We have a clue about Furniture

Pesticides are usually the go to option for the protection of crops and plants. Unfortunately, most pesticides contain a various amount of harmful chemicals such as methyl parathion (penncap-M) and azinphos-methyl. These chemicals specifically, even in residual form, can be very detrimental to the nervous system of the body. In other cultures around the world there are many forms of natural and non-invasive pesticides.

In California, at the Tesco Grape Vineyards, owners introduced the species of the black widow spider to the crop. The black widow spider bite is 15 times more venomous than that of a rattle snake. Tesco wished to eliminate the use of unnecessary pesticides through this and has a “Spider Check” within the production line.

In a New Zealand park, visitors found a silky material layering the tops of a field of grass. As they examined this, they came to the realization that they were in fact thousands of little spiders that weaved a weft across the entirety of the field. Another example of the potentiality of spiders as a replacement of pesticides.

Essential oils are also an efficient pesticide. Neem, clove, rosemary and thyme mixed together can create a broad natural remedy against unwanted pest in the garden. Peppermint can also be a good oil to use but, also pushes out spiders. Spiders can undoubtedly help ward off any other pests that persevere through the already existing essential oil. pesticide.

In the end, using alternative methods of crop protection can lead to a safer, healthier and even more delicious end product!

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Paints can be an essential part of creating art for you and your children. There are a lot of unnecessary ingredients in store bought paint that can be slightly toxic to the little ones and consume a lot of energy to produce, such as petroleum based products. What if I told you that there are ways for you to make non-toxic paints from home with natural ingredients of the earth?

Mrs. Winters Creates : Painting with pomegranate juice

An experimental artist known as “Mrs. Winters” used different ripened berry juices, pomegranate and tamarillo for a minimalist depiction of her artistic expression. Mrs. Winters came to find that not only did the juices provide a breathtaking hue but, in fact changed aesthetically as time passed. Creating a new art piece as each day passes, mirroring the overall depiction of entropy within nature. She says that it may have had to do with the oxidization of the juice. Add a little salt or vinegar to the juice to preserve the original coloring produced.


Beets are an eye-catching vegetable that is perfect for turning into an all natural paint. Harvesting the juice from the beet and adding a pinch of salt and vinegar allows for preserving and brightening of the hue. Vibrant in color, create magical landscapes and portraits with this must have color!

There are many other natural ingredients able to be used in creating all natural paints such as, turmeric, milk, your favorite flowers and egg yolks. Give it a try and create something new!

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Want to de-clutter and rid yourself of your unwanted clothing, love to craft and re-purpose?

A lot of clothing is thrown out when ripped or outgrown. Ask yourself, are you bored with the upholstery of the chairs in your home, wishing you had something to spruce up the room with a little bit of you? With this craft, add another alternative to unwanted clothing by using those favorite jeans/shirts that no longer fit or are ripped beyond repair by up-cycling your chairs!

Materials Needed:
-Fabric of old clothing (sewn to your liking as whole fabric piece)
-Staple gun
-Screw driver (type depends on screws)

Undo the screws from under the seat cushion and remove the outdated fabric, before throwing it out, ask yourself what could potentially be used for now that it isn’t being used as the upholstery for your chair, maybe it can be implemented into an article of clothing!

Lay your newly created fabric down and place the seat upside down on top of it.
Cut the excess fabric, leaving enough room around the edges about an inch to an inch ½.
Pull the fabric tightly and begin stapling so that the fabric is smoothly fastened.

Screw the seat back onto the chair and now you have a re-purposed beauty that is radiating a favorite piece of you!

Watch as friends and family marvel over your modern, innovative and purposeful addition! There are many things that can be up-cycled and re-purposed! Use your imagination and anything you would throw away, think, how can this be reused in someway to create or add to?

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Sick and tired of not having enough space in your home for the essential storage and have limited space for more furnishings? The advancements in creativity and innovation has brought forth new and spatially efficient alternatives to dressers and wardrobes. Step into the world of spacious living!

This designer decided to eliminate clothing storage entirely from the bedroom. Instead he decided to reinvent his stairs to provide an ample amount of space for him and his family. A safe added touch to this design would be installing locking mechanisms to prevent any unwarranted drawer opening.

