DIY home building isn’t just green; it’s can also be cheap. Check out this tiny house made largely from salvaged & recycled materials. Total cost: $300.
Search Results for: eco-home/energy-efficient-appliances/composting-toilets
20 Free Porch Swing Plans for Warmer Days
With beautiful weather upon us, there’s no better time to build your very own porch swing. Sure, you could purchase a porch swing that’s already assembled and finished — but you’d miss out on huge DIY benefits! A porch swing is a great entry-level building project for people with beginner to intermediate experience. You can
How To Get Rid Of Squirrels: Natural and Effective Options
Most people love squirrels, delighting in their antics as they scamper through the trees and across the landscape. However, many folks quickly change their view when an infestation of squirrels exceeds their level of tolerance. One moment we want squirrels, and the next we want to know how to get rid of squirrels. Our patience
How to Fix Absolutely Anything: The Instructables Guide to Home Repair
You don’t want to have to buy a new keyboard just because of one wonky key. You don’t want to have to buy a new pair of jeans just because of one hole (although if you do, give the old ones to me!). You don’t want to have to buy a new chair just because
27 Cheap Lunch Ideas
Whether you have a 9 to 5 job in an office or youโre someone who works from home, your stomach will inevitably start to grumble around midday. As a freelancer, I usually start to get hungry around noon, but I donโt always have a prepared lunch on hand. The best days are those when I
5 Ideas for Recycled DIY Christmas Wreaths
If you are looking for some fun DIY projects, why not try to create your own wreaths? There are a ton of great ideas floating around the Internet from people who have recycled items by turning them into interesting-looking decorations for their homes. These are five of the best recycled wreaths I could find.
Homestead Stories: Growing Vegetables Indoors
The growing season is too short and I long for fresh vegetables year-round. Whilst most supermarkets have fresh produce (at a price depending on where it came from), thereโs nothing quite like growing oneโs own food, indoors or out, and enjoying the benefits of the harvest. I have had considerable success growing lettuce and herbs
Safe Children’s Toys
safe wooden organic children’s toys
25 Bathroom Rugs
When you step out of your shower in the morning do you step on a towel, or even worse, the cold tile floor? Do you find yourself slipping around on the floor and leaving a trail of water everywhere? If this sounds a lot like your daily routine, you could probably benefit from a bathroom
17 Homemade Laundry Detergent Recipes To Save You Money
It wasnโt until I began my journey toward a more eco-friendly lifestyle, that I found out there are many things you can make yourself. Many common household items that you can make, will save you money and are good for the planet. If you take a look at the ingredients in major brands of laundry
Shed of the Year
Shed of the Year Contest
Outdoor Coffee Tables
Not only are coffee tables one of the biggest focal points of any room, but theyโre a highly functional piece of furniture that should be chosen wisely. They serve countless functions; holding books, magazines, cups, glasses, dinner, and letโs be honest, sometimes laundry. Related Post: Rustic Coffee Tables There is no reason why we shouldnโt
Concerns With Urban Animal Slaughter
Photo Credit by VeryGeeky. This article is a response to a Slate.com piece published by James McWilliams on June 6th, 2012. The article, titled “The Butcher Next Door: Why the rise of DIY urban animal slaughter is bad for people and animals,” tries to make the point that animal slaughter by untrained people in an
Insect Hotel
What Is An Insect Hotel? Insect hotels are winter lodgings for your backyard crawling and flying bugs. Usually made of found or upcycled materials around your yard, these hotels consist of different suites catered to each little bug’s preferred lodging taste. Most hotels are constructed with a strong protective frame of wood boards or pallets and
Raising Muscovy Ducks And Why You Probably Want Them
With their clawed feet, bizarre-looking caruncles, mohawk-like crest, and lack of quack, Muscovy ducks donโt quite fit the โbillโ (if you pardon the pun) for what you might consider a โnormal” duck. But on our homestead, these are the only ducks we want to keep because they have won our hearts with both their utility
Hell Hath No Fury Like a Mom with a Blog
Eleven ways that moms are leveraging social media to pursue the mom agenda. Itโs a self-evident truth that moms know best. Until recently, though, this knowledge was largely confined to the family unit. With the spread of social media such as blogs and social networks, the walls of motherly wisdom are coming down. Concurrently, the
The Watercone: A Simple, Effective Solar Still
In many parts of the world, lack of access to clean, potable water is a major issue. Water may be found nearby, but only in a brackish or polluted state. Areas close to the ocean may see miles of water, but not a drop to drink. UNICEF estimates that every day 5000 children die as
13 DIY Christmas Gifts
Whether youโre trying to avoid holiday shopping crowds or you simply want to spend more time creating unique presents this season, DIY Christmas gifts are heartfelt, fun to make, and personal. When you make a gift for someone, you donโt just invest in materials โ you invest time in the person. Check out the DIY
9 Flowering Trees To Consider
Flowering trees are available in a variety of sizes and shapes for almost any landscape application. Not only do deciduous flowering trees bring visual impact and beauty to your homestead, but they also provide habitat and food for birds and other wildlife. These types of trees also provide cooling shade for people, pets, and plants.
