All Natural Pesticide Recipe

Our veggie garden is doing pretty well, but as was to be expected, the bugs have found out about it and are happily eating away at all my hard work! So, what is a girl to do? Make some pesticide soup!

Some pest this spray will repel are ants, aphids, cowpea curculio, flea beetle, japanese beetle, mexican bean beetle, spider mites, squash vine borer, harlequin bug.

What you will need:
1 Large spray bottle (32 oz is good)
1 Fine strainer and cheese cloth
1 teaspoon neatural dish soap
1 Jalapeno
1/2 Large white onion
3-4 Cloves of garlic
4 1/4 Cups of water


Step 1: Roughly chop jalapeno (with seeds) and onion. Smash garlic with side of knife and palm, peel, and roughly chop. Blend jalapeno, onion, and garlic in food processor until mixture is almost a paste.

Step 2: Mix 4 1/4 cups of water and jalapeno mixture to pot. Bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Let cool.

Step 3: Place cheese cloth over fine strainer. Pour cooled water mixture over cheese cloth and into container. I used a 4 cup Pyrex measuring cup with spout so I could easily pour into spray bottle.

Step 4: Add soap and transfer to spray bottle. Keep refrigerated up to two weeks.

Important information!
- Make sure to use this on plants that are not wilted. If you have wilted plants, make sure to water them well the night before use.
- Do not use in mid-day or direct sunlight. Wait until either early morning or evening. Using during the afternoon sun could damage your plants more.
- Make sure to spray the undersides of the leave as that is where all the little buggies like to hide.
- The first use should be light, just to see how your plants will react.

Happy pest repelling!

Crocheted Circle Necklaces

I have been working on some new items for my shop! I will be getting out of the reclaimed yarn business, and moving into more crochet and sewn items. Reclaiming yarn is a pain in the A.S.S.

I plan on posting a tutorial on these simple crocheted necklaces in the near future, so stay tuned...

Grilled Stuffed Calamari

Say what you want about Martha Stewart, but you can't deny she has amazing recipes and fantastic entertaining ideas. A good friend of mine got me a subscription to Everyday Food, and recently I got myself a subscription to Whole Living (Body + Soul) magazine...a year subscription for only $10! Who says the magazine industry is dead? I don't know what I would do without either.

Anyway, the point of me telling you this is that the Whole Living website, has a great catalog of recipes. I found a recipe to Grilled Stuff Calamari and it was paired with a Fresh Bean Salad. The bean salad calls for fava beans. I will not be using them again...what a pain is the A.S.S. But, both recipes have a citrus twist to them, so they work wonderfully together!

It was our first time cooking squid. I did the prepping and my husband did the grilling. All in all it was a great meal that looks a lot harder that it actually was. Definitely worth a try. Happy grilling!

Crochet Today July/August 2010

Just got my Crochet Today magazine in the mail today! So excited about the jewelry section. My newest "can't wait to do" projects are:

Have you gotten your issue yet? What projects are on your "can't wait to do" list?

Wishlist Wednesday - Lorenzo

I only have one wish for this Wednesday's Wishlist...Lorenzo the Cat's shop on Etsy! Not only do I love love love Maine Coon Cat's, but this one looks extra precious...I just want to sqeeeeeze him! What do you think of Lorenzo?

Rasta Cat 5 x 7 Print

Real Men Wear Pink 4 x 6 Print

Americana Cat Greeting Card

Clothespin Bag Tutorial

Because we are trying to be "greener," we ordered the Sunshine Clothes Dryer from G&G Industries. It's American made and really big. Bigger than I thought it was going to be. Well, of course I would need to make a cute clothespin bag to go with my new clothesline!


What you will need:
1 - 18.5" x 37" piece of fabric (if it is directional, make sure the pattern is running parallel to the 18.5" side)
1 - Fat Quarter to make bias tape
Hanger (I used a metal one because that is what we have extra of, but any hanger will do)
Rotary cutter
Quilting ruler
Pins
Pencil or chalk marker
Template for opening (download here)


Step 1: Print out and cut out template. Find center of main fabric on 18.5" side. Press for crease. Either use folded template by lining up folded edge of fabric to folded edge of template, or open fabric and place full template crease to crease. Either way make sure the top of the template lines up with the top of your fabric. See below. Trace and cut out.

Step 2: Make bias tape from fat quarter fabric. Great tutorial found here. Cut strips 2" wide. These will fold to 1/5". You will need approximately 27" of bias tape.

Step 3: Sew bias tape around opening, starting from top, around the bottom, and back up. Trim any extra bias tape, making it flush to top of main fabric.


Step 4: Fold fabric in half (wrong side out and opening up). Make sure the bottom overlaps the top by 1/4". This will be folded over and sewn for a clean seam across the back behind the hanger. Cut off top corners to fit your hanger, adding a 1/4".



Step 5: Sew 1/4" seam along top center section of back (where it was overlapped in previous step).

Step 6: Fold fabric in half (wrong side out and opening up) again, making sure all sides match. Sew both sides and top. Turn right side out and push out corners.

And there you have it! A simple and cute clothespin bag for your clothesline. Now...go be green!

Pico De Gallo Recipe

Since we eat quesadillas at least once a week, I like to spice things up sometimes with homemade pico de gallo. I got this recipe from owners of a Mexican restaurant, and it's pretty darn good!

You will need:
2 tomatoes, diced (I like firmer ones. Really ripe tomatoes will make it soupy)
1/2 red onion, diced (I used white since that was all I had on hand)
1/2 jalapeno pepper, diced (Add more if you like it spicier)
1/2 lime, juiced
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 - 2 Tablespoons beer
3 - 4 Tablespoons cilantro, chopped (I omitted this because I didn't have any on hand)
Black pepper to taste

I don't have a juicer, so I use tongs to juice the limes.

Mix all ingredients, and there you have it...yummy and fresh pico de gallo!

Vintage Goodies

Just thought I would share some pictures of the awesome vintage jewelry my mom scored for me the other week. She sent me a whole large shoe box full of some of the best finds. This is only a handful of some if it!


Not only does my mom have knack for finding some great deals, but she then (along with my step dad) sorts and organizes it for me. I have the BEST mom in the world!