Attention tree lovers of all ages, the Leaf for a Leaf program promotes borrowing library books to reduce the number of trees that are cut down to make paper. Learn to improve the air we breathe, minimize environmental impact, and enhance your surroundings. The program celebrates trees in the late fall through the early winter because it is the best time to plant them in Central Texas. This year Leaf for a Leaf takes place from October 29 through March 3. Make sure to participate in our Leaf for a Leaf reading contest. Turn in a card at the Twin Oaks Branch, 1800 South Fifth Street, for every five books you read. The more you read, the better chance you have of winning a big prize. So what are you waiting for? Start reading a leaf for a leaf now!

October 29 from 1 to 3 p.m.
Leaf for a Leaf Kickoff Party @ Twin Oaks Branch, 1800 S. Fifth St.
Let’s celebrate Arbor Day! Join us for tree-themed kid’s crafts and a terrarium workshop for teens and adults. That’s right, you can walk away with your very own terrarium. Everyone who attends will receive a free redbud seedling. Austin Parks and Recreation’s Urban Forestry experts will be on hand to teach you how to care for your new tree-to-be. There will also be cookies for all.

Just cut up an old t-shirt into the bag size you want

cut off the sleeves

fashion it into bag shape and sew

make a handle – here I cut one where the chest of the shirt was…

or you could also make the armholes into the handles…

carefully cut some small holes

and you have a reusable bag!

The ones I made work pretty well for small fruits and veggies but still aren’t ideal for veggies that don’t have a peel and are refrigerated in the store (and therefore have a little condensation on them) like asparagus and broccoli.  I just don’t like the idea of those veggies poking through the small holes in the bags and collecting germs and dirt on them – I may try and make another one with some smaller holes.

Check out the instructions here and give it a try!

It was a fast, fun way to make something old look (hopefully) like a trendy, cohesive centerpiece for less than $15 (the most expensive part was the plants, and I think the store I got them from was a little overpriced).

 Please join the Stitch Lab in celebrating the book release of Little Green Dresses with the author, designer and beloved Stitch Lab instructor Tina Sparkles!!!
Saturday, September 18, 9pm to midnight @ Stitch Lab! 1000 S. 1st Street
Tina Sparkles’ book is hot off the presses and, all bias aside, it truly is one of the best DIY apparel books we’ve ever laid eyes on! We love Tina’s vision with this book — green, eco-friendly projects that never skimp on style. Everything about LIttle Green Dresses is top-notch, featuring excellent photography, clean design and best of all — the projects are clear, easy to follow and will inspire to you try every single one. If you’ve been wanting to attempt some simple garment pattern drafting for yourself, Tina’s book is a great place to start.
Come help us lavish Tina with Sparkle-tastic love!
* Get your book signed by Tina!
* Sip complimentary Strawberry Basil Lemon Sparkle-tinis!
* Nibble nummy noshes from Pie Fixes Everything and others!
* Party down at the Stitch Lab!!!
Be green and carpool, bike, walk or bus it over to the party. Be extra, SUPER green and bring your own martini glass for the yummy Sparkle-tinis!
Also — for one night only — did we mention…all fabrics will be 40% off during the party!!

Ever since I went to the Renegade Craft Fair and saw some really cool aprons made entirely out of old clothing, I’ve wanted to try and do the same thing at home. So I’ve been saving clothes that I normally would have donated in hopes I could make some aprons as presents for the holidays and birthdays. A friend let me borrow her sewing machine and a book  called “A is for Aprons” (it has 25 different apron designs) and I was off on my first sewing project.

I had a pair of khaki pants that belong to my husband that no longer fit him, which I decided to use as the main part of the apron and the ties. I also had a cute pink summer dress that mysteriously wouldn’t zip up this summer when I got it out of the closet, despite the combined best efforts of my husband and myself to wrestle some upper back fat into the dress while leaving enough clearance to safely zip it up without harming said fat.  I decided to use the dress material to add some unnecessary decorative flair to the apron.  I also bought 1/2 yard of green and white fabric with a tiny flower pattern on it to make the pockets and waistband.

