Welcoming 2011

Happy New Year!

 

Today we welcome 2011.  The new year is awaiting for us to fill it.  I have a lot of homemaking plans this year both at our primary and vacation residences.  As usual the focus will be on energy conservation and efficiency.  This year I hope to further our goal of getting off the grid at our primary residence.  It will be delayed slightly until we sell this house but should be in full swing once we move.  Other than that, 2011 promises to be an exciting year around our homes!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

2010 Winds Down

This has been a frustrating but exciting year for us on the homemaking front.  With our primary residence up for sale and house hunting for most of the year a lot of things have been put on hold.  On the other hand with the purchase of our vacation home we have had a good deal of fun getting it equipped for renting out when we aren't there.

What was rather fun about getting the vacation home equipped was being able to buy pretty much everything new, something when first setting up a home usually isn't possible.  We even discovered 'beds in a bag'!  Oh sure I had bought these as gifts for others but had never bought one for ourselves.  Within minutes the vacation home beds were gorgeously co-ordinated looking very much motelish.  All my bath and kitchen towels match perfectly at the vacation home.  We bought cutesy bedroom lamps, whimsical and definitely not our regular at home look.  We bought 2 throws for the livingroom and while they are nice they are the handmade crocheted or knitted throws we are used to.

There's a down side to that aside of the cost though as there's no history or emotion attached to the 'stuff' used to fill the home.  There is none of that 'have to have spoon' because that is special or the 'remember when stains'.  We ended up bringing down several things from our primary home just to make our vacation home feel more like ours.  I'm sure as we visit more it will become our home away from home as well but for now it is new.  It even smells new!

Overall, we are excited and looking forward to changes in 2011!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Shopping Thrift Shops

I have been a thrift shop shopper since being a child.  Shopping thrift shops is frugal, eco-friendly and socially responsible.  In many cases a portion of the proceeds either goes towards a worthy cause or local charity.   In some cases a thrift shop is the major source of income for the charitable group.  Supporting these shops in essence supports others in need in the community.

Most things sold in a thrift shop are used but there many be a few new items and hand crafted items others have donated.  When it comes to thrift shops, you really do need to know your prices.  If you are a collector, you need to know how to spot the authentic.  We stopped at a small, crowded thrift store yesterday.  I was quite surprised to see things like blenders, rice makers and baking dishes priced well above what the price in Wal-Mart new would be.  They did have a yogurt maker for $3 that I was tempted to pick up for the vacation home.  Canning jars are another item that always seem to be overpriced in thrift shops, going for as high as $1 per jar without lid or ring.  Consider that Canadian Tire has canning jars with lids and rings that work out to 58¢ each.  Clothing may or may not be reasonably priced especially now that the dollar stores are carrying socks and the larger department stores put various pieces of clothing on sale at very low prices.  In general though, clothing at thrift shops is less expensive than department stores but more expensive than yard sales. 

Thrift shops can be hidden treasure troves for finding various pieces for your collection.  I was specifically looking for the glass canning lid inserts yesterday.  While they did not have any of those I managed to find a few nice pieces to add to my collections.  I picked up a small milk glass Hazel Atlas chicken candy dish for $3.99.  I immediately recognized it for what it was.  The dish is valued at about $10 and will be a perfect addition to my Depression era glassware collection.  I also picked up an interesting Morton's Salt (girl with umbrella) and a Campbell's Soup mug for my foodie collection.

Thrift shops can also be useful for finding those tid bits like a replacement pot lid.  Somehow during our many moves I lost one of the plastic jars that fit on my Oster blender.  I use mason jars so didn't really miss the jar but there was one at the thrift shop for 99¢ so I bought it.  It was brand new, never used complete with the rubber gasket and storage lid! 

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Looking Back on 2010

We are drawing near the end of the year.  Looking back on 2010 there have been two major developments with respect to home.   First we bought a vacation home in the sunny south where we hope to spend as much as three months of the year.  As a result we ended up putting our primary residence up for sale.  Selling our house was been the primary focus of 2010 taking over most of our activities.  We started out trying to sell privately then went to a real estate agent.  When that wasn't successful we took the house off the market for a month while we vacationed at our vacation home for the second time.  We put the house back on the market when we arrived home where it continues to sit.  Our area has been hit with the economic downturn so the housing market is soft right now.  Unfortunately this has been bad for us but we are still optimistic that we will be able to sell the house shortly.  Aside of focusing on the sale of our primary residence and buying another one we have been working on getting our vacation home in order to rent out when we are not using it.  Renting out the vacation home ends up paying all of our vacation home expenses while netting a little profit for the bank account.  Next up on the agenda is finding a small rental unit to buy in the same area as our primary residence but that is another story.

Household repairs in our primary and vacation homes have been minimal, thank goodness.  We ended up with a minor furnace repair in our primary residence but other than that it was decluttering and keeping things neat and tidy for showing the house.  On the other side at the vacation home we focused on cleaning and furnishing.

