Inspirational Word for 2018

Do you have an inspirational word picked for 2018? Mine is GUIDE. I want to help people on their own path towards sustainability. By using our crafty hands!

Here is the One Word 365 - pick your own word here
http://oneword365.com

Materials:
Embroidery hoop - I usually get mine from the thrift store, gotta check periodically.
Light colored fabric - you can use any kind, I used muslin from work that would have otherwise gone in the trash. WASH IT FIRST!
Dye na Flow - it's a type of paint, super liquidy! you can find it here:https://www.dharmatrading.com/paints/dye-na-flow-fabric-paint.html?lnav=paints.html
Thread
Needle
Scissors

Let me know what word you picked in the comments below!

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Creative Boost Room Spray - how to use essential oils for creativity

I wanted a way to boost my creativity and make my room smell nice. And I will try anything that will help me get out of the creative slump that gets me after the New Year. 

Here is the original recipe for mood-boosting sprays on Hello Glow:https://helloglow.co/mood-boosting-room-sprays/

Here's my recipe
6 teaspoons water
1 teaspoon vodka
10 drops bergamot essential oil
10 drops ylang ylang
5 drops citrus bliss

For the PM blend
6 teaspoons water
1 teaspoon vodka
10 drops lavender
10 drops lemon

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

Creative Ritual - hack your creativity

Sometimes I need a kickstart on my creative process. I trick my brain into thinking creatively by going through a ritual before I sit down to work, one that puts a transition between the previous task and working creatively. 

The physical things I need are simple: a timer, pen, notebook, glass of water.
The woo things I need: palo santo either in a spray or burned in the air or some citrusy essential oil to help boost my mood.

What do you use? Do you have any tricks to help you get started when working creatively?

You can find more information on the Pomodoro method here: https://lifehacker.com/productivity-101-a-primer-to-the-pomodoro-technique-1598992730

Woodlot: https://shopwoodlot.com

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

Break + Remake 2018

Hello Friends! 

Here are some updates on my life and Break + Remake. What are your questions? There will be a Q&A for the 100th episode! WOW, SO MANY EPISODES. 

Next week will be all about getting a ritual around your creative process. 

The wedding picture was taken by Katie Woodington: http://www.katiewoodington.com

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Christmas Crackers - plus making an upcycled tissue crown

Christmas crackers are such a fun idea if you want personalized gifts for adults or children. Erin has been making crackers as part of her family holiday tradition and she is here to show us how easy they are to make. We had a good ol' time making this tutorial for you, hope you enjoy! Let us know what you put in your crackers!

Ideas for filling your Christmas cracker:
Candy
Affirmations
Funny jokes
Tissue crowns
Pins 

Erin works at Bright Sparks in Australia:
https://www.facebook.com/BrightSparksAustralia/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/brightsparksoz/

Materials:
Tubes - I used a roll from inside fabric that I cut on the band saw, but you can use toilet paper rolls
Wrapping paper - mine's recyclable
Twine - we used paper twine, again recyclable
Scissors
Glue stick
Tissue paper
Cracker snaps - https://www.oldenglishcrackers.com

To wrap the tubes cut your paper the circumference of your tube plus an inch.
The length of your paper should be your tube length plus 10"

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

Tips for a Sustainable Holiday 2017

Here are some tips and tricks to make your holiday season more sustainable! Let me know what you do in the comments below! Most of my tips are for Christmas, just because that's what I celebrate. But I would love to know more traditions! What do you celebrate and how do you make it sustainable?

Sustainable gift wrapping!
https://youtu.be/PhNq1s_dJns

What should you make? This will help:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOX77G0f2fvLL0T4lCh2KiCREp-w_qLLH

Make your own broken jewelry Christmas tree.

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Pillowcase - creative giving challenge - 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge

Make a pillowcase for someone in need! Here are the steps to make a pillowcase, and below is the link to find an organization in your area to send them. 

In this DIY I use a technique called a French seam. It encloses all your raw edges and makes the inside of your pillowcase look clean and finished.

Cut your fabric like this-
Band for pillowcase: 10" x 44"
Body of pillowcase: 24 1/2" x 44"

There will be a seam at the back of the pillow along the short side and along one of the long sides. 

List of Charity Sewing from Craftsy
https://www.craftsy.com/blog/2014/02/charity-sewing/

1 Million Pillowcase Challenge
http://www.allpeoplequilt.com/millionpillowcases/index.html

And this is where I got my fabric: https://organiccottonplus.com/collections/fabric

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

Creative Giving - using your DIY skills for a good cause

During the holiday season, whether you celebrate or not, think about using your DIY knowledge for a good cause. Donate an item that you have handmade! I really like the 1 million pillowcase challenge, if you want to make one check out this DIY:
https://youtu.be/5sdyKmjUFg4 

What causes or charities do you make things for? I want to hear how creative you are in your creative giving, haha! Let me know in the comments.  

