It's been quite a thrifty week, and there have been some really nice scores masha'allah.
I am collecting vintage pillowcases for a project for next year insha'allah, I have a couple I really like and some that are OK. Still on the hunt for more, and these are quite cheap so no guilt there.
I have placed our first order with our local organic farmer and am stupidly excited to have found a milkman that delivers milk in glass bottles to the doorstep like in the good old days - this has freed up freezer space from a weekly milk shop meaning now I can get more preserved food in there (think apple pie - think home made pesto - think um.... anything but MILK), eradicated plastic and the leaching that occurs from it into our milk, AND encourages recycling as we return our empties everyday! It also means that since I don't have to shop weekly for our milk I no longer have to drive to the store and can shop for the rest of our needs by good old fashioned walking there and back! With a reusable ecoTOTE!
Some problems/thoughts encountered this week :: is shopping in the local market OK? Cheap and cheerful and is a snub to Big Supermarket, but are items locally sourced and fairtrade?? Can't guarantee either, so am staying away from even the market for as long as possible.
Artwork - yes handmade, but necessary? Hm. I would say 'yes'; this whole challenge is not meant as a puritanical penance for past consumer sins, but a way to make my consuming conscientious. I love beautiful things; I love art, but by ensuring my consumer choices (ie. framing options etc) are fairtrade I am not going to stop beautifying my surroundings.
Eggs. I already buy free-range but upping the ante to organic free-range might mean I have to auction a kidney to pay for it. I am bummed out about it.
Things I have desired and been tempted by this week :: Kilner jars, paint, Harris Tweed (technically OK since it is SOOOOO handmade), and fabric in general. Need to give more thought to the fabric thing.
Thus endeth the week one ummings and ahhings of an utmost kind.
You have done an amazing job! I love that you are thinking about things in this way. And your pillowcases are gorgeous. What plans do you have for them?
Posted by: Lisa L. | Tuesday, 29 September 2009 at 12:39 PM
Ooh I think I'll keep you in suspension for a couple of season about that
;-) I'm such a tease :P
Posted by: Mu Mu Design | Tuesday, 29 September 2009 at 01:10 PM
I have pondered taking on dottie angels challenge of the utmost kind, but find it almost redundant, as that is pretty much how i live my life already! necessities such as socks, undies, and an occasional tube of lipstick are nearly all i purchase new. my biggest nightmare would be if my cuisinart food processor kicked the bucket...eeks!
Posted by: FarmgirlCyn (Cindy) | Tuesday, 29 September 2009 at 08:52 PM
yeah challenge perhaps is wrong word, but I'm using it as a springboard for
a more conscious way of consuming. Its good to draw a line in the sand
sometimes and make yourself toe it once in a while ;-)
Posted by: Mu Mu Design | Tuesday, 29 September 2009 at 08:55 PM
how many eggs do you use a week? we may be able to supply you. have you thought of keeping chickens?
Posted by: khadijah | Friday, 02 October 2009 at 10:58 AM
salam
egg usuage depends really. sometimes weeks go by and we dont bake or eat an egg, then all of a sudden it's egg city. have thought about keeping chucks, but TBH the thought of sharing a garden with fowl makes me want to dry heave. Perhaps my vegan days are calling me - although dreaming of a small-holding one day would be great! So. Think I'll just continue with eggs I get insha'allah until the day I own 4 acres and have my own brood riiiiight at the end of the field. lol a girl can dream.... alpaca, chucks, goats *sigh*
Posted by: Mu Mu Design | Friday, 02 October 2009 at 11:23 AM
great catching up... i too have been pondering so many things as they appear to come up.
i think until one truly stops and thinks about the whole thing, it's not as easy as it sounds.
you, my dear have gone above and beyond, and i can only admire from a far... and breathe a sigh of relief that i have free ranged organic eggs in my backyard...
hurrah for you, my handcrafted thrifty buddy :)
Tif x
Posted by: Tif | Saturday, 03 October 2009 at 06:03 AM
Salams my dear, haven't checked in in ages, you have been VERY busy masha-Allah! :D
Home made pesto? never tried it, sounds yummy, what recipe do you use?
Posted by: Sabera | Tuesday, 13 October 2009 at 12:25 AM