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Homekeeping. Rebecca's Cure: This One Nearly Killed Me! Liveblogging the January Cure 2014. This assignment is tough!

Rebecca's Cure: This One Nearly Killed Me! Liveblogging the January Cure 2014

I don’t care how clean or organized you think your kitchen already is. If you do this task properly you are going to find dirt and disorder where you never imagined it, and your arms and legs will be like jelly from all that cleaning and rearranging. I got through it with black coffee, sugary snacks, Doris Day and lots and lots of vinegar. I am a new and zealous convert to the cleaning powers of vinegar. That stuff is magic. Pretty disgusting. I’d love to say the vinegar plus a green oven cleaner cut right through the muck in the oven, but it didn’t. Once I was through with the cleaning, I had a major sort out.

Maxwell advises you get rid of 25% of your stored foods, discarding anything old or unlikely to be used. I swept away all the random clutter of playmobil figures, cat comb, tick removers, etc and dug out my old weighing scales instead. Craft Beer Bottle Tumbler DIY Stylelist. Indoor Window Box Ideas. Organization Inspiration: 10 Wonderful Workspaces from Our Tours. 15 Crazy Ideas to Make Your Life Saner. Don't knock it til you try it, the saying goes, and in this case it applies.

15 Crazy Ideas to Make Your Life Saner

While some of the things I'm suggesting might sound insane or perhaps a little (okay, a lot) OCD, they're tricks that work, and hey, isn't that really the bottom line? Keep a marker in the freezer: If you're the type of person who cooks a lot and freezes the leftovers, or someone who likes to buy in bulk, keeping a marker in the freezer might mean the difference between "what is this?

" and "here's the pasta sauce I made last summer when the tomatoes were at their peak". Use it to label and date whatever you're freezing. Bonus: no more frozen mysteries, no more wondering where to find a marker to label stuff. Collect pint size versions of your favorite toiletries and store them in your suitcase: This is one of those silly ideas that I used to scoff at until the TSA changed the rules and mini became the rule.

Pack up your beach or ski stuff: As for traveling, so for sports. Got any crazy tricks of your own? Downsizing Design: 5 Tips for Planning Your Smaller Living Room. The Simple Styling Trick that Instantly Makes Any Room Look Neater. How To Drill Holes in Plant Pots. Previous image Next image Sometimes the planters we like don't come with drainage holes.

How To Drill Holes in Plant Pots

I'm sure we all have them: plant pots sans drainage hole(s). Sure, sometimes they can be perfectly fine as a decorative piece. But if you want something living inside it, you will need a second, hidden planter inside that does have drainage holes. What You Need MaterialsA clean planter in need of a drainage holeSmall amount of waterTarp (optional) ToolsDrill, fully charged (mine is a hammer drill)Diamond hole saw kit (can be purchased at Home Depot or other online retailers for around $20)Hammer Instructions 1. 2. You Can Do It! First-Time Vegetable Gardening for the Black-Thumbed. Some of you may feel like no matter what you try to grow, it dies.

You Can Do It! First-Time Vegetable Gardening for the Black-Thumbed

Too much water, not enough water, too much sun, too much shade, or… it just dies for no reason at all. This has been my experience with gardening for a long time, and when I tried to grow a vegetable garden for a few years in a row, it was a total disaster. I fought a never-ending battle with weeds — and lost. Bugs ate more vegetables than I did those summers, and "working in the garden" involved lots of standing and squinting, hands on hips, uttering curse words under my breath.

Cut to the past two summers — minimal weedings, efficient worry-free watering, easy pest control… and a picturesque bounty of gorgeous vegetables! 2. Sunset has an excellent tutorial on building a raised bed; the final project is about 8' x 4' and costs about $175 to build yourself. 3. 4. 15 Repurposed Planters: Just Add Dirt. How To Make An Oil Can Planter. Use Folk Wisdom to Keep Your Food Fresh Architizer.

How To Make a Ladybug Feeder & Attract Them to Your Garden. Last week, I showed how you can make natural pesticides for your plants.

How To Make a Ladybug Feeder & Attract Them to Your Garden

While these sprays pose less risk than the toxic ones, they also rid your plant of beneficial insects like the ladybug. How to Make Modern Cement Planters Using Packaging. Previous image Next image Make this planter!

How to Make Modern Cement Planters Using Packaging

I started making these eco planters for gifts a year ago and haven't stopped. They are simple, stylish and downright lovable. Each pot is unique and has an organic, handmade feel. The "4 Spots" Rule for Easy Moving Days Renters Solutions. Moving out is stressful! Packing everything up so it won't break and knowing you have to unpack everything again can be a real energy drain.

What makes moving out of a rental even worse? Having to spend hours, potentially having to douse a part of your home in chemicals, just to clean a spot you neglected while you were there. Certainly you should be aiming for an all-over clean house all year long, but after years of moving in and out of plenty of places, we've noticed a pattern. There are four spots that, if neglected throughout our stay, were absolutely heck to clean.

How To Clean Your Toilet. Best Natural Toilet Cleaners. The Story of Keep Calm and Carry On. Save Your Plants With Soda Pop Bottles Blomsterverkstad. 20 Small Kitchens with Style Inspiration Roundup.