Home Life

A skill I have been trying to get good at over the past few years has been sewing.  I started out sewing cloth diapers for my kids, and now have been working on clothing.  Some patterns are hard for me to understand, but I have a bunch of “simplicity” patterns that seem, well, quite simple.

My kids need summer clothing and PJs for the warm summer nights, and my husband and I just upgraded our bedsize and have leftover comfortable sheets  from our last mattress that I’m using to turn into clothing. The sheets are plain colors, so the kids clothes are plain but honestly what more do you need for general play and sleep clothes? 

I made my daughter a jumper last night, and it was very easy and looks nice.  She enjoyed it, because it was a dress (she loves dresses, skirts, jumpers, etc.).  Shorts and shirts are next.  I still have a bunch of cut out fabric that need to be sewn into diapers for our baby coming in August, and I am getting the urge to complete all of my open projects before the baby comes!

I found a great deal on fabric at a garage sale two years ago - a family was moving to Texas and the wife had a huge assortment of fabrics and it was going to be too heavy to move (they were flying I guess) so she wanetd to sell it, and I picked up all that fabric for $20!  I am still trying to use all of it. 

I believe you can save a lot of money if you buy fabric and notions on clearance or on sale, check garage sales and freecycle groups.  You can then turn this fabric into clothing for yourself or your kids, household items (tablecloths, handtowels, placemats, grocery/plastic bag storage, etc.), storage containers (I made a few hanging laundry baskets and also some drawstring bags for kid toys), bedding, anything you buy you can find a pattern for and make.  Many people believe the cost of fabric these days makes sewing your own clothing more expensive than buying new or used but I think with a good eye you can buy everything you’ll need for less. To get the most for your money, cut your patterns out with an eye on your entire peice of fabric and lay your patterns out to get the most from your fabric and save your scraps (the bigger peices).  You never know when you might need reinforcement underneith your top layer (and your reinforcement in most cases doesn’t have to match the outer layer), or might want to make a cute add on for another outfit out of fabric scraps you’ve saved. 

Do you sew?  what do you enjoy most?  What type of sewing level do you think someone needs to sew what you sew? 

If you are looking for a way to save money while helping our earth in more than one way, consider line drying your clothing year round.  In a phase of desperation to save as much money as I possibly could for our family, line drying seemed to be the smartest thing I could do.  I didn’t even think about how it could help our earth or preserve energy until I realized I’m not the only person who did it year round in an apartment – many people do! 

            I have a newer, energy efficient washer and dryer.  I also save our family over $20 a month on line drying alone.  To some, that doesn’t seem like much.  But for us, it was more than $20 more per month we could put towards other bills and that was a very good thing.

            My routine goes like this: I cold wash everything except diapers and super grungy loads.  My washer is pretty efficient at spinning so I never have to do an additional spin cycle unless I am washing a big comforter (and that’s just to help it dry quicker), I never have an issue with drips.  Some people do, and have found an extra spin cycle does the trick.  I hang my clothes and diapers on hangers (diapers go on hangers that hold up children’s pants) and hang them from every place I can.  This includes my shower rod, towel rod, my laundry shelving (I have a shelf that is supposed to go in a laundry room, with a hanging rod under the shelf part, in my living room holding up my smaller office machines and whatnot), hand towel rods, I’ve hung a clothing line across the top of the doorway right next to my washer to permanently hold hangers and to act as a temporary holding place for clothing coming right out of the washer (it dips in the middle when there is too many clothes on it, so the clothes don’t dry effectively on it).  You can put up your own lines along the ceiling, or buy retractable lines. 

   I did experience (and sometimes still do) stiffness issues.  I found that by decreasing my detergent to ¼ cup for large loads and using baking soda and vinegar (both about ½ cup each, the vinegar goes into the rinse cycle and acts as a softener, the baking soda helps boost the cleaning) my clothing dried softer. However, drying indoors there is no wind to knock the stiffness out of everything, so occasionally a swift shake before putting the item away is all that is needed.  Any remaining stiffness works its self out while you wear it, but it has never been an issue as far irritating me or being so stiff it was uncomfortable. 

            I find that my clothes dry in 2-4 hours in most cases.  Sometimes more, sometimes less.  For comforters I hang them over a clean, non-fabric surface.  This is usually the back of my wooden rocking chair, or over my kitchen table. After a few hours I flip it over until it’s dry.  Towels might go over the shower curtain rod, or be hung on hangers that hold adult pants (they’re much wider than the children’s pant hangers I use for cloth diapers).  I hang socks over regular hangers.

            To save myself time, I now hang ALL of my children’s clothing.  From the washer the clothing goes on hangers, hangs to dry, and then is put in the closet.  Any time I take an outfit out for my kids to wear, I take the hanger out and hang it on the line I hung next to my washer in the doorway.  This works very well.   I now have additional drawer space for kids toys, and use one drawer organized with small storage bins, to separate matched socks, hats and other items that don’t need to be hung.

