Reduce, Reuse, Recycle...repurpose clothespin craft!

This is a perfect craft for kids of all ages!  
Reuse an old clothespin by decorating with pens or crayons.  Glue "wings" made of foam, felt, or paper.  Add eyes and antennas.  We also added a magnet on the back. 
The butterfly clothespin craft can hold photos, notes, reminders...anything!

Reuse and Recycle Coffee K-Cup Pods-Grow Herbs Easily!

Since buying our Keurig coffee maker a few years ago, we have gone through so many coffee k-cup pods.  When my daughter was given an assignment in school to find something to recycle-we came up with a way to reuse these coffee pods.  We decided to grow herbs in coffee pods!  We rinse them out and use them to plant herbs-Basil, Cilantro, Dill, etc. The hole in the bottom which the coffee dripped from, is great drainage. The left over coffee combined with rich soil, makes for a healthy planting bed.  What a wonderful way to repurpose coffee pods!

We also recycled soda and juice boxes to hold the cups and it was easy in watering (my daughter spills all over the place when she waters) and it dries out in the sun quickly.

We reused plastic spoons to create planter markers too.
It was a fun and educational activity for the whole family!

Ribbon Rack Holder-Get Organized!

I love to buy ribbon-and have tried every way to organize them...and have failed.  I've tried storage bins that you slide under the bed.  But out of sight, means I'll never use them. I've tried storage bins with lids-but stacking them on top of each other just means I'll never open them up and dig around to find my different options.  I've tried the ones with drawers-but I ended up with ribbon rolls on top of ribbon rolls and never got to see and use the ones on the bottom.

Alas...I found a ribbon rack holder to organize my ribbon rolls in a easy-to-use and functional way.  I bought a cheap shoe rack holder from Bed, Bath and Beyond and slid the ribbon rolls through the dowel, or in the case of my large ribbon rolls from Costco, I put it on top.  Now, I'm able to see my different ribbons, and are able to get to them easily.  How much ribbon will fit?  It depends on the size of the rolls.  If you have smaller ribbon like you see in my picture on the top, you can slide them through each of the dowels and a lot will fit.  If you have more of the large ribbon rolls, then less will fit.

I store my ribbon rack holder in a closet, but it can go just about anywhere.  My ribbon organizer has worked so well, I'm going to buy another shoe rack for the rest of my ribbon.

Simple and Easy Jack-o-lantern Carving

Want to create a jack-o-lantern that is more than two eyes and a mouth?  Well, now you can! It's so simple and easy to do your own pumpin carving.  Here's how:
1)  Find a template (any line drawing will do). Print out and tape onto pumpkin. 
2)  Poke holes with the end of a pin, or use the tools purchased with pumpkin carving set (like at WalMart).  Make sure not to move or lift up the paper from the pumpkin until you are confident the holes are large enough to see, and all parts of the picture are traced.
3)  Decide which portions you will cut away, and which you will leave as pumpkin skin to create your design.  Using your carving tools, (I find they work best, and are safest for kids to handle),  cut around the traced portions.
4)  Remove pumpkin skin and enough of the part underneath so light from a candle or battery-operated light will shine through.

How to keep your pumpkin fresh until Halloween:
1)  Carve your pumpkin as close to Halloween as possible.  Day prior, and day of is best.
2)  If possible, keep your pumpkin wrapped in a plastic bag, and stored in the refrigerator.  You can also store pumpkin in a cooler with ice.  Just make sure to put plastic, and a towel between the ice and pumpkin.
3)  I've tried all the other suggestions of spraying/dunking in a bleach solution to reduce mold growth, but I've found they don't really work well.  And your pumpkin becomes shrivled.

I was going through Ellen's website--checking out the pumpkin carving photos...and saw the one (I had forgotten that I sent) we did last year!
Check it out here...
http://photos.ellen.warnerbros.com/galleries/amazing_pumpkin_carvings?adid=permalink_popular

My eldest created the tokidoki cat, the twins made the Hello Kitty and Julius from Paul Frank.  (And Mom finished the twins pumpkins when they got "tired" of doing it.)

P.S.  I did a double-duty tip for Rachael Ray, which will appear in the show this Monday! :)
 

Maximize your closet space!

close up view

maximize space!

Great tip to maximize your closet space!
I got this great tip from a professional organizer featured on the Rachael Ray Show.  Not only does it maximize your closet space, but it is a great "reuse" of the soda/juice/beer tabs!

Manoa lettuce and Sweet Basil grows again!

This isn't a tip...but WTH?!? The girls and I planted some vegetables and herbs a couple years ago, harvested the manoa lettuce, and in a short period of time, killed the sweet basil.  Well, I was out in my yard this afternoon weeding (No, this isn't the "WTH" part), and we noticed the manoa lettuce and sweet basil had grown again!  No joke!  I swear it was just dirt in the planter for two years with no sign of life.  It actually looks pretty good and almost ready to harvest.  Has anyone ever heard of this?  Can roots and seeds remain dormant and sprout/grow two years later?

Update 4/16: Posted photo. Lettuce looked much nicer before the twins "weeded" between the lettuce yesterday.  Can't see well in photo, but there are three manoa lettuce in right planter and basil and one lettuce in left planter.

Update 3/13: I read in several articles that plants and seeds can hibernate and will grow later when soil, weather and other conditions are conducive to growth.  I get this...but growth after two years? Wow!