Homemade Laundry Soap, Part II

Just yesterday I used the very last bit of our homemade laundry soap. It lasted us exactly 18 weeks, which means I went 4.5 months using the $$ we would have spent on other grocery items. Can't say I'm complaining about that! I made my second batch of homemade laundry soap this morning minus the fels-naptha, since B didn't like how our washer left small pieces of it behind. I also used the Oxy-Clean brand, as opposed to the off brand since Wal-mart was out of what I usually buy. I don't really see that this will be a problem, but I am curious to see how well the first load of laundry turns out after 'Homemade Laundry Soap, Round Two!'

I worked out some figures on Sunday with my G-pa (whom I've also converted to homemade laundry soap :) and it turns out I'm spending $.96 per load, tops. That's if I'm doing 8 loads of laundry a week (my bare minimum of laundry). If I end up doing more loads (I'd say the average load/week is consistently 10), then I'm spending even less! We also figured that I'm saving around $145 p/year on laundry soap. Can't beat those savings!

Simply by making my own laundry soap & dishwasher detergent, I'm currently saving my family almost $300 per/year. Maybe you can't see the changes right away, but it all adds up. And by the end of the year, it's money that will continue to go towards things my family needs. Currently, I'm seeing the difference in the amount of fresh produce we're able to buy as opposed to canned/jarred foods. We're spending close to the same amount as we usually do each week (sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less) but we're able to buy more groceries for our money.

I love seeing the impact of making a few small changes here and there. So worth it!

Another Quilt Plus a Facebook Page!

I finished the cupcake quilt over the weekend and I have to say, it turned out really cute! I went with a different layout which made it much simpler (and less time consuming) than the other quilts I've made so far.

I started with less fabric, which is why I chose a different layout. I loved the cupcakes-totally cute, right?!

As you can see, I went with simple & clean lines. The cupcake fabric measured 5"x19" and the rest of the fabric measured 3"x19". It actually turned out exactly as I pictured it. I wanted the cupcake fabric to be noticeable, while the rest of the fabric made a smooth looking mix together. I really had fun making it!

Finished project from the back.

Finished project from the front.

I also got my Facebook page up & running. It's called Gifts by Jess. Please find & like the page! I really want to get this off the ground! There are some really cute quilts, and so much more to come.

Please pass it along-I'd love for you to pass it along to friends!

Adventures in the Kitchen!

For the past couple of weeks, I've been experimenting with a raw diet. I've been following a blog dedicated to eating raw & have found a website full of raw recipes, making my adventures in the kitchen fun and enjoyable. :)

On the days when I actually stick with full-on raw meals, I feel so amazing. This just reiterates to me that I probably have several food allergies/aversions that I've always thought I might have. Eating raw cuts out gluten, most soy & processed foods, and is typically a diet that vegans follow. I'm not a vegan (not that there's an problem with vegans) but cutting out gluten and processed foods has made a noticeable difference in the way I feel after I eat.

I used to think that everyone had a stomachache after every meal. I distinctly remember talking about that with my BFF Jen in high school, and she told me that it wasn't normal. Turns out it was my normal to have stomach problems after eating. I never really thought much of it after that. I simply kept eating & feeling poorly. After awhile, my stomachache would go away and I'd be good to go again. I never complained because I literally believed it was natural to feel that way after eating. As I've gotten older, I've realized that there are so many foods my body seems to have issues with. I can't even name them all.

So I did some research and discovered the raw lifestyle. I jumped right in and switched to raw meals for breakfast & lunch. I'm eating at least one smoothie a day (as is Lily) and lunch is always a fun experiment. I'm buying foods that I never knew even existed...it's unreal how much good stuff I've been missing out on. I've also never felt better. When I stick to raw meals during the day, I don't have stomach pains or aches and I have a lot of energy. I'm also eating less at dinner time, as opposed to previous dieting where I would get through the day and just stuff myself  at supper. Having more fresh fruits and veggies to choose from makes it easier to grab a handful of grapes (or strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, etc) for a small snack as opposed to a handful of chips. Even though I did have trouble while Brandon was gone last week and I ate way more processed food than I should have. I paid for that, trust me.

