Try Handmade

Shopping blog featuring products made by people not factories.

Handpicked Goodness: NottyPooch

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As I was perusing all of the beautiful handmade things on Etsy, as I often do, I stumbled across a unique little shop by the name of NottyPooch. Huey and Wah of Penang, Malaysia are the creators of these organizational products made entirely from recycled billboard banners for an eco-friendly, interesting look. Each piece is different from the next with variation in color, pattern, and age.

This creative team assembles a wide range of products from these bright and colorful billboard banners. Check out these one of a kind storage bins! Use them to stash movies (they fit up to ten DVD cases!), video games, books, or a variety of other knick knacks in your workspace or in your home. Their products are also waterproof, so you can even use them in your kitchen or bathroom to organize supplies or toiletries.

Add a little spice to any space with these colorful handmade planters. They allow for drainage so that your plants stay nice and healthy and would be suitable as accent decor in any room of your home. Place one on a side table, in the kitchen, or on your balcony to add a little interest to your space. These planters can even be hung for an even more exciting look.

In addition to the products mentioned above, NottyPooch also creates laptop sleeves, journals, beverage coasters and wallets from these recycled banners. Keep your valuables safe when you’re on the go with one of these creative laptop sleeves, complete with a soft inner lining.

Find these and more of their amazing work in their shop: NottyPooch

For the Love of a Brassica

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Cabbage. The red-headed stepson of the brassica family. Not nearly as good as its broccoli and cauliflower cousins when dipped in ranch dressing. The food of famines, of the poor, of your gassy great uncle. And who can forget that famous line in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory? Cabbage Soup is not enough!

But I’m not so sure cabbage deserves such a bad reputation. In fact, it’s the base of one of even my kids’ favorite meals. A recipe that lends itself perfectly to local eating this time of year depending only on store-able baking potatoes, garlic, a little on-the-hoof goodness, bacon, and the underrated spring green itself, cabbage. It’s a recipe that is so scrumptious I wish I could take full credit, but I must give credit for where credit is due; a recipe inspired by Rachel Ray’s Bacon Cabbage Home Fries.

Now, I must warn you. I never measure. If there were a religion against measuring I would probably join it. And I purposely make a lot of this particular dish so that there will be ample leftovers the next day; it’s one of those dishes that gets better after an overnight stay in the fridge. But if you can deal with a little experimentation and a heaping helping of leftovers you simply must give this one a try. So, without further ado, my Bacon Cabbage Home Fries:

1 lb Thick Cut Bacon, Cut into 1 inch Squares
1 medium Baking Potato per person you’re serving, cut into bite size chunks
1 medium head Cabbage, Sliced in thin strips
1 medium Onion — whatever type you have on hand, just roll with it — diced
Garlic, to taste. I use a lot!
Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper

In a deep stock pot cook bacon over medium heat until done. Remove, set aside. Add potatoes, onions and garlic to bacon grease (I never said this was a healthy recipe, just a favorite.) and cook, stirring regularly, until potatoes are tender. Add cabbage and continue to cook over medium heat, stirring, until cabbage is wilted. Salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

Of course, you could also skip the kitchen and just click over to Etsy through any one of the amazing photos in this post and choose some cabbage inspired decor for your home, too.