Painting Herself Into a Corner

Artist-in-residence Jennifer Crone yesterday ditched her canvases to paint a mural directly into the corner of a Better Farm bedroom.

God she's good.

For information on betterArts' residency program, click here.

The Basics of Natural Farming

We bought our seeds last year from Collected Seed Farm out of Preston Hollow, N.Y. That purchase put us in touch with Mihail Kossev, who was handling the seed orders. When I contacted him last week about again getting our seeds through him, he wrote back saying he was in Bulgaria getting some valuable first-hand knowledge about farming and seeds. Waxing his excitement about the eye-opening lessons he'd be bringing back to the States when he returns, he added that he'd be happy to hook me up with one of his business associates so we could get our order taken care of. Those seeds—enroute to Better Farm as I type—will result in the bulk of our crops this coming season. Stay tuned for lots of information about all that!

He also sent me the link for a video he collaborated on, called "The Basics of Natural Farming." I didn't feel right not passing this little gem along:

and Part II:

Mihail's Collected Seed Farm site is temporarily offline during his travels. If you are interested in buying 50+ seed pack bundles for him for a deeply discounted rate, please contact Better Farm at info@betterfarm.org and we will put you in contact with Mihail.

Introducing betterArts' newest resident, Jennifer Elizabeth Crone

We'd like to extend a warm welcome to Better Farm's newest addition, betterArts artist-in-residence Jennifer Elizabeth Crone.

Jennifer has a BFA in painting and drawing from California State University, Fullerton, and has also studied at Santa Reparata International School of Art in Florence, Italy, and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, Mass.

She paints in oils and mixed media and draws in ballpoint ink and charcoal. She's slated to be in two art shows next month (stay tuned for details) and is beating the particularly wintry chill of the North Country by consuming herself in her most lovely creative endeavors.

She'll be staying at Better Farm through the end of April, when we'll be throwing Jennifer a gallery opening so you can check her gorgeous artwork out in person and support her craft.


Learn more about Jennifer at her Etsy shop and blog.

We All Live Downstream: DIY biodegradable laundry detergent

You'd think we'd give more thought to the ingredients that go into a product we soak fabrics in before wrapping them around our entire bodies. Instead, we favor familiar brands and low pricetags over safety and environmental concerns.

Here's the short list of what's in a bottle of Tide Free & Gentle, one of the leading dye- and perfume-free detergents on the market (32-load bottle retails around $8):

Water
Alcoholethoxy Sulfate
Citric Acid
Ethanolamine
Borax
Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonate
Polyethyleneimine Ethoxylate
Laureth-9
Propylene Glycol
Diquaternium Ethoxy Sulfate
Sodium Formate
Diethylenetriamine Pentaacetate (Sodium Salt)
Lauramine Oxide
Disodium Diaminostilbene Disulfonate
Calcium Formate
Protease
Dimethicone
Amylase

Now let's take a look at the ingredients in Ecos, a biodegradable, eco-friendly clothing cleaner (67 loads for $11.39):

Magnolia & Lillies - 100% natural anionic coconut kernel oil-based surfactant, horsetail plant, essential oils of magnolias and lilies, purified water.
Lavender - 100% natural anionic coconut kernel oil based surfactant, horsetail plant, essential oil of lavender (NOP Certified Organic), purified water.
Lemongrass - 100% natural anionic coconut kernel oil based surfactant, horsetail plant, coconut based fabric softener, essential oil of lemongrass (NOP Certified Organic), purified water.

Now let's say you don't want to spend so many dollars on your detergent, nor do you want to put harmful chemicals into the very products you lay so close to your naked skin, nor do you want to search high and far on the Internet and specialty, overpriced markets every time you need a new bottle of detergent. How about making your own?

Here's a very simple laundry detergent recipe safe for any graywater, septic, or sewage system. All of us downstreamers say thank you!

Basic Biodegradable Laundry Detergent
4 cups of water
1 bar of vegetable-based soap (avoid any soap with heavy fragrances)
2 cups of washing soda (available in most supermarkets)
2 cups of Borax (available in most supermarkets)
A big wooden spoon
A measuring cup
A grater

Method:
Pour 4 cups of water into a pot and heat. The water does not need to boil.
Grate the soap bar.
Remove hot water from heat, add grated soap, and stir with wooden spoon until soap is completely dissolved and you have some highly soapy water.
Pour in Borax and washing soda and stir.

