DIY Digest - 21 Thoughtful DIY's Throughout the Years

After several years of making tiny changes, its easy to forget how far we've come, and how those little changes add up. This year, I'll be doing a few posts to remind us of the posts of the past, and all the cool ways we've learned to save money, save the planet, all while having fun and looking fabulous. 

Today, let's look back at the awesome DIY projects we've done, from crafts, to mending, and more. 

1. Corks are great for crafting - we made trivets.  

2. Seasonal shopping bags make great wall art. 

3. We acquired secondhand fabric for sewing gift bags from Re-Creative. 

4. We propagated many new succulents from a single plant. (The offspring are still around 3 1/2 years later!)

5. A stained old concert tee gets a second life as a reusable shopping bag. 

6. Cut up TP tubes become festive snowflake and poinsettia ornaments. 

7. A quick-sew project converts an old bed sheet into a laundry hamper liner. 

8. Leftover cardboard (coffee sleeves, TP tubes, and a box) made the best gift for my cat. 

9. And old t-shirts made great rope toys for my dog.  

10. Scrap cardboard made a birthday cake piñata for Mom's birthday.

11. The family came together for a group DIY, turning scrap lumber and paint into cornhole boards for family weekends.  

12. A quick coat of paint gave us a refreshed doormat for the next year.

13. We turned a mason jar and some scrap fabric into a cute sewing kit.  

14. A balloon from one holiday becomes wrapping paper for the next.  

15-18. There have been several years of upcycled Halloween costumes: 

    2017: Ursula

    2019: Rock Lobster

    2020: Tacocat

     2022: Klimt painting Adele Bloch-Bauer 

19. Mending (visible or hidden) allows you to extend the life of your clothing. 

20. We repaired a cracked bowl with the kintsugi method.

21.And just recently, we made an epic, crazy, oversized snowglobe. 

Reused Rugs

Hello lovelies! I've been away the last couple weeks, working on some fun redecorating projects at home. After being in our house for 10 years, it was time for some minor repairs, and while we were at it, some refreshed paint and accents.

A main objective for me was to finally decorate my home office. 3 years into the new COVID world, and the realization has hit that work from home is, in fact, my new normal, and I should make my space more comfortable than just a desk in a corner.

The task at hand? To add vibrant, mood-boosting colors to energize my workdays. 

I was thrilled when I found this rug on Facebook Marketplace for just $40. The lowest "new" price I found was $85 at Overstock.com, including a President's Day sale discount. The original owner was selling this rug in like-new condition because they were moving out of state. Once you sift through all the sponsored ads, Facebook can be a great option for purchasing (and selling!) used housewares.

The bold oranges, hot pinks, yellows, and blues compliment the variety of throw pillows I have, and the gallery wall I was putting together with prints from artists I've encountered over the years.

The best part? The rug was immediately Meeko-approved.

Saving 53%+ on a gently used rug? Pretty sweet. Creating an energizing work space that's comfortable for me and my "co-workers"? Priceless.

Reused Rainbows 🌈

Folks, it's January. In Seattle. And in that winter dreariness, you just look for that rainbow to appear, which means there's a spot of sun through the clouds. T and I were driving around last week, and on our way home, we spotted the lucky double rainbow.

And immediately following that, I spotted this gem of a sweater in my size on thredUP. Soft, fuzzy, and bright, it will keep me happy and cozy for the rest of the winter. 

I love the subtle bell-shape on the sleeves. Between the shape and my short stature, these sleeves can easy double as mittens when I want to be extra cozy.

thredUP routinely has sales, so while this was already a great price at $34.99, it was a steal at just $19.24 (91% off) after discount code. 

Hope you're all staying warm and cheerful this winter!

Pela: Your Plastic-free Compostable Phone Case

Well, this was the year. The year to finally upgrade my smartphone. At over 4 years old, it had lived twice the lifespan of its planned obsolescence, and was starting to slow down. 

This may be obvious, but the easiest way to save your wallet and the planet is to keep your smart phone as long as you can past its contract period. Smart phones contain rare earth elements that cause eco-destruction through mining, and by keeping your phone 4 years vs 2, you've reduced your impact by 50%. 