I've also come up with an excellent system for me when it comes to smoothies. I have a printed list of my favorite smoothie recipes clipped to the fridge. I also have baggies (labeled with each recipe name) in the freezer, filled with the amount of frozen fruits each particular recipe calls for. Now in the morning, I can wake up, dump the preferred baggie of frozen yummy-ness into my food processor, add the fresh ingredients/almond milk and I'm good to go. I felt like a genius when I thought of this!

Smoothies are quickly turning into my favorite breakfast food. Now I know I'm getting enough fruits for the day and can focus on veggies at lunch/dinner/snack time. Plus I can throw in a handful of spinach with a few of these and get a veggie boost too! Anyone looking for an easy way to eat healthy but keep it simple-this is perfect. Seriously. Pick some smoothie recipes you enjoy, buy the ingredients and prep them on Sunday. You won't have any reason NOT to fix a yummy, healthy smoothie for breakfast during the week. :)

Love it!

Lunch time has also been fun. I've enjoyed making/eating new salads packed with all the good stuff. Two of my favorites are below.

Cabbage/Romaine Salad w/Smoky Avocado & Cumin Dressing

Sprouted Quinoa Salad

These are seriously delicious recipes. I cannot express how happy I am to have found so many recipes. I'm still experimenting and figuring out what all works best for me but my goal for being creative in the kitchen is still going strong thanks to eating raw.

I will say that most of the things I read recommended starting with one raw meal a day (simply to have a smoother transition & to learn as you go), but I always jump in with both feet. Most days I'm eating 85% raw and my body is loving me when I do.

I've shared the links of my favorite raw sites below, in case anyone is interested in trying some of the recipes. Hope you at least take a look-you never know, you may find some pretty good stuff!

Choosing Raw

Raw Food Recipes

Enjoy!

Robot Rag Quilt

I finally finished the robot rag quilt for my dad! Glad it's finally done and so happy that it turned out so awesome. Hope ya'll enjoy the pics below!

All the fabric before cutting. I love these colors together!

All laid out and ready to go!

The back side of the quilt. Those bright colors really pop!

Front side of the rag quilt. It made a perfect lap blanket for getting cozy on the couch!

Dad's really enjoying it, which  makes me happy! I've started on a new rag quilt, with an adorable cupcake theme. I'm using a different layout this time around. No pattern, only what I picture in my head. Hopefully it turns out as cute as I'm imagining.

Green Clean

Can I just say that baking soda & vinegar have become my all time favorite green cleaners? I've used baking soda mixed with water to clean the inside of my oven door, the top of my stove, my sink...I'm sure I could go on. It's incredible! A few of our appliances came with the house when we bought it. Since we're only the 2nd family to own the home, these things are circa 1974. I can deal with the Brady Bunch style, but some of that grimy stuff has been around for way to long. Baking soda is taking care of it all! It's my new go to kitchen cleaner.

What's brought on this rave about green cleaning, you ask? Well, today I tried a new cleaning mixture for some pretty horrendous spots on our carpets. Let's just say that darling Belle (our beautiful, yet stubborn, lemon beagle) has been using the guest room floor & a 3x4 patch of the basement floor as her new dumping grounds when she gets angry with us. Because I haven't taken the time to steam clean the carpets in a couple of weeks, there were quite a few spots. Let me preface this by saying, the spots had been cleaned up-we did not just leave messes around to soak into the carpet! But the spots were still visible to the naked eye.

Today I had an urge to get rid of those spots once and for all. So I mixed 4 oz of vinegar with 6 oz of water in a spray bottle, sprayed them down like nobody's business, covered them with a clean dry cloth and proceeded to steam them on full blast with our iron. I wasn't really expecting amazing results, but I was pleasantly surprised by how well this pulled the stains up. Even B noticed a difference!

