Reuse: Greeting Card Boxes

You know those greeting card boxes that hold about two dozen cards for all sorts of occasions?  Think twice before tossing out an empty box once all the cards are gone.  These containers make the best storage for sewing patterns. Best yet, you can reuse the dividers as well; just flip them around and label them by brand or clothing item.

It Happened In Monterey

I'm beginning to notice a trend in these places I've traveled lately. That is, they've all had a song sung about them by Frank Sinatra. Perhaps the next destination will be New York, hmm?

Yes!  Just a few days ago I returned home-home with my parents and the doggies after spending four days in lovely Monterey Bay, California.  Scott and I decided to spend the weekend there after finals were done to celebrate the end of the school year, two-years together, and the three upcoming months of his study abroad in Europe!  And what better place than the quiet little town of Monterey?

We spent our time there in the beautiful Monterey Hotel, a historic hotel from 1904 located right by Fisherman's Wharf and only a short walk to the aquarium.

 

On the first day we rode bikes on the 17 mile drive.  I rented a bike there and we rode from the rental place to the start of the drive, about 22 miles round-trip.  It would have been quite a bit better if the seat wasn't so uncomfortable (my bum is still sore after nearly five days!) but nonetheless it was a wonderful ride, full of gorgeous wildlife and beaches.  Unfortunately, the only photos we have from our trip are from the first day.

The second day we ventured the Monterey Bay Aquarium.  There we saw all sorts of aquatic creatures, including jellyfish, sharks, and sting rays.  We made sure to see the otters - they're my favorite ocean animal.  If you go during feeding time, you'll see them do several tricks too!  We completed that evening with dinner from the local Tuesday evening farmer's market, right outside our hotel door.

On the third day we rented kayaks and explored the ocean waters, encountering birds, seals, and lots of kelp!  Just as we were about to return the kayaks in the afternoon with sore arms and soaked clothes, Scott insisted we travel a bit farther west past the rental beach and circle back.  And sure enough, only another few hundred feet farther, we saw at least 10 otters floating in the kelp, napping together.  A few pairs were even holding hands!  It was just wonderful, by far my favorite part of the trip.  I even bought a pair of socks with little otters stitched on them to remember it.

3 Unexpected Places to Find Vintage Clothing for Less

It's no secret that vintage clothing can be pricey.  The few times I've ordered from etsy or similar vintage apps, I'll spend nearly $100 on a dress to find that once it arrives in the mail, it doesn't fit.

But fear not!  Down below I'll share three places I find vintage clothing and accessories for only a few dollars each.  So the next time your wardrobe can use an update or your bank budget is running low, try one of these places to find new goodies!

 

Image from blog.tuppencehapenny.co.uk

Thrift Stores
Believe it or not, thrift stores are the most common place I find vintage clothing aside from vintage stores.  Even places as common as Goodwill have hidden treasures.  The key here is to look in towns with a largely elderly population.  Oftentimes, when people remain in the same house for a long period of time, they collect stuff without realizing it.  There's never a need for them to go through it or get rid of it so they'll hang onto things decades old -- perfect for vintage collectors.  Once seniors are placed in a nursing home or pass away, these items are donated to local thrift stores.

I've found beautiful items from my local thrift stores, including two mint-condition Evan Picone skirt suits from the early 1950s, numerous knee-length skirts, and a one-of-a-kind handmade 1960s shift-dress.

Garage / Estate Sales
Everything said above about thrift stores applies to garage and estate sales.  Some people don't want a hassle and choose to donate everything, but others try to sell what they can before donating.  Once again, the best finds will be in towns with a largely elderly population.

A plus to these sales is in addition to clothes, you can often find vintage furniture and household goods as well, like sewing notions, pyrex cookware, and more.

Your Grandparents' Closet
This is probably your best option for vintage clothing because it's free!  Older people know how much stuff they have and often want to get rid of it, but its not easy to let go of memories.  In this case, they likely haven't worn the clothes for years and will be overjoyed to see it in use by someone they care so much about.