A design originally created by designer Ana White, the Laundry Basket Dresser is unique and space granting. In eliminating the extra step of moving the clean laundry from the basket to the dresser and the needed space for the laundry basket itself, Ana has designed a revolutionary product that provides not only extra time but space as well.

This alternative to the common dresser was created by Lavender Gray. In this, the unused walls are creatively turned into breathtaking pieces of furniture eliminating all space issues within the room. This allows for the re-purposing of the already existing dresser or wardrobe. Maybe you can even make a few extra bucks off of the unused furnishings!

Originally posted here: sixdifferentways.com

How often are you scraping the leftover food into the the garbage? What if you had a better use for those scraps that would not only benefit the earth but, also your personal garden?

Composting is the taking of food scraps, leaves, pine needles, paper, cardboard and allowing them to decompose to create nitrogen and carbon rich soils. Composting meat or bones of any kind could attract unwanted pests. Orange peels and banana peels may contain unwanted pesticides too. This compost concoction is the perfect brew for your gardens needs.

A compostable toilet is a waterless mechanism that allows for the human excretion to be broken down into yet another nitrogen / carbon based soil. National parks are huge backers of the compostable toilets to ensure that all goes in, goes back out to the earth. There is typically a second composting station to ensure all harmful components have decomposed out of used for the fertilization of soil.

Composting is an amazing alternative to use when considering the care of the earth, our home gardens and our ability to recycle our daily waste for greater more efficient purposes!

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A simplistic design at first glance, The Nelson Platform Bench, encompasses mid-century modern style with a multi-functional purpose.

Named after its designer, George Nelson, Nelson created this original design in 1946 and is considered to be one of the pioneers in mid-century modern design. He is known for some of his more eccentric designs like the Marshmallow Sofa and the Coconut Chair, but the Nelson Platform Bench is a more versatile furnishing that fits well in a variety of design motifs.

Additionally, this bench can serve as both a bench for seating and / or as a coffee table. Its height being a primary factor in this, but also due to its sturdy, solid wood top and solid wood legs. It features sleek, clean lines and its top, which can be purchased in a variety of finishes, contrasts elegantly with its black painted birch wood legs.

The Nelson Platform Bench is an excellent alternative to traditional seating and is also an excellent way to conserve space or for additional seating for extra company and guests. It can serve as a coffee table by day and switch to a bench at night when hosting gatherings. The benches top features wooden planks integrated into the entirety of the seat creating a more spatial feel which is a unique touch when compared to most solid wood benches.

Both its form and functionality embody the spirit of mid-century modern design that cherishes practicality without compromising style.

You can find highly accurate reproductions of The Nelson Platform Bench in a variety of finishes and sizes, as well as other mid century modern designs from trusted online modern furniture and contemporary decor sellers.

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Sharing the planet with insects sometime can be a bit of a pain especially when we are trying to enjoy a nice warm night outside on our back porch or barbecuing with friends and family.

We have resorted to bug zappers, fly swatters, citronella candles or other less natural remedies to ward them away.

However there is a carnivorous plant that can actually take care of this pesky problem for you while also being totally natural and a part of our eco system!

This insect eating plant is known as the Nepenthes or Tropical Pitcher Plant. It is a tropical plant but it can survive it many conditions with a seasoned gardener. These hanging plants work by having low drooping pitcher-like pods that attract the insects into them. The insects are then trapped inside, digested and are used as a food source for the plant.

These plants must be kept from direct sunlight but they do enjoy high humidity. They can dry out easily if not kept hydrated and are in direct sunlight for an extended period of time.

Like any plant, these plants do require specific care but when nurtured properly, they truly do work!

Give them a try and see how they work for you. They are also a beautiful aesthetically pleasing addition to any garden or sunroom / greenhouse!

Tobacco has been a constant variable of medicine for thousands of years in the cultures of many civilizations. The capitalistic nature of the big tobacco companies have used this to their advantage in using unnecessary additives, in which are also addictive, in the recipe for their produced cigarettes.

Indigenous cultures have developed a personal respect and relationship with the tobacco plant by nurturing the plant from seed to leaf. In Native American culture, the peace pipe ceremony has been traditionally held for generations. In this ceremony it is said that the inhalation of the tobacco, which is typically done in societal norm, is not so common. It is said that the “Spirit of the Tobacco” is trapped within the lungs and becomes restless there.

