Natural Homemade Living

I love pillows! I'll buy them if they are on sale, oops I mean clearance. Pillows are a relatively inexpensive accessory to change for a new look when decorating your house. One of my first sewing projects was sewing a pillow. Even if you are a beginner, you can make a pillow. After the holidays are over, I like to redecorate and reorganize my house. So today was day 1 of changing some things around...and changing out some pillows. This afternoon while looking around at my favorite craft store, I spotted some soft, fluffy material on sale and I knew when I saw it, I would have to make a pillow! My granddaughters found some of their favorite material too so they also made a pillow. (Actually only one of them made the pillow while the other one was hanging out with her friends...kids are so cute!) I usually keep at least one or two bags of filling in my craft room so I only needed the material, $3.00 and $1.50. Depending on the width and the size of your pillow you can usually b

   I'm updating this post because only 2 days before Christmas I just had to add the finishing touch on my winter mantle. I shopped around and found some more shatterproof Christmas ornaments that match the wreath I had made earlier. I cut 2 pieces of ribbon and made 2 separate strands of garland. I strung each ball onto piece of ribbon and tied knots in both ends. I was thrilled the ornaments were on sale now so I stocked up! I used 96 balls to make the garland, $24 total which is so much better than the $149 price tag at one of stores that had the pre-made garland strands. Since I absolutely adore these colors, I'm happy as a clam! I made my own bow for the middle with some ribbon I already had. I like the Command hooks so I attached 1 on each end and 2 in the middle to the top of the mantle. I love love love the look! I wish you could see it in person, it's simply beautiful and so soft and shabby looking. The rest of the project you already know since I had previous

As promised, the post today is one of the most simple ways to make homemade soap. I have other recipes that are more complicated and time consuming but this is the perfect DIY gift project if you want to give something that you've made. It is getting down to the wire for us with projects and baking. It just wouldn't be normal for me if I actually didn't have too much to do! And then things start happening...like my computer is being weird and I don't like it, then last night the microwave stopped working in the middle of our bake-off. I have mixed feelings about replacing it, do I really need a microwave? Does everyone have a microwave? I don't know, we'll see what happens. Ok - back to the soap... now you know why my family tells me I get distracted easily, yep, I do - haha!! Supplies: Goats milk glycerin base soap (I got mine at Michael's) Essential oil of your choice Herbs or flowers, dried Soap coloring (optional)       Directions:

For the rest of this week we'll be posting some handmade and homemade gift ideas for all of you last minute gifters! I say this and laugh a little to myself because I am still finishing my knitting projects, sewing projects, baking projects, soap making projects and fifty other things that are on my "to do" list. Thankfully my oldest grand-daughter finished her project early so she is sharing her idea with you. We just finished making goat's milk soap, stay tuned we'll be posting that within the next couple of days. For a cute little gift project, I bought clear glass mugs at the dollar store or you could also use any glass mugs you already have. Place one serving of hot cocoa mix,  Simply Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix , in a baggie and tie the top with a ribbon. I hot glued 2 candy canes together to make a heart shape and placed them inside the mug. For the little mug warmer, I measured the circumference of the mug and subtracted an inch. If you are a beginner or ne

Cold temperatures and hot soup are a perfect combination for what seems like a never-ending winter! It's easy, delicious and filling and you can adjust the recipe for your taste. It only takes a few minutes to put everything together and if you make extra soup, it tastes even better the next day after all of the flavors have blended together. This recipe makes 6-8 servings. Ingredients : 1 pound ground beef, cooked and drained 1/2 c diced shallots or onion 1 can (14-1/2) oz diced tomatoes with juice 1 can (14-1/2) oz crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce 1/2 c water 1 can (15-1/2 oz) navy beans, drained and rinsed (or use black beans, pinto beans, kidney beans) 1 small can diced, green chili peppers 1 can drained whole kernel corn (any size can) 1 package taco seasoning 1 tsp chili powder 1/2 tsp hot sauce (I use Tabasco) 1/2 c. sliced black olives Brown ground beef and onions in a large pot over medium heat.  Add the rest of the ingredients and stir.  Heat until boil

We have our share of pie lovers in the family so when I suggested chocolate cream pie in addition to some fruit pies for dessert, I wasn't sure how they would feel about that. I was pleasantly surprised, they all wanted chocolate pie! I have issues with cream pies made with egg yolks so I make my chocolate pie filling without them. I always make homemade crust but you could use any crust. It also works great in a gluten-free graham cracker crust. And of course, top it off with a dollop of whipped cream! Homemade Pie Crust 1 1/4 c flour 1 tsp sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1/2 c butter, cold and into small pieces 4 T cold water I used my food processor for the pie crust but you can use a pastry cutter to mix your ingredients. I added all of the ingredients in the food processor and pulsed it a few times before I added the water. Add the water a little at a time, it should look a little crumbly, then it's done. Remove the dough with your hands and form it into a flattened ball. W