View of San Diego CA
Month: September 2011
Shopgoodwill.com- where YOU pick the prices!
Tonite I’m home doing some window shopping while I sit on the couch. How cool is that? I found this amazing site called shopgoodwill.com. I can go thrift shopping from the comfort of my own home. Shopgoodwill.com is an internet auction site created, owned and operated by Goodwill of Orange County (Santa Ana, CA). Participating Goodwill stores from all over the country offer items for auction- everything from antiques, art and clothing items. Revenue from the auction sales help fund Goodwill’s training and job placement programs.
Here’s how to get started:
- If you are already a registered user of shopgoodwill.com, you can
go straight to the auction listings. - If you are new to shopgoodwill.com, use the buyer
sign up to register and receive your personalized Buyer I.D. and Password.
Below is a vintage sheared mink stole priced at $16 (current bid)
Basically, it’s like any other shopping website, you choose the type of items you’re looking for and browse thru the photos. The difference here is that you get to decide on the price! Personally, I’ve bid for items on several occasions, it seems like I always get out-bid though. I’ve been told it’s good to wait until towards the end of the auction to place a bid though I’ve never tried this tactic.
Below are a few random items I found on the site tonite– Michael Kors handbag, ladies roller skates in size 7, pinball machine and a desk. There are literally thousands of items. I found a clarinet for $22, golf clubs for $5 and the 1991 Buick Century pictured below for $399 (current auction price).
Mormon Temple, San Diego
Feng Shui for a Smooth Transition to the Fall Season
The fall season is about a transition from the fiery shui energy of the summer season to a deep and inward energy of winter (water feng shui element.) Is the feng shui of your home space prepared for this? Do you know how to use feng shui and space clearing for a healthy and easy transition for yourself and for your home?
Fall is the season when we tend to let go of the past and do the same with the feng shui energy of our home space. And while feng shui has blossomed into a billion dollar industry catering to corporate CEOs and Hollywood celebrities, by using a few simple feng shui space clearing tips, even a beginner can clear out their own environment. You can use feng shui tips to sweep out the “old energy” and make a new place for “good energy.”
1. Clutter: To our subconscious, clutter triggers images of stagnation and decay. Clutter represents places we don’t want to put our attention. If you want to welcome good changes into your life, use feng shui to clear the clutter. On a personal note- my apartment seems much brighter as I purge out my junk. The good news- I haven’t missed a single thing I got rid of and/or donated!
2. Corners: Corners are the places in your home where the vital energy, or Ch’i comes to a stop like traffic light. Use feng shui and discover how plants, artwork, or small pieces of furniture in your “corners” can move the energy. This is something I’m working on. Since I’m in the process of packing and moving right now– this will have to wait until I’m more settled.
3. Closets: In a word–use it or lose it! Keep your closets neat and free of unused items. Don’t allow your closets to become chaotic or they will spread this bad feng shui energy throughout your home. I continue to “skinny down” the contents of my closet. I have a new rule- before I buy something new I have to figure out what I will get rid of when I get home. And if I buy something and either haven’t used it or worn it after 2 weeks then I must return it. (so far, so good– I’m hopeful I can keep this up!)
4. Ceremony: Ceremonies honor life, seasons, and aspects of living beyond the physical. Make time for ceremony in your life: use candles, music and symbols to let your home receive a fresh flow of healing and inspiration. Burning a candle each night lets the problems and worries of the day burn in the fire. I should know– I do this frequently!
5. Consciousness: Energy flows where attention goes. Create good energy for the fall season with warm colors, rich textures and a comfortable feeling.
6. Cycles: There is a rhythm to everything in life. Cycles are important. Observing the cycles of the seasons is important in order to maintain good energy in your home.
When we align ourselves and our homes with the cycles of nature, we find more harmony in our lives. We can use feng shui in making our homes a sanctuary to reflect our hopes and dreams.
Japanese Friendship Garden Balboa Park
Feel the good karma from the red rocks in Sedona AZ-July 2011
A Work in Progress…
I’m writing this post at approximately 10:48 pm, computer on my lap, sitting under a blanket on the couch as I watch the ever-intelligent reality show “Most Eligible Dallas.” (no dis on Dallas- I watch this show for the brain candy it provides late on a Monday night. Bravo! Wait, that’s the name of the network too. Looks like too much brain candy for me- unless it’s the wine typing now)
Okay- I’m sitting here surveying the scene in my living room– boxes everywhere, some packed, some half packed and some just sitting empty with the stuff in piles around the boxes. I haven’t thrown out the newspapers in weeks because I’m so sure I’ll be using them to pack with. Reality check- the current pile of newspapers is much larger than the stack of packed boxes. (rest assured, I haven’t moved to Hoarder status)
I admit the only thing I “purged” today– 1 plant. Yes, you read that correctly. I got rid of one measly plant– a plant that I’ve had for 10+ years that I needed to get rid of a long time ago. The sad thing is I can peek thru the patio window and see the other plant that I should find a new home for as well. Perhaps tomorrow….
I’m still a “work in progress”… still learning what it takes to streamline my life.
