Recycling, composting and gardening

I promise that this blog isn't always going to be about gardens, but those are the only big projects I am working on/finishing currently, so that is what you get! *sticks tounge out*;)

Last year, in anticipation of starting a garden, I started a compost bin from an old covered trash can (the kind that is $7.00 at W). This week I added little workers to it in the form of Red Worms. Let me tell you, they were not easy to track down, none of the bait shops had any sort of worms at all, so I turned to the world wide web. There are quite a few places that sell them, but I wanted something close geographically and cheap (I only wanted 100 to start out). I finally purchased mine off of ebay from a seller in New Orleans, can't get much closer than that! They were here 2 days later. I tossed them in and they got to work, I havn't seen them unless I've gone looking, so they must be digging deep. In my search for worms, I learned that you can't use night crawlers or other forms of worms because they dont hold up to the heat in my style of compost bin. I am still holding out hope for a nice vermicomposter that will house several hundred of the squirmy critters and produce tons of fresh rich soil and worm tea for my garden.

Next up is my little project for the garden: a recycled watering can. I dont use a watering can often, so I couldn't see the point in spending $5-$15 on one. I started wondering if I could make one out of things I have sitting around. In our family, we go through gallons of apple juice, so I always have some of the bottles sitting around and waiting for recycling day. I grabbed one and got to work. It was easy and took me less than 5 minutes, and most of that was gathering tools and taking pictures!

First I pulled out my drill and a really small bit.

Then I drew a circle on the bottle with a marker where I wanted my spout to be.

Next I drilled holes in a random fashion inside the circle.

Finally I drilled one air hole on the back side of the bottle (If you dont do this then you have to squeeze the water out and wait for it to "glug, glug" before moving on ;) )

Fill it with water, put the cap on and get to watering! easy right?

Here are a few pictures of the plants in my garden, they look great right? :)

Have a great day everyone!

Pyrex cozy

Have you ever been invited to a potluck or had a sick friend that you were bringing a meal to? If that meal is in a Pyrex dish, I have a great solution for an easy Pyrex cozy to keep it warm. There are some more complicated ones out there, but in my book, simple is better.

Pyrex Cozy:

Supply list:

Double sided quilted broadcloth (I had 1/2 yard and had plenty left over... I think 1/3 of a yard would be a great size if you are only buying for 1)

Quilter's Bias tape

Velcro

Scissors

Pins

Sewing machine

a Pyrex dish with lid

I started by measuring my Pyrex dish, but then I realized there are SO many sizes out there, it would be easier if I had you just lay whatever Pyrex you were planning on using in your quilted broadcloth.
Lay your Pyrex in the broadcloth, fold up one side so that it is over your Pyrex and just covering both handles. the side of the fold that the Pyrex is sitting on should be about 4 1/2 inches longer than your Pyrex. We are going to end up folding this end over when everything is finished so that it closes the cozy.



So, move the long edge (without handles) of your Pyrex about an inch and a half from the edge of your broadcloth. Pin along this edge leaving a 1/4th inch seam allowance.
now pin along the other side, leaving the Pyrex in the "pocket" we've now made... make sure it is a little bit loose so that you don't have to struggle to get your Pyrex in later.

Cut the side we just pinned, leaving a 1/4th seam allowance.

Now we are going to cover all of the rough edges in the Quilter's bias tape. Start pinning the bias tape on the folded edge of the broad cloth (leave 1/2 inch hanging off the end on each end)... continue all the way around, then cut off the excess. Use the left over piece to cover the rough edge at the pocket opening.

This is the rough edge I'm talking about:

you are actually going to un-pin things so that you can sew this edge first, but I like to make sure I have enough bias tape by cutting the largest solid piece first.

Sew the bias tape in place on the pocket edge, then pin 2 small Velcro squares on the pocket edge, sew these squares on.

Like this:

Now re-pin the outer edge and sew the bias tape onto the entire outer edge (I fold under my start and finish edges before I start so that I get a nice clean look)

Pin the other half of the Velcro squares to the top of the pocket closure. Sew them on.





And you are finished!

I really hope this tutorial makes sense... I seem to have caught whatever my boys have, so this was typed up while in a cough medicine daze. :)
Let me know if you have any questions!

Paraffin Wax Jar Candles

I love candles, especially jar candles. I enjoy giving them as gifts for house warming or holidays, however I am not a huge fan of the "designer brand" prices and much prefer making my own (because of the savings, quality and love put into them).


They are easy to make, but there are a few things you should know before you attempt them, so here is a quick tutorial:

How to Make Paraffin Wax Jar Candles

Supply list:

Paraffin wax

Wicks

Candle Jars (or any jar)

Crayons

Candle scent

Wood spoon

Two stock pots, one smaller than the other (or double boiler)

Tin foil

cookie sheet

multi purpose thread

tape

Hammer

Oven mitts

(Keep a fire extinguisher handy, just in case)

First fill your large stock pot with water and place on the stove with medium heat.