            In the spring and summer when clothes will go outside, just watch the weather.  If you live in the country or next to fields, heavy winds will kick up dust and pollen.  Very humid days may make your diapers smell a little stuffy when they come in.  many people have success hanging their clothing outside year round, even in cold weather, and report that it just takes a lot longer for clothing to dry.  I haven’t tried it so I can’t comment on it too much.

Enjoy your savings!

I have not yet made my own laundry detergent, but the next time we are running low, I intent to give it a try!

I have spoken with a lot of people recently who make their own detergent, and from what I understand the recipes are nontoxic, biodegradable, great for sensitive skin, super easy to make (at least the powdered variety), don’t build up in clothing or your washing machine, and save tons fo money.

So the recipe I have is for a powdered version.  You can google a bunch of other recipes including liquids, and over the timing days and weeks I’ll be adding more recipes to this blog.  The one I have is as follows:

1 c grated Fels Naptha soap (I think this is usually found in the laundry detergent aisle, or possible the soaps aisle)

1/2 c washing soda (NOT baking soda).  Found in the detergent aisle.

1/2 c. Borax (found in the detergent aisle). 

Most stores carry all three ingredients.  Use 1 tablespoon for light loads, 2 tablespoons for heavy or really dirty loads.

This detergent wont’ suds - you don’t need suds fora good clean.  This is supposed to clean as well, if not better, than storebught detergents minus all of those additives. 

Let me know how it goes if you try it, and I will certainly do the same when I do!

What is it, about a beautiful warm sunny day and putting tea on the porch to sit in the heat, that makes a day so perfect?

 Why is it that tea that is made sitting on the porch, tastes so much better than the stovetop?

It’s like a right of passage, to start the summer season, that first glass of sun tea!

http://www.homestead.org/

http://www.naturalfamilyhome.com/

http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/

http://www.sugarmountainhome.com/menu.html

http://www.urban-homesteading.com/

Homesteading is a way of life.  It has many definitions and descriptions.  Essentially, it is a way of life that enables those who practice it to maintain a level of self sufficiency and have a degree of control over their resources.  This usually includes becoming involved with one’s own food production, building of or renovating the home, using alternative energy sources, and more.

Homesteading can take place anywhere someone is willing to make a change.  If you have a desire to live more self sufficient, there are a ton of things you can do on your own to make a difference - no matter where you live.  Not only will you learn valuable skills but you will also be saving yourself a lot of money over the long run.

I admire people who are able to live “off the grid” and not require any of modern day technology in their homes.  Some choose to, like electricity and phone.  But they grow and raise their own food (veggies, chicken, cows, pigs, etc.), take advantage of local resources (hunting, fishing), grow their own hay, grain, etc. to feed their animals, make their own necessities (soaps, cleaning agents, clothing, etc.) and don’t need to rely on anyone to survive.  If we were to have another blackout, it probably woudn’t bother them!  Struggling with gas prices?  Probably has no effect on them!  Oh how i would love to live on land large enough to support my own family year after year, make everything we’d need, and not be bothered by the issues of today!

Well, for now that isn’t possible.  I’ve always wanted my children to grow up on a farm, to learn the basic skills that seem to be escaping our households this day and age, to grow up not needing to rely on the money-guzzling “convieniences” of today in terms of disposable products, machines that make life “so much easier” and have the skills to manage a household well.  We do the best we can, and my kids LOVE helping mom around the house with baking, cleaning, making things and whatnot.  Right now we live in an apartment, in the country, but it’s an apartment nontheless.  I’m still pretty restricted as far as what I can and can’t do as far as gardening, keeping animals, building, and that sort of thing!

So I’d like to make a list of things that are considered to be skills of homesteading.  Then, in the coming weeks and months expand on them.  I would love to hear your feedback and your suggestions as far as what might be considered homesteading!

• Raising animals - rabbits, chickens, ducks, cow, pigs, goats, sheep, beekeeping, horses etc.
• Planting gardens - container gardening, in-ground gardens
• Basics of gardening - obtaining seeds, starting seeds, transplanting, growing your garden, harvesting
• Canning, freezing, dehydrating
• Home cooking, cooking with cast iron, wood stoves, etc. baking breads and traditional foods, creating recipes using your own home-made ingredients
• Self employment - selling your home baked goods, veggies, meats, eggs, milks, herbs, etc. Raising animals for profit, training and managing horses & dogs for profit, essentially turning your life into something you can make money at.
• Alternative energy
• Alternative fuel
• Alternative health
• Machinery
• Building
• Sewing - clothing, bedding, down comforters and pillows, needs around the home
• Creating - soaps, lotions, household cleaners, hygiene items, candles
• Homeschooling
• Hunting & Fishing, IDing plants and trees
• The art of frugality
• Simple living

The list could go on and on.  Are any of you “homesteading” and if so - what parts of your life support and embrace the homesteading way of life?

