With Halloween behind us, it’s nearly time to pack away the festive fall décor to make space for the merrier holiday gear. What to do with the pumpkin that sat on your porch stoop? While the thrifty bakers among us will likely turn it into a Thanksgiving pie, the beauty hounds can do one better and whip up an easy mask that will keep your pre-winter dry skin glowing. (more…)

Simplicity often outperforms complexity. Case in point: this no-frills bud vase provides the perfect platform for displaying wild flowers and plant groupings. The handcrafted rustic display is created from an old chunk of reclaimed black locust. (more…)

The husband and wife team at StoneMe are insatiable rockhounds, scouring their local Great Lakes beaches for rounded stones and sea glass tumbled, shaped and polished by the never-ending action of the big lakes’ waves.

They sell most of their stones as either loose items or in groups, so DIYers can create their own jewelry and accessories. Stones are top-drilled and grouped by color, size, shape and character. Some stones (like the ones pictured directly above) may even contain fossils. Upcycling these geological gems is a great way to integrate nature into your look. (more…)

Summertime, your skin is likely to be up for a little extra TLC after all that extra time in the harsh sun.

While they’re abundant, pick up some organic strawberries and a cucumber next time you’re at the market. Fruit is full of wonderful enzymes that are good when put in your body but they also work wonders when applied to your skin. The cosmetic industry is aware of the benefits of these enzymes being applied to the face. So, skip the chemicals and all the production, and go right to the source for some fresh and beneficial homemade skincare.

Strawberries have astringent and bleaching properties, which also work on your teeth. (more…)

To me, being eco conscious also means making useful things out of items that would otherwise be trash, or Upcycling. Pique the interest of your friends and co-workers by asking them for their trash, and MacGyver something new. It may start a conversation, it may appeal to someone’s creative side and it will hopefully get everyone thinking about stepping outside the box. After all, that’s a big part of what being green is about, right?

Ready Made has a great MacGyver Challenge going on right now. (photo above) – You can easily create an iPad holder out of a Starbucks sleeve. It only requires a cutting tool. (more…)

What a great use of wasted space! I’d store old photos in them.

Anyone with some DIY capabilities could probably replicate the concept. It doesn’t look that difficult to execute …famous last words. Word of caution – I’d make sure there was a way to ensure that they were locked/latched in place safely – wouldn’t want to encounter an open drawer on the stairs unexpectedly.

Although it looks like they’re Unicraft Joinery Step Drawers, I can’t find where to buy – anyone with ideas, pls jump in.

via trendhunter.com

For the crafty wanna-be’s…get a little help with an all-inclusive sewing kit and make your own woolly little rabbit. When fully realized, the 8-inch high critter dons a merino wool tail and stuffing sourced from recycled woolen sweaters. Comes with a cream colored belly and a choice of 5 cool colors.

From Kit and Caboodle Designs, the Kit includes: pattern, instructions, wool fabric, embroidery thread, needle + pins, wool tail and stuffing. Just add pencil and scissors and start to DIY. (reminder: Easter is April 24 this year)

Here’s where to get the Sew A Rabbit whole kit and caboodle. $19

Do you sew your own? Here’s a super-soft, organic cotton women’s t-shirt that expresses both your affinity for a fine play on words and fashioning clothes yourself.

Featured above is hand screen printed in blue ink on a black shirt, but they come in other color variations as well. Illustration is of the outline of the designer’s mom’s Singer Featherweight. Cool.

@ redbrickwall’s Etsy Shop ($18)

Not many holidays exude handmade appreciation like Valentine’s Day. I theorize that it stems from the paper bag “Valentine mail-boxes” so many of us crafted in elementary school, but the truth is, a glued-together, glittered Valentine is perfect at any age. This year, we’ve scoured the web to find some crafty creations you can whip up for your loved one – using stuff that you’ve probably already got on hand. So, consider creative recycling this year, and see if you can’t surprise someone with a gift that’s as sweet as it is green.

• Heart Paper Pockets (Craftzine) – Make ‘em by cutting up old greeting cards
• Bottle Cap Photo Magnets (Martha Stewart) – Recycle the bottles; keep the twist-off caps
• Valentine Lightbulb (Design*Sponge) – Burnt bulb? No problem
• Silver Ring for Him (Instructables) – All you need is a pre-1964 quarter
• Valentine’s Day Cookies (Food Network) – Just-the-basics kind of recipe