn't linger too long, so you don't feel like you're living inside a pickle jar. You can also use 1 part vinegar to 1 part water as an all purpose cleaner, but you need to be careful as to which surfaces you use it on, because vinegar can damage some surfaces. Me, I prefer my castile soap. It smells soooo good.

I cleaned and freshened my sink and tub drains by pouring some baking soda down the drain (I'd say a couple of tablespoons), then pouring in some vinegar and watched it bubble and foam. Which was so cool to watch. You let it sit for half an hour or so then you rinse with hot water. It seemed to work. My kitchen drain smelled better. 

Next I tried apple cider vinegar in the toilets. You just pour it in and let it sit, then swish and flush. This is supposed to leave your bathroom smelling like apples. I was really skeptical about that. And guess what? My bathroom smelled like apple cider vinegar! Color me surprised. And it cleaned ok, but for the toilet bowls, I'm sticking with chemicals. 

I made my own vacuum-up carpet powder with baking soda and essential oil. Just mix together one 16 oz. box of baking soda with approximately 20-30 drops of essential oil. Mix it well and make sure you do not have big clumps. I put mine in a mason jar and used a hammer to pound holes in the lid. I liked that part. Stress relief. Sprinkle generously all over your carpet and let it sit for 15-30 minutes, then vacuum it up. It worked great! I couldn't smell dog! As much as I love my fuzzy huggable puppy dog, I am not all that thrilled about dog smell. It also works great on your mattress! Just sprinkle and vacuum as you would the carpet.

Finally, I made my own Febreze. I like Febreze, but my kids go nuts with it. Really nuts. As in I get a bottle Saturday and by Tuesday, it's gone. Just mix two tablespoons of baking soda with 20 drops of essential oil. Mix it very well, then put it in a spray bottle with 2 cups of hot water. Shake to dissolve and BOOM, you've got yourself some DIY Febreze! I used it just like I would the store bought stuff. Now, the scent of the sweet orange oil didn't really last that long, but odors were gone. The spearmint lasted longer. And the house smelled minty fresh, like it just gargled with Scope. But I liked it.

So, my experiment with DIY cleaners turned out pretty well (except for the apple cider vinegar toilet). I'm going to keep on cleaning the DIY way because it's cheaper and environmentally friendly! And I like a minty fresh house. Except I then crave a stick of chewing gum.

Until the next project, 

Chris :)

A Penny Saved Is A Penny Urned...A Vase Upcycled With...Pennies!

I really, really, really want my kitchen backsplash tiled with pennies. I have seen pics of floors and backsplashes tiled with pennies and I love the different shades of copper, from a muted, aged copper to the bright, shiny glow of new pennies. I love the way it glitters and glows and changes, depending on the angle. It would look perfect with my counters and cabinets. But, alas, my husband does not share this passionate love for penny tiling. In fact, I believe the words "Hell no!" were used. So, I decided to try to cover a beat-up vase. At least I might get some sense of gratification. 

Now, this vase has seen better days. It's dinged, scratched and just looking sad. And I hate to blow money on a new one, because I'm cheap frugal. Besides, why buy a new one when you can pimp out an old one? This is a metal vase painted to look like hammered copper, which looked good when I first bought it, but, like a die-hard sun worshipper, isn't aging so well and could use a face lift.

All you need are a vase, some pennies and glue. I used Gorilla Glue super glue cuz I like Gorilla Glue. Just make sure your glue is made for bonding metal to whatever surface your vase is. This means reading the backs of many glue labels. And I used some wheat pennies too, after I made sure they weren't the valuable ones (unfortunately, none were).

Some of my pennies were kinda yucky, so I washed them in a solution of vinegar and baking soda. I didn't really measure; I poured vinegar into a bowl to cover the pennies, then dumped in some baking soda and watched it fizz. I think the vinegar alone would've worked fine, but I like to watch the baking soda fizz. I let them sit, then rinsed them with water. Some were still really yucky, so I cleaned them with Tarn-X. I washed my vase with soap and water and wiped it down with rubbing alcohol to make sure the surface was clean. 

And now, we glue...

