What was the last thing you created (without experience or directions)?

When you bend your mind to it, share your thinking with us!

Like... what is it about what is commercially available that doesn't fit your need and how you intend to make something more suitable.

Awwww. That's so sweet! I hope you tell her that you said that because I think it would mean a lot to her. (Her? Right?)

Do tell, CJane!

I'm really curious. The only toothpaste I like is baking soda toothpaste and my hygienist nags me to stop using it. Everything else I've tried is too sweet and doesn't leave my mouth feeling clean.

that shoud be reasonably easy. A tongue of leather, a rivet,and some snap fastners (Like the closure on jeans). all of which you should be able to get from a sewing supplies store If not then perhaps a leather goods or canvas blind manufacturer.
Rivet one end of the leather tongue to the back cover. then attach a tubular snap fastner to the other end of the tongue with the matching componant fastened to the front cover.
Glueing the pages together would be tedious and time consuming.



What book to choose is a different story altogether

OK, here's the basic setup, but I don't have the aquarium siphon in place right now:



The aquarium siphon would go in the top jug and the drain end would wedge onto the clear tube you see pointing up. You can't really see the oil filter very well in this pic, but it's a big one...

In New Mexico there has been a rash of grease trap thefts at restaurants. Thieves are going after the oil and grease for making alternative fuels.

The latest one was busted as he drove a tanker up to the restaurant and was siphoning the stuff from the traps.

Apparently it is happening in other states as well:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/27/us-grease-rustlers-idUSTRE73Q03O20110427

Wasn't me, I swear!

Very cool!

Where do you get all the grease?

Most companies pay to have the grease removed. Why would they complain about someone stealing it? Do they sell it now?

Over here, they sell the waste oil to soap companies, so I have to buy it. My previous source was the campus cafeteria where I taught until this Spring. There are 2 or 3 cafeterias where I work now, so as soon as I use this up, I'll see about getting it from them. It's about half the price of diesel, after all is said and done. I'm not even doing it for financial reasons. For me, it's just an interesting experiment that also reduces air pollution. I've been doing it for about 4 years now.

In Bangkok, the city picks up waste oil from restaurants and makes biodiesel to fuel some of the police, fire dept, etc, vehicles. Pretty cool. If I were there, I'd tell them that they don't even have to make biodiesel. Just filter and pour it in.

Ooh I love doing this.

I think the latest thing was a costume for sozlet for her school play. Not that interesting but it was fun. She had to be a rather snooty rich lady from the 1850's (the play was about the underground railroad, she was the villain). We researched costumes online, and the main thing I made was her big skirt. She already had a hoop skirt, I used some curtain material I'd bought at Ikea for $7 (yards and yards of it) that looked like a silk (but really was nylon or something). I measured her waist, and then used blanket edging (you know, satin that is folded over) as the waistband.

I just freehanded the pleats -- pinned the edges to the waistband first, then found the middle of the skirt fabric and pinned it to the middle of the waistband, then the next section halfway between the middle and the edge, etc. (Hard to describe, might not be clear.) Ended up with pleats about every two inches, evenly spaced.

Pinned it to the blanket edging with the edging open, then closed it and re-pinned so all the pins were on the outside. That was a little tricky.

Sewed the skirt to the waistband, then velcro on to the edges (lots of measuring and re-measuring here).

The bottom edge was already finished (since they were meant to be curtains) and one side was already finished, since it wrapped in the back and was just a costume I didn't finish the other side (it was under the finished side when fastened). So the whole thing was very quick and easy, under an hour start to finish.

Rounded it out with a high-collared shirt from Old Navy and a pearl brooch. And Charlotte Bronte hair (swoopy on the sides, bun in back).

The shirt ($12) was the only new purchase.

This is a bit on the weird side and probably not exactly what you had in mind, boomer. But it was a creative project to fill a need.

I had mice in my apartment! I have an irrational fear. I've always had cats, but I can't have cats anymore. I had traps. I had poison. And I had mice.

I modeled a cat out of clay. Stanley the mouser. Did he help with the mice? No. But for some strange reason, he made me feel better.

The last thing I made was, I bought an old wooden tripod for $4 at value village in Seattle and turned it into a lamp. I'm going to do more work on it soon as I'm not happy with the cord colour and placement, but it looks pretty swanky with it big shade.
This year, aside from the fence and raised flower boxes, I'm going to fool around with a series of solar lights and panels. I bought a bunch of cheap lights, I'm going to transfer them to glass canning jars so I can hang some at different heights around the yard.
I don't know the first thing about electricity or wiring but I'm going to figure it out. Dammit.

Excellent fit of practical whimsy Roberta.

I wonder if you added some ... authentic cat smells (let you figure exactly what that would entail) if you in fact might temporarily curtail any mice incursions into your apartment... until they realize the cat ain't real.

It's so easy to make and quite tasty too: I mix 2 tablespoons of baking soda
with 2 tablespoons of organic cold pressed coconut oil* and add essential oils peppermint or spearmint. It's not sweet, in fact, I put some stevia (natural sugar substitute) in Jane's mix - now she loves it!

Deodorant: 2 tablespoon each baking soda, corn starch, coconut oil and
add essential oils like tree trea oil, rosemary (is antibacterial), bergamot
and I use different fragrance oils like lavender or grapefruit.

I also use these essential oils for room deodorizers and use a few drops
in my vacuum bags.

*coconut oil is (like honey) antibacterial and can be kept for good 2 years.

I invented a better way to counterfeit money but all it got me was free room and board for 20 years.

How come, Boomer?

Sweet!

Making Mo's Halloween costume is one of the highlights of my year. Some years it's more of a scavenger hunt but once in a while it requires me to build something. If there is such a thing as reincarnation I want to come back as a set designer.

I love this!

There is a word or phrase on the tip of my tongue that I would use to describe such an object.... I just can't quite come up with it.... a talisman? a spirit guide? a velveteen rabbit? a golem cat?

I want to see photos when you get it finished. Especially the yard lights. I'd love to do something like that!

Groovy. Thanks! Where do you get coconut oil?