In Mayan indigenous culture, a medicine known as Hapay, a tobacco snuff that is administered nasally, is crafted from their own tobacco crop and the ash of their sacred trees. This is either nasally administered with the use of a Keripe which is a wooden chute, by a medicine person or administered with a self administered tool known as the Tepi. Usually this is done in a ceremonious setting to give the respect to the medicinal benefits that tobacco brings.

Did you know that there are over 30 smokable herbal plants that possess similar to grounding/ anti anxiety effects?  Some of the anti-anxiety herbs are skullcap and damiana. Skullcap is a wonderful calming agent, make sure to drink water while ingesting because does dehydrate the individual. Damiana helps fight coughing, constipation, improves digestion and is also an aphrodisiac providing an uplifting effect. Both skullcap an damiana can also be brewed as a tea!

Damiana (Tunera DIffusa)

To those whom may be struggling with tobacco addiction, there are alternatives to tobacco, that are not chemical based and provide similar calming effects.

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Bees are the most essential being that inhabits the planet Earth. There are many allies to pollination such as birds, the wind, water and other animals but, the most efficient and designated role for pollination is filled by the bee. Without bees, we would see the earth’s well being collapse entirely. Without pollination, No food, simple as that.

Before the mass production of honey, there was more of a purity to it. In a lot of the common products at stores that are not organic or raw, there is additives of high-fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners which take away immensely from the overall health benefits of honey. In most cases in harvesting honey, bees are put to sleep with the use of smoke. This smoke usually contains the chemical, Isopentyl acetate, this serves as an alarm pheromone so that the the honey can be easily harvested.

The purest forms of honey are said to be raw and unfiltered with no additives. The pollen that is in this form of honey is one of the best whole foods due to its high content of antioxidants and amino acids. Honey can also be used as a natural sweetener instead of cane sugars for a healthier alternative.

Honey is an excellent exfoliator! Mix coconut oil, honey and coffee grounds to make a great facial mask!

Honey is a great for healing wounds! Put a layer of raw honey over any cuts or mild abrasions to ensure a speedy recovery!

Beeswax is another byproduct of honey production.

In the bees consumption of eating 8 kg of honey, they produce 1 kg of beeswax!

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Redesigning your home? Adding a few extra furnishings to your interior design? Before purchasing any furniture for your living space, look over a few of these ways to approach furniture buying to make it a smooth and satisfying experience!

1. Have an idea in mind of what kind of style you want for your space. You can consult an interior designer or look around online for design ideas.

2. Make sure you look around for the best seller of the furnishings you want. It is beneficial to look at buyer reviews not only regarding the seller’s performance but also reviews on the product you are thinking of purchasing. Sometimes less expensive can mean lower quality, but sometimes it depends on where the furnishings are being made. If you are making a large purchase, the seller may even work with you with a percentage discount.
3. Lighting changes the appearance of many fabrics and finishes. If you aren’t sure if the color or finish you want will match, ask for swatches to be sent to you if available first.

4. If you need the furnishings by a specific time make sure the furnishing you are purchasing isn’t a custom design, these take many weeks to arrive and times differ. Additionally, if a furnishing says 1 -2 weeks delivery, give it a 4 week buffer. This doesn’t mean it will take 4 weeks to arrive, it may even take less than 1 week to arrive, but its important to know that many furnishings come from warehouses in many places and need time to get to you.

5. Ask any questions you may have about the furnishing so there aren’t any unpleasant surprises when it arrives.
6. Look around online for lifestyle images of the furnishing you want if the seller doesn’t have one on their site. “Lifestyle” images are images of the furnishing in a home setting. This will help you get an idea of how it may look with other furniture and color schemes.

7. Keep in mind that if the furnishing has any damages or missing some parts upon arrival, this is ridiculously more common that you might think. Stay calm and realize it isn’t necessarily the fault of the seller or their customer service representatives, most of the time it is issues out of their direct control.

8. Lastly but most importantly, have fun! Furniture shopping shouldn’t be a stressful experience. Use your time wisely, ask questions and create your dream space!