Projects
Slow-Fermented Hot Sauce: Why I Went Back to One Pepper (and Six Months)
Make aged, Tabasco-style fermented hot sauce the slow way. A single pepper variety, fresh peppers added weekly, and a winter rest for consistent flavor.
Beat the Southwest Heat Wave: Build a DIY “Bucket” Swamp Cooler for About $50
Beat high energy bills this summer with a ~$50 DIY bucket swamp cooler! Learn step-by-step how to keep your home cool for pennies using a simple desk fan.
Botanical Bento Box Salsa Garden (Part 2)
Two months after hopping on the "Bontanical Bento" garden bandwagon, the results aren't great. Some plants bolted, others died. But the tomatoes are good.
DIY Hanging Gourd Garden: Natural Shade for Your Zone 9 Summer
Beat the Zone 9 heat with a DIY hanging gourd garden! Learn how to build a budget trellis that provides natural shade and beautiful harvests in San Diego.
Botanical Bento Box Salsa Garden (Part 1)
Maximize your harvest in 7 sq feet! Discover the "Botanical Bento" trend with a guide to planting a high-density, Salsa Garden in Zone 9. Perfect for small spaces and big flavors.
Bee Hotels Aren’t Just Garden Decor
Bee hotels do work in Zone 8-10 gardens. Learn how I filled mine with native bees and pollinators using weathered wood, deep tunnels, and smart placement.
How To: Easy D.I.Y. Wood Patio Chairs
Build these sturdy and attractive wood patio chairs in a weekend with basic tools and lumber from your home improvement store. Total cost around $40 each!
Refreshing the Keyhole Garden in Winter
January is the perfect time for cleaning and repairing the keyhole garden and transplanting cold-hardy seedlings for late winter/early spring 2025 harvest
Bottling Batch 24 Fermented Hot Sauce (Part 1)
After 4 months of fermentation, the peppers seem to have stalled out, so it's time to process and bottle the first half of my Batch 24 slow fermented hot sauce.
Crafting a DIY Haven Through Backyard Photo Journaling
Online scrapbooking and photo journaling isn't about creating perfect images, it's about discovering and documenting the small wonders that surround us daily.