The Thrifty Homesteader

Parasites are the leading cause of death in goats. Although people usually think of intestinal worms immediately, coccidia are intestinal protozoa that can cause death in kids, as well as dia...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/06/preventing-coccidiosis.html

Everyone knows that cooking with "modern" non-stick cookware is a bad idea, right? In addition to the fact that the non-stick surface gradually flakes off and winds up in your food, it also e...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/06/secrets-to-cooking-with-cast-iron.html

When I was new to homesteading, I thought you just put up fences, stuck your animal in the pasture and left them there all year. However, there are a lot of reasons you should NOT do that! Su...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/03/4-benefits-of-rotational-grazing.html

In celebration of kidding season, I'm giving away five copies of my ebook, Just Kidding: Stories and Reflections on Goats Giving Birth . Click on the title or the photo to learn more about the ...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/03/win-free-copy-of-just-kidding.html

Most backyard gardeners use raised beds or dig up the dirt in the yard and plant directly in the soil. Because it is highly unlikely that your dirt will be suitable for growing anything other...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/03/compost-my-only-fertilizer.html

If you want to become more self-reliant, you can learn from some of the world's leading experts in the Home Grown Food Summit , which starts Monday. There will be a variety of online presentati...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/03/30-free-presentations-at-home-grown.html

Mark your calendars for March 7 to 13 for the Home Grown Food Summit . It is an online gathering of 38 experts in backyard food production, homesteading, and off-grid living. Presented by res...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/02/learn-to-grow-your-own-food-from-38.html

Did you know that pinto beans, kidney beans, black-eyed peas, and other dried beans are simply seeds? If you grew beans last year and dried some for eating through the winter, you can use those...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/02/beans-perfect-intro-to-seed-saving.html

Creating a product that works for you is really a matter of figuring out which oils and butters have the properties that suit your skin. Typically, people with drier skin prefer butters, and ...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/01/ecothrifty-skin-care-creams-and.html

WAXES are another popular ingredient in skin care products. Unlike oils, which tend to go rancid within a few months to a year at room temperature, waxes last a long time. Beeswax — In ad...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/01/ecothrifty-skin-care-waxes-and-butters.html

It is not difficult to make your own body care products. In fact, a single ingredient works well for many purposes. You may need to do a bit of research, and you may not get the ingredient th...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/01/ecothrifty-skin-care-oils.html

When we first moved to the country in 2002, I had no idea what I needed to survive the outdoors during winter. That first year, I was so cold because I wasn't dressing properly for the weathe...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/01/5-thing-you-need-to-survive-winter.html

The beauty industry, which has been around for less than a hundred years, is one of the most profitable industries on the planet. Americans alone spend $50 billion a year on skin care and mak...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/01/ecothrifty-skin-care.html

If you are new to goats, you probably have dozens of questions about kidding, which is when goats give birth to kids. Here are a few resources for you to help you understand the process and k...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/01/goat-birthing-beginners-guide.html

Here's hoping you'll join us on Thrifty Homesteader or Healthier Paths this year to learn new skills and make 2016 your best year ever!

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2016/01/happy-new-year.html

WASHCLOTHS ARE THE PERFECT CLEANING TOOL...AND CAN EVEN BE MADE BY YOU! PHOTO CREDIT: WHY I HAVEN'T BEEN POSTING ON FLICKR FOR AWHILE . . .  VIA PHOTOPIN  (LICENSE)   We all want o...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/cleaning-natural-and-ecothrifty-way.html

Here's hoping you're having a wonderful day filled with happiness, love, and lots of homegrown goodness!

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/merry-christmas.html

by Beth Hedrick No matter the types of beans used, bean soup is the perfect gift for the holidays...or just because! If you really need a last-minute gift and don't have time to run out t...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/mason-jar-bean-soup-mix.html

by Beth Hedrick A super simple, yet elegant gift! Candles used to be a necessity in ancient times, as far back as 3,000 B.C. in Egypt and Rome. They were certainly not like the candles of t...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/mason-jar-winter-candle.html

by Beth Hedrick Homemade Peppermint Sugar Scrub We can thank the Egyptians in ancient times for the concept of exfoliating the skin. Apparently even very long ago they felt the need to get...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/mason-jar-ecothrifty-peppermint-sugar.html

by Beth Hedrick Peppermint Body Butter Winter is almost upon some of us, while others have already had their first snow, and with the weather getting colder (and the air getting drier) the ...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/another-mason-jar-gift-peppermint-body.html

Not only are air fresheners a waste of money, most of them also contain a lot of multisyllabic chemical ingredients that are not healthy for you. Many fragrant candles also contain toxic chem...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/natural-and-ecothrifty-air-fresheners.html

photo credit: 20130109-DSC_4890  via photopin  (license) Whether you use herbs exclusively or as a complement to traditional medicine, you know that those little capsules can be expen...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/ecothrifty-herbal-supplements.html

Nicole Caldwell's book Better: The Everyday Art of Sustainable Living is billed as "one part memoir,  one part theory, and one part DIY manual," which describes it well. It tells her story at ...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/better-everyday-art-of-sustainable.html

For one week only, we'll give you an autographed copy of Ecothrifty absolutely free for every copy you buy of any of Deborah's books: > Homegrown and Handmade: A Practical Guide to M...

https://www.homegrownandhandmadethebook.com/2015/12/buy-book-get-free-copy-of-ecothrifty.html