Winter Warmer Fundraiser

I wanted to take the opportunity to invite you along to our upcoming Green Renters fundraiser.  We decided to do something a bit different than the typical film screenings and trivia nights and we've paired with fellow Brunswick business Olive Grove to host an in-store evening of magic, shadow puppetry, jazz music, mulled wine, fashion and more with proceeds split between us and Olive Grove. There'll be hourly give aways and lots of entertainment and of course, mulled wine! I'll also be making my very special vegan chocolate crackles!

Every ticket sold includes a complimentary glass of mulled wine and books by Brunswick publishers, Aduki Press. 

Tuesday 14^th August

6pm-9pm

Olive Grove Studios

159 Sydney Rd, Brunswick

 Tickets $8/$10

To book and find out more go to http://greenrenters.org/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=203

I'm busy this week with:

Organising recipes for Saturday's (booked out!) Jam and Preserves workshop

Looking after Mr Pablo, he's been unwell and had an injection of antibiotics at the vet. Here he is enjoying the sun through the office window!


Making double door snakes for our winter warmer packs at the Green Renters shop


Reading crime fiction like this


and watching this at the cinema


Laughing at this video (I'm sure it will amuse food bloggers everywhere) :


Other less pictorial tasks include writing multiple grants, applying for jobs ( I have a interview on skype next week with a company in Israel), working on a vegan lemon butter recipe and getting looking forward to the the comedy fest.

Make your own skincare workshop

Make your own full sized skin care products from high-quality, natural ingredients. Not only will you know exactly what’s in them, but you’ll blend ingredients to work beautifully with your own skin type.

You'll learn to make your very own:

• lip balm
• gentle cleansing mask
• cooling hydrating toner/facial scrub
  
• facial cleanser

All ingredients, containers and instructions are included in the workshop price and you will receive full sized products to take home for personal use, a recipe list and instruction for the products you've made.

March 8th 6:30pm to 8:30pm

Location: Ross House Association
First floor meeting room 3, 247 Flinders Lane
Melbourne

Cost: $50/$30 concession
Book here

Like this workshop?

You might like our following workshops:

• Make your own bath products
• DIY Natural Cleaning
• Make your own jams and preserves

Planning a Girls Night In or Hen's Night?

We are able to offer this workshop in the comfort for your own home for you and your guests. Contact us for more information and rates.

What have I been up to?

I've been really busy with the Sustainable Living Festival! Green Renters had a stall on the weekend and launched our gigantic green games.

Last night I made these as a gift for a vegan friend:

We're actually making these with some other goodies at Thursday night's workshop which will be fun, even if it means I've made them twice in a week. I'm also trialing a homemade toothpaste and deodorant to offer at workshops, depending on how they work out. Will get some guys to road test them also.

I'd like to offer the bath and skin care product workshops to 'hen's nights'* and the like, but I'm not quite sure how to promote them. I've contacted several 'green' bridal websites but they only focus on the big day not the preceding events.

Also busy hunting for part time work as Chris has been working full time the last six months and it's his turn to focus on Green Renters a bit more whilst I work (hopefully) to pay off some debts. Applying for jobs is always a bit soul destroying but fingers crossed. I'm also in the process of closing down my Polka Dot Rabbit shop to move the items over to Green Renters as appropriate, as they are all 'upcycled' products. It is too much work trying to promote two shops and the craft scene bubble has definitely burst.



I think this video is great, obviously the name of my blog and business makes it evident I love rabbits and find it quite abhorrent that they are seen merely as food by many rather than the engaging intelligent animals that they are.

*I really loathe the term 'hen's nights' I also dislike 'girls' as in 'girls' night in'. I wish more contemporarty terms were recognised!

Playing catch up on blogging....

I'm a rather behind blogger. I've been busy making things in time for Melbourne's Sustainable Living Festival where Green Renters is having a stall as part of the big weekend and running our life-sized board games (assuming they are finished in time) Rentopology and Sneaks and Ladders. We also have a stencil artist 'in residence' in our stall so people can bring along their calico bags, t shirts or other items and get them stenciled with a new design!


Chris dug up some fresh veggies this afternoon all set for making potato and beetroot mash. I love beetroot! Roast, boiled or eaten raw. Mashed with potato and Nuttlex and served with hot mustard, homemade capsicum and soy sausages, it's a definite treat.

We have loads of herbs in the garden at the moment: rosemary, parsley, basil, vietnamese mint, culinary mint, oregano and thyme. I put bags full out the front with a 'help yourself' sign at regular intervals.


We're also enjoying a bumper crop of strawberries on our breakfast cereal this season. Nothing like homemade produce! We've three Green Renters workshops coming up on making jams and preserves, one of which is booked out already. I'm looking forward to them to demonstrate that preserving is possible even in small spaces without a Fowler kit.


I've also a couple more skincare and bath products workshops coming up. They'll be held at Ross House, in Flinder Lane, Melbourne city and cost $50 full/$30 concession. I've done several practice rounds of each workshop now and tweaked a couple of recipes, bought extra equipment and I feel I've got them nicely polished. All materials and recipes included in each workshop and the ingredients are all vegan.

Here's a cute pic of Chris with Mr Pablo, our 15 year old cat. We adopted him last year and he's surprisingly spritely for an older gentleman!

Things I like today

This piece of guerilla art certainly evoked a lot of discuss on the Green Renters facebook page! It's by a street art collective called Mentalgassi in Berlin.




I love this whale print and this photo featuring it is simply lovely!



These dresses are stunning works of art! Just amazing! And such a good example of upcycling :)

I've been so grateful for the cooler weather this week as it gives me a chance to catch up on my sleep

Things I like today

Love this print! Can you name them all?

