Hi there! Curious cat, are you? If you have a new question that isn’t answered here, try me over on Formspring – where you can ask me questions either anonymously or with your own Formspring account.
Q: Can you tell me about your homeschooling style? What curriculum do you use? Did you know you aren’t really a ________-style homeschooler because you said _________ or use __________?
A: I answer this question in my Eclectic homeschooling blog post.
Q: I loved that post on your old blog about searching for a wooden play kitchen for your kids. Can you re-post it? Are you happy with the kitchen you chose?
A: Here’s the play kitchen post, updated with newer information.
Q: Do you still use extra virgin olive oil to wash your face? (EVOO)
A: Indeed I do, my friend. Here’s how.
Q: What do you use to clean your floors, and do you still like the bamboo flooring you put in your house? How have they held up with kids and dogs?
A: I love our bamboo floors (carbonized). We’ve lived with them for six over eight years as of this update. Here’s how I clean them, plus some of my favorite tools for cleaning the tile flooring and carpeting we have as well. (I love cleaning products).
Q: Where do you suggest purchasing wool felt?
A: Sometimes big box stores like Joann Fabrics will have some. Online I like Create for Less (do a search for ‘wool felt,’ as the store is kinda hard to navigate), Felt-o-rama, Wool Felt Central (they let you order yardage in decimal/fractional quantities, hooray!), and for 100% wool Purl Soho.
Q: What kind of wool felt do you recommend for making toys and crafts?
A: 100% wool is absolutely divine, but can be cost prohibitive. National Nonwovens brand of wool felt blends are great and stand up to a lot of wear and tear. 20 – 30 % wool is great and what I usually work with. Still so much better than the acrylic nonsense you’ll find at most craft and big box stores.
Q: Who do you use for web design? Who draws your illustrations? Who do you recommend for a blog host? What blogging platform do you prefer?
A: I design my own websites and I usually do my own illustrations, sometimes I’ll use stock images as well. I had a dedicated server with Liquid Web for years. They are fantastic, but I downsized to the more affordable shared hosting through Midphase after we sold our online fabric store. As far as blog platforms go, I can’t recommend anything other than WordPress, I love it. It’s extremely flexible for designers and programmers yet easy to use for beginners.
Q: What service did you say you used for printing your blog into a book?
A: I used to use BlogPrinting.com, but sadly they have gone out of business. I have not yet found a suitable replacement company I’d recommend. It appears Blurb offers a blog printing service, but it only works for certain blog platforms, if you find a company that will print self-hosted WordPress blogs in book form, please let me know.
Q: Will you re-post something from your old blogs?
A: It depends on what it is, feel free to ask.
Q: What kind of camera do you have?
A: It’s a Canon Digital Rebel XT. Canon has several newer versions of this camera now, but I’m quite happy with mine. I use the lens it came with which is an 18-55mm lens. I also have a portrait lens which stays on most of the time. It is a 50mm f/1.8 ll. I have no idea what f/1.8 ll means.
Update: I now have the Canon Rebel T3, same lenses.
Q: What do you use to post-process your pictures?
A: I mess around in Photoshop, I’m learning as I go. Actions are fun to use, kind of like mini-programs made for Photoshop, you run them and they create different effects on your photos.
If Photoshop isn’t in your budget, try playing around with Picnik, it works with your Flickr account, and has lots of great stuff. The only downside to Picnik is it will resize your photos so they can only be printed in a small size.
Q: Do you have any other programs besides Photoshop you recommend for learning graphic work or tweaking photos?
A: I learned how to draw with my mouse using Jasc Paint Shop Pro (now owned by Corel). Google it and give it a whirl. It’s only for the PC but does a lot that Photoshop can do for a very small fraction of the cost. Pixelmator looks like a good program for Mac users.
Q: How did you learn how to sew / design websites / take pictures / homeschool? Is there a book you recommend?
A: If there is, I’ve may have listed it in my neglected book shop, but mostly I’m a self taught Googler. If I run into a problem, want to learn something, or can’t figure something out, I google it. There are loads of tutorials and free information on line. Just take a gander.
Q: What kind of sewing machines do you have?
A: I own and adore Babylock machines. I own the Quilter’s Choice sewing machine, the Babylock Imagine Serger, and the Babylock Coverstitch machine (I sold the Coverstitch machine). I’ve reviewed all of them right here. I recommend purchasing the best machine you can afford. Cheap machines provide little more than frustration.
Q: Where’s the comment section? I can’t figure out how to comment on your blog!
A: Ah, sorry. Comments are usually off on my posts unless I have a giveaway that requires entering via comments. In 2011 I am testing out a one day a week open comment policy. We’ll see. I have to be very careful with my online time and comments can really suck me in, so I usually leave them off. You can usually click the photos in my posts and leave me a comment on Flickr, if you’d like. Or ask me a question on Formspring.
Update: Comments are on again.
Q: Are you a Mormon?
A: Yes, I am a ‘card carrying’ member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I love the Lord and my faith brings me much peace and comfort — though I don’t often get ‘preachy’ on my blog. I’m happy to answer any questions you may have and thoroughly enjoy debunking popular Mormon myths. Just give me a holler or if you prefer anonymity, give me a shout out on Formspring.