As a comparison, I simply steam cleaned the patch of carpet in the basement that Belle has claimed as her own. Let me just say, there was a major difference! While the steam cleaner did clean some of the carpet, there were still noticeable spots downstairs. However, after lugging it to the guest room, I banished what little spots remained with my Bissell steam cleaner. I fully intend to use my new magic solution in the basement as soon as the carpet dries.

If you have major stains, it turns out a combination of heavy duty steam cleaning (iron style, combined with the vinegar/water solution) before a final touch up with the actual steam cleaner works miracles!

Give it a shot-you will notice a major difference! And if you happen to have a small steam cleaner, follow up a few hours later using the machine. A combination of the two really does take care of the worst stains. Good luck! :)

A Few Creative Updates

Ok, so my resolution for blogging is kind of falling to the way side. What can I say? When I have time to post, I don't really feel like it and when I don't have time to post I think of all kinds of awesome blog insights. It's a vicious cycle, let me tell you. :) For now, I'll just jump right in.

According to my blog, I wrote the dishwasher detergent post on January 2nd. I made it a couple of days before hand (on New Year's Eve). Today, I made my second batch (I do still have enough for one more load). So it ended up lasting 8 1/2 (almost 9) weeks!

I spent around $10 for all the ingredients for the first batch, including the storage container. This time around I spent a little over $2 for the lemi-shine. In fact, for the 3rd batch all I'll need to buy is more lemi-shine (which you need to buy for every batch) and more kosher salt (which has the perfect amount for 2 batches). The washing soda & the borax have enough for a minimum of one more batch.

So if you figure it out, I was spending $16 every 6 weeks on dish detergent. That's $2.66 every week. If you take out the cost of the container, I'll be spending around $10 every 17 weeks. That's $.58 every week. With 52 weeks in a year, I'll be spending $30.16 year as opposed to $138.32. That's $108 dollars in savings!! Can you believe it?! I was pretty astounded when I first figured out the yearly total. I suppose I could figure out the cost per load, but honestly, I do a ridiculous amount of dishes and I have no desire to know exactly how many loads of dishes I actually do. So the weekly cost will have suffice!

I highly advise those of you who have a dishwasher to look into making your own detergent. It's well worth it! Check it out!

As soon as I have to make another batch of laundry soap, I'll figure up a weekly/yearly cost for everyone. We're going through it a little faster than I expected, simply because both B and Goober are really tough on clothes. But I know we're still saving a ton of $$!

In other creative news, I have finished a pom-pom cowl and a pom-pom scarf (pics to come soon) and I'm working on a soft, cuddly pink/orange knit blanket for a baby basket (it will include winnie the pooh/piglet coordinating onesies, a coordinating piglet or winnie the pooh lovey, a bottle & a cute basket for storage). It'd make a great baby shower gift! ;)

 I'm hoping to get some of this stuff up on etsy.com soon in order to start building my own store. I still have several more rag quilts in the works as well. Plus, JoAnn Fabric is having a massive sale on snuggle prints (71% off!) next week so I'm hoping to get enough for another quilt.  

As for kitchen creativity, my new favorite snack to make is pita bread! It's amazing! It is a somewhat time consuming process, so be sure you have an afternoon at home in order to make it. There are a few extended waiting periods in between mixing, resting and all that. Totally worth it though-Lily absolutely loves it and it's much cheaper than buying pita bread at the store. We almost always have all the ingredients on hand, which is a plus. I made one batch with honey & another with olive oil. While both were great, I do have a slight preference for the honey over the olive oil. That was easily solved by drizzling honey inside the pita pocket. :) I can't wait to start coming up with fun sandwich ingredients to stuff them with! Seriously click the link above-you have to at least try it out once.

One Extra Long Blog Post Coming Right Up!

Yes, I've been slacking on the blogging. It's practically the only resolution I made that's been difficult for me to follow through on. However, I have been working on lots of fun, creative projects so it all equals out, right?

