Howdy! A little blog and shop update

It's been awhile since I introduced myself so I thought I'd say Hi to all the new followers!  I'm Sarah - a wife, stay-at-home mom, crafter, and blogger living in rural New England along with our black lab and six chickens.  

I have an Etsy shop known for our hand-etched snowflake ornaments (they had a little feature in Martha Stewart last year), and I love showcasing local products on my blog and Instagram.  My Etsy shop currently is on "semi-vacation" this month while I catch up on some house projects and prepare some totally new items for the shop.  There are a few listings still available right now and custom inquiries are always welcome.  Keep your eye out for some great new products in February and thank you for all the support!   

Thank you all so much for following along, please stay tuned for lots of great things in store for the Etsy shop and blog this year.

Photo by Adrian Pelletier

Local Product Love: Mariner Lines

Today I wanted to share another great New England maker, Mariner Lines.  If you're a dog-lover and a New England lover you need to have one of these beautiful hand-made nautical leashes in your life.  

Love the bait bag packaging!

When I first stumbled across Mariner Lines, I thought their leashes looked beautiful and rugged and loved that they were made in Maine.  But once I learned the story behind the brand I loved it even more as Mariner Lines was started by Stacia and her fisherman husband when their yellow lab Mariner became ill.  Sales of these handmade leashes not only help them with medication expenses for their beloved pup (who is thankfully doing better), but a portion of sales is also donated to local rescue groups too.  You can feel good about buying and using this leash knowing the good it does.    

|  Twisted Leash, White  |

This weekend we brought our black lab Harley out for a short hike in the woods with our new Mariner Lines leash.  Harley LOVES walking in the woods and was super-excited to put her new leash to the test.  You see, the second you clip a leash to Harley's collar she pulls like a competition draft horse at the Fryeburg Fair... we've worked with her a bunch and done obedience classes but none of that matters for the first 10 minutes of the walk until she gets the excitement out of her system.  

Our Mariner Lines leash held strong and I felt confident walking Harley on it.  One of my favorite aspects of the leash was the roundness of the rope in my hands.  All of our other leashes are traditional flat nylon that dig into your palms when the dog pulls; I was pleasantly surprised to see that the thick round rope did not dig into my hands at all as Harley got the initial excitement out of her system.  

The leashes are hand-spliced together using rigging line and heavy-duty brass clasps so you know they're made to last.   They come in many colors and there are even hand-knitted neck warmers for your pup and cowls for you available so you can coordinate.  All the leashes are "one fathom" (about six feet) long - I just love how they incorporate the nautical theme into every aspect of their brand!  

Happy pup.  

Overall, I really love our Mariner Lines leash - it's rugged, durable, beautiful, and stands for helping pups in need.  What's not to love?  

Follow Mariner Lines
|  Shop  |  Facebook  |  Instagram  |

That face tho.  

- I received this leash from Mariner Lines as a gift, but all opinions expressed are my own.  Please read our Disclosure Policy for more information. - 

Photos by Adrian Pelletier

Reusable Weekly Planner - Plan your week, meals, and goals! {Free Printable}

For a while now I've been striving to get better about meal planning, so a few months ago I designed this weekly planner to keep in our kitchen and see if it helped.  After using this method for several months I'm happy to report that it has been a HUGE success and wanted to share it with all of you who may have staying organized, planning meals ahead of time, or reducing your grocery bill as goals for 2016!  

This weekly planner can either be printed and written on directly - or you can print, frame it, and simply write on the glass to keep reusing it (which is what I have done).  I love having it under glass because it means it's always on display and easy to refer to, and it saves a lot of paper and ink.  I didn't include too many photos of it it in our kitchen because it was so hard to photograph.. the glare from the glass makes a decent photograph nearly impossible.  

Pro-tip:  Write on the glass with a Sharpie to avoid smudges, then erase with a little 91% rubbing alcohol.  

To write on the glass, you can use a fine-tip dry erase marker or a Sharpie marker.  I prefer the Sharpie because it writes cleaner and won't smudge.  

"But how to erase it!" you ask?  

No problem at all:  simply put a little 91% rubbing alcohol on a paper towel and it wipes off with no problem and no residue.  

Example

Every Sunday I sit down and first fill in all the daily "to-dos" for the week.  These are things that have to happen that day, like appointments.  This gives me a sense of what the week will look like and how much time I may have to cook dinner that day, etc.  Days we won't be home means I don't have to cook (wahoo!).  Because I lay it all out ahead of time I can plan ahead for groceries... leftover potatoes from Monday can be thrown into Tuesday's chili.  The chicken I buy can be portioned out for dinner on Thursday and Friday.  Planning ahead means less waste and saving money in the long run (and you know how hard I try to save money on groceries).  

