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When You Don’t Have Time to Do It Yourself

July 10, 2018 by Erika

I've been posting recently about reducing our waste...and I promise that the third installment is coming soon!  One of the suggestions I gave was to "make your own."  I talked mostly about making your own food items like bread and spice mixes, but DIY-ing your home cleaners is also an amazing way to reduce waste.

But what about when you don't have time?

I keep seeing posts by other bloggers about having a slow and relaxing summer.  But for me, summer is SUPER busy around here.  That's because I try to grow and preserve as much of our winter food as I am able to.  I try to make all of our own spaghetti sauce, tomato soup, tomato juice, green beans, jams, etc.   There are times I just don't have the time to DIY everything.

And when I don't have time for DIY cleaning supplies, I trust and use Mrs. Meyers products.  Mrs. Meyers products are made with plant-derived ingredients and essential oils.  All of my hand soap containers right now have Mrs. Meyers lavender hand soap in them.  I love the smell!

And right now, when you make your first $20 purchase from The Grove Collaborative, you can get an entire Mrs. Meyers cleaning kit FREE!

Your FREE kit will include:

  • Free Mrs. Meyer’s hand soap
  • Free Mrs. Meyer’s hand lotion
  • Free Mrs. Meyer’s dish soap
  • Grove Collaborative cleaning caddy
  • Free shipping & 60 day VIP trial

How awesome is that?!

I absolutely love Grove Collaborative!  The deliver green cleaning and household supplies right to my door.  And all the mamas said AMEN!  And Grove purchases carbon offsets for every order they deliver!

When I do have time to DIY, Grove still has me covered because they stock products like castile soap and Sals Suds.  Plus, I can purchase other products like Seventh Generation's unbleached toilet paper, wool dryer balls, Bees Wraps and Seed's shampoo all at a discounted price!

I know you will love all that they have to offer whether you are a DIYer or not!

To get claim your free cleaning kit, simply click the picture below!

Disclaimer:  I, Erika Bault, am a Grove Collaborative influencer and does receive compensation from Grove Collaborative for each referral at no additional cost to you.  All opinions are my own and I do personally use Grove each and every month.

Erika
Influence Network
Food Lovers Devotional

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Farmer’s Dandelion Salve

May 1, 2018 by Erika

As I've read more and more about homesteading and reducing waste, foraging has become a topic of interest, mostly because you're getting something for nothing.  Great for the budget!  The plant that has caught my attention most this year is the dandelion.  And while I still don't know if I love them all over my yard, I do know we don't want to spray them because of the honeybees.  So why not make lemonade out of lemons...or salve out of dandelions?

The other day, after spending the afternoon working on my raised beds, my hands were rough.  That's what happens after they spend all winter inside.  And I had to keep reapplying lotion to make them feel moist again.  I had heard of salves for farmers, and I knew that people were in love with dandelions for stuff like this, and so the Farmer's Dandelion Salve was concocted!

Dandelions are used in salves like this because of their analgesic properties.  They can help reduce inflammation and ease muscle fatigue.  Who knew that a "weed" that we work so hard to get rid of, can actually ease the pain of all that work?!

I added a few additional ingredients to this salve for varying reasons.

  • Unrefined coconut oil: Coconut oil is a great moisturizer for skin because it penetrates deep.  This will help with the excessive dryness that can occur after a day of working in the dirt.
  • Beeswax pellets: Beeswax creates a barrier on skin to help lock in the moisture.  Plus, it helps the salve harden!
  • Raw Shea Butter: Raw shea butter is extremely moisturizing and can provide immediate relief to dry hands.  It also does not liquefy at room temperature helping to harden the salve a bit.
  • Lavender essential oil: Lavender oil contains antimicrobial properties which can help to speed up the healing of cuts and burns.
  • Helichrysum essential oil: Helichrysum has been shown to contain anti-inflammation properties and is also used in many anti-aging products to help with the appearance and heath of skin.  It is easy for a farmer's or gardener's hands to look "old" because of the hard work those hands endure.
  • Roman Chamomile essential oil: Chamomile also had anti-inflammatory properties to help your tired hands or neck muscles.  The anti-inflammatory properties, along with the anti-bacterial properties, found in chamomile also make it a great oil for skin health.

The first thing you want is to go in the morning or early afternoon on a sunny day to pick the dandelions.  You want the dew to be dried up, and the flowers to be fresh and open.  This is a great job for little hands to help with!