Further, make sure to trade in your previous phone. Verizon was willing to give me $800 credit for my old phone towards my $1200 new phone, and they will refurbish or recycle the old one. 

So now that I had a new phone, I needed a new protective case. (Another pet peeve: companies not making devices the same size so they can sell more accessories...)

Pela phone cases are an interesting option: they are made out of bioplastic and flax, and are 100% compostable. I've been following Pela for a few years, but when I purchased my last phone they didn't offer a lot of options, primarily being available for iPhones. They are now available in quite a variety of colors and designs, and for iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, and Google Pixel phones. 

Check out this beauty I ordered! 

The case arrived in a minimal paper envelope. Even better, you can send your old case back in the same envelope for proper disposal!

The case itself came with no product packaging. And if you follow the link to pela.earth/track, you'll learn all sorts of cool initiatives Pela is involved in (beyond the fact that their case sales to date have saved the equivalent of 63 million plastic bags!).

At $60, these cases are at the high end of the average price range, the same price as OtterBox. You can feel good about free shipping and new visitor discounts. 

Learn more at https://pelacase.com/.

BEAUTYCYCLE those Bottles, Tubes, and Palettes

Did you receive a new eyeshadow palette for the holidays with 2023's hottest new shades, and want to move on from last year's colors? Or are you taking advantage of the new year to clean out your bathroom cupboards for a fresh start? Or perhaps there was that moisturizer you tried that you didn't like, so it just got stale in the back of the drawer?

Beauty products are often super hard to recycle correctly or at all. If you're thinking that your shampoo bottle is entirely plastic, and therefore gets recycled, check again. 

Take a look at both your item's package and review your municipality's rules. Do they limit you to certain markings (ex. #1 and #5 plastic)? Or certain container shapes and sizes (ex. greater than 3" diameter round bottle)? 

You may find that your package isn't just glass or plastic, or it has no recycle marking, or is too small. And if you threw it in the recycling, you were Wishcycling. Or like me: you've given up on anything without a marking and threw it straight in the trash.  

Nordstrom wants to help. They've created BEAUTYCYCLE, a program that involves take back boxes for your empty makeup, hair care, and skin care packages. Then they do the hard work of sorting, cleaning, and separating to make sure the materials get recycled. You'll find these boxes in the beauty departments of Nordstrom stores, and you may also find them at the entrance of your local Nordstrom Rack.

The boxes are labeled with what all they take, so do one last check before depositing your empties in the box. (Yes, please get your containers mostly empty first.)

As examples, this type of eyeshadow palette could go in! (A mix of plastic and metal and too small for traditional recycling.)

Or this small primer tube. (Multi-layer plastic and foil.)

Or even this larger moisturizer pot. (Large enough for standard recycling, but thick multi-layers and no marking.)

They are taking aggressive goals to take back 100 tons by 2025, and per Nordstrom Cares, they've made good progress as of 2021:

Why does it all matter? Because over 120 Billion (yes with a "B") of beauty units are made every year. 

So best possible option? Choose products that come in cardboard packaging; this may mean switching to products like solid shampoo and soap bars. 

Have a favorite brand that you don't want to switch from? Message the company to appeal to them to switch out their packaging. If they don't hear from customers, they don't know if matters to you. We're starting to see more and more brands switch to updated options like "less plastic" and "refillable", and it's because of consumer appetite for better options.

In the interim? Bring your glass, plastic, and metal, and mixed material packages to a Nordstrom near you and BEAUTYCYCLE. Learn more here.

Last Year Reflections, and New Year Resolutions

 2022 was our biggest year yet, Thoughtful Consumers, with 39 posts. Do you feel like you've made a difference, or picked up some new good habits? After several years of trying to make small, personal changes, I've realized just how much they can add up, especially when you look at all of the things we don't give ourselves credit for... for example, the thrifted jeans from years ago, that are still giving me value today. 

