The Easter Bunny is hopping down the trail, and it’s high time to decorate your Easter eggs! Think outside the store bought egg dyeing kit, which is typically loaded with artificial colors and superfluous packaging, and make your eggs look fantastic in a more eco-friendly fashion. If you want your efforts to last indefinitely, we suggest you use these reusable ceramic eggs, which are also an ideal choice for vegans. Jump over to Inhabitots where I feature 7 super creative ways to make your eggs spring to life, and you can make them alongside your kids using supplies that you probably already have on hand.
Even if you don’t have a green thumb when it comes to gardening – you can’t go wrong with organic succulents. I have them all over my home, they are easy to take care of and come in quirky shapes and sizes. Eben has recently shown quite an interest in succulents – remember this indoor succulent garden he made for my birthday? Whenever we are visiting our local organic nursery, he is immediately drawn to the exotic plants. Anything that comes in a quirky shape, color or texture he finds very interesting and enticing. I thought it would be fun to put together a succulent garden that would be entirely his own. We picked up a few of his favorite succulents, grabbed some supplies from our garage and a handful of small dinosaurs from his toy closet and went to work. What we created is a fun and quirky garden for his bedroom that he was able to create entirely by himself – read on for the simple directions:
1. Gather the Supplies
organic succulent plants
recycled container (your local thrift store is an excellent source)
organic cactus potting soil
dinosaur toys
paint
rocks
spray bottle
2. Get Planting Start by adding a layer of rocks to the bottom of your container, keeping your layers as even as possible. Follow by adding the organic cactus potting soil on top of the rocks. Then, arrange and add the plants to the container, leaving enough space for the plants to spread out as they grow.
3. Dip Paint and Add the Dinosaurs I gave Eben a set of eco-friendly craft paints to add a little more color to the small dinosaur toys. He simply sponged a little color on them to give them a little pop of color – leaving some of the original color underneath. When they were dry, he added them to the garden.
4. Display and Enjoy the Succulent Garden We placed the finished garden in a sunny spot on his desk in his bedroom – he enjoys rearranging the dinosaurs, showing it to friends and family who visit our home and sharing the thoughts that it evokes, that is what creative gardening is really about.
EXCITING NEWS: This organic succulent garden with paint dipped dinosaurs will be featured in the spring issue of Green Child Magazine as the Earth Day project. So fun!
Most likely when you purchase a bottle of wine you don’t think twice about the cork. You handle it for a moment during the opening process and then it gets tossed without much thought. While you can recycle wine corks, I think it is so much more fun to upcycle them into something new and fantastic. Here are some of my favorite ways to upcycle those corks, read on to check them out.
#1: Conversation Jar We have a large glass jar on our kitchen counter top that is full of corks from wine that the mister and I have shared with each other, family and close friends. Before I toss a cork into the jar, I take a moment to jot down the occasion and date. It’s a super fun way to keep a collection of memories somewhere we see them everyday.
#2: Cork Door Mat I love the idea of upcycling those corks into a mat for my front door! This project seems fairly straight-forward and simple – I have it on my list of projects to give a shot in the future. I would think you would want to seal it somehow and use it at a door that doesn’t get a lot of moisture.
#3: Monogram Fun Upcycling corks into fun monograms would be a terrific idea too. I like the idea of an entire word such as: bar or yum – or your initials or family’s last name. I just think it would be a fun and quirky way to upcycle those corks into fun pieces of art for your home.
#4: Cork Garden Markers If you have an indoor garden (even an herb garden) these cork garden markers would be a fantastic project. These would be a super simple craft to do with your children after school or one the weekend.
#5: Cork Stamps These stamps are super easy to make and the perfect fun for little ones. Eben and I made a set of these for Valentine’s Day and they were a ton of fun. You can make them in any shape or font that you would like and they can be used to decorate so many different things from letters and postcards to notepads and journals. + Cork Stamps via Sweet Greens
#6: Cork Keychains Yet another simple craft that would be perfect for the little ones, upcycling corks into keychains. If you don’t feel crafty you can always order them for only $2.50. Wouldn’t these make fun Father’s Day crafts?
A couple of weeks ago during our winter camping trip, we spent a morning at the local farmer’s market. My favorite organic farm showcased was Frog Song Organics – I thought the hand-painted wooden sign was cute and they had by far the best looking display with beautiful produce at the market.
If you live in the Hawthorne, Florida area and are looking for a CSA, I strongly suggest you check them out. + Frog Song Organics 4317 NE US Hwy 301 Hawthorne, FL 32640 352.468.3816
Every year for either my birthday or Mother’s Day, Eben gives me an organic plant. This year, he surprised me with a bunch of organic plants – an indoor succulent garden. It sits on our living room coffee table and makes me smile every time I see it.
Do you have organic succulent gardens in your home?
P.S. Do you remember the birthday project that Eben gave the mister a few years ago? The lemon tree has grown quite a bit – giving us yummy lemons all season long.
