Binkies and Briefcases

We are continuing our series of homemade holiday gifts with something else you can make from yarn: a crocheted ponytail hat. 

Be sure to also check out how to make felted wool dryer balls. They are a great project to do with kids! 

This crocheted hat is perfect for beginners because you only need to know very basic stitches. I am not by any means a master crocheter (I only know how to do a chain stitch, a single crochet, and a double crochet), and I made several of these hats very easily. Each one took me about two hours. 

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This year I’d like to do a few posts on the blog about how to make some affordable handmade holiday gifts. So, if we exchange gifts with you, please stay off the blog for a while so your gifts can be a surprise. 🙂 Today we’re talking about how to make felted wool dryer balls. 

We have been using store-bought dryer balls for a few months, but I recently learned how to make my own. I really like using them because they work just as well as dryer sheets, but are made entirely out of wool, which is a renewable resource, with no harmful chemicals. Because they are reusable they are better for the environment than the sheets you use once and throw away.  They also make drying time shorter, which saves money on utility bills. And they save you additional money because you can use them for a year or longer, making them more cost effective than disposable dryer sheets.  [Read more…]

Fun fact about me: I love pickled onions. Whenever I go our to a restaurant like Panera Bread where I know they are available, I ask to add them to my salad. I also love reducing food waste (good for your wallet and the environment), and this salad is a great way to do that! 

We had a red onion sitting on the counter that I bought but then had no real plans to use. It just wasn’t showing up in any recipes and most people in our family don’t like regular raw onion, so it sat there for weeks. Rather than throw it out as it started to age, I decided to learn to pickle it myself. 

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