easy green pet solution: a dog poop composter!
You don’t know how hard it was for me to type that headline without laughing! I didn’t even know that composting pet waste was possible until I picked up a flier on it at my local natural pet store. (UPDATE: You can use the resulting compost for ornamental plants, but do NOT use it on vegetables or fruits. And you can use this for cat poop too, as long as any litter is biodegradable.) I’ve mentioned before that we have two large dogs, so you can imagine the amount of waste that went into our garbage every week. (Actually, try not to imagine it.) Now we have a place where we can deposit the deposits without using plastic bags. And it was really simple to make, too. Read on for instructions. –Mary T.
Click the link for the instructions. (No gross photos, promise.) (more…)
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strangely appealing: creepy cafe au lait bowls
‘Tis the season for creepy tableware, but would these bat cafe au lait bowls be fun after October 31st? From Finnish designer Sami Rinne (we’ve enthused about his mugs before) these hand-made ceramic bowls could be used every day: They’re good for soup, cereal, or ice cream. Sold exclusively through Cloudberry Living in the UK, for about $56 — order now for December delivery.
post off: are you worried about the price of your home?
We usually don’t do “ripped from the headlines” types of posts here, but it’s hard to not think about how this week’s economic news is affecting the value of our homes. Personally, I have been dreaming about moving into a larger space to accommodate our growing (and recently crawling!) family. But that would mean putting our one-bedroom place on the market. Suddenly an idea that was simmering in our heads for a springtime “perhaps” has become a “better sooner than later” boil. Are you having similar debates in your home? Or are you thinking of hunkering down and doing a little remodeling? I don’t know what we’re going to do, but we probably need to make a decision in the next few weeks to either stay the course or act fast. I’d love to hear your thoughts, and perhaps enjoy a little company during the crisis. Please share! — Angela M.
adventures in beekeeping: our first taste of honey!
It’s been a while since we’ve given you an update on our bee hives: We’ve been patiently letting them set up their homes and gear up for the coming winter. You see, fall honey production is dedicated to building up a stockpile to survive the cold months, and since our hives are just a few months old, we have to be mindful not to leave the cupboards bare. But when one produced several full sheets of capped honey in one week, we knew it would be okay to quench our curiosity and have a little taste. We took one sheet and scraped off all of the comb, including the honey, and mashed it through a fine filter. The honey we gathered is a rich a dark brown, the result of a fall harvest from lots of oak and chestnut trees near our home. The taste is unbelievable! It has a depth and flavor you just don’t get from mass produced honey. We got three precious bottles: One of our neighbor (whose flowers keep our bees happy), one for the vault and one to eat now! I’m hoping it will help fend off my seasonal allergies, which have been bad lately. Let the good times flow. — Angela M.
Click here to see all of our beekeeping adventure posts!
strangely appealing: skeleton serving forks
When I spotted these skeleton serving forks over on boing boing I couldn’t decide if they were really cool or just morbid. I know they’d be great for a Halloween party, but at $50 for the set I’d need them to be good all year round. What do you think — creative or creepy? –Erica P.
