I loved writing Be Kind. It was a treat to think of some of the fun crafts and activities I had done with my kids when they were little — or wish I had done … Read More

The world of tapestry weaving offers remarkable possibilities. It requires certain skills, but this shouldn’t keep you from dipping your toes into that water. Many of those skills aren’t difficult to learn. More important, those remarkable possibilities are very intriguing! There are two basic facts … Read More

One of the best ways to teach our children to appreciate cultural diversity is through tasting and cooking foods from around the world. No matter where we are from or where we live now, we all have this in common: everyone eats. With so many … Read More

When you think of a school bus, you might not consider it as a potential dwelling. That’s understandable. We are familiar with pull-behind campers, motor homes, conversion vans, and tiny houses, so why consider a bus instead? There are four very good reasons. Owning a … Read More

In her introduction to The Illustrated Herbiary, herbalist and author Maia Toll writes, “When someone asks, ‘Do you think this herb will work for me?’ two different songs play through my mind. The first is the song of the chemicals, the … Read More

A few decades ago, slow cooker recipes relied on a slew of processed and/or canned ingredients that could be dumped in and abandoned. While those recipes admittedly required very little work, they made up for it in their, let’s say, “strange” flavor and texture … Read More

There are many houseplants that love to spend the summer outdoors, where warm temperatures and abundant light help support strong seasonal growth. Every houseplant grower can recall a day when a sudden cold snap caused them to rush to get plants back indoors in one … Read More

A couple of years ago, when fermentation authors Kirsten and Christopher Shockey were considering their next project, I asked Kirsten if she’d ever made miso. She said she hadn’t, but she was curious about it. Passionate curiosity is a quality that comes naturally to the … Read More

Miso is more than just soup stock. It is an umami-rich, salty fermented paste, traditionally made with soybeans and a grain koji, generally rice koji or barley koji (with the exception of an all-soybean miso). It is a quintessential Japanese seasoning that is also a … Read More

Update: The verdict is in, and the herbal community has won! From Rosemary Gladstar: After a five year battle, “fire cider” is free from trademark restrictions and is officially considered a generic term, which means no one can own it — it belongs to all … Read More