List of Charity Sewing from Craftsy
https://www.craftsy.com/blog/2014/02/charity-sewing/

1 Million Pillowcase Challenge
http://www.allpeoplequilt.com/millionpillowcases/index.html

If you'd like a different charity, check out what Straw-bearie has done over here:
https://youtu.be/BSzVEGN60qs

The organization is called Greeting Cards for Soldiers: https://www.facebook.com/greetingcardsforsoldiers/

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Armpit Deodorizer - vodka vs witch hazel

There is an adjustment period for those of us just starting on the zero waste/natural deodorant journey. Or I could just be a stinky kid. Either way this armpit deodorizer works great at the end of a busy day. Drop a splishy-splash on a wash cloth and wipe the stink away. 

If you find your natural deodorant not holding up it's end of the bargain, make this for yourself. Be careful if you shave your pits, it may sting if you use it right after. 

Here's the recipes I used:
Vodka Deodorizer
Vodka - fill your container 1/2 way
Filtered water - fill your container the rest of the way
10-20 drops of essential oils - I used bergamot
Shake before use
*This one worked the best! WEIRD

Witch Hazel Deodorizer
Fill your vessel with witch hazel
10-20 drops of essential oil
Shake before use.
*This one was not as good. I was shocked. 

Thank you to Tara Swiger for offering fans of Break + Remake a free oil with their purchase! More info can be found here!

And thank you to Crunchy Betty! She did a whole round up of natural deodorants and deodorizers
https://crunchybetty.com/this-is-a-secret-carry-along-freshenerdeodorizer/ 

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Essential Oil Roller Ball Bag - with elastic loops to keep oils in place

This bag turned out so cute! It's a great way to keep your essential oil roller balls from knocking around your bag. I love to carry oils around with me for a quick-pick-me-up but they always get lost at the bottom of my bag. With my crystals... ANYWAY this project is also a great use of scrap fabric as the dimensions are 4" x5", plenty of sewing projects leave that much left over. 

Materials:
fabric - outer fabric and lining cut 4x5", with one rounded edge
zipper
5 1/2" elastic - you don't need to do the elastic part if you don't want to, it's if you want extra control

Do you want some essential oils? Head over to Tara's site and tell her I sent ya!

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Natural Deodorant - diatomaceous earth vs baking soda

You want me to put my fingers where? Making your own natural deodorant is easier than I thought. I tried two different recipes, one with diatomaceous earth and one with bakings soda. Diatomaceous earth is less harsh than baking soda, and I found that to be true as I tried both for a week. While I like the diatomaceous earth recipe better, the baking soda worked better. Maybe if I try again and add more goo it will work?

Here are the recipes:
Baking Soda Version
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 tablespoon coconut oil
10 to 15 drops of essential oil

Diatomaceous Earth Version
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon diatomaceous earth
1 tablespoon coconut oil
10 to 15 drops of essential oil

Do you see the similarities? It was the same recipe but switching out baking soda for diatomaceous earth. I really liked the diatomaceous earth version because I got less irritated, and am trying it again this week. There are things I can try, like shaving my pits or exfoliating to help decrease stinkiness. If you want me to try the spray deodorizer for pits, let me know in the comments. 

Do you want some essential oils? Head over to Tara's site and tell her I sent ya!  https://www.essentialenthusiasm.com/start-here/

Here are the links that inspired me:
Wellness mama
https://wellnessmama.com/1523/natural-deodorant/

Mommypotumus
https://www.mommypotamus.com/easy-homemade-deodorant/
Sensitive: https://www.mommypotamus.com/homemade-deodorant-recipe-for-sensitive-skin/

Pronounce Skin Care
https://pronounceskincare.com/effective-easy-homemade-deodorant/

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Vegan Reusable Food Wraps - candelilla vs soy

Here is the best recipe I have come up with for reusable food wraps made with vegan wax. In this video I try candelilla and soy waxes, and guess what, the candelilla worked the best. Using tree resin was the key I was missing in my earlier recipes, which you can see on this playlist: 
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOX77G0f2fvJMyYCSbfhgt7m5LcCnNgGw 

Here is the recipe:
3 tablespoons Candelilla Wax
1 teaspoon Jojoba Oil
1 teaspoon Tree Resin

Preheat oven to 185*F. Melt all the ingredients in a double boiler. Place fabric on a pan dedicated to wax, or line your pan with aluminum foil. When fully melted use a pastry brush to brush on fabric. Place in oven for 3-6 minutes until all wax is fully melted and the fabric has absorbed as much as possible. 

Clean with cold water and dish soap.

Let me know if you try this recipe in the comments below. I always like to hear of your adventures/mis-adventures. 

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Mystery Box Flower Fascinator - collaboration with Parejeda

DIY Halloween Decoration

Happy Halloween! Here are some great decorating DIYs to get you in the spoopy festive mood! 
https://www.youtube.com/playlistlist=PLOX77G0f2fvJOJJu5cqiaE3txUF0tWoQS

What are you going to be for Halloween?! I think I'm going witty this year and am going to dress up as super scary STUDENT LOAN DEBT! OOoooOOO!

