Water Drum to Composter

We're getting ready for spring around here and I thought I'd share an idea the hubby came up with a few years back for an easy, clean composter.

First, take an old water drum. This one is 55 gallons and has a screwtop lid.

Drill holes on the bottom (for draining the dirt), then two on the side to put a bar in the middle for rotating the dirt. Attach to a pallet to keep it off the ground and the lid keeps critters out. The drum can be spun to shake and mix the dirt and create some yummy, yummy compost!

Here's a peek inside to see how the spinning mechanics work. We ended up donating this one to our son's school garden because our dirt needs are ever growing, but this would be a great option for the backyard gardener in areas with critters or pets.

What kind of spring and garden prep are you getting ready for right now? Share in the comments!

Love from the Garden

Sending a little love from our summer garden to you!

Reupholstering with Burlap

Reupholstering was something I thought a Renaissance gal should know how to do, like chopping wood or hemming pants. But it can get expensive, so why not try it with something frugal like burlap?

These ghastly chairs made the perfect victims. Getting them apart was easy, just unscrewing the bottom from the back and making a simple slipcover. (Ahem, I did not follow any proper upholstery protocol at all!)

Sticking burlap is a little tricky due to the wide open weave and fraying, not to mention if you are doing weird patchwork tricks to jury-rig a wider piece of fabric.

This was done with absolute beginner sewing skills on the machine. Tidy hems will make it all the more polished and kick the shabby chic up a notch.

Here you can see the seam where more fabric was added, but I don't really mind it. In fact, I think it adds some personality.

This was an easy way to dive into reupholstering. What else could you burlap?!

Saturday Mornings

I'm not usually a morning person, but weekends have me waking up early to feed my neighbor's horses.

What started as a chore has become a peaceful, almost zenlike approach to the day. I appreciate the intention it brings and any moment to connect with animals is a good one in my book.

These are my "neigh"bors Entrigue and Val, so you can catch a glimpse of their cute faces before they get covered in fly masks.

Entrigue doesn't like to come up for air until he's had every morsel of his breakfast.

I then take a moment to admire the vegetable garden. (Not my work of course- my thumb is more gangreen than green.)

The last chore is letting out and feeding the chickens.

And trying to stay out of the rooster's way. I don't know him very well, but he always seems to be in a bad mood.

Not me! I'm looking at the best start to my day.

An Overview of Jam Making

If you haven't been seeing so much of me these days, it's probably because I've been busy canning. That's right, Chuck and I have a new obsession, and when we aren't talking about it or doing it, we're thinking about it. As a newcomer to canning, this is the best time to be obsessed with it, as it's been peak season into next month.

For detailed recipes, fantastic directions and supplies, check out the Ball website, or better yet, get a Ball Blue Book guide to preserving.

I know you have a slew of mason jars lying around, so this is the chance to put them to work. Sterilize them in a pot of boiling water for several minutes, then store in a 200 degree oven while you wait for the mixture to be ready. Every recipe is different depending on the fruit, use of pectin, and total amount, so I'm not listing a specific recipe. You can adjust your recipe according to how much fruit you have, or just follow a recipe from the Book.

For our first jam, we used freshly picked blackberries. Mix pectin into sugar and add to the boiling mixture.

After the pectin is cooked, pour the jam to the top of the jars, leaving no gaping air space between the jar and the lip (it can affect the jam's shelf life). Use a clean cloth to wipe the brims, then place the cover on. (The quick wipe helps the vacuum.) Screw the lid until closed but not tight, and place in the pot of boiling water. We boiled for 15 minutes, according to our recipe. When you pull out the jars, the lids pop when they seal.

The only question is what to can next?

Revamped Switch Plates

 I've been in my new apartment for three months and it's cute as can be- except for the light switch covers. They're just terrible and awful and I'm offended every time I see them. 

This one is by far the worst.

And this one isn't that much better. Don't get me wrong, wolves, turtles, sea bass and cheesy nature scenes have their charm in the right place, but definitely not in my decor. This weekend, they were ready for an extreme makeover.

I pulled pages from an old dictionary and set to work making a smarter, more neutral decoupage to fit my aesthetic.

And best of all, you just need a little glue and a sharp edge for trimming down. For the more interesting pictures on pages, I lined them up in the switch plate frame, glued them down, evened out the edges and folded them over the back like so. When laid flat, then the hole for the switch can be cut out with a clean edge.

Paint the decoupaged surface with Mod Podge to add an extra coating. Yes, a new adhesive to work with! (I'm a big fan of projects involving glue, in case you didn't know.) This helps projects last longer, especially if using fragile materials.

Here are the rest I made.

This one is my favorite. It's going in the bathroom, of course.

Sorry, Wolfie, it was time for you to move out.

Ettorina's China

When you're in college, there is nothing less appealing than relatives trying to pawn off their housewares onto you, especially when they're family heirlooms from aging relatives. It's not that I didn't appreciate my Uncle Clarence thinking of me. It was more of a what does a 19-year-old girl need her great-aunt's wedding china for? A hope chest? A dowry?

Plus, the design was flowery and finished with silver edges. This was at the millenium, you know, when plates needed to white and from Ikea. Or chipped and from Goodwill, like any proper college house.

Needless to say, the china sat in a box in my father's garage for the next decade.

Two weeks ago, I worked at a catered wedding full of Etsy inspired touches. The couple had been collecting old china from thrift stores for years and the mismatched, flowery plates on the tables with vintage books and mason jars was exactly my style.

I am only now, at 31, just discovering my style with a recent move into my own studio. For the first time in my life, I'm putting pictures up on walls, unpacking boxes completely, and buying flowers for the coffee table. I've never been much of a nester, so it's been a fun new exploration into the world of design and creating a comforting space.

And it also means this lonely china finally has a home! Thank you, Ettorina and Clarence. I promise I will put it to use.

Mason Jar Chandelier

Walking around downtown Petaluma last weekend, I glimpsed in this antique store window and nearly kept on walking. Then, upon closer look ...

I saw a mason jar chandelier and my heart nearly stopped. And not only with mason jars, but blue mason jars!

I started looking around and found some more inspiration.

Here's a DIY version from Instructables. No wiring required.

What I really want are some tutorials from Boots N Gus on Etsy.

Come back when you're done window shopping, dear reader.

The Vardo

With Maker Faire just around the corner, it seems like everyone's getting into the maker spirit around here.

And wouldn't you know, the master craftsmanship of Paleotool created this adorable, yet extremely funtional, gypsy caravan deemed "The Vardo"- complete with a bed, stove, and ample bookshelves for evenings hunkering down. Please make a point of checking out all the photos of the process. It's pretty amazing that so much attention to detail was flawless executed.

The Vardo, From Paleotool

Make Magazine shared this fantastic little gem in their blog. I hope to see it in person one day!

The Best Nightlight Ever

From the Ya-Ya dinner the night before, one of Fairy Godmother's birthday gifts was this original nightlight made by one of her best friends. Honestly, this artist leaves a trail of beauty wherever she goes, and one day I hope to share pictures of her garden with you.

Her latest creation is a nightlight transformed from a sardine tin and adorned with old jewelry, beads and a broken watch. 

Hank really liked it, too.

What's tricky about putting them together is all the drilling and wiring parts together. The gluing has to be minimal, since the lightbulb heats the piece up.

Alas, these are one of a kind treasures are only made on a case by case basis because of all the time they entail, but they're really something, aren't they?