Learn a few basic country skills, she reasoned, and she would be able to produce at least some of the food and resources she used every day.Goodbye, fast food and Wonder Bread; hello, homesteading. With enthusiasm and joy for the tasks at hand, Woginrich embarked on a journey that has been sometimes hilarious, sometimes heartbreaking and always soul satisfying.From the fulfilling work of planting a garden and installing honeybees, to the bliss of gathering fresh eggs for an omelet or playing an old-time ballad on the fiddle, Made from Scratch shares the honest satisfaction of doing for oneself, and brings the reader to a deep appreciation for the value of simple skills performed well.

    It is the most complete source of step-by-step information about growing, processing, cooking, and preserving homegrown foods from garden, orchard, field, or barnyard. This book is so basic, so thorough, so reliable, that it deserves a place in every home whether country, city, or in between. Carla Emery started writing The Encyclopedia of Country Living in 1969 during the back-to-the-land movement of that time. She continued to add content and refine the information over the years ad the book went from a self-published mimeographed document to a book published by Bantam and then Sasquatch. The 10th Edition reflects the most up-to-date and the most personal version of the book that became Carla Emery’s life work. It is the original manual of basic country skills that have proved essential and necessary for people living in the country and the city, and everywhere in between. The practical advice in this exhaustive reference tool includes how to cultivate a garden, buy land, bake bread, raise farm animals, make sausage, can peaches, milk a goat, grow herbs, churn butter, build a chicken coop, catch a pig, cook on a wood stove, and much, much more.

    It's easy and inexpensive to mix up effective, nontoxic alternatives using basic kitchen staples — baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice, herbs, and borax — plus a handful of easy-to-find essential oils. Karyn Siegel-Maier offers 150 all-natural recipes for cleaning everything in your home — from bathrooms to bedding, carpets to cabinetry. The formulas are so simple that anyone can make them, but they are at least as effective as the commercial options. Try making your own Rosemary-Geranium Floor Wipes for electrostatic floor mops, Weekend Warrior Wicker Wash, Telephone Dirty Talk Tamer, Clear the Air Room Spritzer, or Lavender Lift Automatic Dishwasher Soap.

    The Natural Soap Making Book for Beginners will show you how easy and simple it is to make your very own homemade soaps without artificial dyes and chemicals. Your senses will tingle as you master the art of cold-process soap making using fresh, floral, woody, and amber scents to create your own handcrafted soaps.Get your hands wet with The Natural Soap Making Book for Beginners when you soak in: Over 55 diverse recipes to choose from such as castile soap, shampoo bars, shaving bars, anti-aging soaps, salt soaps, goat-milk soaps, and more. Step-by-step instructions, tips, and tricks for mastering cold-process soap making, decorating techniques, and scent pairing―designed specifically with beginners in mind. Natural ingredients that avoid harsh chemicals and artificial dyes, which can dry out and irritate your skin. Illustrated charts detailing how and when to use natural colorants, essential oils, and herbal infusions. Join Kelly Cable, a longtime soap maker, herbalist, teacher, and creator of the popular blog Simple Life Mom, as she shares the simple tips and tricks of her craft in The Natural Soap Making Book for Beginners.

    And who better than Debbie Stoller to show you how. The expert knitter and gifted, edgy author who introduced knitting to a new generation with her "New York Times" bestseller, "Stitch 'n Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook," now shows her readers how to do more lots more. "Stitch 'n Bitch Superstar Knitting" is the only knitter's handbook to teach the full array of advanced knitting techniques and skills, such as double-knitting, knitting lace, complicated color work, beading, and more. Writing with the clarity that makes her such an effective teacher, and the attitude that got her dubbed "knitting superstar" ("San Francisco Chronicle"), Stoller explains how to "knit by the numbers;" get creative with stripes; embellish with crochet, beading, and I-cords; how to make cable patterns; and how to use color forms. There's also a whole section on DIY which gives a tutorial on creating your own knitting patterns. And then the brilliant icing on the cake 41 cool, funky, and fabulous patterns from Debbie and the Stitch 'n Bitch community: a fluttery Rococco Shawl, Cap Sleeve Lattice Sweater, Jackie-O sequined cardigan, Empire Strikes Back dress, the adorable Button It children's sweater with changeable animal patches. Plus sexy stockings, stylish handbags, blankets, scarves, and more, all photographed in full-color.Errata link:http://www.knithappens.com/content/vi...

    You’ll love Adrianna Adarme’s easy-to-follow instructions and will enjoy getting lost in her warm and comforting photographs. Organized by the months of the year and by categories as “Live,” “Do,” and “Make, ” this book offers ideas for activities, recipes, and DIY projects that make the little moments in life just as exciting as the big. Adarme gives us special (but totally doable) things we can do for others and ourselves. From quick recipes to easy crafts, she focuses on simple, inexpensive undertakings that have a big reward: happiness. The Year of Cozy will surely inspire you to march into your kitchen and craft closet to make something you can truly be proud of.

    With easy-to-follow instructions on canning, drying, and pickling, you’ll enjoy your backyard bounty all winter long. Also available in this series: The Backyard Homestead Seasonal Planner, The Backyard Homestead Book of Building Projects, The Backyard Homestead Guide to Raising Farm Animals, and The Backyard Homestead Book of Kitchen Know-How.