Once you have a good amount of flower heads, pluck out the petals and lay them out on a towel or drying basket.  Allow them to dry overnight or close to 24 hours.  Dandelions have a lot of moisture, and many people cautioned that adding the flowers without drying them first will cause your lotions, oils and salves to mold or mildew.

You want to make sure to melt your coconut oil.  This does two things: First, it allows you to pour it and mix the flowers in.  Second, the heat helps to allow the oils from the dandelions to infuse into the coconut oil.  Keeping the oil in the sun allows the oil to stay warm and liquid, helping the infusion process.  Your oil should be a golden yellow when you are done.

I used beeswax pellets because of how easily they melt and how simple they are to work with and measure.  However, if I had access to our own beeswax, I would definitely use that instead.

Glass jars are perfect for storing this salve.  Plastic has been reported to leach chemicals into products.  Plus, essential oils will penetrate the plastic so that it will forever smell like whatever oils you have used.  Filling  small glass Ball Canning Jars, like I did, would make a great gift for the farmer, gardener or homesteader in your life!

I personally use doTERRA essential oils and love visiting Dr. Axe's website for essential oil information, but I am NOT a medical professional and you should always do your own research before starting to use essential oils.

Disclaimers: Erika Bault is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

I am a doTERRA wellness advocate and do make a commission if you purchase any of the oils via the website link provided.

Farmer's Dandelion Salve
2018-05-01 15:18:07
A great salve to help hands heal after a day working on the farm
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Ingredients
  1. 1 cup dried dandelion petals
  2. 1 cup refined coconut oil*
  3. 1/4 cup beeswax pellets
  4. 1 TBSP unrefined shea butter
  5. 7 drops helichrysum oil
  6. 7 drops roman chamomile oil
  7. 10 drops lavender oil
Instructions
  1. Collect several dandelion flowers. Pluck the petals from the flowers. It's ok if some of the green gets mixed in. Let the petals dry overnight.
  2. Heat the coconut oil until it is melted.
  3. Place the dandelion petals in a glass jar and pour the warm coconut oil over the petals. Place a lid on the jar and place it in a sunny spot for several hours while the dandelions infuse the oil.**
  4. Pour the oil through a fine mesh strainer and squeeze the oil out of the flower petals into a small saucepan.
  5. Add the beeswax pellets and shea butter to the dandelion infusion. Heat until all are melted.
  6. Remove from heat and add the other essential oils. Stir.
  7. Pour the salve into your jars and let them cool, making sure not to bump them and disturb the salve or it won't harden as pretty.
  8. Store in a cool place and use as needed after a hard day working with your hands.
Notes
  1. *Do not use fractionated coconut oil since it remains liquid. You want your salve to harden back up.
  2. **I let mine infuse for 6.5 hours, but you can do it even longer. I was just too excited to wait anymore.
Full & Simple https://fullandsimple.com/

Erika
Influence Network
Food Lovers Devotional

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Filed Under: Gardening Tagged With: beekeeping, dandelion, dandelion salve, DIY, gardening, hand cream, lotion, simple living

Tips for Using Temporary Wallpaper

August 30, 2016 by Erika

Tips for Using Temporary Wallpaper

You may have recently started to see a lot of interest in temporary wallpaper.  It is a great solution for people living in short-term arrangements like apartments or dorms or for people like me who start to get anxiety thinking about committing to real wallpaper.  I also think that temporary wallpaper would be awesome for teachers in their classrooms.

What is temporary wallpaper?  Think of it like those wall decals for the entire wall.  It is basically a giant removable sticker for your wall.

I recently put up temporary wallpaper for the first time and I wanted to share some insights from a newbie.  I'm actually a total wallpaper newbie.  I've never hung real or temporary before trying it in my storage room to office makeover.  And while it was not as easy as I had thought it would be going into it, it wasn't too bad after I learned from some mistakes and I would definitely do it again

Full & Simple Tips for Using Temporary Wallpaper (1)

The first thing that you definitely need to keep in mind is that you need to buy at least one or two extra rolls.  I had calculated the square footage of my wall and looked at the coverage of each roll, and then bought what I thought I needed...which should have given me a bit of extra anyway.  BUT here's the thing I didn't figure on...the pattern.  Having never put up wallpaper before, I didn't think about the pattern needing to match up.  So while I did have a bit of extra with what I had ordered, I ended up needing another roll in order to finish so my pattern would line up.  Thank you Target REDcard Debit for 5% off and free shipping no matter the amount!

Full & Simple Tips for Using Temporary Wallpaper (4)

Paint first.  I only used the wallpaper on one wall and I painted the other walls in my office/craft room.  I was smart enough to trim out the corners before adding the wallpaper, but I wish that I would have painted all of the walls that were adjacent to the wallpapered wall.  There were a few paint smears that needed cleaning up, but I got to them as soon as I made them so they were easy fixes.

