Clean.

Sponsor Giveaway : : goodkarma

: : :

Every-so-often I bring you an interview and giveaway with one of Clean's sponsors. It's a great opportunity to discover a new small businesses and also a friendly reminder that there are alternatives to the mass-produced products, big-box stores, and the status-quo.

Each sponsor is carefully hand-picked and their interviews never cease to inspire me. Enjoy!

: : :

I'm so happy to introduce you to my almost neighbor Bren of goodkarma. Bren is from friendly Viroqua and she crafts some amazing things! Beauty and function, stitched together with loving hands.

Read on for a little inspiration from my 'hood (and a coupon code and giveaway!).

What is your company and how long have you been in business?

I am Bren of goodkarma and I've been making and selling an array of hand-stitched goods on and off for about 12 years now. (Oh, wow, can that be right?! I triple-checked my math.)

This current incarnation of goodkarma has been going for 5 years and is ever evolving.

I design and sew housewares and personal accessories with earth-friendly materials such as upcycled wool sweaters, vintage thrifted finds, and a hemp/certified organic cotton blend that I hand-dye myself using low-impact dyes. I strive for sustainable functionality in everything I create.

What inspired you to go into this line of work?

I wanted to purchase products that were made in an ethical way using materials that weren't filled with toxins, and was frustrated with not being able to afford them. Why should only rich people be able to buy organic textiles?

So I was determined to figure out how to create them myself and offer them to others. I wanted to give normal people the opportunity to purchase quality eco-friendly products at a price that wasn't outrageous. One part of that puzzle was starting from the most raw materials I could get and dyeing my own fabric, which has been an incredibly fascinating and rewarding experience. Learning new techniques will keep me happily busy for a lifetime.

How do you believe you and your business are bringing good into the world?

I'm giving people and alternative option ot mass-produced, questionably made product bought from stores that don't value their employees or the planet. A way for people to feel good about what their money is going to support - both directly and indirectly. The money I make goes to support other local and independent crafters, farmers, and businesses, and the cycle keeps going. I use materials that are grown without pesticides because I care about the health of the farmers who grow it and the people that process it. I give people affordable reusable alternatives to wasteful disposable items.

On a smaller - but equally as satisfying - note, my customers often tell me that every time they open their wallet/cook dinner/drink their tea, they see my 'goodkarma' label and it makes them smile. How could I not love that?

What else should we know?

One improvement that I look forward to making is purchasing hemp fabric grown and produced right here in the US. We are the only industrialized nation that prohibits growing this amazing crop, so unfortunately it all has to come from overseas. But I can see the tide turning and after some encouraging legislation was passed in Washington and Colorado this past November, I'm confident that US-grown industrial hemp is in our future. And I will be the first one in line to get it when it is.

Thanks, Bren! On a personal note, I purchased one of goodkarma's cast iron handle huggers over a year ago. And we've used it daily ever since. It lives on my favorite cast iron skillet, and evey morning makes the hop to my tea kettle. (Hmm... maybe I need a second one...)

Want some goodkarma of your own? Bren has generously offered to send one winner the following gift:

• one pot holder of your choice (square or oval)
• one cast iron handle hugger of your choice
• and one medium size hemp/organic produce bag.

To enter just leave a comment below! (One comment per person, please.) You can also find goodkarma on Facebook if that interests you. I'll select one lucky person next week.

Comments are now closed. The winner is Beth who said:

"I love the look of her items - the swirls especially! I'm headed over to check her out :)"

Everyone can enjoy 10% off of a goodkarma order with the coupon code "LUSA13". This discount includes the custom listings where you can just let me know what colors you want your pot holder/handle hugger/wallet/crochet case to be, and Bren will stitch one up just for you.

Discount code good through the end of April.

Here and now.

Some days I am so very much in the "now" that I don't pick up my camera all day long.

And that's unusual for me.

Yesterday was one of those. It was so simple and lovely.

Like you, I sometimes struggle to be in the moment.

I'm distracted by my to-do list or this screen, I'm wanting to check email or look something up or otherwise creep away from the moment at hand.

But with each passing day I am making conscious choices and being mindful. Being here. Now.