The instructions were pretty straightforward but there were many techniques I didn’t know how to do (like a “zigzag” stitch), and parts of the instructions, like attaching the large pocket, that were a little confusing and I just did what seemed to make sense.  The main part of the apron is 15×26, the large pocket was 9×22, and the small pocket was 5×5. The waistband was 5×27 and the 2 ties were each 4×26.  I’m not going to explain in detail how I put everything together step-by-step because I’m not very experienced at sewing and you can check the book out from the library for the exact instructions, but basically after I cut up all of those pieces, I hemmed all of the sides of them, then I attached the small pocket off to the side. For the large pocket (and the book has an illustration of this that helps) I folded the pocket into thirds, ironed those sides so I would know where I needed to sew down the fabric to make the divides in the pocket, and after pinning everything in such a way that the pocket fabric was scrunched up enough so that the pockets would actually come out a little from the apron so you can fit your hands in, I sewed everything down. I also then attached the ties on each side of the top, and then sewed down the hemmed waist band on top of that  so you could no longer see where the ties were sewed to the apron. Before I added fabric from the pink dress, here is what it looked like:

here it is before I decided it needed a ruffle

Here's the dress I used for the ruffle

the finished product

For adding the ruffle, I just used the existing ruffle of the dress and attached it after hemming it. Finally, I added a little hemmed strip at the top.  I had a lot of fun making it even though it’s a little too country sassy!

About a year ago, I made the transition from using regular deodorant (Secret was my brand of choice) to using the aluminum-free kind (Tom’s of Maine). As with a lot of chemicals, there have been conflicting studies regarding aluminum in regular deodorants and antiperspirants, but there are some studies that show a link between aluminum and breast cancer and Alzheimer’s. I’d rather not take the chance and wait for more research if there are alternatives that work just as well. So I tried out the hippie deodorant. What I found was a little disappointing–it smelled good and I never smelled bad while using it, but it was pretty ineffective at stopping me from sweating, especially on hot days. But, not wanting to be wasteful, I used up the whole stick.

Looking for a better alternative, I came across some make your own deodorant instructions that seemed to have a lot of positive comments about its effectiveness. So I tried that one out too, and I’ve been pretty happy with the results! The corn starch is a natural moisture absorber, the baking soda is a natural deodorizer, and the tea tree oil has natural antibacterial properties and adds a nice smell. I’ve used my DIY deodorant this past week, and it’s lasted through a rigorous workout and my walks to and from work on hot days with approximately the same results as regular deodorant and much better results than the Tom’s of Maine kind. And it hasn’t left any white residue on anything.

Not only is it effective and non-toxic for your body, but it’s also eco-friendly because you aren’t using all those weird chemicals and you’re just refilling an old plastic deodorant container, so you’re cutting down on the plastic you use. Buying all the ingredients for this was probably about $15, which is obviously more than a standard deodorant stick at the drug store, but I have a ton of the ingredients leftover and will be able to make several more sticks in the future and eventually save money. Anyway, here’s how you do it:

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup baking soda
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 10+ drops tea tree oil
• 2+ TBSP shortening (I used Central Market’s organic coconut oil, but the website I looked at used Lou Ana Coconut Oil. Any kind would work, I’d imagine.)

The ingredients I used

Directions

1. Put baking soda and cornstarch in a bowl with tea tree oil.
2. Stir enough shortening in until it’s a consistency you like.
3. Smash into empty deodorant container. It will be a bit sturdier once it sets a day or so.

I followed the directions pretty closely, but I think I was a little too aggressive with the coconut oil because my mixture melts on contact with my skin. I would recommend taking the time to thoroughly mix together all the ingredients after you add the recommended amount of coconut oil and then see if you need more. If you add too much, like I did, just mix in some more of the powder ingredients until it’s a good consistency. And ta-da! You have your very own, homemade, hippie (but still effective!), non-toxic deodorant.

Half pint salvage, which had some really cool key hangers made from salvaged wood molding
Ekra, a vendor who sold  beautiful rugs made of salvaged fabric

and Mukee, a shop that makes awesome jewelry out of reclaimed skateboard

It’s pretty straightforward.  I just used an old spaghetti sauce container and picked up a couple of tiny succulents at Lowes. I put down a layer of pebbles first – you need this in your terrarium because there’s no drainage, so the pebbles allow someplace for any extra water to go so the plant roots aren’t sitting in water.  Then I added a layer of dirt, and carefully lowered and planted the succulents.  You want to try and plant them without getting dirt all over the glass of the jar, because it’s hard to clean the inside of the glass once all of the plants are in – mine was pretty crowded when I finished.  To get rid of any extra dirt that had gotten on the glass, and any dirt stuck in the leaves of my succulents, I used my finger, but you could use a q-tip   

a close up

Traditionally, a terrarium is within a closed container, but I read online that succulents would only do well in an open air container so I didn’t save the jar’s lid.  It was a fun, easy way to reuse an old jar!

If you want to know everything you would ever want to know about terrariums, check out the Fern and Mossery.

And look at these cool terrariums using recycled glass from urban materials.