I spread an old sheet on the floor so I would not get any glue on the carpet. I have never gotten super glue on the carpet, but it's not something I would like to experience. Read the instructions on the back of your glue to see if you need to hold your pennies in place. My glue said to clamp pieces together for 10 to 30 seconds. I just dabbed a drop on the vase, set the penny on and pressed lightly for a few seconds. I did have a few pennies I had to hold longer, but overall, it was pretty quick.

As you can see, there is a rim around the bottom of my vase, so I centered the pennies and glued them down alternating heads and tails. Then above the rim, I lined up the pennies with the rim and started alternating them too. And for all you idiots who say, "You have way too much time on your hands if you can sit around and do this!" I say bite me. While you're sitting on your butt watching your shows and snack-a-lacking away, I'm sitting on mine watching my shows and doing this stuff. And I'm not porking out cuz of all those sugary, fat-laden treats. I do crafts while watching TV cuz I love, love, LOVE my sugary, fat-laden goodies. A lot. And this keeps them away from me.

Seriously, this did not take long at all, once I got into the groove. Just one episode of Adam 12 and two Dance Moms. 

As you can see, if you turn your head sideways (!*#%$*! picture) I alternated the pattern. You don't have to be that obsessive. I'm just anal retentive like that.

As you can see below, the back of the vase is messed up, cuz the pennies don't go around the vase evenly. But I figured I'd just turn that part towards the wall and no one would see it. I could've cut pennies to fit, but seriously, I'm not that anal.

And now, she is done. I just sprayed it with a coat of acrylic sealer to keep the pennies from tarnishing. All the instructions for penny tiling floors and backsplashes use several coats of poly to protect the pennies, so I figured I would too.

I love this vase now! I love the way it glitters and glows when the sunlight hits it! But I still lust for a copper penny backsplash :(

Until the next project, 

Chris :)

Cheap and Easy Linen Tea Towels (Hand Towels, Whatever)

As I was idly roaming around the web one day, I found this fabric store (www.fabric-store.com) online that sells linen for really great prices and they sent me an email stating that for one day only, I could get a yard of their best-selling linen for $1.00. Now, I love a good deal. So heck yeah, I jumped on that! While I was on the site, I also discovered they have a "Doggie Bag" section where you can get pieces of linen in anywhere from tenth to half yard sizes (only caveat is it's often limited in weights and colors). So for about $30.00, I got 10 different pieces of linen in 10  gorgeous colors! The smallest piece was a quarter yard. Now I had all this lovely, lovely fabric to play with. I decided to try tea towels for my first linen project, cuz it looked so easy.

I used unbleached linen and a creamy beige called "cloud cream." Sounds like a paint color. The weight is a medium weight. The lightweight is too flimsy for towels and the heavyweight just didn't feel right for towels to me. When I first got the linen, it was stiff and I was wondering what, exactly, was I to make from this stuff? Ok, maybe I didn't say stuff :) I washed and dried it twice before sewing it to preshrink it. And, baby, did it ever soften up! I was a much happier puppy after that. 

I started by cutting out 27" x 17" rectangles. I used my rotary cutter and straight edge so I would get nice, clean straight edges. Then I folded over the longer sides 1/4", ironed them and then again folded and ironed 1/4".  I pinned it and took it over to my beloved sewing machine and stitched close to the edge. Well, the first time I didn't and it looked like, well, poo (or something less polite than that). So, I whined, complained, ripped out the seams and stitched it properly. 

Looks much better! I was impressed with myself and pretty darn happy at how well this was going. Then I did the corners...

I cut all corners at approximately 45 degree angles, then you are supposed to fold and iron 1/4" twice just like you did to the long sides. Didn't work as easily as the tutorial said it would. I got a little better with each towel, but I still had to fudge a few corners. Eventually, I got the hang of it. 

 Yes, I know this pic sucks.

After I stitched the short sides, I decided to be creative. My machine has decorative stitches which I have never used. So, I decided to put some decorative stitching across the bottom. This was a new experience for me. You can't mash the pedal to the floor and zip through this! You need to keep a nice, steady pace or else this happens...

I didn't even try to rip this out and start again. I just did it on the other end. This end will go towards the back, where no one will see it. Easy fix (or lazy, call it what you will).

Here are the finished edges. Next time, I'm using some nice cotton ribbon or fabric strips. It will be faster and easier.  

I'm happy with the way these turned out, after some minor trials and tribulations. I really like the way the look and feel and they wash up nicely. Now I have lots of linen left over and I'm going to search out some more projects. As if I don't have a big enough list already. 

