DIY Life

I live north of Atlanta, Georgia where it tends to get a bit hot and humid from June through September.

My home has a number of temperature-stabilizing facets to it, the best one being that I have high-efficiency windows with argon-filled, low-e, dual paned glazing. Right now, in fact, I have the windows partly open, and even with an outside temperature of about 88 degrees, it's a very comfortable 71 degrees inside.

But ... there's no airflow through my home office (lucky me, to be able to work from my home, however.) Although I have ceiling fans in four other locations, in- and outside of my home, I have been slow (lazy?) to put one in the office; that ended today. Let's take a reasonably detailed look at how to install a ceiling fan. (Kudos to Kelly Smith for his nice article on this same subject.)

Follow the sequence of the gallery to get a good idea of how simple it is to hang one of these babies.

I'm simply giddy that sandal season is upon us. If you've made your feet pretty with our home spa pedicure, then you are ready to try your hand at making your own sandals.

If Anna's recycled tire sandals aren't your thing, you might like to order this Make Your Own Sandals Kit. They are customizable and very stylish. The assembly instructions are clear and easy to follow, and you can purchase fun add-ons like charms and other embellishments.

The drawback? At 39.95 for a basic sandal kit, you could just go out and buy a pair of already-made sandals. But if you are a die-hard DIYer, this is an easy way to say, "I made these shoes."

I am wondering if you could use an old pair of shoe soles, buy new leather strapping, and fashion yourself a similar pair of sandals for less -- recycling old shoes, to boot. It would be better for the planet and your wallet!

City dwellers and those who want to compost year-round can still compost food items, however. You just need some little critters to help the process along. I'm talking about composting with worms.

Worms? Really?

When you provide worms with an appropriate home, they'll work their way through your food scraps and create a dark, rich, moist material that your garden will love. I'll talk more about what types of worms to use and how to build a home for them after the break.

You may not know it, but there could be a tea garden growing in your very own yard. Many weeds make excellent herbal tea, and they are medicinal to boot.

In my yard, I have a variety of chocolate mint that is my favorite tea, but I also have rosemary and sage that come up every year. Oh, and the plethora of dandelions, but I suppose I shouldn't admit that.

Country Living has some fresh plant blending ideas that you can use to make your own herbal teas. They include weeds, herbs and even edible flowers. They also include an extensive list of edible -- and drinkable -- plants, some of which may surprise you. I've never thought of steeping young birch leaves or pine needles, but according to Country Living, they'd make some great tea.

So, whether for medicinal or culinary purposes, fresh plants can make delicious tea. Now, who is baking the cookies to go with this delicious fresh tea?

(via Lifehacker)

We love solar powered stuff here at DIY Life. Hacking things together ourselves in the interest of reducing our environmental footprint really gets us going. This DIY solar lantern is just the thing to keep the spirit of Earth Day even after it's come and gone.

Noel from unplugged living gives us a full detailed tutorial on making the solar lantern. Covering each step thoroughly, and providing loads of helpful pictures, diagrams and part lists, this is one project that will be easily recreated on your own.

This project is split into a three part tutorial. In the first part, Noel explains the basic theory of operation, then goes on to explain how to calculate the value of the resistor. In the second section, you'll learn about the charging module and solar cell. The assembly instructions are clear and detailed. Finally, in the third part, you'll see close-up pictures of each piece and how they should look together.

Staying green isn't always easy, but it sure is important. Noel brings us inspiration by combining our desire to go green with the love for great DIY projects. Gear up for your next camping trip with a solar powered lantern.

Join me each week as I explore the naturally aromatic side of DIY. Helpful recipes for your "scentual" pleasure: from essential oils, herbs, and other botanicals to soap-making, body care products and other useful blends.

Last week, you learned how to pamper yourself, some friends or your mom with a home pedicure. Recipes for foot soak, foot scrub and foot butter helped to set the stage for a day of feet-lovin' fun. Use those newly neat feet to gather supplies for the best home facial you can give -- just in time for Mother's Day.

After the break, I'll share recipes for making your own facial cleanser, face scrub, facial mask and face oil, ideas for packaging them as gifts, and tips for choosing oils and essential oils based on your skin type.

Though environmental groups have been warning us about the dangers of bisphenol--A (BPA) for years, a recent study by the National Toxicology Program that confirmed those findings has manufacturers of plastic bottles finally sitting up and taking notice.

BPA, which is a known endocrine disrupter, can leach into food products. In lab studies, it's linked to precancerous tumors and early puberty. Because BPA is in everything from plastic bottles to dental sealants to baby bottles, it's hard to avoid.

When the news broke about the most recent government study, Nalgene, a popular maker of plastic reusable drinking bottles, announced that they'd be pulling their bottles made with BPA off the shelves and replacing them with BPA-free versions.

My daughter loves strawberries. She opens up the refrigerator when I am busy and proceeds to eat them straight out of the container. I shudder to think what pesticides are going into her precious tummy because she chomped away before I could wash the berries.

Produce wash can be very expensive, especially if your family eats a lot of fruit and veggies. You can take the pain out of buying commercial produce wash by making your own organic fruit and veggie wash. All you need is a spray bottle, one tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice, 2 tablespoons vinegar, and 1 cup water. Put the ingredients in the spray bottle and shake well. Spritz on your produce, and rinse well.

