Simple and Rustic

I started this little project planning on decorating the log with some pine, berries or ribbon. It didn't end that way!     You will need tea light candles, a piece of log, a drill, 1 1/2 inch drill bit. We don't have birch trees in our area so I chose to use a piece of sycamore log. Any piece of log will do. 
  This is a very simple project. Just drill as many candles holes as you would like. I chose 3 for the length of log I was using. Drill your holes 1/2 inch deep or as deep as the tea lights candles you are using.
  Insert your tea lights candles. Make sure your log doesn't roll around so you don't spill candle wax everywhere while the candles are burning. My log had a naturally flat side otherwise you can hot glue a couple of small sticks or twigs along the bottom to keep it from rolling.
  In the end, I left it plain and simple and I think it fits right in.

Homemade Fruit-on-the-Bottom Yogurt

As soon as the rain passes I'll be doing another Laundry Room Savings post but for now let's make some yogurt!!


Strawberry and Blackberry Homemade Yogurt

Homemade yogurt is so easy to make! I have tried two different methods and if I'm not in any hurry I use the regular Crockpot method. If I am in a hurry to get things going, then I use the "quicker" method!

I like to make this yogurt right before I go to bed so it has a full night to sit and incubate. By morning, I have wonderful thick yogurt ready to be chilled.

Ingredients for the regular and quick method are both the same.
Here's what you will need:
2 quarts milk
1 cup of dry powdered milk
1 cup plain yogurt with active live cultures listed on the label (otherwise it won't work)
Thermometer
2 Tbsp. jam or jelly (optional)

Notes:
*I use fat-free milk from the store if we aren't milking the goats - any milk will work.
*You do not have to use the dry milk but it makes a thicker, much nicer yogurt consistency.
*I use Dannon for my first batch then I use the yogurt I make as my starter from there on out.
*If you don't have a thermometer you can bring the milk almost to a boil for the 185 and when you can hold you finger in the milk for 10 seconds without burning for the 115 but this is iffy...if the milk is too hot, you kill the live cultures and your yogurt won't thicken.

Regular Crock-pot Method
-Add 2 quarts of milk and 1 cup of dry milk to the Crock-Pot and stir well
-Turn Crockpot on, cover with lid and heat your milk up to 185 degrees. This takes about 2 hours.
-Turn the crock-pot off and remove the lid
-Let cool to 115 degrees. This takes about 2 hours.
-Add 1 cup of plain yogurt and stir well.
-Wrapping and incubating: Replace the lid and wrap the crock-pot in 2 or 3 towels. You can leave it on your counter if your house is fairly warm. I sometimes sit it inside my oven to make more room on the counter top. The yogurt needs to stay between 90 and 110 degrees during this time. Let sit for at least 6 to 8 hours, up to 10 for a thicker yogurt with a stronger taste.

Quicker Method
(for getting it into the Crock pot before bedtime!)
-Place the insert in your Crockpot and turn it on low to get warm.
-Add 2 quarts milk and dry milk in a saucepan on the stove.
-Heat to 185 degrees.
-Remove from heat and pour into the pre-warmed Crock-pot. Turn Crock-Pot off. This skips the 2 hour heating step. I still like using my Crock pot because it's a good size for making yogurt. Any container that can be covered and wrapped up will work including the saucepan you just used, it just takes longer to cool down. I have been known to add a couple of cubes of ice at a time to cool this down . Keep a close eye on your temp while doing this (this cuts out the 3 hour cooling down step) but you might want to increase the amount of dry milk you added at the beginning to make up for the water this adds.
-Follow the steps above for wrapping and incubating.

You should now have homemade yogurt!!! Put in a large container or in individual one cup serving containers and place in the refrigerator to chill. I add 1 to 2 tablespoons of jam or jelly per 1 cup of yogurt, stir and enjoy. It's delicious and much cheaper than store bought. Remember to reserve 1 cup of plain yogurt as a starter for your next batch! The starter can be frozen or is good in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 weeks.