Unfortunately, both my mom's and dad's parents moved a long ways (one in the mid 1960s, again as recently as 10 years ago, and the other in the early 1980s) so their collections are more recent than my taste, but I've come across a beautiful poodle skirt and petticoat from my Nana's closet.  Crazy the things that people hang onto.

If you're in the same boat as me, you can also look into the wardrobes of your grandparents' friends.  This may also help if you and your grandma are a different size.

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I hope these three places have inspired you to shop a bit more!*

*I don't often promote consumption (very unsustainable) but in the case of used goods, the material extraction and manufacturing has already happened.  Depending how old it is, it could have been made in the United States with fair labor laws (rather than today's method of exploited overseas labor).

"You're Not Like Other Girls"

I thought I'd start my first feminism post with a simple subject, rather than try to tackle the wage gap or lack of representation in the media.

"You're not like other girls."

At one time or another, we've all heard this.  It could be the male lead in a movie trying to sway the female love-interest, or perhaps you've even been told this.  Maybe you've said this to a woman.  What appears as a compliment has hidden (and negative) undertones.

While this may be a genuine compliment and she truly is like no other girl you've ever met before, chances are you have met women like her.  Amongst the dozens of ladies you know and the hundreds you've met, there's bound to be qualities she shares.

But this phrase isn't trying to say she's different than those women. It implies that she's better than those women.

Think about it; It's meant to be a compliment to her.  She's wonderful, fantastic, and you enjoy spending time with her, don't you?  But what does that say about all those women who aren't like her?  Does that make them terrible, dreadful, and unpleasant to spend time with?

This is a classic example of lifting one up by putting others down.  It's manipulative and shames an entire gender for the sake of making one person feel good about herself.  Not much of a compliment, eh?

It stems from a misperception that is rooted in society, one that we see in characters like Penny in the Big Bang Theory and Cher in Clueless.  With every female character we see in movies that lacks substance and originality, it contributes to this idea that women in real life lack substance and originality -- that our interests include shopping and tanning, that we can't form a sentence without the words "like" or "um" every so often, or that we can't possibly be good at -- let alone interested in -- "manly" things like sports and video games.  Any women who shows substance and originality beyond this narrowly defined personality is a special snowflake and should be acknowledged for it (I hope that sentence made you cringe reading it as much as I did writing it).

Surprise, surprise! Hardly any woman fits this stereotype entirely, though we all (men included) have attributes from it.  And for the few who do fit it, that's ok too! What's not alright is allowing this to be the default for girls because it limits them.  Just because a women likes to shop, that doesn't make her materialistic, nor does wearing makeup make her self-absorbed.  Having no interest in sports doesn't make her "unrelateable" to men, and repeating "um" does not mean she's a ditz.

The next time you hear this line, remember - he may have a high opinion of you, but he has a poor judgement of women in general.  If you have the chance to respond to the person, tell him that while his intentions may be good, the compliment would be more meaningful if he compared you to people in general rather than just women.  And if you're comfortable enough with him, call him out on it!  Ask him what makes you different from other girls, and he'll probably list a few sexist stereotypes like the ones from above.  If it's a genuine compliment, then he should be able to use the word "people" in place of "girls," (ex: "you're not like other people because no one else makes me laugh this hard.")

Three More Weeks... and Then, Monterey!

Monterey, California, that is.  Scott and I will be going up there the week after finals.  Nothing is set in stone yet as we still need to find out our schedules at the time, but until then I will excitedly check hotel pricing in the area.  Right now I'm looking into The Monterey Hotel, an old-Victorian style place from the early 20th century and hoping that we can plan to stay on the discounted days.

This trip is a partial anniversary retreat for us -- two years next month -- and a chance for us to spend time together before Scott leaves on his 6-month study abroad program in Switzerland (I've already tried asking to go with him and it just won't work out. Pooh).

We'll spend the day at Fisherman's Warf, the Aquarium of the Pacific, and go to all the best beaches for spotting sea otters.  Oh, these three weeks can't pass soon enough!

Cooking Hack: Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you haven't noticed yet, I have a large sweet tooth.  So far there's about 3 or 4 recipes on the blog and only one is a proper meal.  Tee hee.