Introduction To Integrated Pest Management
There’s one major challenge that applies to all levels of agriculture, from starting a garden to running an orchard, and everything that falls between. It’s a shared challenge that growers face regardless of location, climate, or economic resources. It’s pests – whether it’s weeds, ants, beetles, caterpillars, goats, sheep, cats, or even other humans (the last
Mushroom Hunting: A Helpful Guide For Beginners
Hunting or foraging for wild mushrooms can be a very rewarding experience, but knowing which mushrooms are edible is a key skill to have before heading out into the woods. In this guide, we’ll share the best tips and tricks for edible mushroom hunting, discuss the best mushrooms available for foraging in different regions of
19 DIY Duck House Plans
Ducks differ in their needs from backyard chickens, and it can be straightforward to create a DIY duck house with some readily available, basic materials. When starting your flock, making your own duck house instead of purchasing an overpriced product from a retail store, can save you time and money. If you want to add
Living in a Dumpster, For a Full Year – Meet the New 1%
Environmental science professor Jeff Wilson believes that American homes have gotten too big. To prove it, he’ll be living in a dumpster. For a year.
5 Unusual Ways To Use Honey At Home
Learn why the unique way in which bees make honey gives it special healing and preserving qualities.
Solar Power
The United States is a world leader in solar power generation. A Bell Labs scientist patented the first solar cell, and, for decades the U.S. was the solar installations leader. According to a report by the International Energy Agency, at the end of 2015 the U.S. had 11% of the world’s solar photovoltaic capacity. Only
7 Tips For Raising Animals In A Tiny House
As a tiny homeowner, caring for your pets shouldnโt be affected by the size of your home. Tiny living encourages you to embrace unique ways of doing things, and looking for creative storage and organization solutions is at the top of that list. This is particularly true when you consider the needs of your pets.
20 Soothing DIY Wind Chimes
Wind chimes: They’re soothing, relaxing, and add a beautiful, decorative addition to your garden or backyard. Wind chimes come in basically any color, material, size, and price tag, and nowadays, you can find some pretty artistic options on Etsy and at other retailers. But if you’re the do-it-yourself type that wants the ultimate satisfaction of
Online Homesteading Courses
Webinars and other online courses are great tools for homesteaders. Homesteaders who live in remote, rural areas will find online courses particularly useful. Online courses can fill community knowledge gaps that homesteaders might only have been able to fill through community college classes, conventions, or meetups. Dozens of courses in areas that will interest the
How To Make Essential Oils
Over the last few years, essential oils have become incredibly popular. Some people use them for aromatherapy while others swear by their health benefits and healing properties. Regardless of how you use your essential oils, you’ve probably spent a pretty penny purchasing them, so why not consider making them at home? While the initial investment
Best Canning Recipes
Canning is a fun project that gets your hands dirty, keeps your food fresh, and gives you a last-minute gift option when the holidays roll around. The key to successful canning is starting with a recipe you can trust. We pulled these gems from our favorite homesteading and farming blogs. We also recommended the best
13 Inventive & Simple Eggshell Uses For Your Home And Garden
Maybe it’s because I’m frugal, but I hate to throw away anything that can be reused or recycled — and that includes eggshells. No matter if you are raising chickens, ducks, guinea fowl, or turkeys, rather than simply tossing your eggs into the compost or trash, save them. You’ll be surprised to learn just how
17 Awesome DIY Platform Bed Plans
Bed frames are expensive. It’s one of the unavoidable truths of becoming an adult and moving into your own home. But what if we told you there’s a way to circumnavigate costly bed frames by taking the DIY approach to building your own platform bed? While bed frames come with high price tags, there’s nothing
18 Creative DIY Beehive Plans for Your Own Beekeeping
Hereโs something to buzz about: Beekeeping! Not only do these pollinators bring more flowers, fruits, and vegetables to gardens, they also give us honey that can be added to everything from hot tea to homemade beauty products. Bees are important to the environment, and their numbers are threatened. For this reason, outdoor lovers, gardeners, and
25 Delicious Sourdough Recipes For Your Home Starter
Sourdough starters used for baking have been around since the cultivation of edible grasses began thousands of years ago. People have been creating healthful and delicious breads of an astounding variety for millennia. It was only after the advent of large-scale industrial baking that instant yeasts (with their quickness and ease of use) asserted themselves as
Recycled Materials
Types of Spinach
From the popular Bloomsdale variety to lesser known cultivars, get to know the spinach plant before planting them in your garden. These leafy greens are packed with nutrition and boasts versatile culinary uses.