Chris :)

Bling and Lace Upcycled Jean Shorts

My daughter loves clothes. Girly, trendy clothes. She saw some shorts with lace cutouts on the leg that she loved. I about fell over when I saw the price tag. Holy schlamoly, dinner for two at a nice restaurant costs less than these shorts. And that includes martinis and dessert. I knew I could do them for a lot less. So I went for it. 

Luckily, she had a pair of jeans that were a little too short, so all we had to do was find some lace. We went to our local closeout store to look for something lacy. And cheap. I'm not spending good money on something I'm going to chop up. Oh, my no. We found a pink lace shirt for $7.00. Life was good.

I started off by hacking off the legs of the jeans. I used another pair of her shorts to make sure I didn't make them too short. No daughter of mine is wearing Daisy Dukes. At least I'd better not find out about it. Then I tossed them in the washer and dryer so the edges would fray. 

I cut out two v-shaped notches on the sides of the legs and pinned in pieces of the lace, making sure to use the hem of the shirt, so I wouldn't have to re-hem it. Then, off to my trusty sewing machine to sew it in place.

I still had a lot of shirt left and felt the shorts needed a little something, so I cut out some more pieces and pinned them inside the front pockets. This I couldn't do on my sewing machine; I had to do it by hand. Luckily, it didn't take long. Yes, I know the pic sucks. So does my camera.

I thought I was done, until my girly girl tried on the shorts and we realized they were too small in the thighs and inseam. Not pretty. A smiling crotch is not a happy crotch, if you know what I mean. It made no sense, cuz she has other jean shorts that are the same brand and size. So I took one of those pairs and tried again. 

So, I finished the other pair of shorts and decided it needed some bling. I like bling. Tasteful bling, that is. I don't like the "attacked by a Bedazzler" look. I found some silver beads and some pink crystal beads and came up with a pattern.

I glued the beads down first with a tiny dab of beading glue, let it dry, then stitched the beads in place. The glue helps hold the beads in place when I'm sewing, and they stay put where I placed them. Then I turned the shorts inside out and washed and dried them to make sure everything stayed put. Which it did.

Here are both pairs of finished shorts. My girl loves them, especially because they're unique! And I only spent $7.00 for these! Not a bad deal! I am awesome. And modest :)

Until my next project, 

Chris :)

Pretty In Pink Flower Wreath Made From Dyed Coffee Filters

So I was decorating my house for Valentine's Day (I pretty much decorate for any holiday; gives me an excuse to create more stuff), when I decided I needed to make yet another decoration. Why? Because I can! I had seen some tutorials on dyeing coffee filters decided to try my hand at it. I bought the cheapest coffee filters I could find for this project and they worked great! You are also going need craft paint and a small bucket or container in which to dye your coffee filters and an old towel or blanket to lay them on to dry.

I wanted red flowers, so I used red paint. Really. 

I poured paint into the bucket with some water (about 2 parts water to 1 part paint) and mixed until all the paint was dissolved. Which takes longer than you would think. 

It looks red, right? So one would think the coffee filters would come out red. But they didn't. What came out was decidedly pink. PINK. Pale, girly pink. I wanted red. Pink does NOT match my red Valentine's decorations. AT ALL.

I decided to suck it up and go ahead with it anyway. I soaked the filters in the "looks red, but is really pink" dye for about 30 seconds, gently squeezed them out and the laid them out to dry on an old towel. I used about a third of the package of coffee filters and I dried them in stacks, due to the fact that there was more coffee filters than counter space. I let them dry overnight. Some came out dark pink, some light and some were mottled. I liked it.

When they dried, they really were a pretty shade of pink. I thought of an adorable little girl who has a pink, butterfly-themed bedroom and decided to make the wreath for her. Because pink DOES NOT match my red Valentine's decorations. Yes, I am still rather peeved about that. I really like red. 

So now my coffee filters are dry and I'm ready to start my wreath. I grabbed a wire wreath form (I have a bunch in the craft stash, you could use another type of form) and my trusty glue gun. And glue sticks. And a drop cloth so I wouldn't get hot glue all over my carpet. That stuff is a *&*$%! to get out of carpet. Trust me on that.