First up is the Valentine's Day wreath I made (which will continue to decorate our door until March 1st). I made a bargain with Brandon that I will clean out my Christmas decorations after I make wreaths for the door for each season/holiday I wanted. So here's the first!

Before I found the little extras that I liked.

Forgive the poorly made bow-it was a first for me.

The mini V-day ornaments that I used. Super cute!

It didn't take much time, or money for that matter, and I really like how it looks. I used a simple foam wreath that I happened to have and then wrapped it in Fun Fur. I bought the ribbon & ornaments at JoAnn Fabric for 1/2 off and before you know it, it was finished. I'm really looking forward to making one for March with a St. Patrick's Day theme. It's fun because our last name is Patrick. :)

Next up, I've been making rag quilts like crazy. I love making them and really want to try to sell them. So if you know anyone who might be interested, send them my way! ;) I want to keep making them, but we really don't need all these quilts laying around! Here are some pics of the Cherry Blossom rag quilt I made. 

These are some of my favorite fabric designs. All lightweight cotton and super cute.

Laid out and ready to go!

Back side of the rag quilt. I absolutely love these prints.

Front side. I tried a different blocking pattern this time. It really worked for these colors.

So that's the first finished quilt I'll be selling. It's 48in x 41in (roughly 4ft x 3.4ft), which is a great size for a blanky/lovey for a little girl. Fun colors, unique & one of a kind. :)

I've also been working on a scallop tote for my mom so she can carry her iPad around with her throughout the day while she's working. A great, free tutorial can be found here : Scallop Tote 

I found this through Pinterest (of course!) and decided to try it out. I did make a few changes (only one strap, extra long, so it will be a cross-body bag). It's been tough, but lots of fun! I'm hoping to finish it up today at some point (after all the laundry, dishes, cleaning, etc is finished. Sigh. A woman's work is never done). Here are a couple of pics featuring the fabric my mom picked out.

We went for a french/country type color/print scheme.

The layout. Ignore the messiness. The scallops still need pressed!

Now that the scallops are done (the hardest part, in my opinion) I need to press them, sew them to the outer layer of the tote, trim them down and then sew the outer layer & lining together. I'm really tempted to make myself a large tote/attache type bag of this design. We'll see how that goes!

Currently, I'm finishing up the Robot rag quilt (which mi padre has already claimed-he even paid me for it ;). All I have left to do is rag the edges, but it takes forever! At least, it seems to take forever. Here are the current pics so far.

I used a lot of different textures. Bumpy & soft, heavy cotton & lightweight cotton.

Laid out and ready to be pinned. Took me much longer since I opted to do varying sizes of blocks.

The back side of the finished quilt. I'll post a finished pic of the ragging once it done and been through the washer. :)

Finally, thanks to Pinterest yet again, I found an amazing way to clean the grimy inner door of the oven! Simply using baking soda & water (mixed until it's slightly runny paste), rubbing it on the door and letting it set for 20 minutes worked wonders! Now, our stove was here when we moved in to our home. Our home was built circa 1971. You do the math. I couldn't not get the door clean-it was so gross and kind of sticky. You know, the build up of grease sticky. So I took some pictures to document, in case it turned out as well as I had hoped.

Before: Who knows how many years of grimy, nastiness that is.

It started working as soon as I started scrubbing. Look how nasty that paste is!

After: It looks so much better!

I'm not going to lie. I opened the door and admired the clean surface several times that day. And I'm hoping that once a week treatments will keep it this way. I love cheap & easy cleaning solutions. Now I just need one for cleaning the microwave. :)

So, I apologize for the uber-long blog post. But I figured it was better than going overboard with a lot of different posts. Hope you all enjoyed! 

Z's birthday gift!

My nephew Z turns 5 next week (I mean, seriously, where does the time go?? 5 years old already?!) so I made him his birthday gift today.