YUM! Blackberry! I can extra jams and jellies just to use in yogurt each year!

There are many ways to incubate your yogurt. You can sit your saucepan on on a towel-covered heating pad on low and cover with another larger upside down pot, put it in a toaster oven set to 100 degrees, regular oven with just the pilot light on for heat, in a cooler lined with towel......those are just a few I have read about.

So far this week my son has had strawberry, peach, blackberry and plum yogurt for breakfast. I like to throw a packet of Splenda in mine and have it that way. You can add a little sugar and vanilla to the milk in the beginning if you like to give it a hint of sweet vanilla taste. Let me know if you have other variations on homemade yogurt. I would love to hear them!

Laundry Room Savings

The laundry room has been my biggest money saving room by far in my search for frugality....that's a word, right?? I am going to do a series of posts on what I am doing in my laundry room to save money for....vacations? a new car?? no...just gas for the old car I have....have you been to the pumps lately? Not pretty!

This is post #1 in my Laundry Room Savings series.


Homemade Laundry Detergent
My "supplier" who sold me homemade laundry detergent at $1.25 a gallon has moved about an hour away so I decided to make my own. It's simple, easy, cheap and works!
Here's the recipe I use:
1/2 bar Fels Naptha Soap ($1.49 per bar)
1/2 cup Super Washing Soda ($4.29 per box)
1/2 cup baking soda ($1 per box)
1 cup Borax ($4.29 per box)
Water

*You can find all of this at your local ACE (True Value) hardware store.*

Use a large stock pot. You will be adding about 8 quarts of water as you go along so use a BIG UN'!

Grate your soap
Mix with 1 1/2 quarts of water over low heat until all soap is dissolved.
Add washing soda, baking soda and borax stirring between each. Add 1 quart of hot water and mix well. Add 6 quarts of cold water, stir and let gel for a few hours.


Mine was very clumpy so I used my stick blender I use when making soap to mix it well. I then let it sit for another few hours and got a smooth, creamy looking laundry detergent. I also added a few drops of Fresh Rain essential oil I had for soap to give it a nice smell. I then poured it into a couple of left over laundry detergent bottles I had saved but milk jugs, soda bottles, any plastic container will work. Give your jug a good shake when you go to use it to make sure any of the gel or clumps are mixed well.

I use 1/2 cup of my homemade laundry detergent per load of laundry! Try it! The cost of all the ingredients together is less than the cost of a big bottle of laundry detergent and you have enough to make several batches with just the ingredients above! Try it and let me know what you think! If you already make your own, feel free to share your recipes and methods! I would love to hear them!

Rustic Suet Feeder #2

I love making suet for the birds, especially this time of year when it's cold and I know there are not a lot of nuts, berries or seeds left for the little guys to feed on. All you need is a broken tree limb and you can make this little feeder. I found a beautiful cherry limb on the side of our road while I was walking. We had some wind and rain last night and several limbs left from the ice storm of '09 fell. Yes, they are still falling!


Here's what you need to make this feeder.
1 larger limb about 6 inches long and 1.5 inches in diameter
2 smaller limbs about 5 inches long 1 to 1.5 inches in diameter
6 small sticks about 7 inches long
4 finishing nails (about 2 inches long)
12 small nails about 1 inch long
2 Screw hooks
Wire for hanging.
Suet

I cut the limbs up with a miter saw. You can use a hand saw but the miter is faster. I measured mine to fit my son's sandwich box. That's what I use for a suet mold from time to time and I happened to have one already made in the freezer. You can change the dimensions to fit your mold. I also have a double feeder like this that holds two suet cakes. Just make your larger limb longer!

I cut notches in the ends of my smaller limbs to fit the ends of my larger one. You can see the cuts in this photo.


Nail the end pieces on with the larger of the nails. I use two nails per per end. Then take the 6 longer sticks and put 3 on each side about an inch apart working from the bottom up. Attach these with a small nail on each end and trim any excess overhang.