I was going to do a rosebud wreath, but the rosebuds are small and I wanted a fuller, fluffier flower. I made a carnation-type flower, but I felt it lacked something, so I combined the two. I made the rosebuds by cutting filters into spirals. I just free handed them with the scissors, since this really isn't an exact science and I'm too lazy to draw perfect spirals. 

Then I started at the inside edge and rolled it up into a rosebud shape and pinched the bottom together.

For the carnation-type flowers, I took three filters, made a cone shape and pinched the bottom while I fluffed and fussed with the edges until it looked like a flower. My vision of a flower, anyway.

Then I broke out the glue gun and the band-aids and burn cream (I always burn myself and occasionally get a blister, but, luckily, not this time). I put a dab of glue in the center of the carnation and then put the rosebud in the center.

I like it! It's flowery and funky and pretty. Now I grabbed the wreath form and started gluing. I put two small dabs of glue on the form and wedged the bottom of my flower between the wires.

I just started gluing and wedging in no particular order, just wherever I felt it looked good.

After I glued all flowers in, I stood back and admired it and patted myself on the back, cuz I did an awesome job. However, it needed something. I thought it might look nice hanging from a sparkly, sheer pink ribbon that I had in my craft stash. I tied it to the wreath form and gave it a dab of glue to keep it secure.

It looks so pretty and girly and I really liked it! Even if it's not red. I think if I want this wreath in red, I will have to paint the coffee filters. With a brush. One by one. I'm not sure if I have the patience to paint that many. I'm going to have to think on that. I have, however, thought that this would look good in a pale yellow. That I will have to try. I can handle the dyeing method. That's a piece of cake. Which sounds awfully good right now. 

I think I'm going to make a cake.

Chris :)

Go Stylishly Green With Reusable T-Shirt Shopping Bags

I do a lot of grocery shopping. I do a big shop once a week, but I always forget something, somebody needs something, or (my personal favorite) "guess what we just ran out of?" So I practically live at the grocery store. I go through a lot of plastic bags, and I do usually recycle them in the container provided just for said purpose, but I've been feeling kinda earth conscious lately. So I recycled some old t-shirts into reusable shopping bags. Double eco-friendly brownie points for me since I'm using old t-shirts :) Now I'm thinking about brownies :(

So I grabbed me some t-shirts and tank tops.

 Then I grabbed scissors, thread and my sewing machine. I started by cutting off the sleeves and the collar. 

Then I turned the shirt inside out, pinned the bottom hem and prepared to sew the bottom together.

 I also did a quick tack stitch at the seam ends where I cut the collar and sleeves off, just to prevent any coming apart at the seams. With my luck, the bag would come apart and eggs would come crashing out, leaving an ooey, gooey mess. This has happened to me before with a plastic bag. It is NOT fun. Except for the jerk in the car next to me.

I ran a straight stitch along the bottom, using the hem as my guide. I then went back over the straight stitch with a zig zag stitch to reinforce the bottom and make it stronger. 

 I cut off the excess, turned the bag right side out, and boom, I got me a brand new bag. I did the same thing with a tank top, except (obviously) I didn't cut off the sleeves or collar.

 I use Oscar on days when I feel a little grouchy (or outright hostile, whatever).

Next I decided to try a no sew bag. It wasn't completely no sew, as I did reinforce the seams where I cut them (after the egg incident, I'm not taking any chances). After I cut the sleeves and collar off, I cut off the hem and made a line where I wanted my fringe to start.

I thought a beach t-shirt would be cool for a fringe-bottomed bag. Kinda reminds me of those t-shirts you can get at the beach that have the fringed bottoms. Anyway, I then started to cut my fringe.

Then all you do is take two pieces and make a double knot, the kind you do when you want to tie someone's shoelaces together. So easy, even a blonde can do it. And yes, I am a blonde. So it really is that easy.

And here is the finished bag. 

Here is another one. You can stuff loads of stuff in these bags, especially if you use men's t-shirts. I should try to find xxx-large shirts. Just think of how much you could cram in one of those babies!

I made a bunch of these bad boys and was pretty impressed with my bad self. They look awesome and really hold a lot of stuff. I put cereal boxes, crackers and soup cans in these for demonstration purposes. I put four 2 liters of soda in one at the grocery store (you had to buy four to get the sale price, really) and it carried them all without a problem. Which is pretty cool, if you ask me.

