What things do you make from scratch, to be more wholesome for you and your family?

missymoo81

Oh by all means put the blog link on here, if that's allowed, would love to read.

moneyistooshorttomention

There is an MSE rule against giving blog links.

Sometimes its enforced, sometimes it isn't.

Hence why I have, hopefully, asked for a PM if there is one.

tomstephens

Re the milk from soaking oats : A traditional drink in the Highlands was ' stapach' . It varied from area to area , but the recipe I know is a couple of good spoonfuls of oatmeal NOT OATS in a jug , and fill up with water . Leave it a wee while , then stir it up and drink . Delicious when you're thirsty on a hot day . Lovely touch of bitterness to quench your thirst . And the oatmeal that gets left in the bottom is really nice to eat as well . I guess it is the equivalent of the old English barley water .

tomstephens

Another great thing to reduce costs is woolen shearing vests , available from New Zealand reasonably cheaply . Just wear some underneath your ordinary clothes . When it's cold I quite often wear 2 or 3 . It is merino wool , so not prickly , and has some added nylon , so wash well . They wick really well , so you never feel as sweaty or clammy as with cotton , plus they go far longer than cotton before they smell , so cutting down on your washing . They are also fairly long , and help prevent bad backs by keeping the muscles warm . In fact I never do any manual work without one on . Trust me , sheep aren't daft , wearing wool . They know what's good for them .(Unlike us ).

wishus

Great thread!

I have phases of being downsizery and then of being an utter lazy consumer mug. I am currently muggish, with a desire to improve!

Last year I did quite well. I made the following:

• wholemeal and granary loaves
• chapatis
• yoghurt
• paneer cheese
• blackberry and gooseberry jam
• gnocchi
• stout cake
• banana chutney
• banana tea loaf
• sloe gin
• knitted gifts: bracelets, baby blankets
• greetings cards
• decoupage gifts
• grew my own courgettes, french beans, white strawberries, rhubarb, salad leaves, cabbages, and 2 carrots!

I've almost finished a knitted toy, and the rhubarb and strawberries are growing well, but need to try harder this year. :A

MookieSnuffles

Loving this thread! Had my own moment about a year ago with under sink cupboard full of cleaning products and drawers in a cupboard full as well. So I used them all up bar the window cleaner and substituted nearly everything for soda crystals, borax, white vinegar, bicarbonate of soda and lemon juice. I make air freshener and clothing spray, ironing spray, polish in soft wax form, wash powder, window cleaner, bathroom cleaner ect ect. I bought everything for about £40 on eBay and its lasted over eight months and still going. The only things I buy now are washing up liquid (also used a stain soak on clothing) bleach (puppy boy is raw fed so his stuff gets washed in bleach water and dish cloths are soaked in bleach) and the toilet stuff. We suffer from horrendous limescale and the toilet bowl was permanently scummy yellow no matter what other more friendly products I tried so a mixture of the toilet stuff and an occasional overnight denture tablet keeps it sparkly, it's the only thing I had to compromise on, but I really notice the smell of the toilet stuff now when it's used and the smell of cleaning products on other people. Compared to the £5-£20 a week/month on cleaners the brands make you think you need, you're onto a winner. We spent a fortune on those packs of sponges with the scrubby bit on that don't last long, more efficient and enviro friendly to get those quality cotton cloths, they scrub just as well, can be bleached and thrown in washing machine, everything gets clean with a soak, heavy duty cotton cloth and some elbow grease, promise!

I made my own skin creams and toothpaste and scrubs for a while, also soaps and candles, but I just make them as little Xmas bundles for people now.
I freeze all food stuffs I can, bulk cook and freeze, I made jam for the first time last year -amazing! And I'm going to try pickling from allotment this year too.
I'm trying a year as a vegan and it's been really eye opening on food, food prices, creams and clothes and it can be pretty rough and lonely at times but I quite like how cheap I am compared to my hubby meat eating!
Bread making is amazing, although somebody (cough,hubby!) threw away the the bread machine paddles thinking it was a lump of dough, so we need a replacement for that! Boo! And soup making is even more fun and combine the two and you are in simplicity heaven!

It was good advice to concentrate on one area at a time, otherwise you'll end up frazzled, I started "simple lifing" with the cleaners and then started with cosmetics and it got complicated so back tracked and took it there, trust me when I say the smell of dissipating vinegar becomes normal! Lol!

Mookie x

goosey-gander_2

Hi I too live with an idea of not wanting to be reliant on others for energy, food etc and am trying to work towards this.. slowly. Currently I am enjoying foraging and making wines, pickles, salads. I have a rather cluttered room full of stuff I find and try to upcycle, fix and make do where i can. Looking forward to others' ideas: :j

enjoyyourshoes

Pigs, sheep, goats, chickens etc


Dispatch, eviscerate, butcher- taste much better than shop purchased.

Ionadragon

Good idea to grow some of your own food, so concentrate on things your family particularly like and are expensive or very seasonal. Soft fruit is very easy to grow, very little work involved and you get a crop every year from the same plants.
Other things I do: knit my husbands and my winter socks. Very easy to learn how to do, and if you wear through the toes you can cut them off and knit new ones, so they last for years. I make dresses for my granddaughter using fabric from charity shop finds and I have even turned the collars on my husbands shirts, but that was a bit trickier.
For washing and cleaning, try Splosh. Eco friendly, comes through the letter box in cardboard packaging. For £5.00 off you first order, use the code 0c43d4. Good luck!

tenuissent

Germinating squashes and courgettes (and many other big seeds, such as beans): I put them in damp cloth (worn out cleaning cloths for example) in plastic boxes, and after a few days a small root emerges. Quickly put them into compost and a few days later you have promising young seedlings.

I like pumpkin seeds scattered on my home made bread, and roasted with spices for a snack. Normal squash/pumpkin seeds have too tough a casing so I am trying a "naked" seed variety called Kakai: http://www.chilternseeds.co.uk/item_1363G

and have just put them into their damp cloths. Hoping not to have to buy pumpkin seeds again! (But they have to be thoroughly dried to avoid rotting).