Hard to believe it, but my 3rd trimester in the Great Baby-making Production, the Sequel, is already here. And boy howdy, is it ever. If I say that the world trembles at my approach, I'm sadly NOT being metaphorical. Back-to-back pregnancies are definitely not kind to the figure. I can only try to resist that bag of M&M's in the vending machine downstairs (you know you want 'em!) and pray that I bounce back from this as quickly as I did the first time. There is some comfort in coming back from the hospital weighing 20 pounds less than you did 2 days before.
So, with the birth of baby # 2 looming and my nesting impulses firing like mad, I've been working on a lot of projects as part of my whole "waste not, want not" campaign, and I'm hoping to develope some things that I can add to my Etsy repertoire when I finally get my site back up and running. This week, I learned how to make rag rugs - so ridiculously simple, and so many applications!- and dish soap from scraps of bar soap and lemon juice. I've also been working like crazy on making my own kitchen dish scrubbies from crocheted hemp twine, which I have left over in abundance since I outgrew the hemp jewelry phase. I think they came out pretty nice, and when I can find my camera cable, I'll post a picture.
This past month, I also took my first stab at pressure canning. Nothing exploded, so I'm calling it a success. We now have 18 jars of stewed tomatoes and 9 jars of green beans in the pantry. I'm hoping to get a chance to do some more soon. I'd really like to try pickles, though I'm doubtful that I could ever top the tasty deliciousness of Claussen Koshers. I love those things, pregnant or not.
I don't know that I actually saved a lot of money by canning this time around (I bought the green beans from the farm market) but it was definitely good learning experience. And now that I know how to use the pressure canner, nothing can stop me.
Next on my list to accomplish - homemade bread, the rag rugs I mentioned earlier, and crocheted cotton kitchen towels. I'd also like to play around with soap flakes and essential oils to see if I can make a scented soap concentrate that I could sell in dry form (to save on shipping). A 'just add water' kind of thing. I might have to learn how to make my own bar soap for it. Oh darn. AND - I still need to find a good, cheap, sulfate-free shampoo.
Oh, and also reusable food storage bags. I haven't had a chance to research yet, but I'm going to start looking for a waterproof, washable, food-safe fabric that I can make bags out of that can be washed and reused. I hate throwing out plastic bags all the time. Such a waste.
(Though now that I think about it, could you run the higher grade plastic bags (like ziploc or something) thru the washer and reuse them? How long would they last? or would they just fall apart? I may have to test this.)
In the end I hope to come up with enough cute, creative and thrifty products that I can make at home and sell to other people who are interested in that sort of thing, but maybe don't have the time or resources to make them on their own. Maybe it's all just one of my crazy Ideas that will end up not amounting to much. But it sure is fun to try, and I'm learning so much about being self-sufficient in the process, so it's a win any way you look at it.
Note: since I posted this, oh... 2 hours ago? I've found the answer to my plastic bag material question, and it is (drumroll please): ripstop nylon! I'm definitely not the first to realize that plastic storage bags are a total waste. These things are all over Etsy. Now, to get some fabric (it's surprisingly not that expensive) and make me some food storage bags!
