Pin-teresting Friday! Natural Ant Repellant

I've read that mixing Borax with something sweet like jam, jelly, honey or syrup will kill them.  They supposedly bring it back to the nest where all the other ants eat it and they die.

from http://naturalantkiller.net/

I had some ants coming in through a hole near my window sill.  They were making their way across the sill and down the wall behind my sink.  There they would find a s'more-ga-sporg on my dirty dishes piled in the sink and/or next to the sink.

So I thought I would try this.  I mixed up some Borax and Strawberry jelly and smeared it on a paper plate.  I put pieces of the plate next to the hole, on the ant path, and actually blocking the ant path (they crawled over the plate to continue on their path).

In the 20 minutes I stood there and watched (yes, i have too much time on my hands), only 2 ants ventured onto the plates and tested out the jelly/Borax.  Some ants wondered onto the plate, "took a sniff" and went along their merry little way.

The Borax/Jelly didn't seem to do a thing :(  The ants weren't even eating it!

I got some glue out, poured it in the caulk hole, let it firm up and no more ants!

I've also tried using whole cloves, and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

I wonder if it has anything to do with the TYPE of ant?

Visit this website to read more ways to naturally kill and repel ants.  Let me know if any of them worked for you and what type of ants you tried it on!

UPDATE (12/7):  we still have a lot of sugar ants under the kitchen sink. So I mixed up another batch of jelly/borax, but it on a paper plate section and waited.  Nothing happened - the ants were still walking around it.  So I gave up and went to bed.  When I checked on it this morning, there were TONS of ants on the paper plate and leaving to bring the poison back to the nest.  This went on all day.  When I checked it this evening, there was only one ant...I wonder if all the other ants are dead?

Pin-teresting Friday! Vinegar/Dish Soap Tub Cleaner

So this is ALL over pinterest...

1 part warm vinegar mixed with 1 part blue dawn dish soap sprayed (or spread) over the bottom of your tub WILL clean it with NO scrubbing.

'Tis true.  I'm totally lazy and hate, let me repeat: HATE cleaning the tub.  At least in this house we have a walk in shower, so I don't have to lean over the tub to clean the shower stall.

But I'm still lazy.  And THIS WORKS.  I've been using this method for a couple of months now, but instead of a spray bottle I've been spreading it around the tub.  Today I tried it in the spray bottle and used so much less - although my spray bottle doesn't spray well :(

Anyway.  I warmed 1/2 c. vinegar in the microwave for 1 min (warming the vinegar helps it mix with the soap).  Then added 1/2 cup of blue dawn dish soap (I'm pretty sure this is THE ONE that works.  Something special about Blue Dawn.  Plus, it contains no phosphates and it's gentle enough to clean oil covered wildlife!).  Swirled until they were mixed.  Poured into a spray bottle.  Sprayed the tub.  So it was WET.  Then let it sit until I remembered about it.  About 3 hours.  Used a sponge and wiped.  NO SCRUBBING.  Then rinsed the tub out and it was spick and span.

So Easy.

Just like the website boasts, there was a line down my tub (granted my line was from where I didn't spread the mixture...)

Go.  Try It.  NOW!

:)

Halloween Mantle

So the only thing i have on my mantle so far is this Halloween Banner that I finished up the other night.  I have more ideas, but they take time.  Especially with a 14 month old running around!

I got the idea from The House of Smiths, but I instead of letters, I wanted to use these silhouettes that I had cut out for a different project (these were the pieces I'm NOT using).  Hopefully that project will get finished BEFORE Halloween!

She used brown packing paper, but her's looks thicker.  Mine was ACTUAL packing paper from the move ;)  She also hung hers from the top using twine.  I tried hole punching on the sides and i DON'T recommend...some of my accordian folds are stretched out and I had to use A LOT of tape!

To attach the silhouettes to the accordian folds, I first tried white glue.  Not enough surface area.  Then I tried spray adhesive and I thought I was good.  But the morning after I hung this up, a couple trick or treaters were on the floor :(  so i just used tape on the back and everything seems to be holding up well.

Here's some close-ups:

  

Well, I guess I'll have to start working on the top of the mantle...cuz my banner is going to be lonely.  I want to do this, this, this and this.  hahaha.  wishful thinking! 

Halloween Pillows

I'm not much of a decorator.  I can do stuff...but I'm really good at copying other people's stuff and that makes decorating pretty hard.  I mean, the chances of finding a space identical to your own?  HA.

Surfing Pinterest the other day led me to this post by Restless Risa.  I instantly fell in love and wanted them for myself.

Pillow #1:  A quick google search led me to several of the witch silhouette (if this image personally belongs to someone, i'm sorry;  i didn't buy it.  I found it on several different sites AND a couple etsy stores).  I used my silhouette program to add the crow and freezer paper stenciled it on (never tried freezer paper stenciling? use this tutorial).  Pretty easy.  The black and white damask was 40% off at JoAnn Fabrics.  Those white flecks all over the witch?  I tried to use glitter...didn't stick all that well.

Pillow #2:  I really wanted to try my hand at printing directly on fabric with my printer.  It was as easy as using spray adhesive to attach my fabric to card stock, trimming it to size and printing!  I was too cheap to buy fringe, so i made my own. I sewed 3/4" wide black around the words and then using a needle, i pulled the long threads out.  It took FOREVER, but once i started, i couldn't stop :)  Thankfully, i cut a pretty straight line and it was mostly even.  I used scissors to even it up.




So I haven't even finished unpacking all the moving boxes, but I did find two pillow forms in a box and I just couldn't help myself.  After living in temporary corporate housing for more than 3 months, I needed to get my craft on!

don't judge my lack of ironing...we JUST moved in and I still don't know where the iron is!

I LOVE them!