Love these word bubbles! There's even a tutorial...



Gorgeous sideboard from here


pic from here
I have one place left my next Make your own skin care products on January 22nd. Perhaps you'd like to come along?

Upcoming workshops: Make your own natural bath and skincare products

I've a few place left in the workshops if you're at a loose end this Sunday or looking for something to do on the 22nd:

Bathing products:
Date: Sunday January 8th
Time: 2pm-4pm
Location: Brunswick

We'll be making:

• bath bombs
• summertime body scrub
• cocoa bathtime melt
• moisturising facial mask

Skincare products:
Date: Sunday Jan 22nd
Time: 2pm-4pm
Location: Brunswick

We'll be making:

• lip balm
• gentle cleansing mask
• cooling hydrating mist
• facial cleanser

Cost of each workshop: $30
Bookings essential
http://www.greenrenters.org/workshops

In each workshop you'll learn about natural ingredients and get an opportunity to make several products using a range of materials including cocoa butter, essential oils and kaolin clay. All ingredients, containers and instructions are included in the workshop price and you will receive full sized products to take home for personal use. Class will include a cooling homemade cordial or glass of wine, homemade biscuits and a recipe list of products to take home.

Love to see you there!

Freiburg, Germany

Chris and I went to Freiburg at the culmination of our trip to Europe this year. It is really a simply stunning place, as well as one of the world's most sustainable cities. If you'd fancy the green lowdown you can read Chris' post here

Here's some lovely pics!

What have I been up to?

What I've been up to:

• Delivered two Eco-crafting workshops this week and four How to have a sustainable festive season workshops
• Made our Christmas tree!

• Got interviewed and photographed by The Age
• Chris and I ran a garage sale/pop up shop. Not wildly successful due to the weather but managed some decluttering nonetheless...
• Went to a winery tasting
  

Watching:
Lewis

Midsomer Murders

Eating
Chris' amazing crumbed spicy tofu...

Drinking
Red wine and lots of tea (hot and iced)!

Reading:

Listening:

End of year celebration - How to have a green festive season

Not quite full of Christmas cheer? Dreading another Christmas of tacky tinsel and podgy pudding? But there is another way you can enjoy seasonal festivities without the throw away toys and mountains of waste.

Join us to explore how you can make the festive season more environmentally friendly.

Topics include:

• Green entertaining and parties
• Sustainable drinks
• Decorations
• Gift giving the green way
• Dealing with non-green relatives
• And of course, how to cook an environmentally friendly Christmas lunch!

It'll be an evening of cheer with some musical entertainmen from Alana & The Age of Reasons, food and drink and a very special visitor....

Price will include one drink and nibbles, with more available to keep the festivities flowing for a donation. All attendees go in the draw to win a Bokashi Bin on the night! Bookings here

Are you interested in making your own natural beauty products?

Ever wanted to make your own beauty products? Want to use only natural (vegan) ingredients?

I'm going to offer two DIY natural beauty product workshops in late January at my home in Brunswick, Melbourne.

These will be in part 'practice' workshops before I offer them to Neighbourhood Houses and the like as part of our repertoire at Green Renters so I will only be charging $30 per person to cover costs with each class size kept small. It might be a little nervous and tad less polished than other classes, but it's a great opportunity for me to try out teaching the products and share knowledge and for you to get an opportunity to make your very own beauty products for a reduced price!

The two classes:
Make your own bathing products:


January 8th
2pm-4pm
Brunswick (address will be emailed to you upon payment)

Make your own bathing products – free from artificial ingredients and preservatives! You’ll blend pure essential oils and work with coconut butter, shea butter, sweet almond oil, rose buds, lavender flowers and other high-quality ingredients.

You'll learn to make your very own:

• bath bombs
• summertime body scrub
• cocoa bathtime melt
• moisturising facial mask

All ingredients, containers and instructions are included in the workshop price and you will recieve full sized products to take home for personal use. Class will include a cooling homemade cordial or glass of wine, homemade biscuits and a recipe list of products to take home.

Book here

Make your own skin care products:

Sunday January 22nd
2pm-4pm
Brunswick (address will be emailed to you upon payment)

Make your own full sized skin care products from high-quality, natural ingredients. Not only will you know exactly what’s in them, but you’ll blend ingredients to work beautifully with your own skin type.

You'll learn to make your very own:

• lip balm
• gentle cleansing mask
• cooling hydrating mist
• facial cleanser

All ingredients, containers and instructions are included in the workshop price and you will recieve full sized products to take home for personal use. Class will include a cooling homemade cordial or glass of wine, homemade biscuits and a recipe list of products to take home.

Book here

Photo details: La Bain (The Bath) (1913)From "Modes et Manieres d'Aujourd'bui"By Charles Martin

What have I been up to?

This year for the first time in several years, I am not doing any christmas crafty markets. Basically I was overseas when the call went out and I missed it completely! I'm quite annoyed with myself!

What I'm watching:

The Hour

and



We Need to Talk about Kevin (I preferred the book, predictably)

What I'm reading:


The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
Live to Tell by Lisa Gardiner


Things I'm busy organising:



Green Renters Garage sale/pop up shop (date TBC) and our Sustainable Christmas event. If you're in Melbourne, I'd love to see you at both, all funds go towards our work at our little not for profit.

I went camping on the weekend and there was so much mud! But it was great to have an enforced technology break for a few days!

I'm also busy making comic wallets, working on a very special embroidery project for the new year and enjoying lots of (cheap cleanskin) red wine whilst I impatiently wait for the veggie patch to grow! I've attempted to make my beloved hydrangeas turn blue (with limited success) and I have a veggie pie in the oven right now.

So yeah, life is pretty good.