Full & Simple Tips for Using Temporary Wallpaper (2)

Take the time to find the pattern!!!!!  Hopefully only I notice, but I didn't line up the pattern correctly on my first sheet.  I had a hard time finding a pattern within the brick texture, but there was one....which I really noticed after getting two sheets on the wall.  Take the time to be certain!

Full & Simple Tips for Using Temporary Wallpaper (3)

While it can be done alone (I did my wall all by myself), I think two people would make the job easier.  The instructions did recommend two people, but after having read that other bloggers were able to do it alone, I gave it a go.  Also, the squeegee they suggest is important.  I did buy this even though I didn't figure I would use it...I did use it.

Like I said earlier, I would definitely use temporary wallpaper again.  This paper that I used from Target remained sticky even after the numerous times I had to take it off and realign it.  I did use it in our basement too, and so far, moisture isn't making it come down either.  And even though I did this alone, I would have been done in one afternoon except for having to wait for an additional roll to be delivered.

All-in-all, I'm really proud of how the wall turned out and the progress I'm making on the office/craft room.  What do you think?  Would you ever try temporary wallpaper?  Any questions I didn't answer?  Let me know in the comments!

You can find my pink chair here.

You can find the textured brick temporary wallpaper I used below.

NOTES: I bought the white wallpaper, not the gray. On the day this is published, it's on sale too!

Disclaimer: Erika Bault is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program as well as Target's affiliate program, affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and Target.com.

Erika
Influence Network
Food Lovers Devotional

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Filed Under: Decor, Decor Tagged With: apartment decor, decor, DIY, dorm decor, industrial chair, pink chair, removable wallpaper, temporary wallpaper, tips, wallpaper

3 Books to Help You Decorate on a Budget

May 16, 2016 by Erika

Full & Simple- 3 Books for Decorating on a Budget (2)

Living within your means can be hard, especially for those of us that love to shop for and decorate our homes.  I'm still trying to minimize my "stuff" but I'm positive that I'll never be a true minimalist because I need throw pillows and a few items here and there for my house to feel like home.  And isn't that what we all want?  For our house to feel like a home?  It can be tough to be happy in a space that doesn't reflect your personality, but breaking the bank to get your home decorated isn't going to create a peace oasis either.  You'll either be so stressed you can't enjoy your home or you'll never be there because you'll have to take on a second job to pay for it.

That's why I'm really excited to share with you three books that I've read this spring to help me get inspired to be able decorate on a smaller budget.

Love the Home You Have

  1.  Love the Home You Have by Melissa Michaels

This first book is all about changing your attitude toward the home you live in currently.  It may not be your dream house or your forever house, but too many times we postpone happiness until too much life has past.  Michaels details her own struggle with constantly being discontent and how she slowly learned that she could be creative in her decor and find small ways to love what she already had in order to pursue financial freedom as well as a lovely home.  There are no decor pictures in this book, so it really is just about helping you change your mindset.  In the back of the book is a 30-day challenge  with space for journaling.  Each day you are given a task that is meant to help you start enjoying life and the home you have right now.

 

Styled

2. Styled by Emily Henderson

Henderson won HGTV Design Star a while back and I loved her even then.  I went on to watch her show on HGTV, but just recently checked out her book at the library.  Henderson's book is about styling your home, creating small vignettes, and even how to compose those great Instagram pictures.  This book is FULL of pictures for inspiration along with a short quiz to help you determine what style you lean towards if you don't already know.  I love that Henderson really wants you to use things you already have or suggests that you collect over time.  She doesn't prompt you to run to Pottery Barn and order everything off of page 34.  She simply gives you advice on how to take the pieces in your home that you love and put them together (style) in a way that is interesting and beautiful.

 

The Nesting Place

3.  The Nesting Place by Myquillen Smith

I'm a type-A, perfectionist, so this book really piqued my interest with the subtitle, "It doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful."  You can even see that on the cover, which was taken in Myquillen's home, that her wingback is even missing a leg!  Myquillen really pushes you to try unconventional projects that save the budget, but can produce a big impact.  She talks about fails that she had while doing this but also great successes, like the garland made from old book pages.  In her book, she lets you see the "imperfections" in her home, but she discusses how we can't let these things interfere with our life and loving our home.  Myquillen and her family were renting while she wrote this book, so she has a lot of advice for renters as well as homeowners.