It will look like this when you finish.


Add your screw hooks to the top of the two side "posts", attach your wire, add suet, hang and enjoy! I know your birds will.

Rustic......


and cute!

You can find Rustic Suet Feeder #1 here.
and Hey,
I have over 300 followers now! You guys are awesome! Thank you!!!

Tin Can Crafts

Sorry for not posting this on Thursday like I promised. It's been a very busy last couple of days with helping my friend Brooke strip wallpaper at her new house, a trip to Nashville and going to my cousins baby shower today.

So what do you do with your tin cans? Do you throw them in the trash? Recycle? I found a couple of cute uses for them and I'm looking for more!


I made these adorable tin can candles and a pen/pencil holder. They are so cute and easy and reusable! You can see my first candle-making post here. The addiction has only grown since starting to make my own candles.
Hint: I have found that old crayons are great for coloring candles. Just choose your color, toss them in with your melting wax and stir well.
Update: goatmilker had mentioned that crayons should not be used because they clog up the wick and the candle doesn't burn as well. I did some reading and this does seem to be the case. I'm still going to use them for my experimental candles that I will be using here at home but if you make candles to sell you might want to use the dyes made just for candle-making.

I use one of those Pampered Chef can openers for opening my cans and leaving a smooth edge. Then I peeled the labels, washed the cans well and decided on the color paint I wanted to use for the trim on my can. I like the rusted look so I went with an orange-brown color but any color that matches your decor will work. I was wanting a little texture so I searched my kitchen for ideas. I thought of sand but I don't have sand in my kitchen, then I thought of SUGAR!


You can see the texture at the top and bottom of this tin can candle above. All you have to do is spray a layer of paint, sprinkle with sugar and spray a layer over the top. Let dry.


Add the wick. I hot glue mine in the bottom of the can. Fill with melted candle wax, add color and fragrance if you want to) and let harden. Once the candle has hardened, top it off with a little more melted wax if you need to to get a flat candle surface. Find a cute graphic. I use PCCrafter.com for almost all my crafting graphics.


Print on full label sticky paper, peel and apply (or you can Mod Podge to apply the graphic to your can). Rub down well. I spray mine with a couple layers of Krylon Crystal clear acrylic spray and let dry. Tie on a bow, string, raffia, etc. and enjoy your new primitive country tin can candle!

I have the "Welcome Friends" one on my desk holding my pens and pencils. What other crafts could I use tin cans for? I've been collecting them to the point that I can't open the door under my sink without them rolling out! I need more ideas! I think they would make cute planters for herbs in my kitchen window.....to be continued.....

I Love Candles!

and now I have something else to keep me busy!


This is just the first days completed projects!
Some of these are remelts from left over wax in the bottom of the containers I have been saving for making my own candles...


Some are from container wax (now my favorite because it has that solid color not a waxy look like the paraffin). Some are paraffin wax (second favorite) and soy wax (not so sure I like it).


This pineapple smells so good!
This one below has embedded pink hearts but it didn't quite turn out the way I wanted it to. I am going to have to work on the embedded part.


I also made these cute little candle melts. I am loving the little blue bears! They have a wild berry scent and smell so good! I did hearts and stars with my silicone molds.


I also did Mulberry, Sugar Cookie, Hazel Nut and Fresh Rain. I LOVE these little fat Mason jars for candles!


Candle-making is as addictive as soap-making and it's easy.

You need:

Wax
Wicks
Containers
Pouring pot for melting wax

Tips:

• I used a hot glue gun to stick the wicks in the bottom of the containers and used a clothespin to hold the wick upright while pouring my wax.
• You can use a double boiler but I just used a sauce pan, put three metal jar rings in the bottom, added water and sat my pouring pot on top of the rings. These rings hold the pouring pot off the bottom of the saucepan while your wax melts.
• Heat your containers before pouring in your wax. This helps the wax adhere to the sides of the containers so you don't have those bubbly spots.
• Your candles may have a sunken spot after cooling. You can reheat leftover wax and top the candles off or hit them with a heat gun for a few seconds and the tops will melt and level out.
  