"Goals for the week" is where you put in projects and goals you can pick at over the course of the week when you get spare moments.  I feel like this list makes me more motivated (and accountable) to be productive when I have down time.  

Reusable Weekly Planner

{Download free PDF of our Reusable Weekly Planner HERE}

So that's my Reusable Weekly Planner!  It's been a huge help to keep me more organized, more motivated, and save more money on groceries.  I hope that it will be as helpful for you!  

Cheers to 2016!

Every time the New Year comes around it really gets me motivated.  I want to overhaul everything in the house, with Birch Landing Home, and my fitness goals and this year is no different.  

I've decided to take most of January to focus on our home:  it's time to do our yearly closet purge, deep clean all the carpets, and reorganize the dumping ground that our basement has become.  While I haven't read the book myself yet, I have read a lot of articles on The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, and I'd like to try to use these techniques to purge more unused items from our home.  Though I can't make too many promises on this front.. I can be pretty sentimental about little things so we'll see how far I get.

I have big goals for Birch Landing Home too and I want to grow my Etsy shop and blog in many ways.  I'm planning on expanding to more New England-inspired decor in the shop including signs, handmade boxes, and painted sap buckets (don't worry, we'll still have our signature hand-etched ornaments available).  I'd also like to get our products carried at more local retailers too.  
The blog will still be a mix of DIY projects, product reviews, and lessons learned as first-time parents but there will a be a stronger underlying New England vibe to it.  I'd like to blog more about our favorite places to visit in NE as a family as well as showcase more great local products and makers (by the way, if you're a New England-based maker and want to collaborate this year please send me a message).  

And then there's fitness goals.. every year I say I want to get back into running and while I did run a lot more this year than I have in a while, I still didn't get to where I want to be.  So this year I want to make the push to finally run a half-marathon!  For those of you who aren't familiar with my running backstory, I was training for a half-marathon about six years ago when I suffered a couple stress fractures, mostly due to a structural issue with my foot (which I now wear orthotics for).  
We're hoping to expand our family again within the next year or two and so I feel this year will be my last chance to try for a half marathon again before I'm too pregnant or busy with a newborn to seriously run for awhile.  

Whew, so those are my top goals for 2016!  Wishing everyone lots of health, happiness, and success in the New Year - cheers!  

Where to Buy Boot Cuffs CHEAP!

As you know, I'm all for shopping small and shopping local.  But sometimes you just gotta be frugal too.  These fashionable boot cuffs are crazy-cheap and a great deal wether you're buying one for yourself, a few stocking stuffers for your family and friends, or if you're looking for a little gift to get everyone in your department at work.  
Please note, prices on Amazon are subject to change.  Prices mentioned in this post are what the product was listed at at the time of purchase.  | This post contains affiliate links |

So where did I find these super-cute boot cuffs?  Believe it or not - Amazon.  
Since we live over an hour from big box stores, Amazon has become our go-to for paper towels, cereal, and all the other pricey grocery basics.  Lately I've also been turning to them for clothing and accessory needs rather then hoping in the car with the little one and making the long trip to the store.  

While browsing Amazon for stocking stuffers several weeks ago I came across these amazingly cute (and cheap!) boot cuffs.  I decided to order some to check them out in person but underestimated how long it would take to ship and they arrived after Christmas.  Since they come directly from the manufacturer/distributor (overseas), it can take up to 1-2 months to arrive - so be sure to plan (way) ahead.  

The first pair I tried were these cute knitted grey cuffs with lace and button detail.  I loved the look and color of these and thought they looked great with my boots.  However, I felt as though they were pretty tight.  I have large calves and these just fit over my leggings - they certainly wouldn't fit over my jeans unfortunately.  

| Grey Knitted Cuffs with Lace and Button Detail (6 colors) |

These cuffs come in 6 colors and most are only $2.30/pair!  They are not Prime eligible but shipping is very cheap as well.  

The other pair I tried were these pretty white lace cuffs.  These were super-stretchy and would fit most people with no problem.  Adding this touch of lace is a great way to dress up just about any outfit!  

| White Lace Boot Cuffs (12 colors) |

These cuffs come in 12 different colors so you can match every outfit you own and only cost $0.87/pair - yes, really!!  They aren't Prime-eligible either but shipping is very inexpensive. 