Well, there you have it.  Three incredible books to help you get through your decor slump when money may be tighter than your decor dreams.  We can't all afford Joanna Gaines' furniture line, but we can try to make our decor dreams come true with a little creativity and patience.

Full & Simple- 3 Books for Decorating on a Budget (1)

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.  By using affiliate links you help me keep the blog running with no additional cost to you!  Thank you for your support.

Erika
Influence Network
Food Lovers Devotional

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Decor, Decor, Reviews Tagged With: book, budget, contentment, decor, decorating, DIY, Emily Henderson, Love the Home You Have, Melissa Michaels, Myquillen Smith, Styled, The Nesting Place

An Afternoon Visit to the Terre Haute Children’s Museum

October 5, 2015 by Erika

This awesome treehouse is one in the center of the museum.

This awesome tree house is in the center of the museum.

I think that one thing (of many) that is great about being a parent is that you sort of get to be a kid again.  You get to buy Teddy Grahams and go to cartoons in the theater without people giving you funny looks.  And you get to visit places like children's museums.

I was surprised that we had a really nice children's museum so close to us.  I saw some friends post pictures of a field trip that their kids took to the Terre Haute Children's Museum, and decided that we needed to check it out.

Disclaimer: Terre Haute Children's Museum provided us with complimentary tickets in exchange for an honest review.  All opinions are my own.

Before we get into all of the fun stuff, let's go over some of the logistics.  The museum is located in downtown Terre Haute, Indiana.  There is free two-hour street parking right by the museum, a parking garage a block away that charges $1/hour, or if you don't care to walk a few blocks, we found free street parking with no time limit.  Admission is $8 for everyone ages two and older and they are open Tuesday through Sunday.  If you are going to be there around lunch or dinner there is an attached pizza cafe, Savoia's.

Ok, on to the fun stuff!

We started to have fun before we even entered the museum.  In the vestibule, they have a thing that makes smoke rings when you push on it.  We played with it for about five minutes before even going in!  Once inside, we were greeted by a very helpful staff member.  She gave us the run down of where things were and provided a map.

This was the first exhibit we saw. I loved that it discussed where our food comes from, why you want to buy local and why some items can't be bought local like bananas.

This was the first exhibit we saw. I loved that it discussed where our food comes from, why you want to buy local and why some items can't be bought local like bananas.

The first exhibit we visited inside discussed food and the different options we have as consumers.  The exhibit discussed eating locally, GMOs, and what farmers do.  It had a cute little "farmer's market" where kids could play with fake produce.  L was too little to figure the cost of her basket of apples, but older kids could do this to incorporate math and currency if you were homeschooling or taking a field trip.

Kids can brush away the mulch to find fossils in this area.

Kids can brush away the mulch to find fossils in this area.

Next up was the dino dig where "fossils" were buried and kids get to be the archaeologist.  The area was complete with brushes and scoops to move the tire material away from the buried fossils.  L loved the dinosaur hand scoops.

Here is a top view of the room with all of the play tables and the beehive jungle gym.

Here is a top view of the room with all of the play tables and the beehive jungle gym.

The beehive had holes so kids could move from cell to cell.

The beehive had holes so kids could move from cell to cell.

In the same room as the dino dig were several hands on items like Kinex, musical instruments and a giant treehouse.  But this room also housed L's favorite thing from the whole trip, a giant "beehive" where kids could climb and pretend to be bees.  I keep telling my husband that we need to build one for our kids.  It was so cute and L loved it.

The toddler play space was a safe environment for the younger kids to move around.

The toddler play space was a safe environment for the younger kids to move around.

This gentlemen was in the grocery area the whole time helping kids

This gentlemen was in the grocery area the whole time helping kids "check out" their picks. The area also included little shopping carts for the kids to push around and a lot of play food.

On the second floor of the museum was the toddler play space.  It was only for kids under the age of four, and had a soft floor for crawling or falling if your little one is still wobbly while walking.  I loved the little bee scooters and may have to get one for our kids for Christmas or birthdays.  Also on this floor were some farm items like a tractor and a cow that you could "milk" as well as a little grocery store.  I loved the conveyor belt that they had made for the grocery store and that there was someone that was always there to help your child check out all of the items they wanted to buy.

Agriculture was a big part of the museum, which I think is great since we are surrounded by it. Kids need to know that there is science behind all of the farming.

Agriculture was a big part of the museum, which I think is great since we are surrounded by it. Kids need to know that there is science behind all of the farming.

L tried to pull the rope too fast and the bubble would always pop so I had to hold on to slow her down.