A little background: I made my brother a Cubs scarf for Christmas and Z requested one for his birthday. I did one even better! In addition to the scarf, I made a pretty stinking cute fleece stocking cap to go with it. I sewed it together (using my awesome new machine of course!) and used my rotary cutter to slice the top in 1/2 inch wide sections. I then tied those individual pieces into knots and voila! A new stocking cap that's unique and cute!

Here's Goober modeling the look for me. I had to use her as measurement, so it's a good thing they're the same size! It turned out pretty adorable. I'm hoping he loves it when he gets it on Friday. I can't wait!

A side note-this is the only time my child will wear anything Cubs related. We are strictly a Cardinals family. :)

My First Quilt.

2012 has been pretty great so far. I'm still soda free (and loving it! I've never felt better!), I'm doing more in the kitchen (which my family enjoys) and I've learned some new creative skills. Not to shabby for the first month in, right?

My newest obsession is making blankets. Not my usual fleece, tie/braided edge blankets. Nope, I'm obsessed with quilts. Having never used a sewing machine, or done any sewing in my life, I randomly decided quilting was something I wanted to do. And really, what's the point of starting small? If I learn something new, I go all out the first time out of the gate. It's just my style.

So I made this pretty awesome rag quilt, using retro colors & different prints. Some cotton fabrics, some snuggly fabrics. I just mixed it up. The pattern I followed came from this blog: Rag Quilt for Baby  She has a step by step process, along with pictures-which I find helpful. Probably because I'm a visual learner.

Anyway.  Here is my most amazing fabric. I love it!

I did all my cutting of fabric and batting, followed by layering said fabric & batting.

Laid it out on the floor to my personal specifications.

And sewed it together. Followed by ragging the edges, which was a laborious process, but so worth it!

Finished product!

It currently resides here, on the back of our couch. It looks so great!

This is the non-ragged, flip side. Still very cool!

Here's a closer shot of the ragged side. :)

Now, I got this awesome new sewing machine (because my hubby loves me ;) so after practicing on some leftover fabric & following the instructional DVD, I put it all together. Yay for learning new skills!

My new favorite toy!

 I did discover, after talking to my Dad, that my Great-Grandma Jessie (my namesake) was also a quilter. Except she did it old school-quilting circle, by hand, with a loom, kind of old school. I think it's really cool (and fascinating) that I have something in common with the woman I'm named after. Perhaps her skill was passed down to me??? Either way, I've taught myself another great craft and I cannot wait to get started on another quilt!

10 days into Resolution season...

My goal to be more creative in the kitchen is going well! I've made chicken enchiladas, cajun chicken pasta, bourbon street chicken, crockpot pizza and several other yummy things. We have had little to no left overs, which I'm very excited about. The one recipe we didn't care for (a scalloped potato with ham dish) is in the works for modification the next time I fix it. I have fixed a homemade meal every night (except for 2) for the last 10 days and even Lily has enjoyed the things I've fixed. :)

This makes me really happy. Before, I would fix food and it would get eaten but there would be a lot left over. Meaning a lot would get thrown away after a couple of days. Now we don't have any thrown out left overs, which means the money we're spending at the store is not being wasted!!!

For those who can, I would highly suggest using the Big Oven app. I don't know what phones allow for apps, but this one can be found on the iPhone. The recipes I've been saving to my favorites have ingredients we generally have on hand, or call for few ingredients. They're easy to whip up and fix, and since my little family is enjoying the food, I'm actually enjoying fixing it!

At some point in the near future, I will put a post together featuring our favorite recipes and the ingredients/directions. Then everyone can try them out!

In other news, I'm 10 days into my list of resolutions and I'm feeling good. I haven't worked out as much as I'd like (I've really got to push myself here) but I haven't had any soda since December 30th and I feel great. I'm also eating 3 meals (with 2 snacks) a day and stopping as soon as I feel full. Drinking more water and eating less junk has made it really easy for me to listen to my body. Granted, I still have what I suspect are some crazy food aversions/allergies/whatever you want to call them, but because my body isn't filled to the brim with caffeine and what not, it's easy to see that most of those aversions are to the nasty things I had been eating. So, yay for that! I'm down 3 lbs since the start of the new year. It'd be more if I actually made myself exercise (I'm working on it, I'm working on it!) and I know my G-ma would be proud of me for trying to do it right.

