Best CHEAPEST laundry detergent EVER!

1 bar Fels Naptha (grated on a regular cheese grater)
1 c Borax
1 c Washing Soda
1/4 c Baking Soda

Shake well, 2 tbsp / load.

• all of the ingredients are available in the laundry aisle at walmart
• worth the initial investment of <$15
• our clothes are softer, cleaner and smell better than ever
• works in out HE washer
• works with out SHOCKINGLY hard water
• i have a family that doesnt itch!

Photojournal: Beer making

As I am not the only crafter in this loverly little home, I feel I should share with you the merits of Beer Day.  HTB (Husband-to-Be) brewed a batch of Irish Red Ale yesterday and allowed me to take a TON of photos.  

activity

 

beginning wort

hops

artistic

fun with amber bottles

that's HTB thru the bottle

 

I call this Brewers Pride.

Brewing beer is a little like combat, short bursts of frenetic activity followed by long tedious periods of waiting for the next short burst of frenetic activity.  As you can see, I got a little "in" to taking pictures, and even more into editing them....

Anyway - Check him out over here:  Adventures by the Pint.

youre a super valentine!

print from here....
follow these instructions

and

have a happy valentines, eh?

Home Management Binder

Organize!  Save Money!  Reach Goals!

the new year is nearly upon us.  this year i will be more organized, primarily with my finances.  in the spirit of this resolution, i have begun a home management binder:  a three ring binder that holds the important bits from the three ring circus i call a life.  2011 has been a big year: found a house, bought a house, moved into said house, etc.  and all this upheaval really did a number on my "flow."  i used to know where everything was, what drawer to look in, what hidey-hole id hidden my whosy-whats-it in.  my bill pay groove got all de-groove-ified.  so ima get my groove back in 2012, which is shaping up to be EVEN CRAZIER (hubs 30th, graduation, wedding, reception/reunion)

our binder is very much in the infant stage.  I started with the things that were most obvious to me: Food, Money, Chores, Cars, House and Medical Info.  it has pictures that make me smile, pockets to stuff things in and plenty of space to add things, remove things, reorder things and so on.  I NEEDED to lay it all out so i could see it. 

Heres to 2012!  may the force be with me.

was/is

Was: a Smucker's Caramel Topping Jar
Is: a Santa Bottle (fill with Hershey's Kisses)

Was: leftover Christmas bulbs, wire hanger, hot glue and yarn remnant
Is: Decorative door hanger for apartments where a Wreath would wreck the door and cost your security deposit

garden glory

i miss summer. i miss sunshine and outside and my gardens.  *sigh*

 

the great reorganization (p.743)

in an interest to not buy anything this weekend, i am taking stock of what i already have.  im winding yarn balls, emptying remnant boxes, and generally reevaluating whats what in the crafty spaces in my home.  i decided that i needed a break after the 17th yarn ball gave me a charlie-horse in my hand.  and i still have a dozen to go. 

have you ever noticed that craft stuff seems to reproduce?  i couldve sworn i needed black yarn until i dumped out my yarn basket and discovered 6 skeins of the stuff.  and then theres the little pots i forgot i bought at that REALLY good sale that time.  and the half box of christmas cards i bought at the garage sale.  im always hunting a bargain, even if its a bargain on stuff i dont need.  when JoAnns has a sale on chunky yarn, i buy enough to make every single person i know 3 hats and a matching scarf.  crafting of any kind is expensive, and eventually you just buy the stuff thats on sale, know that eventually- itll get used.  assuming you dont lose it in the back of a closet or in a box in the garage.