The Domestic Nest Blog

We wed five years ago in August. It was a balmy, dreamy Virginia day. We’ve taken this month to reflect. Really reflect and take inventory of the things we’ve experienced, accomplished, relinquished and acquired. Marriage is notably different for every pair. Ours is no more remarkable, difficult or perfect than the next. When we embarked upon our journey as united souls, we consciously committed to helping each other grow and develop into better versions of ourselves. When we started Domestic Nest a year ago, I wondered if creating and maintaining a business together would help or hinder our partnership. I wondered if we’d have a common creative vision. I worried we’d become too busy and fill our lives with too many to-do’s. My worst fear was that starting a small business would take away from the time we spend together. Being in business together has been such a fun and rewarding extension of our union. All the time, we get to tackle challenges together, fuel each other’s creativity, and support each other as we take risks. Being on this tiny team of two keeps getting better. Every year.

Wanna hear what really happened on our eco honeymoon? Read more by clicking below.

read more »

OK, I promise not to post too many bathroom photos.

I confess that this is trivial, but what can I say? Good design + functionality + eco-friendly just makes me happy. Especially when such qualities are found in inexpensive, everyday products.

The Preserve toothbrush mail-back package is brilliant! I picked these up at Target for a couple bucks each and stuck our old toothbrushes right in the package the new ones came in. The package is pre-addressed and will go back to Preserve to be recycled, again. The postage was already paid (will be for a limited time, then a first class stamp should cover it.)

I didn’t intend for the toothbrushes to match the cup, there were actually only two color options at Target. And I know they really don’t coordinate with our 1949 rose & mint bathroom decor. But guess what, nothing does.

Also made from vintage pillow cases. Did you know that many new clothes and materials contain preservatives such as formaldehyde? There’s even a sign at some fabric shops stating that the material should be washed before wear due to toxic chemicals. Vintage items have often been laundered enough to remove toxins from dyes or preservatives. Another reason I love using vintage pillow cases for baby dresses. What are you really going to do with one printed pillow case anyway? Probably why it was at the thrift store.

This pinafore is made completely of vintage pillow cases. Eco + OOAK. It makes me happy.

before

after

• It’s less expensive
• I only have the buy the amount I need
• Less packaging = less waste
• It brings order to my pantry
• We live walking distance from a market that sells organic items in bulk
• It’s easier to reach in & retrieve items
• I know what I have & I know what needs refilling

A few months ago, Matty built a fence in our backyard. It was testoterone city for a few weeks as power tools, cement & wood scraps took over the garden. It was fun to watch his creativity in action. It’s been even more fun to see what his no-waste mindset has made of the wood scraps. He made me this beautiful desk from the discarded chunks that didn’t make the final cut when it came to the fence. I just love it!

THANKS   MATTY !!!

Of course I reuse my Trader Joe’s bags until they break or bust. Despite their sturdy construction, I often end up with a few that have ripped handles or worn corners. I’m forever looking for new ways to re-use them.

I wrap boxes with them, turn them into mailing envelopes, and recruit them to protect my floors from messy craft  projects. I even print price tags and product explanations on the plain side of the bags. I simply cut 8.5×11 size sheets and run them right through the printer, just like regular paper.

You could print note cards, recipe cards, or even business cards this way.

The bottoms of the bags only need a little bit of ribbon to make perfect gift or produce totes. Trader Joe was even nice enough to print pretty holiday graphics on them!

If you’re getting a present from us this week, it’ll probably come wrapped in one of these.

Happy Handmade Holidays y’all!

I found some beautiful cashmere sweaters at the salvo.

They had holes and stains, so I cut ‘em up to make these pretty little scarves. They sold out in the first 30 minutes of our last show. Hope I run into some more holey sweaters at the thrift store!

Melissa over at Operation Nice has been the unofficial muse of do-gooders far and wide. Her blog is the nicest little shot of joy and is the perfect read to start your day off on a happy note. Personally, I visit OpNice about that time in the afternoon when I start to wonder if I’ll survive without caffeine. OpNice, tea and a little cookie seem to miraculously make me a better clinician, nicer co-worker and sometimes a lovelier wife.

I got so inspired by Melissa, that I began the beKind club at the high school where I work. I meet with about 10 girls once a week and we plot ways to make their campus a nicer place. This is our answer to Melissa’s most recent Nice Assignment.

We created spook-o-grams to pass around to staff and students. Here’s how…

We cut old Trader Joe’s bags into 3.5×10 inch strips (yay repurposed!) and used them to wrap up tiny M&M bags. We used staples to attach the candy.

After we folded the paper into a “matchbook” form, we added labels and spooky stickers.

The result was a fun little package perfect for placing in teachers’ boxes or handing out to friends. The wrapping adds a tad bit of specialness to the otherwise plain candy.

It’s fun to see the smiles that can result from even the smallest kind gestures.

Thanks, Melissa, for being so NICE!

Happy Blog Action Day! Thousands of blogs all over the world are blogging on topics related to climate change.

We’ve all heard how toxic gases from landfills damage our ozone. We’ve also heard that plastic bottles contribute a lot to off-gassing and the toxic soup leaching into our groundwater.

We keep bottles out of the landfill by using these Klean Kanteens. They are superior to all of the other water bottles we’ve tried. They don’t ever leak and they’re VOC free. YAY!

We recycle wool sweaters to make these cute and useful cozies to keep our water cold and keep our hands dry. Here’s how we make ‘em…

First, we cut a square of wool. This wool can be any thickness, even boiled or felted if you have the time. The wool square should be about 8 inches wide and 5 to 7 inches tall (depending on the size of your water bottle). We then cut a 3.5 inch circle for the bottom of the cozy.

Make sure to sew on any ornamentation before you sew the side seam.

Next, sew the side seam. Then, sew on the bottom. (These two steps are done inside out.)

Now you can turn it right side out and wrap your bottle in it’s custom made sweater.