Spring Grove Cemetery

It's really fun to set aside a day off work to trek around the city to take photographs.  A couple of weekends ago, on quite a cold day, we decided it was time for such an excursion.  If you haven't noticed, we like take photographs of plants. But, since it is December, there is not much in the way of blooms. So, we set off to the somewhat famous Spring Grove Cemetery.  Now, some may find a stroll around a cemetery morbid. We on the other hand find it peaceful and serene.  Spring Grove has many interesting architectural monuments, in addition to well planned landscapes. 

So, among individuals exercising or visiting family and friends, we concentrated on monuments, scenic views and a little bit of water fowl.

Here are some fruits of our labor. More can be seen on our Flickr page and some prints are for sale at Etsy.
Enjoy!

Natural Products

I think it is very important for everyone to be a little more conscious about synthetic chemicals and harmful cleaning and personal hygiene products. They not only pollute our water and soil, but our bodies as well. I've been trying to replace conventional household cleaners and personal products with more earth and body friendly ingredients.


One book that I turn to rather frequently is The Naturally Clean Home by Karyn Siegel-Maier. It is small and portable and has recipes for everything from laundry "detergent" to floor polish. I use the liquid laundry recipe and mix up the scents using essential oils and different scents of Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap. It is basically 2 parts Dr. Bronner's 1 part white vinegar and 1 part water and 15 drops of essential oils. I shake it up in an empty Dr. Bronner's bottle and squirt about a half a cup into the washer as it fills with water. My favorite scents are lavender and peppermint. There are other types of laundry applications as well, including a bleach alternative.

What is nice also nice about the book is that she explains basic properties of essential oils and which are best for specific applications. For example, Thyme is anti-bacterial, so it is great to use in the kitchen. You need to be a little careful around essential oils, however. Make sure to dilute them in water, vinegar or a carrier oil-especially if they are going to come in contact with your skin.

Another great cleaning product is baking soda. I buy big boxes at the grocery store and use it for lots of things. I have a glass-stove top and it is hard to get burned on food and grease off the glass. When I need to get it shiny clean, I sprinkle baking soda on top and squirt the juice of a whole lemon on top. I let it get all fizzy and let it sit for about a half an hour. Then I take a moistened scrubber and scrub scrub scrub! The cooked-on particles release easily. This also works inside the oven.

As far as bath and body products, my main go-to cleanser is Dr.Bronner's Magic Soaps. It's made of all organic and biodegradable products. My husband and I use it in the shower for hair and body. It does make hair a little tangl-y so I use the Citrus Hair conditioning rinse. I think it works very well and smells nice.

I have recently started to make other bath and body products such as a Dead Sea Salt Scrub. Take 2 cups of Dead Sea Salt or regular Sea Salt, 1/2 c of jojoba oil (I use organic) a tablespoon of Dr. Bronner's and 15 to 20 drops of your favorite essential oil. (I like lavender.) Just mix it all together and put it in a non-breakable container since you are going to be using it in the bath. I use it once a week to scrub away dead skin and the jojoba moisturizes nicely. You can use it before shaving too, just not after or it may irritate your skin! I am also working on a brown sugar scrub too. Yum!

One place I like to buy products such as essential oils and the Dead Sea salt is Mountain Rose Herbs. They have many organic products from essential oils to beeswax to teas. Give them a try!

I still have more tips up my sleeves, but I will save more for later! Every little change we make helps ourselves and our earth be healthier.

xo,

Inspirations

I've been wanting to keep a blog in order to keep my thoughts and inspirations organized and hopefully share them with others.

Ever since my dad showed me how to take pictures, develop the film and prints in a darkroom, I have been hooked on photography. With a somewhat recent purchase of a digital SLR-a Nikon D40 to be exact-my husband and I have been documenting our gardening progress as well as other scenic landscapes. You can see our photos on our Flickr page as well as purchase prints from my Etsy shop. I have other interesting items for sale there as well. This is a new endeavor for me, so it will be interesting to see how this works out.

I also love making things: jewelry, felted items, stationary etc. I will be posting inspirations and current projects here as well. I also make all of my own cleaning supplies and will share recipes here. I'm trying out making bath and body products too. I love Dr. Bronner's!

With Winter pretty much here, I hope to fill the next few non-gardening months with crafts, photography and even some gardening plans and seed starting projects.

So to start off I will list a few of my favorite things!

TAKEN IN PORTLAND, OR
I identify with self-taught (outsider art, naive, folk art) which includes for me graffiti. Some may find it disrespectful. However, I like how it blurs the lines of art, property and self expression.

Street Art A.K.A: Graffiti

Mail Art a la Ray Johnson

Art Nouveau anything! Especially posters and jewelry and Tiffany:

I like trying to use reusable or biodegradable craft supplies whenever possible, including hemp, wool and wood.















As this is only and introduction, I shall stop here. My husband (the Izzy portion of IzzyLizzy) will be adding his own ideas and inspirations here as well.

More later!

xo,