L tried to pull the rope too fast and the bubble would always pop so I had to hold on to slow her down.

L and I made a giant bubble around ourselves before moving on to the water table.  Baby J loved the water table and my husband and I thought it was incredible that the museum had thought to put in baby seats so that babies could enjoy their time at the museum as well.  J did end up getting pretty soaked, but who cares when you get a smile like that?

The water table area had aprons for the older kids, but baby J got pretty wet. He loved it though!

The water table area had aprons for the older kids, but baby J got pretty wet. He loved it though!

The exhibit I was most excited about seeing was the indoor beehive.  I had heard that it was in a tree trunk, so I had imagined a real tree that the museum was possibly built around (There are buildings on ISU campus that have been built around trees.), but I was a bit disappointed when I found the hive was in a fake trunk.  The hive was in a back corner, which also disappointed me.  The hive may have also been less exciting simply because now that we have our own bees, seeing bees out isn't as big of a deal.  Overall though, I loved how much the museum incorporated bees into their exhibits.

This is the beehive exhibit. Unfortunately all of my pictures of the actual bees turned out really dark. They had frames lined up in the trunk behind plexiglass so you could see the bees working.

This is the beehive exhibit. Unfortunately all of my pictures of the actual bees turned out really dark. They had frames lined up in the trunk behind plexiglass so you could see the bees working.

I think the things that I loved most about the museum were that it was very hands-on, I wasn't afraid to let L touch things and try things, and I also loved that a lot of the exhibits had to do with food and agriculture, things that our kids here in southern Indiana see all the time, but may not understand the science behind.  The exhibits allow them to gain a deeper understanding for things that are tangible to them in their everyday life.

I can definitely say that my family and I will be going back.  We had a great time, and made a lot of memories.  It may even be the location for future birthday parties.

Tree House

Kids can either climb up the tree house or enter the top on the second floor. L was too little to climb by herself, so we took the stairs.

When we got home, I decided that I wanted to give you all a way to put some of what you're kids will learn into action.  As I said before, I loved all of the bee stuff that was incorporated into the decor and exhibits as well as the bee hive exhibit itself, so I came up with this bee waterer craft and found a book for you and your littles to read as well.

Shortly after we bought our bees, I bought L the book, Bee & Me.  It is very cute and and has a good rhythm to the words.  It explains that while we humans fear bees, they are around to help us and that they do more than just make honey.  I think you're little one will enjoy it!

You can buy this cute board book from Amazon.

You can buy this cute board book from Amazon.


Bee Waterer

Bee Waterer

I was inspired by this bee waterer, but I wanted something a little more fun so that L would be excited about it.

Supplies for a bee waterer

What you will need:

  • a terra cotta pot
  • a terra cotta plate
  • yellow acrylic paint
  • black acrylic paint
  • yellow puff paint
  • white puff paint
  • a sponge brush
  • an angled brush
  • marbles
  • hot glue gun

Directions:

  1. Paint the outside of your pot and plate with the yellow acrylic paint.  I did not paint the inside of the plate because I was unsure of what chemicals could end up in the water and how that might affect the bees.  I painted on three coats of yellow to get rid of most of the streaks.  I wasn't worried about the tag mark since it would be hidden once I was finished.IMG_5428
  2. After the yellow paint has dried, paint a small amount of black paint on your child's thumb and let them "stamp" the pot with their thumbprints.  These will become the bees.IMG_5429
  3. Use the puff paint to create the yellow stripes and wings on all of the bees that your child stamped on the waterer.
  4. Now, using the angled brush, add streaks of black paint behind some of the bees to show a "flight path."
  5. Once all of the paint is dry, place the plate right-side-up on the pot.  I did not do this next step, as I did not think of it before I assembled my waterer, but I think it will help especially those of you perfectionists out there like me.  Move the plate until you are happy with the placement, then use a pencil to trace around the bottom of the plate so you have a guide as to where to put the hot glue.IMG_5430
  6. Remove the plate and add hot glue around your tracemark and place the plate back on top of the pot.  Let dry.
  7. Once the hot glue is good and dry, add the marbles to the plate.  The marbles give the bees somewhere to land.  Bees can easily drown in water if they don't have anywhere to land.  And then fill with spring water.  Tap water has chemicals like chlorine and fluoride that you don't want bees ingesting.IMG_5431
  8. Now, place your waterer in your herb or flower garden so that visiting bees can stop for a drink while they're out collecting pollen!IMG_5442

Disclaimer: The above post contains affiliate links.

Erika
Influence Network
Food Lovers Devotional

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