This Girl Can Sew

Have you seen this blog

She takes hideous $1 or less dresses she finds at thrift stores and yard sales
And turns them into something you might actually wear.

And she does it every day.
Yup- she is not only doing this for fun/ to save the earth/ to save money
She is doing it because she needs something to wear for the day.

I have a sudden urge to go to the thrift to find something to refit/dye/ turn into something awesome.

70's Magazine Rack into Chic Girl's Bookcase

This is how I found her.
$10 at a garage sale put on by a group of youth trying to raise money for their programs.
She hardly fit in my car.

I think we had met before.
In my optometrists office in 1973 where she held copies of Readers Digest for eager patients.

I brought her home.
She sat in the basement for a few months.....

Then in the garage for two weeks....

Then finally to my little girls room for her reading corner.

Katerade also seems to think she makes a nice bench for her stuffed friends.

5 coats of a high gloss white I had left over from the front door
Gray paint on a wood detail I found at Home Depot.
Some wood glue and some distressing later....

She is already getting a lot of use.
I realize that the slots are not as efficient for storing lots of books,
but I like that she can see her books.
Maybe it is less likely she will continue to pick the same book over and over again each night if she can really get a view of the choices.
I think it makes them all look more appealing.
Anything to encourage the raising of the nerds is worth it.

linking up here



and here


and here

Blue Gold

We stumbled upon this documentary in our netflix que last night.
I thought it was really well done and made both the Majesty and I take a hard look at how much water we waste.

I believed every word of it.
Which really is no surprise.
I am often persuaded by a decent media package.

Regardless
It makes sense that people will be killing one another over water as a resource in the coming years.
People are already dying over the limited resource of oil.
And I imagine people will be a lot more desperate for water, after all, you CAN live without oil. Water, not so much.

How can we secure our future water?

Lucky Eggs

Our neighbors have a chicken coop full of chickens.
Chickens who lay more eggs than they could ever possibly eat.
Lately they ask us to go gather the eggs.... and keep them for ourselves.
It is pretty lucky.
We ride our bikes over as a family and secure a selection of eggs in the bike trailer.
It feels good eating hormone free eggs.
And even better feeding them to my children.
Though they taste almost identical to store bought eggs, they appear different. A little smaller with darker yolks.

Did you know that chickens lay eggs in all different colors.
I mean other than brown and white.
Yup green, blue and even a little bit pink.

Who knew?

Well take green eggs any day.
Free and healthier.

Aren't we lucky?

Vegetable Carnival

Some adorable people I know have started a little blog (and big project) called

VEGETABLE CARNIVAL

They have decided as a family to improve their health by what they eat.
They are funny.
They are inspirational.
They have a six week plan that includes two lbs or more in raw and cooked veggies and eating no meat, sugar, or added fat like vegetable oil.

Think Super Size Me- but the opposite.

Coincidentally they began their veggie overload the same day I decided to not eat sugar for 1 month.
We all have visions for better health- these two are just real go getters.

I can't wait to see how their new eating lifestyle goes and am excited to follow along.
You can follow them too here.

No Impact Man

Have you seen this movie
NO IMPACT MAN

I watched it on Netflix yesterday late at night.
It is not new. Originally produced in 2004.
I thought it was extreme but interesting.
A family determines to not impact the environment for an entire year.
They use no paper products, eat all natrually and locally grown food, turn off the electricity and heat in their New York apartment, get rid of their television, wash their clothing with their feet in a bathtub, brush their teeth with baking soda...
I could never do it.
I couldn't handle not using real cleaning products for one thing.
I can't stand things dirty.
Also I have never eaten a turnip and am not sure I want to.
But I like the idea of trying something new to not be so wasteful.

ReStore Resale Outlets

I'm back from camp.
And exhausted.
Really I don't remember being this exhausted since I gave birth to my 1st child.
Not my 2nd child- that was less exhausting.

So keep cutting me slack this week if there are less posts than usual.

I wanted to share with you today something you may not know about.

No Doubt you have heard of Habitat for Humanity- and surely you agree it is a great program.

But have you heard of the ReStore resale outlets.


They sell new fixtures left over from builds or fixtures that are not needed for builds.
They also sell used furniture, mess up paint, home accessories, building materials, etc.
It is like if the thrift store and Home Depot had a baby.

I stopped by for nothing in particular today but to browse around.
They had tons of lovely shades of paint in five gallon buckets for $20.
A wide selection of used desks for $35 or less.
and everything else from unfinished doors, caulk,sinks, carpet pad and baskets and vinyl lettering.

What they did not have- weed killer- the one thing I would have purchased today.

It was a pretty great place to start if you are starting a new project like finishing a basement.

They are all over the place- and surely there is one in your town.

Go here to see.