Make Your Own Condiments

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We all know how much cheaper it is to prepare a meal at home rather than eating out, however, you can take it a step further by making your own sauces and spices.  I have previously posted my recipe for Worcestershire sauce (see the link under ‘Recipes’ on the right-hand side of the blog).

Curry powder is a perfect example of something you can make up yourself.  You probably have curry paste in the refrigerator (maybe even a couple of different types) but this powder mix is great for any recipe where it calls for a teaspoon or so of curry powder.  It is also perfect to have made up rather than trying to make a curry with 1/2 teaspoon of this and that.  I originally made this as a time-saving measure because I found it so fiddly to have to measure out small quantities of lots of spices whenever I went to make a curry.

CURRY POWDER

35 g cumin (powdered)
35 g coriander (powdered)
20 g tumeric (powdered)
20 g cardamom (powdered)
15 g chilli (powdered)
1 cinnamon stick
12 cloves
5 g yellow mustard seeds
10 g black peppercorns

Place the cinnamon, cloves, mustard seeds and peppercorns in a spice grinder and grind until powdered.  Combine all ingredients and store in a dry glass jar.

Use according to taste.

I buy all of my spices from Simply Good at Morayfield.  They are in bulk containers so I take my own paper bags and then decant them into my jars when I get home.  This helps to eliminate any packaging.

Today I have also made balsamic syrup and am making grainy mustard.  More on both of those another day.

Creative Capers

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The last week I have been working on some creative projects.  They are mostly sewing but not exclusively so.

Last week I mentioned the stands I have for making balloon topiary trees.  I recovered these for use  at my mother’s 80th birthday celebration last weekend.

2011-11-18 01Here is one of the completed decorations.  I covered the bases with recycled brown paper and the ties were cut from  fabric that was once a dress.

Meanwhile, I finally made a top from fabric that I had bought over 2 years ago.

2011-11-18 02It is quite plain and here is the back view with buttons.  I devised the pattern by modifying an existing one for a front-opening shirt with a collar.  I made a prototype in calico to check my design before cutting into my expensive embroidered linen fabric.

2011-11-18 03I think it looks better on me than on a hanger so will post another photo when I can organise a helpful photographer.

Then there is the ever-present mending!

Yesterday I darned small hole in one of The Duke’s woollen sweaters.

2011-11-18 04This is the view of the darn from the inside and below is the view from the outside.

2011-11-18 05It is not perfect but the garment is definitely wearable and quite acceptable.

Finally, I patched both pairs of The Duke’s trousers that he wears when painting/gardening and working around the house.  I used some double-sided iron-on interfacing to fuse the patch to the wrong side of the fabric.  The interfacing is some that is left from my applique supplies.

2011-11-18 06The outside of the trousers – not pretty but definitely functional.

2011-11-18 07What do you make or repair?

Rubbish Revealed and Reviewed

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Many aspects of organisation and sustainability could probably fall into the ‘sexy’ category.  They are fun, presentable and generally OK for public discussion.

But underpinning all of this is rubbish.  The stuff that gets shoved into garbage bags bought specifically for the purpose, then dropped into the ubiquitous ‘wheelie’ bin and dragged to the kerbside.  A truck lumbers past, the automatic arm grabs the bin and upends it into the depths of the truck.  We are relieved of the detritus of our lives for the week and will do it all over again next week.

It is time to get down and dirty.  This photograph shows the bag of rubbish for 10 days from our 2 adult household.  267 grams of waste for 10 days – that is less than 15 grams per person each day.  It is not zero waste and I am not sure that I will achieve that anytime soon but I do work hard to keep our waste to an absolute minimum.

Here are the contents of the bag.  Let’s examine what is in it.  You will probably have a hard time identifying some of the items so I will help you out.

2 pasta packets – I refilled the jar containing pasta in the pantry.  I am using up my stock but I will be making my own pasta with my pasta machine once the existing supplies are used up.

Foil tablet sheet – there is one each month from essential medications.

Foil pack from cat medication – one every 3 months from worm/flea treatment for the cat.

Non-recyclable lids – I always recycle any plastic bottles but as far as I am aware the lids are not  suitable for recycling.  I must check and see if this is still the case.

2 pairs of broken glasses – these are a one-off thanks to The Duke getting rid of some clutter.  I send any OK glasses to be re-used in Third World countries but ones that have broken are no use to anyone.  Check with your local optometrist for information about the recycling program.

Silver foil wrap – this is what was removed from the balloon topiary stands when I recovered them last week.  The new covering is recycled brown paper made from carry bags.  The bows are scraps of fabric from a recycled dress.

The rubbish bag is packaging from a parcel I received.  This will be sealed with a rubber band before I put it in the bin.

There are also assorted other small bits which I cannot easily identify but by now you get the picture – very little goes to landfill from our home.

We only put our bin out every few weeks or if there is something that would be unpleasant to leave for any length of time.  This means that most weeks the truck does not need to stop outside our property.  This saves fuel and the noise of the constant starting and stopping.  Consider putting out your bin only when required rather than every week through habit.