    Unlike conventional makeup-coverups, Dina's unique approach nurtures natural beauty and health. Chapters devoted exclusively to women, and also to the bodycare needs of men, teens, babies, and elders. Natural first aid, too. Includes 450 innovative formulas for essential products for face, skin, hair, hands, feet, mouth, and teeth -- more than a hundred of which can be made from basic household staples. Many recipes using healing herbs and aromatherapy. 256 pages, recycled paper/vegetable ink, illustrated, paperback.

    Author John Seymour, the father of the back-to-basics movement, shares his singular vision to transform lives and create communities. More relevant than ever in our hi-tech world, The Self Sufficient Life and How to Live It is the ultimate practical guide for realists and dreamers alike.

    If you want to know whether it is kosher to plant onions between cabbage plants, this is the place to look.-- Oklahoma TodayFirst published in 1975, this classic companion planting guide has taught a generation of gardeners how to use plants' natural partnerships to produce bigger and better harvests.Over 500,000 in Print!

    Now there is! Parkes demystifies the generic (non-breed-specific) wool yarn you'll find at your local yarn shop, showing you how to best determine what every yarn longs to be.What do I knit? Parkes went to some of the most creative and inquisitive design minds of the kniting world to provide more than 20 patterns that highlight the qualities of specific types of wool.The Knitter's Book of Wool teaches you everything you need to know about wool - and its journey from pasture to pullover. The next time you pick up a skein, you won't have to wonder what to create with it. You'll just know.

    Yet here is a book that goes back to the future--celebrating traditional but little-known French techniques for storing and preserving edibles in ways that maximize flavor and nutrition.Translated into English, and with a new foreword by Deborah Madison, this book deliberately ignores freezing and high-temperature canning in favor of methods that are superior because they are less costly and more energy-efficient.As Eliot Coleman says in his foreword to the first edition, "Food preservation techniques can be divided into two categories: the modern scientific methods that remove the life from food, and the natural 'poetic' methods that maintain or enhance the life in food. The poetic techniques produce... foods that have been celebrated for centuries and are considered gourmet delights today.""Preserving Food Without Freezing or Canning" offers more than 250 easy and enjoyable recipes featuring locally grown and minimally refined ingredients. It is an essential guide for those who seek healthy food for a healthy world.

    The Book A lively how to and why to sew tutorial that marries attitude and instruction while teaching everything you need to know:How to find the right machine, and become one with itEssential skills, from winding a bobbin to sewing a dart to customizing a patternPreparing a workspaceThe Ten Fabric CommandmentsLaying out and cutting patternsWith step-by-step instructions and full-color photographs and illustrations throughoutThe ProjectsCuddle-Up CardiganTender is the NightieFoxy BoxersCanine Couture CoatCape ModPower TieTokyo Tie BagLucky Scrap ScarfNaughty Secretary SkirtFouncy Tank TopKnockout KnickersAnd more!The Patterns Includes ten original patterns—an $80.00 retail value—rated from One Spool (easy) to Three Spools (advanced Beginner) and designed to build skills.

    Crafty types will love the gift ideas, and even those of us who can barely make toast will be able to handle these recipes. Making beauty products at home is a great way to save money and help the environment, and these recipes will do all that plus give you gorgeous skin and hair. --Beth Mayall-Traglia, editor in chief of TotalBeauty.comFun, fresh bath and body recipes that are great for gifts, girls' nights, or everyday use!--Jill and Megan Carle, coauthors of Teens Cook and College CookingAttention DIYers! Finally, the ultimate natural-beauty "cookbook" packed with deliciously easy, eco-friendly recipes for getting gorgeous with fresh ingredients from the kitchen. A must-have for anyone who wants to be healthy, save money, and make the world a more eco-beautiful place.--Rona Berg, editor in chief of Organic Beauty magazine and author of Fast BeautyLotions and Toners and Soaps, Oh My!What's the hippest way to be green? When you whip up a batch of Avocado Hair Conditioner, not only will your hair be green (for about twenty minutes) but your lifestyle will, too. Natural beauty maven Lauren Cox is bringing bath and body into the eco-friendly future with 100 easy and economical projects, featuring au courant ingredients--hemp oil, green tea, soy milk, powdered kelp, goat's milk, and more--that are increasingly easy to find. Recycled bottling and green gift-giving ideas round out this stylish how-to manual for the DIY generation. So whether you are a crafty chica revitalizing your skin with an Espresso Yourself Facial Mask, a penny-pinching diva rocking some simple Green Tea Toner, or a chocoholic with a craving for Chocolate Brownie Lip Gloss, EcoBeauty has a money-saving, planet-loving, skin-pleasing creation for you.

    Johnson and Socks from the Toe Up. This approach, made famous by her popular blog WendyKnits.net, will turn even the most reluctant knitter into a toe-up nut. Knitting a sock from the toe up saves yarn and always gives a perfect fit. And? No grafting! Wendy provides all the how-tos, tips, and techniques you need, as well as the pros and cons behind all of the cast-on, toe, heel, and bind-off options, gleaned from her years of experience. With more than 20 fun and beautiful patterns, Socks from the Toe Up has a sock for every foot. Whether you like bold textures or hearts and flowers, delicate lace or Bavarian cables, you (and your feet) will be covered here. Even if you’re casting on your first sock, or have been a top-down sock knitter for ages, you’ll find patterns and projects here that’ll keep your needles humming. Socks from the Toe Up is the hands-down best guide for toe-up socks.