Big Sister Designs Blog - Eco-friendly

Vintage sheet heaven!

nospam@example.com (Maria K) — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 10:16:12 -0500

I've been collecting sheets from thrift stores for a couple of months now and suddenly it seems they are everywhere. You can buy pieces of them on Etsy.

Like this fat quarter set from Zwizzle. Soule Mama made some lounge pants from them for her youngest. And Made by Rae just used one to make a sundress and hat for her little one.

I've found that whenever I visit a Goodwill I haven't been to before I find the most pillowcases and sheets. Yesterday we went to one suggested by my friend, Abby, and WOW! I picked out 10 that I liked to look over for stains and ended up buying 5 of them. There were more and I kind of wish I had bought them too but 5 sheets and 7 pillowcases felt like a lot. :)

This one is a fitted sheet which I usually don't buy but it was too cute to leave there.

Two of the sheets I bought aren't vintage but still cute and still upcycling.

These are still unwashed and not ironed so ignore the wrinkles.

Buying sheets from thrift stores to use for fabric is much cheaper than buying new fabric and better for the earth. Have you ever tried using an old sheet for something else? Do you like the vintage look or prefer new trendy fabrics?

New pillow covers

nospam@example.com (Maria K) — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 22:39:50 -0500

I have a green couch.Â I wanted a brown couch and to paint the living room wallsÂ green but Steve did not want green walls so he picked a green couch knowing I would never want a green couch AND green walls.Â Don't get me wrong, I like my green couch.Â It is soft micro-fiber, just the right depth, and comfy.Â After 7 years, however, I am getting a little tired of the green.

I had planned to recover the back cushions with some yellow floralÂ home dec fabric I found at the thrift store but that became curtains for what is now Kens's room (originally my sewing room).Â I really don't like the look of most slipcovers, and I don't know how to reupholster.Â Actually the profits from my Etsy shop, Big Sister Designs, are being saved for a new couch (and I'm almost there!!).Â This timeÂ I want a white one, with a slipcover that I can wash andÂ bleach (hello 2 toddlers?).

In the meantime I made myself some pillow covers.Â Can you guess what they are made from?Â An upcycled pillowcase!Â I bought this pillowcase, like any other, with the intent to make it into a toddler skirt for my shop.Â But then I fell in love with it.Â It is my favorite one I have seen so far.Â I love the colors.Â And the flowers.Â Perfect.Â I couldn't bear to make it into a skirt that I would never see again.Â Or even one to keep forÂ my 3 year old.Â No, I wanted this one for myself.Â :)Â Of course, I think it makes lovely pillow covers for my green couch.Â And it should go with the walls as soon as I get them painted the nice peach color I have picked out.

Here is the couch with green pillows

And with my new covers

I can't quite decide which side I think should go up

The back is a solid pink, another upcycled pillowcase, with an envelope style closure in case I get bored of these.Â

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Living Intentionally

nospam@example.com (Maria K) — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 23:10:30 -0500

What do you think of when you hear the phrase "living intentionally?"Â

Living intentionally or living purposefully is one of my new year resolutions for this year.Â For me it encompasses a lot; making choices about my eating to intentionally eat healthier, intentionally making choicesÂ about buying products that are better for the earth and also made fromÂ more natural ingredients, and intentionally making the effort to be "salt and light."

There areÂ countless changes we can make to lead more eco-friendly lives.Â One of the first ones I have made has beenÂ to replace disposable paper napkins with cloth napkins.Â

Notice how they are all different (at least for the most part)?Â I've been buying them one at a time from the Goodwill where they are only $.49.Â Not only has this been easy on my wallet but fun too.Â I don't have to worry about them matching when I set the table as that is part of the fun.Â

I have put them all in the bottom drawer so that Aly can reach them if she needs.Â It is also her job now to put napkins on the table for dinner every night.Â I'm hoping that by getting to pick out 3 colorful napkins her first "job" will be more fun.Â (I'll have to get back to you on this as we only started last Friday).

The next 3 things I would like to incorporate into our daily lives are; making my own natural laundry detergent, eating more locally grown food, and reducing our use of plastic in the kitchen.Â I have a recipe for laundry detergent that I plan to try this week.Â If I like itÂ I will definitely share!Â

As far as eating locally grown food I can start by growing my own.Â I don't have a large garden but what I have is still better than nothing.Â My favorite farmer's market is open year round and as we get closer to summer there are more and more open each week.Â I love to buy fruits and vegetables here.Â I haven't tried buying meat yet but maybe this is the year.Â :)Â Â

I have been thinking about plastic for a while now and am becoming increasingly aware of just surrounded we are by plastic.Â I have plastic cups, plates, bowls, and utensils for the girls, 95% of my food storage containers are plastic, food even comes packaged in plastic.Â I don't have a plan yet for reducing the amount of plastic in my home other than replacing my food storage containers with glass ones.Â That seems as good a place as any to start.

What about you?Â Have you made any eco-friendlyÂ changes recently?Â Do you try to live intentionally?