7 DIY Bath Bombs For a Soothing, Relaxing Soak
Fizz away fatigue with all-natural, DIY bath bombs that transform bathwater into a fragrant, skin nurturing, stress-melting oasis. A quick search of the internet yields as many different recipes for DIY bath bombs as for chocolate chip cookies. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you can make a basic bath bomb with a few drops of water
Transitioning From City Life To Country Life
Just two weeks ago, my family and I moved from the suburbs of Northeastern Ohio to a 12-acre property in the Ozarks. From even before we were married, my husband and I had dreamed of creating an off-grid, self-sustainable farm so that we could finally take responsibility for our own needs and teach others how
Homestead Stories: The Holly And The Ivy
โThe holly and the ivy, when they are both full grown. Of all the trees that are in the wood, the holly bears the crown.โ I hummed the tune happily as I dialed my parents’ number. I would be going home in a few days to spend Christmas with the family. I was excited and
Garden Fencing
Garden fencing serves all sorts of purposes. Those needs might be practical, or you might just want a nice accent to mark the edge of your yard. This guide will help you choose the right material and recommend a few vendors. Why Does Your Garden Need A Fence? Every land ownerโs needs are different, but
13 DIY Deck Railing Plans
Whether youโre concerned about safety, trying to get a little privacy from the neighbors, or just interested in a fun and creative way to make your porch look prettier, a nice deck railing is a great addition to any house. While you could hire a contractor to have one built for you, many homeowners and
Grinding Your Own Flour
One of my favorite college coffeehouses was across the street from a milling company. I spent many hours sketching and sipping their various brews, the mood-lit ambiance of the cafe constantly underscored by the low hum of unseen machines turning grain into flour. Anyone who parked more than an hour on the that street would
Thank You – BUT YOU’RE NOT DONE YET =)
Thanks for signing up, but there’s one final step before we can enter you in our monthly giveaway. We just sent you a confirmation email –ย you need to open it up and click the confirm button. It looks like this: Click that button and *then* you’re done! Can’t wait to share great new content with
A Surprising Reason We Don’t Farm As Sustainably As We Could
I recently posted a description of a highly sustainable form of row crop farming that combines high productivity with low environmental impact. This is not just a theoretical vision but something which is actually being practiced on a significant commercial scale (e.g. non-tillage, cover cropping, controlled wheel traffic, variable rate fertilization…). It is difficult to
How To Capture And Use Wild Yeast
I have a secret weapon in my kitchen. It makes my daily bread taste amazing (and far more digestible than anything store-bought). As long as I take care of the starter, this weapon is an endless material. And the best part of all? Itโs free for the taking. Iโm talking about wild yeast — a
Sand Magnified
Sand grains magnified 110-250 times reveal each grain is unique. The tip of a spiral shell has broken off and become a grain of sand. After being repeatedly tumbled by action of the surf this spiral sand grain has become opalescent in character. It is surrounded by bits of coral, a pink shell fragment, a
Steam Bent Shingles
Steam Bent Shingles
Renzo Piano Builds a Haute Shiver Shack For Off-the-Grid Singles
Italian architect Renzo Piano has come up with a small, simple-living home design that could is less of a shiver shack and more of a one-person, off the grid castle โ and, if youโre in the market for a โtiny houseโ and you have an eye for going off grid, youโll want to pay attention, because it doesnโt get much better than this …
23 DIY Chandelier Projects To Illuminate Your Space
Lighting is one of the best ways to create ambiance or set the mood in any room. Itโs also one of the ways that homeowners can showcase their own style. When you go to add new lighting to the rooms of your home, however, itโs easy to get sticker shock when shopping retail to find
How to Make Olive Oil
Olive oil has been an important food source, lamp fuel, religious material, cosmetic, and medicine for thousands of years. More than just a salad topping, olives join wheat and grapes as the core foods of the Mediterranean. In the modern age, it has enjoyed waves of popularity as a health food and DIY ingredient. This