by Texas Homesteader
For the past several years I’ve been on a quest to provide more & more for myself and my family. I started out small and gained momentum as the years went by – I’ve come a long way baby!
Now I cook from scratch almost every night and I’ve learned to make my own Homemade Yogurt and homemade desserts. I’ve learned to make my own Flavored Mayonnaise and simple homemade cleaners.
But what about toothpaste, can I do something there? Hummm…
by: Texas Homesteader ~
RancherMan is constantly maintaining our vehicles’ tires & dashboards as well as various tractor rubber & vinyl parts. But we recently ran out of vinyl- cleaning/protectant spray. Oh no that just can’t happen – he’s just not going to be without this favorite maintenance spray.
But instead of automatically running to the store (and true to our crunchy-green nature) we started wondering if this was a product we could make for ourselves.
Turns out you can indeed.
by Texas Homesteader ~
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RancherMan and I like to heat our home with resources found right here on our homestead instead of purchased fuel whenever possible.
Thanks to last winter’s brutal ice storm we have plenty of tree carnage downed limbs to clean up. It would be a herculean task to completely clear that massive quantity of broken limbs.
So we trimmed the “fans” off of them for the burn pile in the pasture. Then we cut the trunks into firewood. We have enough firewood to last our entire lifetimes! And of course there’s nothing like the comfort of a roaring fire to ward off winter’s chill.
But the natural byproduct from burning a wood fire is creosote build up in your chimney pipes. It’s important to remove that flammable substance to keep from experiencing a dangerous chimney fire.
Thankfully chimney maintenance is pretty easy.
by Texas Homesteader
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Working with barbed wire (and pasture plants with thorns) means blood stains are a common laundry stain problem here on the Homestead. Maybe you struggle with it too?
Come see how I’m able to remove blood stains from RancherMan’s shirts.
by Texas Homesteader ~
You declutter, but it seems clutter creeps back in silently. See how we easily reduce the clutter and ‘visual noise’ in our home & then KEEP it decluttered. It’s actually very easy *if* you know what to do.
by Texas Homesteader ~
It’s a well-known fact that diluted vinegar is a natural hair conditioner. It’s said that with occasional use vinegar helps restore the natural PH of your hair. It also helps clean buildup from your hair. Plus it not only restores that healthy shine but it detangles too.
However RancherMan hates, hates, HATES the smell of vinegar. Although no vinegar aroma at all remains in your hair when it’s dry, there is a subtle hint of vinegar as your hair is drying.
To please that man in my life I’ve scented my vinegar with my favorite herb – rosemary! (a double benefit since it’s also said that Rosemary is a good herb to use in your vinegar rinse for healthy hair)
by Texas Homesteader ~
Baking soda is great for cleaning, reducing odors & it’s a mild abrasive as well. But there are even some cosmetic uses too!
Here are some of my favorite ways to use baking soda.
by Texas Homesteader
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This past fall I was so thrilled when I suspected that our remote-pasture property contained Soapberry Trees. I excitedly harvested a few berries and took pictures of the berries, the tree, the bark. I submitted those pictures to my local Extension Agent for identification.
Her response was that these trees were indeed the Western Soapberry Tree. Meaning that these berries actually contain soponin – a soapy substance used by early settlers for cleaning, laundry, etc. I dried the berries and have been using them in my laundry, comparing it to the more common soap nuts which I’ve purchased and used before from * Amazon
. I’m very pleased with the results.
