I am a bit of a DIY maven. If I can’t find an item that I need or want, I locate a tutorial, purchase a how-to book, or join a group. Figuring out how to make something is an immensely rewarding challenge – it truly becomes yours. I’ve been watching the emergence of the latest [...]
Entries Tagged as 'crafts'
DIY: Create Your Own Clean Air Act (with video)
July 12th, 2011 · 5 Comments · crafts, DIY, Environment, Sustainable Living
Tags:asthma·children·clean air·DIY·EPA·Kids·MCAF·Moms Clean Air Force·politics·pollution·science·video
Report From The Porch: DIY Sun Jar Light
June 16th, 2011 · 6 Comments · crafts, Design, DIY, Eco-Friendly, Garden, Green Home, Sustainable Living
You may have noticed a few things have been on my mind lately: renewable energy, getting the most out of outdoor living spaces, and a seemingly obscure, but wildly popular idea: Ditch Your Lawnmower, Hire A Flock Of Sheep (over 100 comments and 1000 facebook “likes” on this post). At the moment, I could only [...]
Tags:eco-friendly lighting·green home decor·home decor·lighting·Lights·outdoors·pools·porches·screened-in porch·solar·solar lights·summer
DIY Wedding Delights
May 27th, 2011 · No Comments · crafts, decor, Design, DIY, Eco-Friendly, Fashion, Food, Inspiration, Knitting, Sustainable Living
Weddings enchant and inspire! It’s wedding season, and during the research for an article about creating ethical weddings, I found the most delightfully creative wedding-related DIY projects – in white, of course. The cake was a tree. So the bride wore bamboo… …and carried antique buttons too. Descending the stairs of no-frills… …she danced all [...]
Tags:bamboo·buttons·cakes·crochet·DIY·Food·Knitting·shoes·trees·weddings·wood
Eco-Win: DIY Reusable Bags
May 13th, 2011 · 2 Comments · crafts, DIY, Eco-Friendly, Environment, Food, Green Home, Reduce/Recycle/Reuse, Shopping, Sustainable Living
My local farmer’s market just celebrated its annual Mother’s Day opening. So many folks now carry reusable shopping bags. It must be one of the most remarkable eco-wins of our time. The impact of using plastic bags has been relegated to the equivalent of sleeping with the green-devil. Would you be caught dead without your [...]
Tags:bags·ban plastic·crafts·crochet·DIY·Knitting·plastic·plastic bags·recycle·reduce·reusable bags·reuse·Shopping
Repurposed Boats: Water, Weather and Whim
May 5th, 2011 · 6 Comments · crafts, decor, Design, DIY, Eco-Friendly, Garden, Green Home, Nature, Reduce/Recycle/Reuse, Sustainable Living, Travel
“Have a happy passing,” quipped our captain as our ferry headed out to sea towards the island. As we debarked and drove down the unpaved road on the island I have visited every year since I was 20, I noticed small changes. The insular world of living on an island constantly changes and unfolds, as [...]
Stunning Stained Glass
May 2nd, 2011 · 1 Comment · Art, crafts, decor, Design, Green Home, Reduce/Recycle/Reuse
“Every project uncovers a new secret. It’s like a jigsaw puzzle,” says Doris Cultraro, the stained glass artist that restored this Tiffany window panel that stood for years in a local Hudson Valley residence. On assignment for Chronogram, I visited Doris’ DC Studio a few weeks ago and was unexpectedly enamored by the kaleidoscopic magic [...]
Tags:Art·color·craft·craftsperson·glass·recycled·reuse·stained glass·window
Wood Lust To Wear
April 26th, 2011 · 3 Comments · Art, crafts, Design, Eco-Friendly, Family, Fashion, Nature
Let’s just say…moms like jewelry. All kinds. The glittery kind that sparkle in all its small solid rockness on a finger, and the kind that goes with the grain and celebrates the beauty of nature. Designer, Gustav Reyes creates these salvaged wood bracelets by repurposing wood from unusual sources: castoff baseball bats, and maple, walnut [...]
Tags:bracelets·creativity·jewelry·Mother’s Day·Nature·repurpose·salvaged wood·spring·wood
Super Natural Eggs
April 22nd, 2011 · No Comments · crafts, DIY, Eco-Friendly, Family, Holidays
If you haven’t already done so, it’s time to get cracking on creating smashing Easter eggs. For the holiday this year, I wrote 3 Unusual Natural Easter Egg Projects. These Super Natural Dyed Eggs from Curbly are my favorite. Grab a few free-range eggs, vinegar and spices, and follow this video tutorial: Credit: Curbly
Furniture: Forest-Friendly
April 3rd, 2011 · 1 Comment · Art, crafts, decor, Design, Eco-Friendly, Family, Garden, Green Home, Nature, Reduce/Recycle/Reuse, Sustainable Living
Last month, Chronogram asked me to cover a story about the Wickham Solid Wood Studio in Beacon, NY. I just love sinking my teeth into this kind of assignment. Not only is Jessica Wickham’s handcrafted furniture local and heirloom quality, it is sustainable in ways that give back without harming our at-risk forests. Jessica’s furniture has [...]
Tags:acid rain·air pollution·artists·backyard·biodiversity·clean air·DIY·eco-art·eco-artists·EDF·forests·furniture·heirloom design·home decor·husband·interior design·Japan·Moms Clean Air Force·trees·VOC’s·Wickham Solid Wood Studio·wood
Reversely Cabled (a free scarf knitting pattern)
March 24th, 2011 · 26 Comments · crafts, Design, Knitting
Show and tell for my knitting readers… Knitters know cables are a one-sided affair. One side looks marvelously complicated and the other side looks like a lumpy mess. Most cabled knitting is knitted on one side and purled on the other – with a few stitches separating the cables. Because of this patterning, projects with [...]
