We're your source for unique rustic home furnishings, accessories and nostalgia. Volume 2, Issue 1 ~ March 2008
Keeping up with the "Go Green" Way of Life ~
Hello ~ Welcome to another edition of Nook News. Our goal is to provide you with information and resources to maximize your creation of a simpler life. Nook News contains incredible rustic decorating ideas for inside and out, fabulous country recipes, excellent handy hints and tips, rustic travel ideas, coffee breaks, a few chuckles and everything in between! We are very excited about the newsletter and we hope you find it informative, entertaining, and most of all, worthy of passing onto friends, family, co-workers, - well, you get the idea.
In this edition of Nook News, we are proud to introduce you to some great products to help reduce the harm to our environment and also, some great "double duty" hints to help not only the environment, but your budget as well. Rustic decor can be a fantastic way to bring the beauty of our world inside. Let's take time to evaluate our lives and how we can take even small steps towards a more healthy environment for ourselves, our children, and most importantly, our future! Click this link to evaluate your 'Carbon Footprint' and ways to reduce it.
Although our site is still a work in progress, we encourage you to look around and visit some of our affiliate sites. As we continuously scout for new information to share with you, we will be developing new columns and we welcome your ideas for a column. Who knows? You may find yourself being a guest columnist! So, please, continue reading this GO GREENedition of Nook Newsand be sure to visit us at www.northcountrynook.com Cyndy & Steve
You can maximize the use of common household items by using them as "Double Duty" problem solvers.
DRYER SHEETS: ≈ Carry one in your handbag for a quick static cling fix. Simply dampen the dryer sheet and rub it on your nylons, stocking, slip... whatever is causing the cling. Voila - bon soir embarassing cling. ≈ Smelly gym shoes - no 'sweat' -stick a dryer sheet in each shoe to eliminate those foul odors. ≈ Don't we all hate those hard to clean pans? Just fill the pan with "hot" water and place 2-3 dryer sheets and let it sit. The dryer sheets will soften the stuck-on food making it much easier to clean. ≈ Dryer sheets are great for repelling insects. Keep a sheet tucked into your belt and enjoy the outdoors pest free! TOOTHPASTE: ≈If your doing a quick room renovation and you have lots of those little holes to fill, use toothpaste. It dries hard and can easily be painted over. ≈ Rub a little bit of toothpaste on scuffed up shoes to revive the shine and return them to that new shiny look. Rub on let partially dry and rub off. ≈Put a bit of toothpaste on an old toothbrush and rub onto dull jewelry to revive the luster it may be lacking. ≈Did you know that toothpaste can help dry out acne? Yup, it's true! ALKA SELTZER or DENTURE CLEANING TABLETS: ≈ Another great way to revive the luster to dull jewelry. Fill a glass with water, drop two tablets in, drop in your jewelry and let the fizzing actions revive the luster to your jewelry. ≈ Cleaning vases ~ fill the vase with a small amount of water, drop in two tablets and the effervescing bubbles will lift off that hard to reach residue at the bottom of your vases. ≈ Use tablets to clear a clogged drain. Drop a few tablets into the drain and pour some white vinegar in. The chemical reaction eats through some of the toughest drain clogs (this also works with baking soda and vinegar). MARSHMALLOWS: ≈ Place a few marshmallows in your container of brown sugar to keep the sugar soft. Replace the marshmallows every couple of months. ≈ To keep candle wax from dripping onto your cake, stick the candles into marshmallows (any size will work) and place on the cake. The candle will drip onto the marshmallows keeping your cake waxless. OLIVE OIL ≈ For shaving your legs? Ah-yup - olive oil is a great moisturizer and helps the razor glide over your skin resulting in less nicks and cuts and helps reduce razor burns. ≈ As a hair conditioner - being an all natural product, olive oil works as a wonderful hair conditioner. Not only will it help you hair shine, it helps to moisturize the scalp where real hair beauty begins. ≈ Eye makeup remover. Again, as an all natural alternative, olive oil is a great way to remove eye makeup without harming the sensitive skin around the eyes. ≈ In keeping with an environmental conscientiousness, olive oil will help condition and shine your wood furniture.
HINT: Storing nail polish in your fridge stabilizes its ingredients, so it stays thin and will be easy to brush on. Lipsticks and face creams also will last longer if kept in the fridge.
