kids and family

The cheapest way to beat the heat is to not let it in your home in the first place. 

1. Use blinds and/or curtains to block out the sun wherever possible, especially in south or west facing windows. Assuming you have window coverings already, cost of this is $0. If you miss the sunbeams, go outside!
2. Install retractable awnings. We put one over our front, west-facing window and it has made an enormous difference. If you're willing to do the installation yourself, you can pick up manual retractable awnings at Home Depot or Rona for around $200-$300.
3. For about $150 you can get an energy audit and find out where you can save more -- often you can adjust the insulation in your attic or roof to find savings year-round.
4. Don't use the oven to cook meals -- use a bbq outside, or a smaller appliance like an electric frying pan in the kitchen or just eat cold foods.
5. Similarly, turn off home electronics that kick out heat especially computers, televisions, DVD players, PVRs and game systems.

While it rarely gets really cold in Victoria, it still dips below zero regularly through the winter months. Here's a round-up of ways to keep warm without spending a lot of money:

Summer is a great time to knit small things like slippers (as opposed to big things like blankets that sit on your lap making you even hotter!) -- make plenty to last you and your family through the winter months! 

Designed to be knitted with PolarKnit™ Chunky, these slippers and socks will knit up pretty fast and if you can get the gauge right, you can make them with scraps and oddments of other yarn you might have stashed.

If you are thinking of attending a Luminara celebration, or if you just want a frugal way to decorate for a garden party, you might want to make your own lanterns. Why not dig into your recycle bin for inspiration?

Lifehacker has the simplest tutorial with its Hanging Candle Lanterns using clean, empty jars and some wire.

The web is full of free stuff. Instructions, icons, desktop wallpaper, recipes, books, music, and more. I thought it was time to start collecting some of this stuff in one place, so here it is.

Got a link for a great downloadable or digital freebie? Let me know!

Cindy Carter has offered this lovely pattern for a 42"x42" baby quilt on her blog for free!

The Scrappy Spring Tulips Baby Quilt pattern is a pdf and is one of several that Cindy will be posting for free throughout 2009.

Kristin Roach over at Craft Leftovers has a great tutorial on how to deconstruct a sweater and recycle the yarn for other projects. She built the tutorial after much trial and error and it includes some sage advice:

This has to be one of the most brilliant ideas I have seen this year. Gather up a corrugated plastic campaign sign from the election of your choice (the municipal elections are this weekend, so come Sunday, there should be plenty to be found) make a few cuts, punch some holes and put together with plastic zip ties a very useful bird-house for the coming spring.

The Simple Dollar has had several articles focusing on the idea of the Money-Free Weekend, two days where you spend no money at all. Now there are 100 things to do!

The idea is to get you thinking about stuff you can do for free -- everything from the traditional going for a walk and playing board games to the creative learn a new language or build a blanket fort.

Creating a crafting oasis doesn't need to be costly. Have a look at some of these ideas:

Jill, at Living My Simple Life created a child-friendly craft space for under $10:

Mystele uses a standard workbench, pegboard, magnets and a kitchen towel holder to great effect here: