DIY Life

Now, in the olden days of, say, the 1980s, we thought a La-Z-Boy recliner was the height of indulgent relaxation. No longer. Now you've got your specialty home theater seating, meaning super-adjustable, huge, comfortable theater-style loungers complete with cup holders. Mmm. Comfort. And a mere $1,499.99 for a three-seat set of leather loungers. Yikes! Oh, and check this out for the ultimate in lavish living. At the other end of the spectrum, though, are budget-conscious DIY makeovers like this one for under $500, proving you don't have to be super-wealthy like Tony Soprano to theater-it-up. (Remember those episodes where he installed a home theater in the downstairs den, complete with an old-timey popcorn machine?)

Thinking of taking the plunge? The home improvement website Home Time has a really useful feature on home theater planning. It covers everything you'll need to consider, like the space you'll need and even suggested room layouts, to maximize your viewing pleasure. Need inspiration? Visit Projector Central for tons of makeover pics.

If you'd really like to entertain those relatives during the upcoming holidays, try creating some homemade popcorn using...a soda can. That's right -- stock up on a few aluminum cans, some canola oil, popcorn (unpopped kernels, of course), and some salt or butter.

You'll need to score the soda can to make an escape outlet for the popped corn, and it looks from the above video that an electric cooktop would be best (as opposed to gas). Granted, this will only make a single-sized serving, but wouldn't it be cool if you had a bunch of stuffed soda cans ready for each kiddo that will be visiting this Thursday or sometime in December?

This may not be as easy as microwaveable popcorn, but it's much more authentic and you can control the amount of salt and butter (if at all) that's provided to your popcorn servings. If you really want to get sweet, melt some caramel and add it to the can after the butter. In any case, pop away and enjoy, will ya?

A big roadblock to staying green in the kitchen is the amount of trash we generate. The amount of packaging that surrounds grocery products can overflow even the largest kitchen waste can in no time flat. How often do you have to empty your kitchen trash?

In my home we have a conservative five gallon can that sits out in the open next to the fridge. Our friends can't even find it because they're always looking for something much larger. They marvel that we don't fill it at least two or three times a day. But we've learned a few household hacks for the kitchen that have allowed us to reduce our waste considerably. By doing this throughout the house, we only need the garbage company to come once a month for our one alley can (but they still charge for the whole month!)

I love the smell of microwave popcorn. I love how it lingers in the house until morning, tempting me to have another bag before lunch. It turns out that that fresh butter smell is completely simulated. A chemical called Diacetyl, which smells like real butter and can be very dangerous. Diacetyl can cause a serious lung disease, previously known to effect popcorn factory workers, but now believed to threaten consumers as well. What's the alternative? Eating less popcorn? I don't think so.

Lighterfootstep.com suggests dumping this store-bought poison in favor of a homemade version. I didn't know that you could make your own microwave popcorn, but they explain it quite simply. All you need are some organic kernels, a paper lunch bag, and staples or tape. You'll have to test things a bit to see the ideal cooking time for your microwave, but once you get the hang of it, this could be just as easy as the real (or not so real) thing.

Popcorn - it's so fluffy and it smells so good, sometimes it just calls out to you (eat me! eat me!) -- and boy do we listen. Approximately 17 billion quarts of popcorn are eaten each year by Americans. So next time you hear those voices, I suggest going back to the basics ... put down the microwave popcorn (it's hazardous) and try making it from scratch. I think you'll be glad you did.
Stove-top Popping Directions

1. Pour 3 tablespoons of cooking oil and 1/3 cup of pop corn (white or yellow) into any heavy, 3 quart or larger pan with a lid.
   
2. Cover pan and shake gently over medium high heat, allowing steam to escape from popping kernels.
   
3. Remove pan from heat immediately when popping stops or it will quickly burn.
4. Carefully pour popped kernels into large bowl.
5. Season to taste.
   

Voila! You now have a great bowl of popcorn.