HINT:Rub your cutting board with powdered cinnamon before washing to disinfect and deodorize it.
► STRESSED??TRY THIS: Studies have shown that the scent of lavender reduces feelings of anger. So next time you are upset add a few drops of lavender oil into your bath. Soak up a good mood :o)
Homemade Peanut Butter Cups
Did you know... ⇒ Blue whale babies weigh up to 7 metric tons at birth. ⇒ A female cod can lay up to 9 million eggs. ⇒ Snakes can see through their eyelids. ⇒ Elephants spend 23 hours a day eating. ⇒ Vultures sometimes eat so much they can't take off again. ⇒ The Amazon 'Jesus Christ lizard' can run across water. ⇒ The biggest Antartic inland animal is a wingless fly measuring about 60 mm long. ⇒ Fleas can jump up to 30 cm, twenty times their own body length. ⇒ Bluebottle flies can smell meat from distances 7 km away. ⇒ Many birds migrate, but the Arctic tern travels furthest. It flies from the Arctic to the Antarctic, and back again, a trip of 32,000 kilometers. ⇒ Some animals can regrow parts of their bodies if damaged. Starfish can grow new 'arms.' Slow-worms can regrow broken-off tails. Lizards can grow new tails. ⇒ One golden poison-dart frog could kill up to 1500 people with its poison. ⇒ The giant squid has the largest eyes of any animal. They can be 39 cm across, which is 16 times wider than a human eye. ⇒ The peregrine falcon can spot its prey from more than 8 km away. ⇒ The sleepiest mammals are armadillos, sloths and opossums. They spend 80 per cent of their lives sleeping or dozing. ⇒ A mayfly only lives one day, but a tortoise can expect to live 100 years. ⇒ Stegosaurus was one of the most famous of the dinosaurs and was an impressive 9 metres long. But its brain was the size of a walnut.
Directions: In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup peanut butter, butter, confectioners' sugar and salt until smooth; set aside. In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips, candy bars and remaining peanut butter; stir until smooth. Drop teaspoonfuls of chocolate mixture into paper-lined miniature muffin cups. Top each with a scant teaspoonful of peanut butter mixture; top with another teaspoonful of chocolate mixture. Decorate with sprinkles if desired. Refrigerate until set. Store in an airtight container. Yield: 3 dozen.
Environmental Trends ~ Decorating With the Environment in Mind
As I'm sure you've noticed during this election year, the environment has become an important topic where politics are concerned but it’s also heating up the decorating world. Environmental decorating is a trend that has people across the globe picking up a paintbrush.
Want to put and environmental edge to your home decor? Simply begin by selecting a neutral and earthy toned pallet. Then begin adding as much or as little as you want. If initially you just want to bring a little of Mother Nature into your home you might want to add just a few touches of brown and green or perhaps a nice sea or sky blue. A few plants are a great way to bring the outdoors in, especially during late winter and early spring. Flowering plants can add a beautiful splash of color.
For those people who want to go deeper into the wilderness there are a slew of new products out there begging to find a place in your home. You can select from vegetable and fruit patterned wallpaper, to bamboo floors and curtains, or even faux stone walls. This time sky is not only the limit but it’s an option too with skylights picking up popularity.
And if you want to really push the environmental decorating envelope you can go green. For paint you need to look for low volatile organic compound (VOC) products. VOCs also pop up in most carpeting.
If you’re looking for a healthier environment (especially if you or a family member had allergies and/or asthma) then the carpet has to go. Carpets harbor all sorts of allergens, dust and other unsavory molecules. Replacing your floor with bamboo hardwoods is a great alternative. *Remember to do your research: Some bamboo floors just don’t last as long as they should and aren’t as sturdy as suppliers claim. If you go bamboo make sure you’re buying a properly aged product. You could also go another green friendly route and use reclaimed wood or cork. If the carpet isn’t negotiable then consider changing to 100% wool carpet, which is designed for chemically sensitive people.
Whether you simply want to refresh your walls with a nice neutral beige or you want to go totally green and find environmentally responsible alternatives you’re fairly safe hoping onto this bandwagon. This trend is going to be around for a while and decorating with neutrals and naturally is a pretty safe bet.
reduces feelings of anger. So next time you are upset add a few drops of lavender oil
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