Cool green designs

Check out these photos of innovative ideas I received in my mail today. If designers keep creating furnishings or gadgets on smaller scale, who needs a bigger home. Let's see what we can save with them.

Less material used = less energy to create = less wastage

Don't let the water drip away. Save it by placing it where the plant needs it.

Small = portable = need not buy for each room.

Don't have to turn on the bathroom or kitchen light with these on.

2-in-1 = one more (function) need less = less space required

I am sure there is less packaging required for these products and...

since they are space saving too, you can deliver more units and save cost on fuel.

Working with fabrics? Match the colours.

I think that colours are the most important aspect of craft. The better you are at matching colours, the easier it will be for you to work with scraps in your craft. Here is a "Quilter's Color Wheel" I discovered on SlideShare that you will give you an idea on how you can work with the colours of the materials you have on hand.

Making a Quilter's Color Wheel

view presentation (tags: tutorial wheel color fabric)

Now you can choose colours to stitch with or work on your pin cushion or sew a costume more confidently.

Containers that conserve.

I think these are neat containers. There are three different sizes, one bigger than the next so that you can store one inside another thus saving storage space. There is also a handle on top to hold spoons that came with each container.



I like it that the rim at the top of the container can be removed.



I do not have to pour my bag of sugar into the container. I just slip the whole bag into it...



...and then slip the rim on top of the plastic bag...



...before I put the cover back on.



That means that I do not have to wash the inside of the container when that pack of sugar is used up. I just slip a new packet in.

What a great water and time saving idea.

Keep the flies away! Need more covers?

When the children were younger, they tend to take a longer time to eat their food and more often than not they are not at the dinning table where they should be. What happened was the flies beat them to the food and that meant that the food had to be discarded.

So, does that mean that you need to buy a number of food covers when you have children eating at home?

Not if you are able to get your hands on these plastic covers that come with canned food product, such as, margarine or condensed milk.



Most of these are large enough to cover other canned food. So, if you have any leftover canned food,...



...look through your collection of covers to see if there is any around to fit its top.



They are also the right size to cover the top of the rice bowl we use here.

So, what about items that need a larger cover like this mortar and pestle that I have. The cover I bought is not even large enough for it. And I know for a fact that you can be called away mid chores to attend to the children's demands or to check out if the children have been up to any pranks. So, I should buy a bigger one after all, right?




No. Not if you can find a clean dish cloth that is large enough to cover it.



Cultivate a "1 more need less" mentality and you will have more to spend on what is really needed. A great tips for a Mummy with twins, don't you think so?

Useful wares. Save time and money.

Here is another "1 More Need Less" kitchen ware to look out for.

This is a grating tool that came with a cook pot my husband bought me.



It is also supplied with a ring that is large enough to sit on top of the cooking pot.



Place the grating tool onto the ring and you have incorporated a steaming function for the pot.



This is great for steaming, fish or meat or heating up leftover rice or dishes when I am stewing a dish or brewing my soup in the pot. I also like to use it to boil my eggs. To do that, place the eggs in an empty bowl and put that on top of the steaming rack. And no, you do not pour water into the bowl. Steaming the eggs this way, they will not crack and you do not have to worry about water boiling out of the pot.



This is one of the covers for this pot. It has a suction handle for its top that can be removed. With the handle removed, I can use it as a mixing bowl. It is also large enough for me to use it as a container for washing my vegetables or serve food in it.



I am able to keep my food warm by placing it on top of the cover. Of course, your food must be in a covered container to prevent flies from getting to them before you do.



So, the next time my friends ask me how I managed to find time to write blogs, I think I will send this link to them. That way, we can do the "1 More Need Less" together.