Still working on the brainstorming/outlining for the book on G-ma. Looking forward to going through some of her poems & pictures and getting everything organized. Miss her so much, every day. Some days I still pick up the phone to call her (especially when there's a sale on asparagus...a shared love of ours:) but I know she's smiling down on us.

Looking forward to starting some new projects soon-I'll keep the blog updated. I mean, that is one of my resolutions and all. :)

New Year's Resolutions

Ahh, the new year. A time of new beginnings. Of setting new goals. Of starting over. It always reminds me of the start of a new school year. Everyone starts out with an A but it's up to us individually to maintain, or not maintain, the grade we're given. To do our best to succeed, to accomplish whatever it is we put our minds too.

I've never really been one to make resolutions. It's just never been my thing. But this year it seems as though I have a lot. I like to think of it as making up for resolutions past. ;)  I always find that it's easier for me to meet a goal if I throw it out there for everyone to know about. That way, if I need to be held accountable, well, there are several people who can call me out and tell me to get with it. So, lucky readers, here is my list of New Year's Resolutions, in no particular order:

1. Continue on my creative journey, yet expand it to other areas. I won't be focusing on just simple, creative projects any longer. I'm extending my journey to the kitchen. Whether it's dinner or yummy treats, I want to expand my horizons when it comes to cooking for my family & friends. This also goes hand in hand with #2.

2. Stop wasting $$. By finding better techniques and recipes in the kitchen, I can start saving more money by using (and not throwing away) food that we have on hand. I also want to make less, so we have fewer left overs (I don't do leftovers after day 1-so this is critical). B introduced me to a great app (Big Oven) and so far we've loved it. We've used recipes that call for fewer ingredients (there's that $$ saving) and are too delicious to waste (there's that no waste)! I highly recommend the app for those who enjoy spending time in the kitchen.

Chicken Enchiladas with a Twist

Bourbon Street Chicken with brown rice.

3. Have a better attitude about my current working situation. Is it ideal for me? No. I never planned on being a stay at home mom, or an in home day care provider. But it's what is working for our family and it's giving me precious time to spend with Lily Anne. I'm fortunate to have this time and I know I'll miss it when I do end up getting back to work. So I'm determined to improve my attitude and appreciate how truly blessed I (and my family) truly is.

4. Write a biography about my G-ma. I have a title, a tentative outline and several ideas. So this year I'm going to make time to sit down and put it all together. She was an amazing woman, a regular woman, who lived an anything but simple or regular life. Yet no matter what, she had faith and happiness throughout. I truly think everyone who knew her was blessed by her and others deserve to know the story about a modern day woman of faith. Not someone famous, or rich, but someone just like you and me who never let life's ups and downs destroy her faith in God, family & friends. I honestly can't wait to get started.

5. To work on going green...a little at a time. I already use reusable grocery bags, make my own laundry & dish soap but I'm looking forward to finding ways to go green & cut down on costs for my family by doing so. I'm also enjoying finding new uses for things around the house. How can I improve it or use it for something else that's fun and functional? Part of the creative journey, yeah?

6. To get back in shape. After Lily, I've had a really hard time getting back into shape. I have a plan (cardio & pilates-that's what I loved in college) and I have the tools, now I just need to use them. I'm also going to focus on making a conscious decision to watch what I put in my mouth. The last few months I've done a lot of emotional eating (not something I've ever done before, or something I'm proud of) and it's my goal to put a stop to it.

7. To be more diligent in my blogging. Not only for myself but also for friends and family who don't have the chance to spend as much time with Lily (or us) as they would like. It's a great way to capture all the little moments I'd otherwise forget, and a fun way to remember all the ways I've challenged my own creativity.