Let's remember all the awesome things we did in 2022: 

Food Waste:

• We reduced packaging and stale, old spices by combining some bulk basics into our own spice blends. 
• Saving the liquid from a can of chickpeas meant we got a 2 recipes for the price of one: hummus from the chickpeas, and ranch dressing from the leftover aquafaba. 
• Saved corn cobs, crab shells, and shrimp shells made the most flavorful broth as the bi-product of other meals.
• Using the whole vegetable helped me maximize the value of my grocery run - my broccoli stems became a new bowl of soup!
• Choosing the right right recipe let us eat whole lemons (yep, the skins too!) and whole fennel (chop the fronds like any herb) for a flavorful, no waste meal. 
• The heel of a loaf of bread gained new purpose - keeping our sweets fresh!
• Those end-of-season tomatoes became this winter's tomato sauce. 
• A cheesy cream sauce made a refreshing twist on my Thanksgiving leftovers.
  

Fashion: 

• Being intentional with outfit completion helped us make the most of our existing wardrobe and saved us $48. 
• We got out of our remote-office athleisure, and put on some "real" clothes, all while saving $52. 
• Reliving 90s prom the second time around called for a second-hand gown (saving $30!) and choker.
• Brand name clothes didn't break the bank (we saved $161!) with a combo of thrifting and gifting. 
• Buy Nothing provided me with $125 quality sandals to start my summer off supported and in style.
• We were able to emulate our style icon while saving $15, due to thrifting.  
• Poshmark helped me save $20 while copying the look of a co-worker. (Imitation is flattery, right?)
• We extended the life of our favorite boots, one more time, by repairing them with Shoe Goo. 
• Shopping with a friend led me to save $44 on a fierce critter-print dress. 
• We served our less-flashy, but Brooklyn 99-inspired best looks, and saved $103. 
• The 90s revival was strong when we saved $121 on a houndstooth capelet.
  

DIY: 

• Restoring my front doormat was a fun craft project that saved me $20, and brightened my home.
• An old mason jar and some scrap material turned into a cute sewing kit. 
• Last year's birthday balloon was this year's wrapping paper, saving $3+.
• A best-ever thrifting trip helped me save $320 on a gown to use for my Halloween costume, but using removable adhesive allowed my to use the gown well beyond Halloween. 
• Some sealant and gold pigment extended the life of a favorite bowl, in the Japanese kintsugi style.
• We learned how to (and how not to!) make a DIY snowglobe from a reused jar. 
  

Company Spotlights: 

• We learned that Lego is making a difference through donate/reuse programs and well as creating new plant-based plastics pieces. 
• A trip to Portland led me to Mama and Hapa's, an awesome refill store for all your household cleaners and bath products. 
• A volunteer day with Clean the World taught us about re-manufacturing hotel soaps to make new soaps for refugees. 
• Taco Time NW serves up sustainability realness (in addition to delicious tacos), through their 100% compostable serviceware and carbon neutrality initiatives. 
• Benziger Winery's tram tour taught us all about biodynamic farming and keeping the land grape-ready for generations to come. 
• San Pellegrino hosts a great website and series of short videos promoting tips against food waste, disguised as an entertaining competition between top chefs!
• We learned about Brightly, a company that makes all sorts of eco-friendly home goods, including the unique Wishcloth greeting card. 

Other: 

• We used our Ridwell subscription to get rid of non-traditional recyclable items, including plastic film, batteries, lightbulbs, old eyeglasses, cell phones, wine corks, and more!
  
• Public transport saved us $96+ vs taxis while on vacation and was a great way to explore a new city with unlimited rides. 
• We completed a trash audit for Earth Day to identify where we could make our biggest changes. 
• The reopening of coffee-shop lobbies and loosening of policies post-COVID allowed the return to reusable mugs, saving us $.10 each visit. 
• We eliminated giant plastic jugs from our laundry routine by switching to Dropps. (And not written about, but we were so pleased, we also swapped our dish detergent later in the year!)
• We explored designer resale as one of several options to make better choices during the holiday shopping season. 
• A trip through Whidbey Island and Anacortes helped us find several great shops, both vintage/antique and those with new eco-friendly products. 

