Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

April 22, 2011 is National Earth Day.  This year, Earth Day's theme is themed after A Billion Acts of Green.  The Earth Day Network is asking people to help the organization reach their goal of one billion acts of green.  They are asking you to contribute today by showing your commitment to the Earth by sharing an act of green.  So if you are looking to save the planet or if you are just getting started, here are several fun and creative ways to give back to Mother Earth.  

1. Start a Garden. You can start a garden just about anywhere, like a small square patch in the backyard or a flowerpot on a balcony or windowsill. I just started my garden a few weeks ago and I planted a few different herbs and vegetables.  What’s in my garden?  I planted basil, green onions, parsley, chives, cucumbers and green peppers and I’m slowly watching them grow.   Here is a picture of my little home garden.  I’m very excited and I can’t wait to cook with some of these herbs.  

2. Plant a Tree.  One great way to start planting trees is becoming a member of the Arbor Day Foundation.  Check out the website here for more information.  As a thank you gift for your membership, you can get 10 free trees to plan in your yard or send to someone else as a gift. 

3. Recycle Craft Project. There are tons of craft projects for Earth Day, but this one from Anthropologie looks fun.  Anthropologie is hosting cork crafting and potting classes for adults and children.  Check here to find a workshop at a local Anthropologie.  Also, starting April 22nd, Anthropologie will donate ten cents to charity each time you go bag-free.  The donations will be divided equally among EarthCorps and The Chez Paniss Foundation’s Edible Schoolyard. 

4. Reusable Grocery Bag.  Help the environment by using a canvas tote bag at the grocery store instead of plastic bags. 

5. Energy Light Bulbs.  If you want to save money on your energy costs every month, buying new light bulbs is probably the easiest way.  I know that purchasing energy efficient light bulbs are a little more expensive than your average light bulb, but it’s worth it in the long run.  If every household in the U.S. replaced one light bulb with a Compact Fluorescent Light Bulb (CFL), it would prevent enough pollution to equal removing one million cars from the road.  CFLs last about eight times as long as incandescent bulbs. They only need to be replaced every five to six years.  CFLs use ¼ the energy of an incandescent light bulb.

6. Turn Off the Lights.  Turn off the lights when they are not in use.  I know my co-workers in my office must think that I’m crazy, because I turn off the lights in the office all of the time. It drives me nuts when people leave the office for the day, and the lights are still on.  I think that it’s really it important to conserve electricity - think how much money you can save.

7. Recycle.  You can recycle and/or reuse many items such as batteries, cell phones, computers and of course paper to name a few.  I found a great article from Real Simple magazine titled “How to Recycle Anything.”  It’s an A-to-Z guide of what can be tossed into which recycle bin – check it out here.

OXOX Natasha

DIY: Diaper Cake

Hi everyone…I hope that you are having a great week so far.  I mentioned earlier this week that I would post some instructions on how to make a diaper cake.  Unfortunately, I don’t have step by step pictures, but hopefully you'll find these instructions to be informative.  Below is a list of all of the ingredients that you will need to create a diaper cake.  

Ingredients:

• 60 Diapers: (depends on how big the cake is) I used one package of stage 2 diapers (the smaller the diaper, the more diapers you will need for the cake). You can use either white or patterned diapers.
• Ribbons: ½ or 1 inch wide and ¼ inch wide (any width is fine), patterned to fit the baby shower theme i.e. pastel blue or pink.
• 36-60 Small Rubber Bands (depending on how you want to “build” the cake)
• 1 Package of Large Rubber Bands

• 1 Roll of Double Sided Tape

• Scissors
• 2 Baby Bottles (8-oz.)
• A Large Piece of Cardboard or A Large Plastic Cake Platter
• Cake Decorations: artificial flowers, pacifiers, wash cloths, baby hygiene products, toys or any baby items that could fit on the cake. 

Instructions:

Step One: Roll Up Diapers

Take all of the diapers out of the package and roll each diaper up tightly, tucking in the tab design.  After you roll a diaper, then place a rubber band in the center. When finished, each diaper should look like a rolled up diploma.

Step Two: Prepare the Base

Cut out a circle or a rectangle from a cardboard box.  The cut out should be large enough to place your baby diaper cake on. Wrap it with paper or tin foil.  Or you can use a plastic cake platter or serving platter.  Securely tape both of the baby bottles together placing one on top of the other and remove the bottle cover and nipple.  Then secure the bottom bottle to the middle of the cardboard box or cake plate. 

Step Three:  Assemble the Bottom Layer of the Cake

Take a large rubber band around the baby bottle and gather a few of the rolled up diapers and stand up long ways, going around the baby bottle.  Gather more diapers and assemble the diapers around the first ring and secure the ring with a large rubber band.  This completes the second ring.  For the outer ring, gather a few more diapers and go around one last time and secure with a large rubber band.  This completes the third ring and the bottom layer of the cake.  Take the ribbon and go all the way around the entire layer.  Make sure the ribbon covers the rubber bands. Cut ribbon long enough to go around the bottom layer of the cake.  I used two types of ribbons because I couldn’t find a ribbon that said it’s a boy.

Step Four: Assemble the Top Layer of the Cake

To assemble the top layer place the diapers on top of the bottom layer.  For the first ring of the top layer, gather a few diapers and place them around the baby bottle.  Secure the first ring with a large rubber band. For the second ring, gather a few diapers around the first ring.  Secure the second with a large rubber band.  The top layer has only two rings. Gather ribbon around the entire top layer, making sure to cover the rubber bands. Cut the ribbon long enough to go around the top layer of the cake.

Step Five: Decorate Cake

 
Tuck flowers, pacifiers, wash cloths, baby hygiene products, and toys between the layers.  Secure the items with double sided tape.  Place some flowers inside the opening of the baby bottle and cover any spaces of the bottle with flowers.

Here are some pictures of two diaper cakes that I made recently: 

I hope that was helpful.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

OXOX Natasha

  

DIY: Knitting 101

I taught myself to knit in 2005 with the help of a couple knitting books and online videos.  I decided that I wanted to expand my blog and share my needlework with all of you.   I thought that this would be a fun way to let people know what I’m working on.  I enjoy using all sorts of knitting and sewing tools, patterns, and yarns.  I also enjoy the process of creating handmade items that create style, comfort, and warmth for both the home and individuals.

Unfortunately, I only know how to make scarves and baby blankets.  I currently consider myself a knitting novice.  Even though I started this hobby a few years ago, I stopped knitting for about 3 years when I went to graduate school.  I have started many projects, but I haven’t finished them.  My hope is to learn more difficult knitting techniques and finish the projects that I previously started.  I also hope to inspire other women to start a new craft.  I plan on letting you all know about some of the projects that I’m working on and then post my finished projects for you all to see.

I mentioned in one of my earlier posts that I was knitting a scarf for my sister as one of her Christmas presents.  However, I didn’t get it finished in time.  In fact, I’m kind of still working on it.  I’m using my last ball of yarn, so I should be able to post the finished product real soon.  In the meantime, here is a picture of what it’s supposed to look like.

Please check out the “Do It Yourself” page for video links if you are interested in learning how to knit.