Jake wants to try out some of the candle melts!

Tomorrow I'll be posting a new recipe I got from my sister-in-law....
Candy Apple Pie....YUM!

Vanilla...YUM!

Make your own extract and bottle it up in cute little bottles. I picked up a big bottle of vodka a few months ago, ordered some Madagascar vanilla beans through eBay (Grade B vanilla beans make the best extract) and now I have wonderful homemade vanilla extract!

All you need is:
1 large bottle of vodka
10 - 12 vanilla beans

Cut your vanilla beans long ways down the middle. Scrape the beans loose from the pods and add the scrapings to your bottle of vodka. Higher quality vodka makes a better extract. You may have to remove a bit of the vodka to accommodate for the beans and pods. Chop up the pods into 1 to 2-inch pieces and add them to the vodka as well. Place your bottle in a dark pantry or cabinet. Shake the bottle once a day for about a week then every few days just to keep it all mixed up. After awhile I just shake mine when I notice it in the cabinet. You can use it after a month but the longer it sits the stronger (and better) your extract will be.

I use a paper towel or very thin cloth and a small funnel to strain my extract into the smaller bottles.

I have been using from my bottle to bake and make the little gift bottles above. When you have used 1/3 or so of the bottle, refill it with vodka to keep your extract going. If your beans start to lose their vanilla smell, scrape, chop and add more. This bottle can be refilled occasionally and last for years to use in your own baking or make a few big bottles to divide and give as gifts around the holidays!

These little bottles are even cuter with a recipe card tied to them!

Peppermint Deliciousness!

A friend of mine had me buy a package of those peppermint Hershey Kisses the other day while we were shopping and I must admit I ate half the bag (or more!) I decided to go on a peppermint candy making expedition! I made a few batches before I got what I think is very close to the Hershey Kisses peppermint goodness. I got this mold for free when I bought some Jell-O earlier this week and decided to use it!


Here's the recipe I ended up using...
Peppermint Goodies
1/2 block Gulf Wax paraffin
2 packages white chocolate chips
1/2 package almond bark
20 peppermint candy disks (chopped into a very fine powder using a food chopper or processor)
1 tsp peppermint extract

Melt your gulf wax in a saucepan. You can use a double boiler but I didn't. Next add your chocolate chips and broken up almond bar on low to medium heat. Stir constantly until melted. Pour in peppermint candy powder, stir, then add peppermint extract. Stir well and make sure everything is melted.
Pour into molds or into a wax lined cookie sheet. I used the Jell-O mold and this recipe filled it twice. I just remelted after the first batch firmed up in the fridge and filled it again. They fell out of this mold with no oiling required.


The details turned out great! They are thick so I'm trying to figure out a way to add Popsicle sticks to them.


I wrapped them in basket wrap and added some twine to some and little red ribbon to others.


I will be making these for the kids in Jake and Luke's classes next year.


They are fun, cute and delicious!


Here they are all dressed up and ready to go to the Christmas party tomorrow night! I am adding baskets of these to my "homemade gift baskets" for next year.

Homemade Gift Baskets

I have already decided that next year I am giving mostly handmade, homemade gift baskets.


These have a bar of handmade soap, a package of my peppermint mini soaps, a tube of peppermint lip balm and a candle. The candle is bought but candles are next on my craft list!


Next year the candles will be hand-poured as well.


I made twig stars sprayed with glitter glue to give the baskets a rustic look plus Jake and Luke's teachers will have an ornament for their tree.


I found the little buckets, baskets, ribbon and basket wrap all at Hobby Lobby for half price.


Do you make your own crafts/gifts? If so, post a link to yours. I would love to see your ideas!

Peppermint Mini Soaps

These turned out to be so cute and they smell so good!!

