I love cilantro! This is a good way to keep it fresh all year.
Erase Paint From Metal Fittings
Painting can be a messy business. If you’re not extremely careful, paint will go everywhere that you don’t want it to. A particularly common victim of getting-paint-on-it-accidentally are metal fasteners and fixtures– door hinges, locks, knobs, drawer pulls– anything tiny and hard to paint around. It’s hard to avoid GETTING paint on them, unless you extremely gifted with painter’s tape, but it turns out it isn’t too hard to remove the paint– without the use of harsh paint strippers. This guide by The Family Handyman explains how- All you need is a slow cooker! Just give the fixtures a bath:
If you want to strip paint from metal without the nasty fumes and mess of chemical strippers, just fill a slow cooker with water and set the dial to high. The heat and moisture will soften the paint, and often it will fall off as a single piece.
Growing A Mushroom Garden
Mushrooms are my guilty pleasure! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; I could probably live off nothing but mushrooms for the rest of my life and be happy! But, the concept of growing my own edible fungi is kinda intimidating. They’re not technically plants– so growing them seems like it would be totally different and way more challenging. However, while it is a little bit unusual, it’s not impossible if you know what you’re doing. This tutorial by Milkwood.net will show you how! All you need is some woodchip mulch, and some mushroom spore/spawn.
Step 1: dig your hole in a shady place
Step 2: add your woodchips
Step 3: take your bag of spawn and break it up
Step 4: sprinkle that spawn good.
Step 5: top with more semi-sterilized woodchips.
Step 6: in due course, the woodchips will be fully colonised and one morning after rain, you’ll be able to harvest the first of your delicious mushrooms. And eat them with herbs and butter and lemon.
Thrifty DIY Ways to Set Up Seedlings
If you’re trying to start up a small garden, you don’t have to go out and buy expensive terracotta pots! You don’t even need to have a large space– by planting seeds and seedlings in inexpensive (usually free) biodegradable containers, you save yourself money and valuable square footage. Check out this slideshow by Carla Wiking at Spoonful.com of eight creative seed containers that you probably already have in your house:
Eggshell seedlings- Using empty eggshells to plant seeds isn’t just cute, it’s also very beneficial for the plants.
Egg carton garden- Recycle post-Easter egg cartons by creating a spring seedling garden with kids.
Toilet paper roll seed starters- Recycling at it’s finest, these little “pots” can be planted right in the ground without disturbing those delicate roots.
Click through for tutorials and more ideas!
Getting Rid of Laminate on Cabinets
Having laminate on your kitchen or bathroom cabinets is okay at first, but after a few years of use (or of having destructive kids), they can get tired and peel off easily. Wouldn’t it be easier to just paint your cabinets the color you want them and be done with it? Well, this post by Kristen at kfddesigns will help you out! It includes a detailed tutorial on how to remove your cabinet doors, peel off all the laminate, and paint them! Check it out, plus some great photos of the finished result:
it took quite a bit of ripping, slicing, scraping and sanding to get it off!
thankfully, it peeled off pretty easily, and we got most of the fronts off within about 2 hours. as you can imagine, the surface underneath was perfect for applying paint – rough and fairly porous. Use paint that self primes and has a glossy finish!
How to Paint a Mini Fridge
If you’re like me, you hate being surrounded by bland things. I can’t stand just solid white walls, white fixtures, and white appliances. Or gray. Or metal. It’s just so boring! I need color. But how on earth do you add color to things like fridges? This post by Yahoo Lifestyle will brighten up your dorm (or your bar!) in an instant. Here’s how to spray paint a mini fridge:
-Clean fridge thoroughly
-Sand the glossy surface
-Mask anything you don’t want painted
-Spray paint with color of your choice! (Be safe! Spray outdoors or use a respirator)
-Wait 20 minutes for it to dry, then add another coat if desired.
Friday Fun Video: Dehydrating Garlic and Onions
A great way to save veggies for a long time!
Friday Fun Video: Easy Transplanting
Now is the time to plant indoor containers that you can transplant in the Spring
Low Tech Home Security
Maybe expensive security cameras, high tech lockdown devices, and gated communities make you sleep safer at night, but there are simpler measures you can take to deter the average burglar. As it turns out, the old school techniques that your grandpa uses tend to work pretty well. It’s pretty simple: burglars will avoid places that look like they’re occupied and don’t have anything worthwhile to steal. This post at Mom Prepares will help you beef up your home security, without spending a penny:
–DON’T leave spare keys hidden in obvious places – under flowerpots and doormats, or even above doorjambs.
–DO conceal electronics, valuables and other items that might be attractive to thieves by keeping your blinds and curtains closed.
–DO make it look like someone is always home. have your neighbors pick up your mail when you’re out of town, or buy a timer for your lights and TV.
–DON’T leave notes on your door telling friends, family or delivery workers that you’re not home.
Here’s my own tip: if you are leaving the house empty for an extended period or vacation, DON’T post about it on Facebook or other social media until you get back. Make sure someone knows where you’re going, but advertising “Hey, my house is going to be empty and unprotected for a week! Come steal my stuff!” on Facebook is generally not a good idea.
Frozen Pipe Prevention
Where I live, we’re just now pulling out of a nasty cold snap. For about a week straight, the temperatures ranged from 6-20 degrees (F). We had to keep a fire going day and night, bring the dogs and potted plants in the house, and take a few special measures to make sure the pipes didn’t freeze. If you don’t already know the basics of frozen pipe prevention, this article by Chrysa at Thrifty Jinxy will definitely save you a lot of headaches. It also has some helpful advice on what to do if they are already frozen. I even learned a few new moves:
-You want to leave a small trickle of WARM water running out of all faucets to keep the pipes warm.
-Periodically run lots of hot water.
-Open the doors to the vanity or sink below the faucets
-Turn up your house heat a few degrees if you keep it low.