Saving Money on Water: Homemade Rain Water Barrel

I finally decided to make my own rain water barrel for the garden. The ones I priced online were almost $100.00! Our local Ace Hardware has a huge one that is ready to install but it was $118.00, so we settled on a large garbage can from Wallyworld for $7.99. It was a bit more expensive than the ones at Dollar General, but this can was light weight and easy to cut. The can is eco-friendly, made with 75% recycled materials.

We bought a flexible drain extender from Home Depot, disconnected the top gutter, and then screwed the flexible extender into place. We cut a hole in the top of the lid and fit the plastic extender right through it. The lid was thin enough that I was able to cut into it with a knife, and then heavy duty scissors.

Last night it rained for about 30 minutes, and the can overflowed. We'll be adding a hole near the top as an overflow, and probably hook it up to another can. I'm thinking this could be done with some caulk and a large funnel or PVC pipe. Speaking of caulk, here are is a free sample.
We get a lot of water coming off our roof in this particular location. If we add another extender, I could probably reach it to the kiddie pool and fill it when it rains.
It was so nice to use free water today on my garden! I just dunked the watering can in and was able to water all my new plantings, vegetables, and indoor plants. I have plenty left. This was so easy!

See more at the Make It From ScratchCarnival

Homemade Tea Tree Oil Shampoo

Petites Indulgences Under $15.00

After dealing with the unpleasantness of the flu here at the house, I was inspired to post a few beautiful fragrances and small indulgences. These are some of my favorites. There is nothing like fragrance and other fun girly stuff when you need a little lift.

Papier Poudré Removes dust and shine from your face, leaving a light powder finish.



Rose Flavored Hard Candy 50g by L'Anis de Flavigny


Garden of Ireland Heather & Moss Solid Creme Cologne

L'Aromarine Fragrances Flowers Eau de Toilette

Brambleberry Rose Lip Balm

BAL A VERSAILLES For Women By JEAN DESPREZ cologne






On-The-Go Passport Soap Sheets

Rose by Taylor of London Ice Cologne Stick

Getting Rid of Slugs in the Vegetable Garden

My new vegetables are being decimated by slugs! I went out this evening and hand picked off a few small ones. I found some potential natural solutions for slug control at eartheasy.com

Eartheasy mentions two solutions which are very doable for me: seawood and coffee. We are near the ocean so I plan to take a trip to the beach to gather some seaweed. It will be really stinky, but the salt in the seawood is supposedly enough to repel them. Another natural solution is coffee. I just went off coffee due to stomach problems, so this is a great way to use up my remaining coffee stash.

I read here at gardenweb that spraying ammonia onto the area helps, and iron phosphate slug bait, AKA Sluggo which is non-toxic.

The ones we have are the long giant brown spotted ones. They are really creepy looking, and are best seen at night with a flashlight along our foundation. I'll try to get a picture of them - ours are so huge they look like alien slugs. Shivers!