When the solution is liquid, you may choose to add 1/4 cup liquid bluing to make whites brighter without the use of bleach. You may even add in some liquid castile soap for a little extra cleaning boost and scent. Add enough hot water to make 4 gallons to 5 gallons laundry detergent.

Store the solution into a 5-gallon container with a lid or use your old laundry detergent bottles. Let the solution sit overnight and in the morning stir again. For each load of laundry, use about a 1/2 cup of your homemade laundry detergent.

We All Live Downstream: Biodegradable haircare

The "organic" labeling of haircare products is hyperbolic; with everyone from

Pantene

to

Tresemme

hopping onboard the proverbial "natural" bandwagon.

But the truth is, a lot of these so-called "organic" and "natural" products are

chock-full of harsh chemicals and ingredients

that wreak havoc on your hair, your body, and, of course, the environment.

When you wash something down the drain, all you're doing is sending it out into the open ground; either through a sewer, graywater, or septic system. Leeching harmful chemicals into the ground may put it out of sight and downstream, but remember that old adage: We

all

live downstream.

One of my New Year's resolutions was a commitment to buy only biodegradable products for anything going down the drain, including laundry detergent, kitchen cleanup supplies and dish soap, and hair and body care. But in addition to the scarcity of these products (only two shampoos at my local, heady organic mecca

The Mustard Seed

are listed as biodegradable), it's unbelievable how much you're expected to pay for fewer ingredients and synthesized chemicals. Since when are avocado oil, castile soap, and rosehips so pricey?!

Here are a few easy, inexpensive recipes that will keep your hair clean and lovely without a bunch of nasties doing damage to ecosystems we all depend on in one way or another.

Basic Shampoo Recipe

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup liquid castile soap (

buy

or

make your own

)

1/2 tsp. sunflower oil or any light vegetable oil

Mix ingredients together and shampoo your hair as usual.

Moisturizing Avocado and Jasmine Shampoo

1/2 cup natural shampoo base

1/2 cup aloe vera gel

3/4 tsp. avocado oil

3/4 tsp. jasmine essential oil

Mix together all ingredients and pour into a container with lid. Let sit for a few hours so the mixture thickens and the scents take hold. Work into hair, let sit for several minutes, and rinse.

Banana "No Split" Hair Conditioner

1/2 mashed banana

1 tbs. honey

1 tsp. coconut oil

3 drops spearmint oil or 3 teaspoons fresh mint leaves

Mash the banana and mint leaves. Add honey and oil. Combine well. Mixture should be creamy. Apply to freshly shampooed hair. Leave on for at least 15 minutes. Rinse well.

Get more great hair recipes

here

.

Before & After Shots

As we continue moving forward with renovations at Better Farm (including the barn, upstairs common area, the last couple of bedrooms, basements, and outbuildings), we thought we'd take a moment to look back at what we've accomplished so far. Sometimes we get so caught up in how much more there is to do (a Sisyphean task with an old house), we forget to pat ourselves on the backs for how much change has already happened in such a short period of time. Check out these dramatic before and after shots!

 Dining Alcove

 Green Bathroom

 Blue Room

 Library

 Loft

Side Entrance

 Upstairs Kitchen

 Upstairs Common Area

 Kitchen/Wood Stove

 

Bunk Bed Room

Guest Room #1

Artists Sought for Arts & Crafts Sale

Families Together in the North Country has scheduled a Cabin Fever Rummage and Craft Sale from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 19 at the Liberty Building in Watertown.

The event will feature jewelry, hand-crafted items, and artwork by area residents. Artists are encouraged to participate. A 10' x 10' space costs $25 with a table or $20 without.

The Liberty Building is located at 210 Court St., Watertown, N.Y. To reserve a spot or for more information, please contact Family Support Services at Northern Regional Center for Independent Living at (315) 785-8703.

Quilting Class Planned in Rensselaer Falls

Fiber Options has scheduled a three-week quilting course on the Waste Knot design starting 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 8, in Rensselaer Falls.

Cost for the class, slated for two hours over three consecutive Tuesdays, is $35 plus materials. To register, call (315) 344-7600. Payment is due at time of registration. In the event of low enrollment, full refunds will be given.