I think 7 resolutions is probably enough, don't you?! Will they be easy? Some more than others. But that's what makes things worth while. If you don't have to work for something, you just can't appreciate it the way you would if you'd pushed yourself to it.

Good luck to all of you with New Year's Resolutions-we can do it!

Christmas Gifts

Each Christmas, I make a list of gifts I would like to make for family. This usually includes things I knit or a fleece blanket geared to a person's specific likes. This year, I made 4 fleece blankets, 3 fleece scarves, 2 brag books & 1 knit stocking cap. I didn't get pics of everything (and the stocking cap ended up being a little too small anyway) but I got pics of some.

This was given to my G-pa. It was my first time working with a panel of fleece, which was an interesting experience. It definitely pays off to be extra vigilant in regards to measuring and cutting down on a panel, as opposed to one cute piece of fleece with a pattern.

This is the scarf for my brother Matthew. He loves the Cubs (and I have a request from my nephew for one as well). Easy & warm. You simply buy 1/4 yd of fleece, trim the edges and snip 20 (or more) slits in the end. Depending on how tall the person is varies the length of slits I cut. For this I cut 2 inches in length before then tying each slit into a knot, because I like the look of it. I made a camo one for B and a brown striped one for my other brother, Schuyler. No pics but they looked nice!

This is the fabric I used for my Grandma Suzy's blanket. I didn't get an after shot, but it turned out really nice. A great way to save money (if you watch the sales) is to buy the full size tie blanket kits at your local fabric store. I saved over $15 doing this. By buying the full size kits, you simply get fleece without any markings on the edges. It saved money and I was still able to use the braiding technique.

This is Lily enjoying her Rapunzel blanket. This was bought in a kit, but ended up coming with the edges marked for cutting. So instead of taking extra time to cut it down further, I simply left both pieces as they were (already measured perfectly) snipped on the lines and tied the edges. This did make me leery of other kits because I didn't want to deal with the pre-made marks, but I actually think tying kids blankets makes sense. Less chance of them falling apart that way-if your child carries her special blankets around like mine does! And I was proven wrong about the pre-made marks when I bought the kit for my Grandma's blanket anyway. :)

This is the blanket I made for my brother Matt's girlfriend, Marcy. It was my first braided edge, full sized blanket and it turned out great! Including the extra time for trimming, taping and snipping the edges, it actually took less time to put the blankets together than if I would have tied the edges.

I also made 2 brag books. One for my Mom, featuring all 3 grand kids from birth to now. It spans the last 4 years. I'm having trouble uploading the link so you can all see it, so once I get it to work I'll upload it for your viewing pleasure! The second brag book was for my in-laws, featuring Lily Anne from birth to now. It was a lot of fun to put them all together and they were a big hit!

Lots of great, creative and fun gifts this year for the holidays. I can't wait to find different ideas for Christmas 2012!

Dishwasher Detergent

Thanks to Pinterest, I'm finding lots of amazing things to try out around the house!  Most recently, I made my own dishwasher detergent. I've been looking for several ways to cut costs down for our family, and making cleaning solutions is a wonderful way to do so. It's also very green, so I'm loving that as well.

I stole the idea from another blogger on Pinterest. Here's the link to her blog: Dishwasher detergent How-To

I won't go into all the details about how to do it. If you're curious, use the link above. :) I will say that it has made our dishes cleaner and will be saving quite a bit in the $$ department. We spent about $16 every 5-6 weeks on dishwashing detergent. I spent around $10 (inlcuding a container with a pourable spout) at Walmart and have enough to make another batch when I run out of this (with the exception of needing more Lemi Shine). So for 2 batches, I'll end up spending close to $13.

So far, I've done 2 loads of dishes, but I'm thinking it's going to last me longer than 5-6 weeks. A lot longer. I'll do a follow up post when I have a general idea of how long it took to use it all.

Yay for being creative and saving money! Also, for those out there looking into earth friendly tips for the home, I recommend browsing Pinterest for ideas. Several wives & mommies post great ideas!