Craft Projects

Easy House Slippers

There’s a saying where I am from: “Don’t just sit there with your hands in your lap — knit something!” I grew up in the far north of Norway, above the Arctic Circle in Saltdal, a small town on the edge of a fjord. Knitting was the perfect way to pass the time during the dark, cold winters. At school, knitting class was a requirement; when I was in the 5th grade, we had to make a pair of socks using five needles. It was a complicated project and I remember having a really hard time with it. But my poor friend Roger was so frustrated he threw his half-done sock into the fireplace at home, needles and all. That’s right — at my elementary school the boys had to learn to knit as well!

How-To: Repair an Old Backpack

As consumers, we can change that pattern. Instead of buying something new for back to school, try mending, renewing, and repairing something. My old backpack was almost worthless. The zipper was broken, the clips were broken, and it was filthy. Instead of replacing it, I set to work fixing it up. It is a very rewarding process, proving that a little elbow grease beats spending hard-earned dollars.

Prickly Pear: Taming the Wild & Fruity

The prickly pear cactus holds a unique position in nature. It is a fruit, vegetable and a flower and all parts of the plant are edible. Even the seed can be ground into flour. Also known as Indian fig, the plant produces food and medicine. Once it’s thorny exterior is tamed the prickly generously gives up nutrition, healing and a hot pink sweet-tart punch. Prickly pear grows wild in deserts throughout the west as well as Mexico, Columbia, Israel and Italy. It is characterized by thorny pads (nopales) with clumps of large flowers and juicy fruits (tunas) that appear in the fall. The tunas high in calcium, magnesium and potassium. They also contain antioxidant compounds. The plants medicinal properties are still being discovered. Some say that prickly is on it’s way to becoming a curative superstar.