❈Sac Thrift Chick❈

The Mission: Dress up for two family weddings on a warm April day. The first, a reception for my husband's stepsister at an LDS church, starting at 2. The second, an outdoor carnival-themed wedding for my stepsister at a vineyard, starting at 4:30 and going until about 10:30. The Challenge: Choosing a dress that was comfortable, flattering and modest enough for the first reception without being too hot to wear in the blazing sun at 4:30. And that went with comfortable -- preferably open-toed -- shoes to give my injured toes some relief. (My right foot got into a fight with the vacuum. The vacuum won.) The Choice: This $10 dress I picked up from Goodwill on Arden Way at Halloween time. The Dress Problem: The dress is low-cut -- makes my chest look great, but I didn't feel comfortable showing that much skin for the occasion. The Solution: Wear a black lacy camisole underneath and a little sweater (from Thrift Town's 99 Cent Sweater Sale) over for the first rec

Happy Earth Day! We're celebrating Earth Day by planting a free shade tree from SMUD . I only wish we would have done this five years ago when we moved in, since apparently it takes about five years for the little tree to grow big enough to provide any shade. Oh well. My lifestyle is all about, "Recycle, reduce, reuse ... and close the loop." (You're welcome for putting that song in your head.) A few of the super simple "green" things my husband and I do and recommend include: Using reusable shopping bags. Compared to plastic, reusable bags hold more and are easier to carry. Plus, most stores give a small discount for each bag used. Using reusable water bottles. I simply do not understand buying water in individual bottles -- does not compute in my head. Washing dishes and doing laundry during "off" hours in the late evening to save electricity and save on our bill. We've also had our house weatherized as part of SMUD

I finally hopped on the homemade laundry soap bandwagon, and I can't believe I waited so long. (And by I, I mean I did the research, but my wonderful husband did all the actual work while I watched "The West Wing" on Netflix.) This soap cleans really well, is crazy cheap, and the prepared laundry detergent does not trigger my uber sensitivity to certain scents, especially those often found in laundry soap.* This is how much a doubled recipe makes. That All container alone holds 172 ounces. I used a recipe that's found on countless blogs and articles, so I definitely don't deserve credit for it, and I don't know who does. The various blogs I've seen this recipe on estimate that you're paying about a penny per load, and I believe it. The recipe calls for: 1/3 bar of an old fashioned soap, such as Fels Naptha, Zote or Ivory 1/2 cup washing soda 1/3 cup Borax For about $5 at Walmart (all found in the laundry aisle) I got: 1 bar of Zote