New TV Room!!!

Last night, Marky B ripped up the nasty old carpet from our TV Room. The dogs and cats had basically destroyed it and I generally do not like carpet, so out it went. And it went to a good cause too...the remnant will be headed to the new Taft Van Stricklin Memorial practice basement at Mark's new office building. Enjoy JEHC & Jody Stapelton and the Generals!!

So here is a picture of the room without the carpet:

You may notice a strange brown discoloration in the middle. Here is a better picture of it close up:

We think that it is maybe adhesive residue or discoloration from a previous carpet job. It actually doesn't look that bad...I think it kind of looks like decorative staining or like olden times when they painted rugs on the floor. But most likely we will be getting FLOR carpet squares to cover up the stain and just have a border of pretty hardwood. Until we can afford to refinish the floors in the whole house that is...someday.

Next...our bedroom carpet!!!!!

Kris

Organic Household - The Journey Continues

So we are at the next stage of the Organic Household deal. Some of the products were excellent and we will continue to use. Like Charlie's Soap - Thank you Matt & Laura!!! Some of the products we tried sucked - Like Avalon Organics Tea Tree shampoo - stink-tastic!! And not a huge fan of Tom's toothpaste...don't feel like it is working that well. So we need to try some other shampoo and toothpaste. In this round, we are also getting dish soap, dishwasher packs & lip gloss. Hopefully these will all be awesome.

My main goal is to have sort of a "recurring order" with Soap.com. I know how much food we need per week from Green Bean Delivery...I know how much dog food/cat food that we need from Wag.com, and now household products will be easier too. This also helps me with the budget...steady stream instead of huge binge like going to Sam's Club.

The journey continues...

Kris

Getting my feet wet...or actually getting my fingers blue...

So I finally was able to gather all my materials together and set up my Batik workspace in the basement. I am at the moment still sharing with JEHC, but am hoping to have the place to myself shortly. I thought I had everything I needed, but then quickly discovered the first rule of Batiking:

WEAR PLASTIC GLOVES WHEN DYEING STUFF!!! The dreaded Blue Fingers!!


This is my first attempt. I basically just was trying to make sure my wax was the right temp (250 degrees) so that it would permeate the fabric properly and then trying to see how well I could draw with the Tjanting device (basically a wax pen stick with a well that holds the wax) and the brush. Need more brushes in different sizes. I really like the wax part...will be fun to do some real designs and stamps, but the dyeing part was a bit tough as I feel like I lost a lot of my dye's deep color and it also bled into my white bits. And the wax REMOVAL part...kind of sucks. Will hope to read up a little more on problem solving. I also need to have a better plan for next time so I don't have to run up and down the basement stairs with boiling water and dye pans. Logistics....

Stay tuned for more news from Batik central...

Kris

Batikster!

What is a Batikster?

A person who creates Batik Fabrics...and hopefully I will be one of those soon. Since Mark is gone a lot with work & music, I decided that I needed a hobby. I have always been a artsy fartsy kind of person, so I thought mostly about what type of cool art stuff I could do. And I was also inspired by our recent trip to St. Kitts where they have a large Batik studio called Caribelle Batik where I bought a beautiful blue sarong. So I chose Batik. Step one complete!

Step two: What materials do I need. I did some online research and came across a cheesy little "Beginner's Batik" kit on Dharma Trading Co's website that sold everything you need to try this out for only $37.95. I also bought a few scarves to practice.

Step three: Figure out HOW to use the materials. I went to the library and got a bunch of books and also looked at a few How To websites. Everything seems fairly easy as long as you follow the steps and use the right equipment. I also have been hatching design ideas. I don't want to make a bunch of Carribean stuff as I am not Carribean and I live in Ohio. So I am going to try to "modernize" the designs & colors for my stuff. I want to do simple & striking designs that are more in line with today.

Step Four: Actually do it. Haven't gotten to this step yet because there is currently no where to set up my area (too much music crap in the basement) and I need to wrangle some more equipment (electric skillet & dye tubs specifically) before I can begin. I will get these this weekend.

Step Five: Maybe sell some stuff. The scarves I found on Dharma Trading Co are super cool "Circular Scarves" that I have never seen before. I think with the correct designs that appeal to people, these might be a hit on Etsy or at Cincinnati's City Flea events. Who knows...maybe I will start showing up at craft shows all across Ohio...I have a lot of weekends free.

Stay tuned for actual photos of stuff I make...as long as it doesn't suck.

Kris

Phase II Part One - Personal Health Items

Mark & I have been doing the local & organic thing for about 1 year now with our food. This is largely with the help of Green BEAN delivery that has not only changed the way we eat, but also saves me vast amounts of time meal planning & wandering random groceries stores. Our health has improved, we eat at home more often, & I feel like we save money because we only buy what we need for the week & no junk food.

So now that we are super comfortable with the food routine...it is time to embark on Phase II Part One: Person Health Care items. Shampoo, Soap, hand soap, toothpaste. I found an website called Soap.com that regularly has sales on Organic & Natural products and always has free shipping over $38. So I did some research and found products that were highly reviewed, all natural, not ridiculously expensive, and we are currently in need of.

I am a "stockpiler" so this may take some time to phase into...we need shampoo right now, but we have a fair amount of other stuff from my Sam's Club Binges to last a while, but I ordered some soap, hand soap refills, & toothpaste so that we can begin the process. Phase II Part Two will be Deodorant (no crystal bullshit), feminine hygiene products, lotion, sunscreen, bugspray, toilet paper...and any other health care items I think of that we need to replace.

I am not giving up my Mary Kay moistureizer as I feel like if I stop using it...my face will fall off or instantly turn wrinkly. So they can continue testing that on bunnies and orangutans...don't care.

Phase III - Home Cleaning Products & Other Household Paper Products...coming soon...or in a year or so.

Phase IV - Dog & Cat Products. (there is a sister website to Soap.com called Wag.com that also has all natural stuff for pets.)

Kris

St. Kitts June 2011

Well that was fun...still recovering :) Check out the pictures:



Kris

Cookbook Time Capsule!!

Isn't that the name of that movie where John Cusack throws away a once prosperous career to appear in a movie about Hot Tubs and the 80's??? No...I actually have a cookbook time capsule in my very kitchen. I picked it up at my Grandpa Moomy's house before it was all cleared out. It had a lot of homemade recipes using real ingredients, so I snagged it. Little did I know that it had some Moomy family history tucked in the pages.

The first one I found was a telegram from my Great Grandfather, Harry E Moomy. He is talking about my Grandpa, Great Aunt Betty, & Great Aunt Josephine (not Josephone)...but I don't know what the circumstances are. Mom? Uncle Dave??

The second one is a wedding congratulations card...signed by someone named Marie. Not sure whose wedding it was for, but it is cute and kitschy with references to magazine names.



And the cookbook itself is a time capsule too...filled with Terrines, Loafs, & gelatin molds. Crazy times back then...but at least there was no High Fructose Corn Syrup :)

Kris