The Urban Homestead Series

A Low Energy, Simple Afternoon and Low Impact, Simple Gifts

I got home from work one afternoon last week and while it was hot, humid and bright outside, inside was cool, dim and refreshing. I took advantage of the calm and soothing atmosphere and decided to have a low energy afternoon. Instead of turning on my laptop, a couple of lights and putting music on, I left everything shut off.

I did switch on the radio, but I used my wind up one. The only thing in my place that was plugged in was the fridge, cordless phone and alarm clock.
(The pictures are a little dark because I didn't use any flash, to give an idea of the natural light in my place at the time.)

Breathing a deep sigh of peace I set myself to some pleasant tasks.

First I took down the yarrow and mallow hanging up to dry, removed the flower tops and leaves from their stems and placed them in labeled jars for storage.

Then I wrapped up a birthday gift for a young boy. I found a wooden sailboat and toolbox craft kit at a kid's consignment store in my neighbourhood. I thought it was a good choice since the boy's father is a very talented woodworker and this would make for a nice project that they could do together. I used a colourful silk scarf and bright yellow ribbon to wrap the gift in.



Speaking of gifts, this weekend I gifted a friend this sweet trinket box that I bought secondhand. I wrapped it in a lacy scarf and tied it with a cream coloured ribbon I had saved. The card was also bought secondhand. (Thrift stores are great places for stationary and unused cards. It's nice to have a stash on hand when I don't have time to make my own.)



I know many people worry that giving second hand gifts is tacky and cheap. I think that if I'm able to thoughtfully choose something that is appropriate to the person, then why not? What I like about second hand gifts is that there is usually little to no packaging. This way I'm not giving someone a big pile of garbage to deal with along with their present. Also, second hand gifts are often unique and one of a kind. (Handmade gifts are awesome too, and I like to give those whenever I can!)