All in all, we saved over $1158, all while saving food waste, fashion waste, packaging waste, fuel, and more. 

In 2023, we'll double down, continuing with the new habits we've formed over the last few years, and discovering new ways to improve our own impact, as well as companies who we should support.

 

 

From Junk to Jar Gift

It started innocently enough. I've been keeping glass jars out of my recycling for possible reuse. And with the holiday season approaching, I just knew I could use a couple for gifts. Hot cocoa kit? Cookie baking kit? Sewing kit? After wracking my brain, I decided I wanted to make some snowglobes.

This turned into a long lesson on how to (and how *not to*) make a DIY snowglobe.

First step, head to the thrift shops and find cute little toys or figurines to create the scene. I left Goodwill with an awesome white glossy rearing unicorn. Dubbed "Ulrich", the unicorn started at $5, but since it was discount day for blue tags, he was marked down to just $3. This adventure is starting out strong. 

This is the eventual majestic snowglobe:

Ulrich comes home with me, and the next step is choosing the right jar to put him in. I try the largest spaghetti sauce jar... then the largest pickle jar... and to my dismay, none of my many saved jars are big enough. I rack my brain... maybe a large Adams peanut butter jar. I would totally use more peanut butter, and could divvy it up into some of my smaller jars. So I measure Ulrich, and I'll need a minimum 3" jar opening, and 7" height. 

On to the grocery store with my measuring tape. I go from aisle to aisle, measuring the pickled artichoke hearts, and the bulk dill pickles, and finally getting on my knees in the grocery store to measure the Adams peanut butter. Nothing is larger than 6" tall! <sob>

Finally, I cave, head to Michael's, and purchase a giant, half-gallon Mason jar. Lesson 1: the knick-knacks for inside your snow globe need to be much smaller than you think!

Now that I've aquired my jar and unicorn, I can start assembling. Ulrich is adhered to the lid with some waterproof silicone sealant. Pro tips: 1) make sure your adhesive is waterproof, 2) apply in a well ventilated room (such as a bathroom with the fan on), and 3) make sure you know the curing time (this one takes 24 hours).

You can decorate the lid if you want to cover any branding or just to embellish for fun. Metallic or sparkly nail polish work great.

Once your scene is secure and cured, you can start adding liquid and "snow". To make your snow fall slower, you'll add some glycerin. Glycerin is a moisturizing, vegetable-based product that is used in soaps and lotions.

You'll only need a small amount, so save to use by itself as a moisturizer, or add to other DIY bath and body projects.

Next, figure out what you want your "snow" to be. Pay attention. I learned *all* the lessons. :-D

The first thing I tried was some rainbow mylar confetti that I had leftover from previous events. What glorious unicorn doesn't want to be surrounded by rainbow? Lesson 2: test your glitter for color-fastness. The mylar was not color-fast and quickly became a purple soupy mess.

I next tried some fine silver glitter. Lesson 3: Fine glitter combined with the water and glycerin will clump.

I finally landed on some course white and irrisdescent glitter. Next: to get the proportions of water, glycerin, and glitter right. One online source suggested 1 cup water to 1 tbsp glycerin and 1 tbsp glitter. This was substantially to slow-falling and too cloudy. I suggest you start with 1 cup: 1 tsp: 1 tsp. Close and shake your jar to test, then add more glitter if you want, and more glycerin if the snow is falling too fast. 

With a white unicorn and white glitter, we needed a pop of color. I painted on some rainbow stripes on the back side of the jar, and when dry, sealed with Mod Podge.

If you are concerned about the jar leaking, you can also glue the lid onto the jar, using a little of the same waterproof sealant from above on the threads.

The final result? Ulrich in a snowy magical wonderland.

Hopefully my lessons learned above will make your snowglobe journey much smoother! Looking for other ideas?

Safeway had these adorable candy jars available around Halloween. These could be created for any season by painting a seasonal character on and filling with your favorite candy. Or leave some of the jar unpainted and put in a small candle.

Alternatively, my brother received this yummy homemade granola as a gift. Minimal jar decorating needed, outside of a personalized label.

What are your favorite ways to reuse glass jars?