View of a park near Del Mar, CA
Halloween Treats: Heavenly Candy Bar Cupcakes
Use up all that candy and make some fabulous Halloween treats. These yummy cupcakes start with a mixture of melted candy bars and are topped with a chocolate-marshmellow frosting. Oooh-la-la!
The recipe here is from Southern Living magazine- October 2004.
Ingredients
- 9 fun-size or 21 mini chocolate-coated caramel and creamy nougat bars
- 1/2 cup butter or margarine
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup shortening
- 3 large eggs
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Chocolate-Marshmallow Frosting- recipe included below
- Garnishes: chopped frozen fun-size chocolate-coated caramel and creamy nougat bars, candy corn
Preparation
- Melt candy bars and butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat about 5 minutes, stirring until smooth. Set aside.
- Beat sugar and shortening at medium speed with an electric mixer about 3 minutes or until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition.
- Combine flour and salt. Stir together buttermilk and baking soda. Gradually add flour mixture to sugar mixture, alternately with buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in melted candy bar mixture and vanilla. Place 36 paper baking cups in muffin pans; spoon batter evenly into paper baking cups, filling two-thirds full.
- Bake at 350° for 18 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from pan, and let cool completely on wire racks. Spread cupcakes evenly with Chocolate-Marshmallow Frosting. Garnish, if desired.
- Note: For testing purposes only, we used Milky Way Bars.
- Heavenly Candy Bar Cake: Spoon batter into 3 greased and floured 9-inch cakepans. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until a wooden pick comes out clean. Cool in pans on a wire rack 10 minutes; remove cakes from pans, and let cool completely on wire rack. Spread half of Chocolate-Marshmallow Frosting evenly between cake layers. Spread remaining frosting evenly over top and sides of cake. Garnish, if desired. Makes 12 servings. Prep: 15 min., Cook: 5 min., Bake: 30 min.
Chocolate-Marshmallow Frosting
Ingredients
- 3 cups miniature marshmallows
- 3/4 cup butter or margarine, cut up
- 3/4 cup evaporated milk
- 6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Preparation
- Melt first 4 ingredients in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring 5 minutes or until mixture is smooth.
- Transfer chocolate mixture to a large bowl. Place the bowl into a larger bowl filled with ice and water. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed with an electric mixer. Increase speed to medium-high, and beat 5 minutes or until frosting is cool, thick, and spreadable. Stir in 1 tablespoon vanilla.
Southern Living
OCTOBER 2004
Make a Denim Skirt from Recycled Jeans
This was too cool not to pass along. I'm going shopping at a few thrift stores tomorrow-- and definitely planning to look for something along the lines of "recycled jeans."
How to Make a Denim Skirt From Recycled Jeans
from wikiHow – The How to Manual That You Can Edit
Need a new miniskirt? Making a skirt from jeans is incredibly easy to do and gives an aging pair of jeans another chance at being fashionable. Here’s how to recycle a pair of jeans into your new denim skirt.
Steps
- Find an old pair of jeans. As long as the top part of the jeans is still in great condition, the condition lower down isn’t of such concern. Jeans with holes in the knees and frayed leg ends are ideal.
- Measure a suitable skirt length from the waist down the outside hem. The chosen measurement will serve as your hem boundary; leave about an inch (2.5cm) for the hem. Mark this length with a pencil (or sewing chalk).
- Cut off the legs following your marked line.
- Or, for a more precise result, cut off the legs a few inches lower for now and finish them later. The overall shape will change as you let out previously bunched-up crotch seams. You could measure down evenly on each side and cut straight across on a tubular skirt, or down from the waistband evenly in several places for a more conical skirt so you don’t make the middle too short. (Laying a complex surface flat and measuring “straight across” can distort its ultimately three-dimensional form. Measure, chalk and wear in front of a mirror or friend, then cut.)
- Turn the jeans inside out. Using a seam ripper, undo the inside seam. This will open up the leg and crotch areas.
- Cut to straighten the curve of the crotch seams. Leave room for the new seam itself. Restitch the crotch seams into straight seams.
- The amount of inside-the-leg fabric you retain controls the extent to which the skirt flares out. You’ll probably want a longer skirt to flare out for more freedom of movement. Experiment by attaching points along where the seam would go with safety pins before cutting.
- Decide whether you want a neatly hemmed edge or a frayed edge. The neat edge requires a little more work as you’ll need to stitch a hem in place, while a frayed edge is still very fashionable and easier to achieve.
- Let the hemline naturally fray; or
- Sew the hemline in place neatly.
- Decorate the skirt with patches, beads or sequins. This step is optional but can be a lot of fun and can also improve the look of denim that’s looking a bit faded… or jaded.
Tips
- Buy jeans from a thrift shop for practice.
- If fabric is prone to fray, place a zig zag stitch along the edge of the fabric, prior to stitching a seam.
- For an even hemline, measure from the floor with a yardstick. Have a friend measure and mark the hemline with common pins while you are wearing the skirt.
Things You’ll Need
- Jeans
- Yardstick
- Seam ripper
- Needle
- Matching thread
- Sewing machine
Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Make a Denim Skirt From Recycled Jeans. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.
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