I made these using the hot process and the following recipe. I didn't have time for cold process to cure with Christmas coming up so quickly. I do plan on doing some of these with cold process next year way ahead of time!

5.122 ounces sodium hydroxide (lye)
12.54 ounces distilled water
8 ounces olive oil
10 ounces canola oil
14 ounces lard
6 ounces coconut oil
1 ounce vitamin E oil
Peppermint essential oil
Red sugar crystals

I mixed my lye/water solution. Please, please, please use your goggles and gloves when doing this and keep some white vinegar on hand to neutralize any spills. I combined my oils/solid oils in my crock-Pot and turned it on to melt them. When oils are completely melted, combine the pour lye/water solution into oils in the Crock-Pot. Using a stick blender with the Crock-pot turned off, mix to trace.
This is where hot process and cold process diverge. In cold process you pour into your mold, wrap and let saponification take place over the next 18 to 24 hours.

With hot process:
Turn the Crock-pot on low. You may have to adjust this to warm if your Crock-pot gets too hot. It took an hour for this soap to cook. The sides will roll up and it will take on the consistency of mashed potatoes and look waxy. Test your pH with strips or use the "tongue" test. Put a little on a spoon hold it close to your tongue. If you feel a zap...cook it a little longer. Turn the crock pot off. Add vitamin E oil and essential oil. Stir well. Spread into a wax paper lined medium sized cookie sheet. Bang the sheet a few times on the counter to get it settled. Let sit for just a few minutes then sprinkle with red sugar crystals. Take a sheet of wax paper and place on top. Using a small roller or your hands, smooth the top of the soap and press the sugar into it gently. Let cool completely. Use cute little cookie cutters and enjoy!

One medium cookie sheet makes 12 sets of these.

Don't forget about the Fix-It-and-Forget-About-It Give Away tomorrow!

Honey Almond and Oatmeal Mini Soaps

It's all Cindy's fault (Our Life Simplified)! I saw her's and could not resist making these cute little mini soaps!


These were made using the hot process. I didn't have enough time before Christmas to let them cure for the amount of time cold process needs.
I love snowmen....


and snowflakes....


and goat's milk soap!


Next on my list is peppermint and then I want to try the new eucalyptus fragrance oil I bought yesterday. I'm wondering if I'll get them all done before Christmas. I may have to buy some different mini cookie cutters! They have them for other holidays as well!

Took the Week Off

I haven't ran away, I promise! My husband and I both took the week off to get some things done around here before the holidays. We decided to get some Christmas shopping done today but as soon as we got started the school called me. Jake was sick with a high temp, throat hurting and a headache. We hurried home to pick him up. He's my "high fever" child. I'll probably be up most of the night keeping his temp down. Just wanted to check in and say Hi!

I'll leave you with a new recipe for moisturizing body butter. It's easy to make and smells wonderful!

Honey Almond Body Butter
1 oz. coconut oil
1 oz. 100% cocoa butter
1/2 Tbs. beeswax (optional)
Oil from 1 vitamin E capsule
Honey Almond Fragrance oil (Hobby Lobby)

Grate the cocoa butter and beeswax. The beeswax will make the mixture thicker. Without it the mixture is very soft, almost like lotion at room temp. It's a matter of preference how you like it. I can't decide so I have a jar of both. Melt cocoa butter (and beeswax if used) together. You can microwave it or use a double boiler. I use a canning jar sitting in a saucepan of water on medium heat (don't let the water boil). Remove from heat and add vitamin E oil and coconut oil. Mix well. Let cool slightly and add fragrance oil. Mix again and pour into container. Mixture with thicken. This is wonderful on dry hands and feet. It will feel a little oily when you first put it on but quickly absorbs into the skin and leaves it feeling very soft.

Hope you enjoy it!

Glass Light Block Tutorial

Want to make one of these cute glass light blocks?

These make great Christmas presents and sell really well. In November and December of 2006 I made and sold over 150 of these. I even made personalized ones as night lights with names like the Sylvana and Wyatt ones above and blocks in memory of loved ones with photos and poems, etc. I still get calls from time to time from people wanting them. I have an order for two for Christmas right now.