So that's one way I'm doing my part to preserve Mother Earth for future generations. And I look cool doing it. Well, at least I think I do.

Chris :)

Party On With A Jello Shooter Cake...A Vodka-Soaked Jello Ribbon Salad!

I have always wanted to make a jello shooter cake, but never had a reason to. Also, I didn't want anyone to think I was an alcoholic. So when my friend was looking for some interesting drink ideas for a party, I suggested she make one. Now my friend is not your average, everyday Martha Stewart. In fact, if it takes more steps than a frozen pizza, it's too complicated a recipe. Really. So I jumped at the chance to make it! It's actually pretty simple, the only hard part is waiting. Especially if you're like me and like that instant gratification.

Pretty cool, right? And it's downright tasty too!

You just need a fridge, bundt pan or jello mold and the following:

• 4 1/2 cups water
• 6 (3 oz) packages flavored jello
• 3 envelopes plain gelatin (like Knox)
• 3 cups liquor (vodka or rum, or whatever makes you happy)
• 1 1/8 cup vanilla yogurt

You can use sugar-free or low-fat jello and yogurt, but c'mon. It's party time, baby. Live a little.

Before you start, you need to chill the liquor by putting it in the freezer for a few hours. I used a plain vodka for this one, but I would like to try it with a flavored vodka or rum. Or schnapps. The possibilities are endless. If you have an extensive liquor collection or lots of disposable income, you could probably use different flavors to correspond with each jello flavor. But, having neither an extensive liquor collection nor lots of moolah, I opted for plain vodka. 

I used an angel food cake pan because  my only bundt pan is a castle pan and I was leery of it getting stuck inside the many crevices. Spray your pan lightly with non-stick spray, then wipe it out, leaving only a residue behind. You don't want slick, greasy jello. That would be icky.

Pour 3/4 cup water into a saucepan and sprinkle it with 1 tsp of the plain (Knox) gelatin. Let it sit for a minute or two. Heat on low heat and stir until dissolved, maybe 4-5 minutes. Then stir in one packet of the flavored jello keeping stirring until dissolved, maybe and minute or two.

I used a whisk at first, but my jello got all bubbly, so I used a wooden spoon instead.

Remove the jello and stir in 1/2 cup of the icy cold liquor. Have a shot while you're at it.

Pour 3/4 cup of the jello into your pan. Refrigerate for 15 - 30 minutes. The jello should be firm, but should be sticky, not gooey, when touched. Don't let it get too firm, otherwise the next layer will not bond to it and then it will not be a cake. It will be a mess.

While that's in the fridge, chill the remaining mixture for about 5 minutes until it's about the consistency of egg whites. If you have no idea what that's like, I suggest you crack open an egg. Then stir in 3 tbsp of vanilla yogurt until it's well-blended.

When the first layer is firm, yet sticky, pour the yogurt layer on top and refrigerate again for another 15 - 30 minutes. 

Now all you gotta do is repeat the process with the next five flavors until you have 12 total layers, 6 plain jello and 6 yogurt jello layers. However, you may not want to have a shot each time you add your liquor, as suggested previously. When you're done, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

When you unmold your cake the next day, fill your sink or a large pan with WARM, not hot, water. Dip your pan in for a few seconds (maybe 8-10 seconds), dry off your pan, cover with a plate and then flip it over. Your cake should slip right out.

And, voila, it is done! Now this baby has 3 cups of liquor in it, so I wouldn't cut huge slices for your friends, especially the lightweights. Rainbow colored vomit is not a pretty thing. 

This also can be made as cupcakes or mini jello shooter cakes. You would have to adjust your refrigeration times, maybe 5 - 10 minutes for cupcakes. I have a mini-bundt pan that I'm gonna use to make mini pina colada cake with pineapple jello and coconut rum. I saw a recipe for jello shooter birthday cupcakes that uses cake-flavored vodka. It's basically the same recipe as this one. Now I need some one with a birthday to try it on.

So, thanks to my culinarily impaired friend for letting me make this for her party! It was fun and now I am inspired to create different kinds of jello shooter cakes! Like a fuzzy navel cake. Or a an apple martini cake. Luckily, she told me she has lots of summer pool parties......

Chris :)