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Hand Sanitizer - use essential oils and vanilla extract

In California, we are headed to fall. So to combat cold season, make this easy DIY hand sanitizer. This recipe is customizable so you can use any essential oil you'd like!

Ingredients
Rubbing alcohol 70% - I wonder if you could use witch hazel for this as well? Let me know if you try it!
Filtered water
2-3 drops vegetable glycerin
2-3 drops essential oil
2-3 drops vanilla extract

Fill your spray bottle up 2/3rds of the way up with the alcohol. Fill the rest of the bottle with filtered water, leaving room for the next ingredients. Add the drops of vegetable glycerin, essential oil, and vanilla extract. 

Here is the tutorial on making your own vanilla extract: https://youtu.be/IpoDbdXUfkI

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Wood Utensil Care - use sandpaper and oil

Caring for your wooden utensils - spoons, spatulas, is so easy. Anytime your spoons get ragged edges, or it starts catching your sponge it's time to give it some TLC! All you need is sandpaper and coconut oil. Or walnut oil. Or any oil of your choice really. Let me know in the comments what oil you want to try!

Before you start sanding, however, you need to disinfect your utensils. Check out this link for more information. 
http://www.wikihow.com/Clean-and-Disinfect-Wooden-Cooking-Utensils

These are the pages I found most helpful! Thanks guys!
Overall longevity and care
https://housewifehowtos.com/clean/how-to-care-for-wood-spoons/

Walnut oil tips and tricks
https://richsoil.com/wooden-spoon-care.jsp

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Easiest Skirt - beginning sewing - gather waist skirt

DIY Lip Balm - vegan vs beeswax - recipes for both

If you DIY your bath and beauty products you can control what goes on/in your body! This lip balm was super easy, I think getting the double boiler and all the containers was harder.

Here are the recipes

Vegan Lip Balm
3 tbs coconut oil
2 tbs cocoa butter
2 tbs candelilla wax
3-ish drops of vitamin E oil
Melt in a double boiler, pour into a container with a small spout. Fill lip balm containers.

Beeswax Lip Balm
2 tbs cocoa butter
2 tbs beeswax
1 tbs + 1 tsp coconut oil
3-ish drops of vitamin E oil
Melt in a double boiler, pour into a container with a small spout. Fill lip balm containers.

Thoughts: the vegan one would do well with 1 more teaspoon of coconut oil, a soft oil to make it more spreadable. Other than that, these are both great bases for all you lip balm experiments. 

Here's where I found the recipes.
vegan lip balm
http://www.instructables.com/id/Vegan-Lip-Balm/
And of course Mommypotamus to the rescue for the regular one!
https://www.mommypotamus.com/homemade-lip-balm-recipe/

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Succulent Planter - native succulent plants - plant care

Making a can into a planter was way easier than I thought it was going to be, even though I did have to use a hammer! You can use any kind of can, I wanted one that was printed so it was pre-decorated. 

Weina from @mypoppyandfitch helped with some tips and tricks for planting succulents:
-Their roots like to be compacted
-They like good drainage, so holes at the bottom of the pot are a must
-lots of indirect sunlight. Too much and they can dry up.

To find My Poppy and Fitch go here:
www.poppyandfinch.com

For tips on planting and maintaining your plants head to Sunshine and Succulents:
https://www.succulentsandsunshine.com

Concrete planters! If you have no fear of power tools, from Becky Stern: https://youtu.be/N5qEwKVWDek

Native Plants: 
I'm in Southern California, so that's where I did the research for native plants. Here are some links if you are a local.
Theodore Payne Foundation, Burbank CA http://theodorepayne.org/
A list of California native plants from WIKI: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_California_native_plants#Selected_succulents
Botanical Gardens and Nurseries in the Greater LA area: https://lasmmcnps.org/index.php/horticulture/native-nurseries-and-botanic-gardens

Please consider planting native-to-your-area plants, this helps the wildlife and bugs thrive!

Happy planting!

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield

DIY Dry Shampoo - corn starch vs arrowroot powder - with activated charcoal

I tried 2 different powder bases for this dry shampoo, cornstarch and arrowroot. And the mystery ingredient is activated charcoal for coloring. Do you use dry shampoo? How do you apply it? Mama Remake says she uses cornstarch and a salt shaker! I just use a comb

Here is the recipe:
2 tablespoons cornstarch or arrowroot powder
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon activated charcoal

This was great for my dark hair, and if you make it you can probably back off the activated charcoal to 1-2 teaspoons. 

Thank you to the MAMAS again for the recipes!
Mommypotamus - https://www.mommypotamus.com/diy-dry-shampoo-recipe/
Wellness mama: https://wellnessmama.com/5047/dry-shampoo

There are some spray dry shampoo recipes out there too, I know mommypotamus has one. If you want me to experiment and try it out let me know

And here is the article I reference in the video from Hello Giggles. I disagree with it, I think you should try what you want. If the dry shampoo gives you ANY TROUBLE, stop using it. And for sure talk to your DR if you have any medical questions about using anything different than your normal routine.  

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Music composed for Break + Remake by Janet Overfield