Break up your wax into manageable pieces with your hammer. I purchased a 10lb slab for $7.96 at Hobby Lobby (normally 14.99... thank you 40% coupon) this slab will make a lot of candles, but buying in bulk is cheaper in the long run if you plan on making quite a few. Decided now if you want all of your candles to be one scent and/or color. If you do, it makes the process go much quicker. We are going to proceed as though this is the case.

Open your jars and prepare the wicks. I use multi-purpose thread, which I tie around the wick in the middle at the height of the top of the jar. Then I tape each side of the string to the sides of the jar, making sure the wick is centered and the strings are tight.

Lay out a sheet of tin foil on the cookie sheet. place all of your prepped jars on the cookie sheet.

By now your water should be simmering, or about to... put your small stock pot into the larger one and add your wax slowly to the small stock pot (not the one with water!). Turn the stove heat down to medium low. Add the color crayon you'd like your candles to be to the wax. You may have to add more than one if you are doing a large batch to get the desired color. I find that adding varying shades of the same color (like several different blues in different quantities) gives me better colors with more depth.

Stir your wax as it melts, make sure it doesn't get too hot too fast, otherwise it will form large bubbles that will pop hot wax everywhere or it can catch fire. NEVER leave you wax unattended when it is on heat, this is a job best done when the little ones are sleeping so that there are no distractions.

Once all of the wax is melted, turn off the heat and add your scent... stir it thoroughly.

Now carefully pull your small stock pot out and pour the wax into the jars. Be careful not to spill, but if you do it is ok, that is what the tin foil is for ;) .

If you have a little bit of leftover wax, that is great! Put the small stock pot back in the warm water, but don't turn on the heat. Use this wax to fill in any dips or holes in your jars when they cool. You can use a fan to speed the cooling wax process.

Finally, cut your wicks down to about 1/4th of an inch above the cooled wax, add some ribbon, or a label and enjoy!

If you wait for the sales to be in your favor, these become a really affordable gift... each of my candles cost around $3.00 to make!

($20.00 - jars (20) , $4.00 for 20 wicks, $7.96 - wax, $5.00 -ribbon, $9.00 -candle scent, $0.25 - crayons /20 candles )

Fall Wreath

Looking around our neighborhood, every house had some sort of fall decoration that made their house look inviting and festive. I especially loved all the different wreaths that have been put up. When I looked at buying a wreath for our door I was shocked at the $25 and up price tags, so I set out to make my own for under $10. So here we are at my first tutorial as a result.

The Fall Sunflower Wreath

Supply list:
3-4 bunches of flowers, both large blooms and small blooms

Coordinating ribbon

Florist wire

Sharp Serrated knife

1 1/2 inch thick florist foam rectangle

large plate

hot glue gun and glue

pliers

scissors

First, align your plate face down where you would like to cut your circle out (I plan on using the left over foam so I went as far as I could to the top)

Trace around the circle with the tip of your knife

Carefully cut out your circle with the knife.


Now cut 2 1/2 feet of ribbon from your roll, place this to the side for later. Then with your hot glue gun, secure the end of you uncut ribbon roll to the circle. Wrap it around the circle, securing it with a dot of glue every 3 inches, making sure to cover the rough edge at the start. Cut the ribbon when you have pass around 2 times and tuck the rough edge under the flat ribbon, secure it with glue. (in the image I haven't tucked the rough edge yet)







Next cut all of your flowers off of the bunches leaving thier stems about 1 1/4 inches long. Set aside the leftover bush stems with the leaves. Fluff whatever flowers need some extra attention (like if thier petals are stuck together, take the time now to fix them)
Do not start adding flowers from the center, start at the outside edge, placing the smallest blooms first about 1/2 -1 inch apart. Continue around until you complete the circle. the fill the center with your larger blooms until you are at the center flower, place this flower last, make sure it is your best looking flower since it will draw the most attention.


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Now, pull the leaves off of the flower buch stems that we set aside earlier. Cut them so that you have single leaves with a small stem. Wrap and twist the floral wire around the stem with your pliers. They should look like this:







Next, place a leaf between each of the outer flowers by pushing the florist wire into the foam.








Finally, add the 2 and 1/2 foot section of ribbon to the back of the "wreath" Start at the base of the wreath and secure the ribbon with twised florist wire and hot glue, make sure the rough edge isn't visible and is tucked nicely under your wrapped ribbon. Hot glue in 2 or 3 places on the back of the wreath up to the top, Fold the remaining ribbon in half and secure it again with florist wire and hot glue.

Now hang your wreath up on your door and enjoy!

Total cost of this project for me:
Large blooms - $3.00 Small blooms- 2 @ $1.00
Ribbon - $1.94 Foam - $2.50
(Walmart for all of the above)
I already had the glue sticks and florist wire, so, in my book those are a zero.
Total: ~ $9.50 +tax

Linked to at:

http://cottageinstincts.blogspot.com/
http://www.bluecricketdesign.net/

http://adventuresofthemichelenafamily.blogspot.com/