What do you do to save time?  I know we can all use some new ideas!

For us, I home cook a lot of meals then freeze them (or I prepare raw dishes to thaw and cook).  This helps a lot during the evening rush to get dinner prepared, cooked, eaten and the mess cleaned up before bathtime and bedtime routines.

Also, the BEST advice I think I’ve ever gotten was to PLAN THE NIGHT BEFORE.  Seriously.  Running errands early the next morning (the best time I’ve found to run errands is right after breakfast)?  Make a list of where you want to go (I always try to plan my errands up one end of town and down the other to conserve gas so I’m not zig-zagging around town), get your purse, diaper bag and other things you’ll need ready to go out the door (if you feel comfortable, load it all into your vehicle the night before, too).  Try to plan your day mentally so you can know what is coming next throughout the day and plan accordingly.

To Do lists are also very helpful.  So is a household notebook.

I try to accomplish my business work and other things where I need more than half of my brain at once, when the kids are asleep.  This way I can concentrate and am much more effective at DOING things.

Keep your home clean and organized.  Spotless is probably too much to ask for most of our busy households these days and really is unnecessary.  We live in our homes, they don’t need to be pristine or you’ll spend every waking second trying to keep them that way.  But a certain level of “clean”  and organization should be maintained so you aren’t always cleaning up after someone, making more messes to find things, constantly trying to get a handle on clutter and can think more clearly.  I really believe that when your home is organized and clean, you are in a much better frame of mind emotionally and mentally.

What do you do to save time?

http://busycooks.about.com/od/slowcookerrecipes/a/crockpot101.htm has some great info on crockpots and how to cook in them, if anyone is interested

I made a fantastic chicken roast today consisting of one whole chicken (thawed) sprinkled with parsley, thyme, basil and kosher salt.  I included potatoes, carrots, celery and onion wedges, sprinkled them with the same topping and cooked on low for around 6 hours.  Shortly before I pulled everything out I put 3 tablespoons of butter on.  I’m a “chicken” when it comes to the innards so we didn’t cook them… 

Ironically, I made the crockpot meal so I wouldn’t have to cook today (who doesn’t?).  But instead I ended up making chicken kiev and au gratin potatoes for lunch, whole wheat bread, chocolate chip cookies and am about to make apple muffins and white bread for my hubby’s lunches….. But I’ve really enjoyed my time in the kitchen today.

If you don’t own a crockpot, you are missing out on a simple way to cook delicious meals despite a hectic lifestyle.  In many instances you can prepare your ingredients (veggies, trim meats, etc.) the night before so the next morning all you have to do is combine everything into your pot and turn it on.

I love my crockpot, but unfortuantly I have not been able to find or modify enough recipes for it that would suit my family.  I don’t like using processed foods, canned soups or anything of the like so unless I can modify a recipe, or find a recipe to home-make a certain ingredient I don’t use the recipes.  Granted I’m not crazy - I still buy some ingredients but if a recipe calls for a lot of storebought stuff, I don’t use the recipe.

What I have found are some great recipes for beef stews, chicken and there is a book out there with over 200 vegetarian recipes if you’re looking for veggie meals.  My goal is to start using my crockpot more.  Buy more whole chickens (freeze the leftovers, use the bones for broths and stocks!), make some delicious roasts, find a variety of chicken breast recipes. 

I’ve recently begun meal planning - planning lunches (though most lunches consist of leftovers from the night before) and dinners, making a list of all the ingredients we’ll need, shopping for two weeks worth of meals.  Whenever I have time, I cook up a meal and freeze it so that day I just have to thaw and heat (we have a foodsaver, so I do both at once by throwing my bag of froozen food in a pot of boiling water). 

Doing crockpot meals more often will tremendously reduce the evening chaos of preparing dinner - admittedly some nights when it comes time to pull out food, heat it and prepare sides (if I didn’t cook/freeze those also) things can get stressful.  But by doing all of the work in the morning, when evening comes, dinner is all set to go!

I think I am going to start a category for crockpots and add to it whenever I find a good recipe, resource, link, etc.  I would LOVE for you to share your crockpot recipes also!

I’ve modified a recipe that I use as a marinade.

I use 4-6 chicken breasts and combine the juice and peels of 2 lemons, cut up 2 red onions, 4-6 garlic cloves crushed, salt and enough olive oil to coat the chicken.  I stick this in the fridge for a few hours, then I cook it in the oven or it’s heavenly on the grill (with the onion in a foil package on the grill).  If I oven cook the chicken, I sautee the onion on the stove with some of the olive oil it soaked in. 

This is a meal we don’t eat often but when we do, it’s a meal well recieved.  I like to cook up some brown rice, a veggie and a fresh salad.