The dollar store has inexpensive spray bottles, perfect for your new organic produce wash. If you happen to have an eager toddler like mine, who just happens to have an independent streak a mile wide, you can spray your produce as soon as you get it home, and no longer worry about what nasty pesticides might be ingested into their tender tummies.

[via:Curbly]

Spring is here and so are the April showers. The leaves are budding on the trees and the grass is starting to green. It is finally time to get the kids out of the house and take them on a nature walk.

Children are natural-born explorers, and it is such a joy to see their little faces light up when they find a unique rock or leaf. When you take them on their hunt for treasures this spring, take along a nature can for them to put their treasures in.

Megan informs us how to take an empty oatmeal container and glue fabric to it, decorate the container, and then add a strap so our little nature buddies can easily tote it around.

We are almost done with our oatmeal container and will definitely recycle it into a nature can for my daughter. She loves to walk around our yard and collect cool rocks, leaves and sticks. It will be a fun way to teach her about all the wonderful things the great outdoors has to offer, right under her little feet.

[via: Craft]

I live north of Atlanta, Georgia, an area currently under homeowner outdoor watering restrictions. Not much is allowed because of a lingering drought. In addition to trying to do my part to conserve water, I want to be able to water my plants, without waiting for Mother Nature to send the rain. I liked Dan Chilton's article on rain barrels, but I wanted to do something a bit different. I built my barrel in about two hours and it's now the repository for all my recycled water and rainfall, such as it is.

Peruse the gallery, follow the construction steps, and you can be the proud owner of your very own rain barrel and, might I say, the envy of your neighbors.

Eco-friendly. Go green. Environmentally aware. Call it whatever you want, we love it when the DIY tips we give you are also good for the environment. As we celebrate Earth Day today, let's take a look at some of the ideas we've shared in in the past that can help you get green.

Nothing says "I'm helping save the Earth" more than a compost pile filled with leftover food scraps and grass clippings. Here's everything you need to know to start your own compost heap, including what kind of organic materials you can toss in (egg shells) and what you can't (meat scraps).

This long list of ideas on how to make your home eco-friendly covers everything from programmable thermostats to spark igniter pilot light systems. Even if you already practice green living, you might find one or two ideas on here that you never thought of.

Make spring cleaning a little less onerous this year by tossing out the harsh chemicals you usually use and cleaning up with essential oils instead. Find recipes for bathroom cleanser, dish soap, glass cleaner, and more.

Many people like to celebrate Earth Day each year by planting seeds and flowers in the yard. Before you haul out the hoe and shovel, consider making seed bombs. Let 'er rip!

Have you pledged to your family and your wallet to cut down on fuel consumption and pedal around on your bike instead? Pull that forlorn bicycle out from the corner of the garage, dust it off, and then use these handy tips to give it a tune-up.

Weed killer and other pesticides can be bad for the environment and terrible for your health. Try this approach that uses a common household ingredient that you probably have leftover from Easter.

Water: can't live without it. Learn some painless ways to conserve it around your home, both inside and out.

Have you just gotten home from the market loaded down with organic food and don't know what to do with the plastic grocery bags? Go fly a kite!

Are ready to commit to a low-flush toilet and aren't sure how to retrofit your commode? We can help.

In many homes, the bathroom is the last vestige of privacy (unless you have kids) and also one of the most eco-unfriendly spots in the house. Here's several things you can do to change that (sorry, no advice on how to keep the kids from interrupting your bath).

For even more Earth-friendly tips, be sure to check out our sister blog, Green Daily.

Bamboo is fast becoming one of the hottest green flooring materials. Why green? There are at least two reasons. First and foremost, it's sustainable. If you've ever had any in your backyard, you know how hard it is to contain. Even worse if you don't want it, but it's an under-the-fence gift from a neighbor!

Yes, I know there are non-spreading varieties. But the point is, compare bamboo's renew rate to hardwood.

The second green aspect of bamboo is that it's a natural product. Carpet usually has a lot of synthetics in it, and that means petrochemicals and gas-off issues. Formaldehyde may also be an ingredient. Yuck.

There's a variety of choices for installing bamboo flooring. It requires a dry floor and a membrane or layer of felt. Other than that, it can be nailed, glued, or floated like laminate floors. There's something for whatever kind of subfloor you have!

I am so excited that spring finally came yesterday. I spent most of the day outside picking up aluminum cans that were blown all over the yard, and my daughter, husband and I played in the dirt, soaking up the sun of a glorious 70 degree Sunday. I should have cleaned the grill, and cooked outside.

Now is the time to save money on the electric bill and start cooking outdoors. Even cooking with a grill can cost a ton of money, especially if you do it on a weekly basis. Ecobites has a wonderful alternative for us, featuring an article with instructions showing us how to make a solar cooker.

The solar cooker was made out of recycled plywood and recycled aluminum; items that were readily accessible, could soak up solar rays, and give a high enough temperature to safely cook food. Almost anything would work though, like the cardboard oven shown in the picture. Happy cooking!

I would not recommend gluing aluminum foil to a cooking surface. The chances of the glue leaking through to the food and contaminating it are too great. Try to find some other shiny reflective surface to cook with, or just don't glue the aluminum foil to the surface. To avoid injury to your eyes, wear sunglasses, and do not look right at the cooking surface. As always, safety is the number one priority for a DIY project.