While all the cuffs had some loose strings that needed to be trimmed and they didn't come in any kind of packaging to speak of, I was still really satisfied with the look and the quality of the cuffs.  If you were to give them out as gifts, I would just recommend trimming the loose strings first and either wrapping them or rolling them and tying with a ribbon for better presentation.  

Fall Fashion

Merry Christmas from Birch Landing Home!

Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas with family and friends!

It felt more like spring than December here in New England today, but it was still a wonderful Christmas.

I'll be taking a little break from the Etsy shop until the end of January and am hoping to get some projects finished around the house in the meantime (like my annual New Years Resolution closet purge).  I'm also hoping to expand the Etsy shop in the New Year with more New England-inspired home decor items like painted signs and handmade boxes. 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Everyone! 

Holiday Makeup Look, Courtesy of Corey Anne

Does anyone else need makeup help out there or am I the only clueless one?  
These days with a toddler I'm lucky if I get any make-up on my face at all but in the past I've always just stuck to the tried-and-true concealer, powder, a little shadow, mascara = done.  I've always wanted to up my makeup game though; learn about contouring, layering, and creating fun looks for date nights and parties, which is why I was so excited to learn that a college friend had started a YouTube channel dedicated to all of these things!  

Corey Anne was my dorm-mate in college and back then I would have never imagined that the soccer-playing tomboy next door would have her own makeup tutorial series someday!  Corey has been interested in makeup for a long time but decided to take the leap into tutorials and vlogging fairly recently.  She's really enjoyed learning and sharing from others on YouTube and thought it was time to put herself out there too. 

Corey's videos cover everything from basic how-tos to costume makeup to product and Birch Box reviews.  They're entertaining to watch and the step-by-step makes the looks achievable for everyone.  I've shared her Holiday Makeup Look below; I love how it's glamorous with just a hint of flashy - but not over the top.  It'd totally be suitable to wear to a work party, an outing with friends, or even to a family event if everyone's just a little dressed up.  

Holiday makeup looks are the most fun! Playful, colorful, glitter!! Check out my daily vlogs: http://bit.ly/1YdEbKC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- eye shadow base | http://bit.ly/1sq7Srl eye shadow palette | http://seph.me/1AqBY1x eye shadow duo | http://birch.ly/1lZV0Lj gold liner | sorry I can't find this one!

Now, if you'll excuse me I need to go practice my eyeliner technique.  

Healthy Baby Home Party with Seventh Generation

Seventh Generation was kind enough to send us one of their Healthy Baby Home Party kits full of little free samples, coupons, and tips to share with our family and friends.  I've been a huge fan of Seventh Generation for awhile now and was really excited to share them and this information with others.  | This post contains affiliate links |

Our little one made good use out of the packing paper in the box and went to town coloring it up. That's one way to recycle! (Crayons are our own, similar ones linked here.)

A few years ago, before we started trying to get pregnant, I made the decision to switch over as many household cleaners, detergents, and soaps as I could to "cleaner," all-natural versions.  There's so much chemicals and additives in most commercial products these days and I figured that it could only be beneficial to make the switch and limit our family's exposure to these things.  One of the brands I switched to was Seventh Generation and I haven't looked back. 

Product samples and coupons from: Seventh Generation, Zarbee's Naturals, and Bobble.

I've been a big fan of all the Seventh Generation products I've tried so far, but I have especially loved their laundry detergent and stain remover.  In fact their Free & Clear Laundry Detergent was gentle enough that we found we didn't have to switch to expensive "baby detergent" when our little one was first born.  

There were a lot of Healthy Home Tips shared during the party, but I wanted to pass on some of the ones I found most interesting here:  

• "Purchase toys made from natural materials, like solid wood with non-toxic finishes and natural textiles like organic cotton or wool. The familiar 'new smell' that plastic toys often emit can be a sign that toxic softeners or finishers were used to make the product."

• "The term 'fragrance' or 'parfum' on the label of baby care products can represent hundreds of unknown chemicals since manufacturers are not required to disclose the ingredients. Whenever possible, look for products that use 100% natural fragrance for the scent or offer fragrance-free formulations to protect your baby."

• "Indoor air is often more polluted than outdoor air. Ventilate the home by opening windows, and limit your use of air fresheners and chemical cleaning products that release potentially harmful VOCs into your indoor environment."

All of the above tips came from Seventh Generation/Healthy Child Healthy World.  

- I received samples, coupons, and tips for myself and to share with others, but all opinions expressed are my own.  Please see our Disclosure Policy for more information. -

#healthybabyhomeparty  #generationgood  #comeclean