The stockings are hung by the chimney with care . . . now, what goes under the tree? When you have more time than money at Christmas time, or you’re just looking to infuse a little more personality than store-bought presents, DIY gifts are just the thing. So today, I present to you five different DIY gift ideas you can make in bulk and give to family, friends and neighbors
All-natural air freshener: sweet grass braids
I told you all last month that my hubby got a new job. Well, last week he came home with a thing that I’d never heard of before….but I was immediately super pumped to tell you about it (because, let’s be honest, I think about you all the time). Because we both like all-natural things, right? Without chemicals or toxins or carcinogens? Ahem. Well, this product is right up that
Download a free sample of I Don’t Buy That
I Don’t Buy That launched nearly a month ago, and I’m absolutely thrilled with the feedback I’ve been getting about the book and the recipes in it: This book is brilliant! I can’t believe how many things I can make now that I never thought of before. ~ Stacie Finally got a chance to look through it this morning, and I LOVE it!!! I’m planning on making some “gunk remover”
Revisiting DIY Goo Gone
This is my 150th post. WHAT?! In honor of this momentous occasion, I’m revisiting my biggest post ever, and why it matters to this blog’s next big thing. Not long ago I announced I’m working on a new ebook called I Don’t Buy That: 12 simple recipes for DIY household basics. The inspiration behind my most popular post is the same as what’s driving this ebook’s creation: it’s so important that more
The incremental secret to making a huge household shift
Over the last five years, my buying habits have changed considerably when it comes to household, body care and cleaning products. I used to buy nearly everything at the store. I disposed of all of the excess packaging for each product, over and over. I didn’t question the ingredients. I’d look at my Target receipt with a twinge of guilt at having spent more than I had budgeted for…but felt
Lemon drop sugar scrub (another 3-ingredient DIY using only pantry staples)
Those of you who liked my DIY vanilla sugar scrub are going to love this body care recipe. Yet again, it uses just three ingredients—pantry staples only!—and comes together in about 30 seconds. It still packs a double punch by exfoliating and moisturizing in one fell swoop, but this time, it’s lemony-fresh. I make this one in smaller quantities, since the lemon juice is perishable; I shoot for making an
DIY Gunk Remover: Non-toxic recipe to remove sticky adhesive residue
I’m pretty excited about this one, folks. I’m big into making my own cleaning products and finding cheap substitutes for things I’d normally purchase…and this recipe hits a home run in so many ways. You know how price tags and jar labels leave a sticky residue behind that’s super tough to rub off? For years I’ve used the major brand products to fix the problem, namely Goo Gone or Goof Off. I’ve
Silky-soft skin: DIY Sugar Scrub using three pantry staples
Sugar scrub is at the top of the list of body care products I no longer purchase. Not because I don’t like it, but because it’s really expensive at stores, and I found a great recipe that I can whip up without going to the store to buy ingredients―they’re already in the pantry. If you have brown sugar, olive oil and vanilla, you are three minutes away from having wonderful
I’ll never buy laundry detergent again (and here’s my super-simple recipe)
I know this isn’t the first post on the internet about making homemade laundry detergent. When I decided I wanted to make my own, I found literally dozens of them. But I’ve shared this recipe with so many people that I know, and it’s so simple that I can’t help adding my two cents to the mix. Homemade laundry detergent is inexpensive, non-toxic and super-simple to make. It only has