TO BE CONTINUED – There are so many other things I want to say about rubbish but I will save it for another day later in the week.  In the meantime I would love to hear you thoughts about rubbish and how you deal with it.

Read and Re-focus

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I am currently reading “The Joy of Less” by Francine Jay aka Miss Minimalist.  I enjoy her blog posts but this book is just brilliant.

Francine’s writing style is gentle and inspirational.  Unlike some decluttering and minimalism writing it is neither prescriptive nor extreme.

I am inspired and also reassured.  Inspired to continue on my quest to have only what I actually need and love as well as reassured that I am on the right track even though I am quite some way from what I would describe as a minimalist.

The best thing is that this ‘book’ is on my Kindle e-reader.  It is bought and permanently owned by me for future reference but is taking up no physical space.  How good is that?

Rainfed Rice

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Shopping with a conscience can be a real challenge.  There seem to be so many competing priorities.

I try to buy things that are produced as close to where I live as possible.  I look for things with no packaging or minimal packaging that is recyclable.  I support small businesses in my local town rather than multi-national corporations.  The coffee I buy is Fairtrade and the meat is grass-fed and poultry is free-range.

Rice is one product that has caused me much soul-searching.  I actually refuse to buy Australian rice because of the growing conditions it requires and the water used in the growing of this crop that we simply do not have available.  Instead I choose to buy imported, organic rice from the local Co-op.  This is sold from bulk bins so I take my own paper bags and there is no packaging waste.

However, everything changed today when I went into the Maple Street Co-op to buy more rice.  I noticed an extra bulk bin with Australian-grown, biodynamic brown rice.  It had an information sheet on the side about Rainfed Rice.  This rice is grown and milled on the farm near Casino, NSW.  I was so thrilled to discover this product that I changed my plan and bought a small quantity to try it out.

Previously, I have had a few unsuccessful attempts to cook brown rice so I was not overly confident.  My fears were unfounded as this rice was perfect and once we have finished the other rice we have in the pantry, I can see that this will be the only rice we eat in the future.

I am excited to have found a staple grain which is grown biodynamically without irrigation within 200km of where we live.  I can buy it without packaging from a local, independent retailer.  What more could I want?

Please click on the link in this post to read all about this product.  I have no affiliation  with the growing or retailing of Rainfed Rice.  I am just one very happy consumer.

Digital Decluttering – Part 2

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I am having a break from sorting photographs but my focus over the past 48 hours has been the emails.

A few things had conspired to ensure that my emails were out of control.  Not the least of these was the change in format of Gmail.  I kept putting off finding out how to effectively use the new format and although I had deleted many emails as soon as they hit the inbox I am ashamed to confess that the total emails was in excess of 1500!

The first thing I did was to unsubscribe from several sites which sent frequent emails that we really do not need.  My mantra is, “If I want something, I will go and find it.  I don’t need to be constantly bombarded by offers.”

Then it was a matter of deleting the old, unwanted and irrelevant stuff and finally creating folders for the ones I wanted to keep.

I have promised myself that I will keep my digital mail filed and tidy just as I would ‘snail mail’.  This is particularly important as we try to receive as much correspondence as possible via email to reduce the environmental impact of posted mail.  There are often emails with critical information that we cannot afford to lose amongst a pile of ‘junk mail’.

As with all of the organising projects I have undertaken, I hope to have made the email filing simple and effective so that I can maintain it with the minimum of effort while moving on to tackle other projects.

My project for tomorrow is to finish a linen blouse that I started making during the week.  I will post a photo of it when I finish it.

5,000……….and counting

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Today the inverter for our solar panels recorded that we have now generated over 5,000kWh since the system was installed 12 months ago.  Ours is a 3.7kW system made up of 20 panels.  The upfront cost was substantial and the calculations were that, based on our usage, we would wipe out our electricity bills and receive a credit of around $2,000 per year.

Our savings are difficult to calculate due to the continuing tardiness of Origin – we have yet to receive our statement from the meter reading at the end of August!!  I have given up stressing about that because I am secure in the knowledge that we are in credit.  I do not think our credit will be much more than $1,500 this year due to the very wet and cloudy summer at the beginning of the year.

While I was doing some paperwork today, I had occasion to write the byline for this blog – “An organised, sustainable life”.  I started thinking about what this means and how the two facets are inextricably linked.  Once you start looking critically at your organisation and how you are living sustainably there are many, many examples.  I will discuss more of these in future posts but for tonight let us consider the electricity.

During the day the generated power goes firstly to our usage and then the excess is exported to the grid.  The tariff we are paid for this is 50c/kWh but what we draw from the grid at night is charged at 19.4c/kWh.  Therefore, there is a 30c/kWh benefit if we use the power at night.  This has necessitated some changes but being organised means that I have been able to change and do the washing, vacuuming and most of the ironing in evenings rather than on the weekend.  This saves us money and exports the maximum amount of power to the grid.

What examples do you have of being organised contributing to a sustainable lifestyle?