Image from verybestbaking.com

Amongst my favorite of all sweets is the classic chocolate chip cookie.  For years I followed various recipes always to find flat cookies that were either too crunchy on the bottom (large stiffness) or too flimsy to stay in one piece (large bending moment).  But for soft cookies, the only solution was to make the cookie taller (which would increase the moment of inertia).  The secret that took me years to discover?

Lard.

Yep, good ol' pig fat. Lovely, isn't it? (Is butter much better though?)

Substitute an equal amount of butter for lard, no matter the recipe. I like to use the Nestle Toll House one printed on the back of the chocolate chip bags.

If you don't eat animal products, shortening made from vegetable fat is also an option.

Conclusion: cookies would make terrible structural elements.

Painted Planting Pots

Now that the warmer weather is setting in, it's perfect time to begin growing garden herbs.  Or, if you're without a garden of your own like me, pots are a great substitute.  Who says they have to be plain terra cotta? Below is a fairly simple tutorial on how I painted my planting pots and choosing environmentally-friendly paint.

Can you guess what I'll be growing in them?

What you'll need:

• terracotta pots and saucers (I used three 6" ones)
• paint (one 2 fl oz bottle of Americana in 'zinc' can cover three 6" pots and saucers)
• paint brushes / small sponges (make-up sponges will work too)
• old newspaper
• pencil
• Sharpie Water-Based Medium-Point Pen

[images coming soon]

What to do:

1.  Make sure pots and saucers are clean. If you just purchased them, they should be ok.  If you're using old pots, place them in a white vinegar-water solution (more info here). 
2. Once clean, apply the first coat of paint. To have a nice, finished layer, paint several thin coats -- outdoors.  Painting will likely take two stages, the top/bottom of the saucer and the inside/outside of the pots.  When painting the inside of the pots, only paint down approx. 1" from the top. Let dry for about 45 minutes to 1 hour on newspapers before applying the next coat.  I used 4 coats in total with small, partial touch-ups. 
3. After finishing the final coat of paint, take the pencil and very very lightly write out your message - plant / herb types, name of a friend (gifts!), etc. It may be helpful to draw a straight line parallel to the bottom of the pot.  
4. Test the sharpie pen on newspaper before using on the pots.  It requires a lot of shaking and a decent amount of pressure for the ink to flow.  Trace over the pencil, stopping every so often to shake again.  

The Potential Impacts of Paint

It's not something often thought of.  It lingers on our walls for years until a fresh coat is painted over top.  But without proper precautions, paint can have negative effects on indoor air quality and breathing conditions.  Steps have been taken to make paint less-dangerous -- at least there's no lead anymore (and that took nearly 75 years to put into effect after the dangers of lead were discovered).  Today the largest danger in paint are VOCs - volatile organic compounds.  As paint dries, these compounds are released and combine with existing gases in the air to form ozone.  This has been linked to breathing problems and headaches, and in extreme cases cancer, as well as liver and kidney damage.

If you're in the market for paints, look for key-words like 'low VOC' or 'VOC free,' and opt for water-based paints over oil-based.  Another good indicator is the Green Seal, given to paints with VOC levels below 50 g/L for flat finishes and 100 gL/ for non-flat finishes.

Image from greenseal.org

As rapid consumers, Americans bring thousands of goods into our homes each year, several of which have not been tested for chemicals.  Unfortunately, companies have limited product safety standards to meet and oftentimes prioritize profit over environmental responsibility and consumer health.  This leaves shoppers unaware of potential dangers in the items they're buying.  But you don't have to be! A few of my favorite trusted sites on product information are listed below:

• Cradle to Cradle - reusable products that eliminate the need for material extraction and future waste by increasing its life-span.
• EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetic Database - look up the dangers of beauty/cosmetic items. Over 61,000 products recorded.
• Household Products Database - perhaps the largest range of items of the sources listed here.
• Safer Products - US Consumer Product Safety Commission (government-sponsored) website were people can report problems with specific goods.

Being a smart shopper means more than saving money.  While the majority of products on shelves have hidden dangers, more and more sustainable goods are emerging as consumers demand higher safety standards.