We have a lot of plans for 2011.  We hope to have our primary residence sold within the next couple of months or so, moving in time for putting in a garden.  We do have one house we'd really to buy like so hopefully things will work out that way.  Our main focus until we sell will be decluttering and getting rid of anything we can to avoid having to move it.  The vacation home is set for rental so our main goal will be keeping it renting when we aren't using it.  I need to make a few things for a handmade touches at our vacation home.  An afghan or two are in the makings and I will be making dish cloths as well as adding crochet edging to guest towels and pillow cases.  I even bought a couple of pattern books in anticipation since I have a lot more time at the vacation home to indulge in knitting and crochetting.  Oh and I have some lovely yarns that I will be making up into sweaters.  I'll be getting back into ceramics at our vacation home too.  Stay tuned as it should be interesting homemaking in 2011.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Core Charge on Batteries

Batteries have rechargeable life span so any rechargeable battery from AAA to 12 V will at some point need to be replaced.  All batteries whether rechargeable or not should be disposed of in a manner that they do not contaminate land fills.  In most cases batteries are disposed as a hazardous waste via special hazardous waste disposal sites or through the repair shop or store where you bought the batteries.  To ensure you dispose of the old batteries properly there is a provincial  (Canada) or state (United States) fee charged on the purchase of the new 6 V, 8 V or 12 V batteries that is refunded when the old battery is brought back.  There may or may not be an additional battery disposal fee.   If the battery is replaced at an auto repair shop or similar type repair shop for other battery powered equipment (eg. golf carts) the fee is waived although any battery disposal fee is still charged if applicable. 

It was rather nice that we were able to return the old golf cart batteries to get our $9 back per battery.  That ended up being a refund of $45 and we did not have the hassle of finding another eco-friendly way of disposing them.  We didn't get the $9 refund for the battery that blew as it was too damaged to transport safely.  It ended up going into the hazardous waste collection in our vacation home community.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Golf Cart Battery Problem

We certainly are not strangers to large battery operated power having had an RV for a number of years that used a deep cycle 12 V battery and now a boat using two 12V deep cycle marine batteries.   Large batteries meant for marine, RV, golf cart and solar use range from 6V to 12V depending on the usage.  If the power is meant to be depleted before a full charge then a deep cycle battery is needed and usually the batteries are in pairs so you are using one while the other is being recharged.  These batteries differ from vehicle batteries that receive a constant charge from the alternator each time the vehicle is operated.

Solar power requires deep cycle batteries and one of the problems stressed is batteries can and do blow-up.  If they blow sulphuric acid is released in larger amounts but small amounts can be released under normal use.  This is why batteries of this size should not be stored in living spaces but rather in a separate battery shed if used for solar.  Special battery boxes are recommended for RV and marine use.

A battery bank of 6 - 8 V batteries sits below the seat on our golf cart.  This is the power that allows the golf cart to operate.  They are charged via an electrical battery charger.  Well, one of our batteries blew.  It likely was going from the time we bought the cart but chose this particular time to go.  If you heard the noise you would certainly know why and oh my gosh it was loud!  Thank goodness it was outdoors as there was a bit of battery acid spillage.  We neutralized the spillage with a baking soda solution.  We also washed the tools used to remove the battery with the same solution to neutralize any battery acid that may have got on them.

These larger batteries aren't cheap but if looked after properly will give dependable service for several years.  However, like a car battery at some point they will need to be replaced.  Given the condition of the batteries in the golf cart rather than replace just the blown battery we replaced all 6.  The batteries cost $79.82 each plus a state fee of $1.50 and a core charge fee of $9 for a total cost of $541.92.  Under normal usage these batteries should last about 4 years.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Do-It-Yourself Snowglobe

This time of year I am always on the look-out for unique craft projects. Craft stores and departments stores are filled with all kinds of great do-it-yourself craft projects perfect for gift giving.  Many of the projects require basic craft skills suitable for children and beginning crafters.  What I really like is these can be personalized for a unique gift.

I discovered  do-it-yourself snowglobes in the photo section of Wal-Mart.  They had two styles, this shape and a larger round shape.  I immediately thought they would make cute unique and personalized Christmas gifts for our grandkids.  I'm going to edit a picture of each of them to include the year and instead of printing the photos on white paper I'm going to print on acetate to give a clear background.  

Each of the small dome shaped globes are about 4½ inches tall.  The black base comes off to replace the instructions and photo with a photo of your choice.  Your photo is simply cut to fit and inserted into the plastic sleeve that holds the photo in place in the slot.  Once the photo is in place, the black base is replaced ready for the snow globe to be enjoyed.  Each globe cost $3.88.  Printing on regular white card stock would cost about 6¢ (ink and paper) while printing on acetate at a print shop will cost about 50¢.  Either way this is a very low cost, easy to personalize craft project perfect for Christmas gift giving.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010