What you need:

*Glass block from Lowe's, Home Depot, etc.
*Drill
*1-inch diamond drill bit (these are made for glass)
*Graphic for printing (I use PCCrafter for the graphics on all the above blocks)
*Full sheet sticker label
*Laminator and laminating sleeve
*Ribbon
*6-foot light cord and bulb
*Scissors
*Hot glue gun (oops, forgot to put the hot glue gun and scissors in the pic)

You will need to print your graphics for each side of your block on a full sheet sticker label for the 8 x 8 block like I am using in this tutorial. Cut out your graphic with scissors. You can get more than one on a sheet for the 6 x8 and 4 x 8 blocks. I use the highest quality for printing for mine.
Here are the exact measurements for printing your graphics to fit each size block:

8 x 8 block - 6.74 x 6.74 inches.
6 x 8 rectangular blocks - 4.79 x 6.74 inches.
4 x 8 rectangular blocks - 6.74 x 2.8 inches

Turn your block up on its side and mark the middle like in the pic below.
Put a little water on your block where you are going to drill.
Drill the hole in the bottom of your block with a 1-inch diamond bit for glass. I ordered mine off eBay. I am using a regular drill today but when I was making lots of these I borrowed my brother-in-laws drill press.


I do this either outside or in the sink so I can wash away the glass dust. Keep adding just a little water around your bit as you drill. If the block gets too hot it will crack.

Once the hole is drilled, dump the glass out from the inside of your block and wash your block with water inside and out. Shake as much water out of the block as you can and set it to the side to dry. I stuff a paper towel in the hole to help soak up what water is left inside. While the block is drying, laminate your graphics.

I used the same graphic for both sides on this block but you can use different graphics, a photo, a poem or even family names on one side and a graphic on the other. It's up to you!

Before peeling the paper off the back of your graphics, place them back to back with sticky paper still on and slip them inside the laminating sleeve. This saves you a laminating sleeve by using one for both graphics. Run this through your laminator, flip it over and run it through again. When you trim around the very edges of your graphic and take them apart, you will have two graphics with the fronts laminated and the backs ready to peel.


Run each of these through the laminator one or two more times just to make sure the laminate is on your graphic really well.

Grab your block and lay it flat. Take one graphic and peel the backing off. Holding it almost at the top on each side place your top two corners onto the block.


You want your graphic to fit inside the sunken area and have a little "frame" around the edge. Press the graphic down along the top and then rub it down flat, top to bottom. Once stuck these are not going to come off easily or without tearing your graphic up so make sure you get it where you want it.

Flip your block over and put the graphic on the other side.

You can leave your block like this but I like my blocks with ribbons. These are easy to put on.


Turn your block upside down and put hot glue in a line across the block beside the hole. Fold the edge of your ribbon over and start it here.
Once stuck, flip the block over so the top is up...


Start gluing your ribbon on, make a "bunny ear" and glue it down again.


You want 5 "bunny ears" centered at the top of the block.


Flip the block over and take the ribbon to the bottom and glue it next to the hole.


Flip the block over and put your fingers inside the first two ears and twist in opposite directions. This opens up the ribbon and shapes it.


Do each ear this way until you have your ribbon looking the way you want it.


You can use a little hot glue to keep it in the right place so it looks good on both sides.


I use this light cord and bulb.


I like it better than the string of Christmas lights because you can turn it on and off without unplugging it and you can change the bulb if it burns out.


Insert the bulb and turn it so the cord goes to the side. This allows the block to sit flat. At one time I used the little glass globs as legs for my blocks but they are a pain to keep glued on.
There you have it...

A glass light block to give your home a cozy, warm glow through the Holidays or all year long.

Any questions? Just ask!

Tip from reader Jules: DO NOT USE Lexan or plastic blocks, when these get heated the smoke is toxic.