Category: Making a Home

  • 063 Shades of white

    063 Shades of white

    I’ve been longing for some light and color in my life. With the outside world stuck in dark, cold, and shades of white and gray, I did the next best things. I recently learned that bee’s wax burns best after a few months of rest for the candles. So far, I’d made the candles whenever…

  • 061 The stupid machine

    061 The stupid machine

    With the snow returned, I focus on projects indoors. Fast walks through the forest are all I can bear while it is this cold. But I’ve been complaining enough. It’s time to pull myself out of my winter funk, no matter the weather. I often start my day with tea. Today, there are no tea…

  • 060 The darkest days

    060 The darkest days

    The darkest days of winter can get pretty dark in Northern Germany. For me, the darkest days are the hardest. Without regular doses of real sunshine, I struggle. Where we live, the shortest days of the year have fewer than 7.5 hours of daylight. Seeing the sky is rare–and tends to come with strong winds.…

  • 059 Overwhelmed by jars

    059 Overwhelmed by jars

    For most of December, our home was an utter mess. Food was stacked in my room with exactly enough room to sleep. Okay, sometimes. After a real break, I finally made progress. After tearing apart the counter of the old kitchen, and building a new shelf in the corner, it was time to find the…

  • 057 Three things, three days

    057 Three things, three days

    There are three things I needed to get done in one day to avoid wasting food, but my food processor broke, and things fell apart. Nonetheless, I canned potatoes, broke apart a whole chicken, and got my kombucha done. A day with three tasks turned into three days. There are three things I need to…

  • 056 It might look ugly but…

    056 It might look ugly but…

    The storm blew off my garden house roof just the teensiest tiniest bit. I really am impressed how much is still left standing after THAT storm. Um… but we’ve got to fix it. I will need to get the big ladder to get a better look. Luckily, I still have materials in the garden house.…

  • 055 Finishing the kitchen construction

    055 Finishing the kitchen construction

    Last time, I tore apart my kitchen, and started building a shelf. Now, I want to finish it. I knew the bottom half would be the hardest to build. I would need to use imperfect tools for the job. It was most of the reason why I put this off for so long. But this…

  • 054 Let’s take apart the kitchen

    054 Let’s take apart the kitchen

    It’s finally time to tear apart the kitchen and finish the kitchen project I started in spring. The basement pantry wasn’t working for us, so it was high time to figure out something more usable. I finally get to make a mess of my kitchen. I started this project last spring. Now, it’s time to…

  • 052 Preparing for a lot of mess

    052 Preparing for a lot of mess

    I’m about to make a big mess in my basement and kitchen. Let’s get some tools, and prepare for said mess. I wanted to take apart the kitchen the next day, so had to get anything out of the way that needed the kitchen intact. I won’t be able to use this cart until the…