Fiber Options is located at 221 Rensselaer St. in Rensselaer Falls, N.Y.

Planning: Art Barn renovation begins

It all begins with a single sketch.

We've been kicking around lots of big ideas for the multi-level barn across the street. The space functioned in previous incarnations as a home for pigs, hay storage, and a catch-all for earthly possessions from tricycles to church altars. In the ensuing years discussions for future plans included recording studio, yoga center, workshop, radio station, and sleeping space.

We've settled on the following ideas for the Art Barn, which will largely be utilized by our new nonprofit venture betterArts:

• Downstairs: studio and gallery space, wood stove heat, convert carport into space for welding, woodworking and the like
• Second Floor: Yoga and dance studio, can also double as a practice space for musicians

The above-mentioned components will also include an exterior staircase to the second floor with deck; wiring that will be hooked into solar or wind (we need to bring in some experts for a good, old-fashioned consult for that); and rain collection bins to supply big sinks with water for cleanup. We've also discovered some amazing, ecologically responsible spray foam solutions for insulation.

Last spring we hauled in a dumpster and emptied most of the barn, leaving us room to begin our Doors Project in the summer. Then the hay was cleared from the second floor, and we took our measurements for sliding doors, windows, a wood stove, outside staircase, balcony, the works.

I sat down a couple of months ago and threw together some rough illustrations, for example this proposed idea for the barn's second floor:

Then I was told our town doesn't allow spiral stairs; and that for art space, indirect light is best (duh). So back to the drawing board I went, moving windows to the east wall and making a mental note that the best access to the second floor without sacrificing space involved an exterior staircase stretching along that same east wall.

Of course, I'm no architect. And seeing as I didn't even use a ruler for the above sketch, we brought in the big guns to draft a real concept. Here's the proposed back wall on the second floor of the new Art Barn:

If you're like us and willing to move ideas around based on what supplies are available, when shopping for windows and doors be sure to check with your local hardware store about their overstock, or ordered items that went unused in previous projects. You can find great deals this way on really good products.

We break proverbial ground this week, framing in windows and doors and completing the batten work on the outside of the space. Once we're weatherproofed and framed in, the barn will get wired for solar or wind, then insulated. Check back in regularly for updates!

Snow-Day Activity: DIY calendar journal

Corinne, our community outreach coordinator, tipped us off to this great arts & crafts idea as outlined on Design Sponge

: DIY Calendar Journal

Growing up, I kept a daily journal. I always enjoyed looking back at previous entries to see what had changed over the course of a year. These days, I can’t seem to find the time to journal, but I do try to jot down a little note from each day on my perpetual calendar/journal. The idea is very simple — flip to the current date and at the end of the day, write down something that happened. Some days it is big things like “Annie took her first steps.” Other days it is small, like “needed more than one cup of coffee this morning.”

Read more at Design*Sponge

The Story of Stuff

(Learn more here.)

Mezzo-Soprano, Pianist to Perform in Watertown

A concert featuring arias and songs about love by Mozart, Bizet, Chopin, Strauss, Grieg, and more is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 28, at First Presbyterian Church in Watertown.

The program will debut Evgeniya Krachmarove-Sotirov, a world-class, mezzo-soprano opera singer, accompanied by Isaac James on the piano. Krachmarove-Sotirov has performed all over Europe, the Middle East, and United States; and was a soloist in the recently performed Handel's Messiah concert by the Northern Choral Society.

First Presbyterian Church is located at 403 Washington Ave. Proceeds benefit the North Country Arts Council and Watertown Musicales.

Advance Screenings Set for Breakthrough Documentary 'Forks Over Knives'

Advance screenings are slated for Forks Over Knives, a new feature film about food which presents compelling evidence that diseases such as heart disease and diabetes can be prevented (or reversed) through a whole food, plant-based diet. Screenings are scheduled Jan. 27 in Cleveland, Ohio; Feb. 8 in Ann Arbor, Mich., and Feb. 13 in Boston, Mass. Screenings will continue this spring in New York City, Washington, D.C., Toronto, Vancouver, Northern California, Florida, and more. For more information about screening times and dates, visit your local Whole Foods Market store's website or www.forksoverknives.com.