Seasonal Storage

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My last post really sparked some interest!  Welcome to those of you who have become subscribers.  Thanks to everyone who responded by sending a little bit about themselves.  Although I know there will always be many unidentified readers, it is nice to be able to connect with my regular readers.  I hope you keep coming back and please let me know your thoughts on the content and direction of the blog.

Now that the holiday is over is is time to re-focus on the organising aspect.

In my reading the other day, Carol posed the question, “Where do you store your Christmas tree?”  When Carol was clearing out the main bedroom in readiness for it to be painted, she pulled the box containing the tree from under the bed and found it covered with dust and felt that it could not be healthy to have a collection of dust under the bed.

I do not store anything under beds for this very reason.  In fact, the base of our bed is only about 5cm off the floor so storing anything under it is impossible.  I regularly enlist The Duke’s assistance and we remove the ensemble (mattress and base) from the frame and I use the opportunity to vacuum the floor and damp dust the metal bed frame as well as the skirting boards.  I also wipe down the window sill and about once every 3 months I clean the windows and insect screens, too.

Back to the storage dilemma.  I have a storage bag for Christmas tree that I was lucky enough to find on Freecycle.  You could easily make a similar bag from an old sheet.  My storage bag has a zipper but it would be just as effective to make a drawstring opening at one end.  Before I acquired my storage bag I had always kept the tree in its original box, but like so many things, it is a challenge to fit it back into the factory packaging.

Since there is only the two of us at home we have the luxury of plenty of storage space, so I keep the Christmas tree in its bag on a shelf in the wardrobe in the guest room.  I have recently rationalised and re-arranged the Christmas items that we keep from year to year.  These are now all in a plastic tub which is next to the tree.  My tree decorations are fairly minimal and I have a wreath for each of the external doors plus a small table centrepiece.

I have added the wrapping paper, cards and gift tags that I have accumulated, to the tub and am determined that I will not buy any more until all of those are used up.  That has been my line for about 3 years and still I have plenty.

I have a balloon pump and 4 stands for making “balloon topiary trees” for festive table decorations.  I have had these for over 10 years and have used them for 18th, 21st and 50th birthday celebrations as well as a school reunion.  I will use them again in a couple of weeks for an 80th birthday celebration.  I will probably recover the stands to refresh them for their next use.

We do not really have any other things that are specific to certain seasonal celebrations.  However, there could be Easter items or Halloween costumes.  How do you store and keep track of things that are perhaps only used once each year for a few weeks?

Why Subscribe?

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Hello subscribers, friends and occasional readers old and new.  If you are new to reading this I hope you find it interesting and worthwhile.  Please leave a comment or you can email me.

I have been writing this blog in its current form for a little over 7 months.  This is not long in the blogging world and a I hope to continue with it for much longer.

This is a Word Press blog and so, rather than “followers” as you see on Blogger, the term used is “subscriber”.  I have now reached the dizzy heights of 18 subscribers – thank you to each and every one of you for the time you take to read my ramblings.

If you have subscribed I would love to hear from you and find out a little more about my blog friends.  I would really appreciate it if you could either post a comment or send an email with your general location, your interests, how you found my blog, what keeps you coming back and of course the big one – how I can make it better.  Constructive criticism is welcome.

I will be updating my profile and also profile picture so that will be coming soon.

For those of you who have not subscribed, please consider this option.  You can go to the top right-hand corner of my home page and click on the button labelled “Sign Me Up”.  Once you have subscribed you can adjust your preferences to receive email notifications or not or add to Google Reader.

We have now returned from our holidays so in the next few days I will go back and respond to your comments on previous posts.

Have a great day and I look forward to hearing from you. 🙂

Contributing to Christchurch

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Yesterday we returned to Christchurch for the final night of our trip before flying home today.  This has been our first visit to Christchurch, so unfortunately we have never seen the city before it was devastated by the earthquake in February.

We spent 2 nights here at the beginning of our holiday and on the Sunday we walked around the perimeter of the barricaded city centre.  I found it eerie and quite depressing and did not take any photos as that seemed almost disrespectful.

However, yesterday was quite a different story.  The Re:Start precinct in Cashel Street was humming as people came to celebrate the first tentative steps towards rebuilding the city.  This area has been open for less than a week but the tenacity and optimism were obvious.  The shipping containers which house many of the outlets are unrecognisable once you are inside them.

I know that it will take much more than a small number of retail outlets to rebuild a city but it is a start.  I did my bit by buying some shoes and books.  I bought these ‘Ecco’ brand thongs in Ballantyne’s.  They are really comfortable and will get lots of wear during the summer.  I have other ‘Ecco’ shoes which have stood the test of time.

Naturally, we could not resist having a peek in a bookshop while we were there.  I bought these 2 books at Scorpio Books.  In fact I stumbled on a fantastic bargain as “From the Earth to the Table” was reduced from $60 to $16 and the other one turned out to be from the selection of titles that were free with the purchase of another book.  I will tell you more about both of the books in more detail in a future post.

We will now return home with positive hopes for all of the people of Christchurch.  Here is a final sign of new life and renewal.  We saw this family near the footpath adjacent to Hagley Park as we walked back to our accommodation after our successful shopping expedition.