And so yesterday was magic.

We played games. Read books. Hiked in the hills. Played squirrels on the ridgetop and came home to hot cocoa (okay, carob) and freshly baked treats.

And then the kids made sushi for dinner.

The entire day was delicious.

And then early this morning while Sage was reading, Pete was having coffee, Lupine was sleeping, and my tea was steeping I wandered around the house and ventured out into the 7F morning to greet the day. (And to take some photos for you, since I didn't get to it yesterday!)

Everything was so quiet.

No sound but the songbirds at the feeder and the pheasant on the hill. The light was pink, the air was frigid.

I found myself breathing like we're meant to - deep and slow.

Another lesson in being here, now.

Because where else would I want to be?

I came back inside and took my tea cup in both hands and sat with my boys to drink. And Lupine woke up and called me upstairs for snuggles. More goodness. More magic. More here and now.

And so begins another day.

Another day of mindful presence in whatever we are doing.

For me that means a work day - a day spent intentionally at the computer. Because this is the time for it. Today.

And I'll strive to bring that same here-and-now presence to even this workday before my screen.

Because whaterver we're doing deserves all of us.

Here and now. Let's get to it.

Love,

Rachel

Spring, delayed.

Happy spring, northern friends! (And happy autumn to those of you south of the equator.) I send this wish wearing long johns, wool socks and my coziest sweater.

Oh, yes. It's spring! (In that drifting snow and icy roads and biting wind kind of way.)

While it feels nothing like spring around here, I'll take a long cold winter any day over the crazy early, crazy dry, crazy hot spring that we greeted on this day one year ago.

It was 80F/27C last March here in Wisconsin. And frankly, that was terrifying.

Today it is -8F/-22C with the wind chill. Um. We have over corrected.

And so that brings us back to spring. And holidays. And celebrations!

Holidays in our family are not religious, but seasonal. Solstices and Equinoxes. And as you may recall, spring is one of my favorite holidays to celebrate. It is right up my alley in every way.

But where I live, Spring Equinox (or Eostre) rarely resembles spring.

Where I live there is normally a decent snow cover on the Vernal Equinox. So this celebration we push out to Easter each year. It adds a bit of normalcy to our family rituals to celebrate when most of our friends and family are also celebrating.

And it keeps the spring bunny from getting snow in her fur.

So today will be an ordinary "winter" day. We'll boil some maple down (if it warms enough for the sap to run!). We'll do some crafting. Sage will work on his robot. We'll read books. Maybe take a quick, bracing walk. I'll keep stitching away on Lupine's spring dress. 

And with hope in our hearts, we'll plant another flat of seeds.

Because spring always arrives. Eventually.

And really - I can hardly wait.

 

Away at home.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Let me begin with this: I am utterly, completely, thorougly humbleld by the comment you shared on the last post. The kind words you left there knocked me off my feet again and again and brought me to tears literally dozens of times.

I was not at all expecting what you said.

So thank you. For sharing, for being open, for letting this space shape you.

I really didn't know. And I'm not sure I'll ever be the same.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

My list was made.

My bag was packed.

I had been printing out knitting patterns and hoarding yarn for almost two weeks.

I was going to the cabin with my best friend from high school - someone I have not really been alone with since we begame mothers more than a decade.

But then...

Her little one needed her. And I got a migraine. And then I threw up. (In a public bathroom no less. Sorry. Too much information, I know.) And the next thing I knew Lupine was laid out with a fever and an ear ache.

I knew what this meant.

I was staying home.

I've only gone away once before since becoming a mama those many years ago. And that time too there was a feverish kid who nearly pulled us back from the door.

But this trip. This trip was off.

I decided to stay home. Because I can't pretend to be someone I'm not, and I'm not one who can leave with a sick or just-barely-post-sick kid at home. I can't do it. I don't want to.

So I stayed.

I cancelled my second weekend away ever. (Did I really? I really did.) And I felt relief to say I was staying home.

But I also felt a little colossally disappointed. (But that knitting! That sewing! That writing!)

And so I asked Pete for the unthinkable.

I asked him for a weekend away at home.

(Meaning: I'd stay home but be off-duty.)

Okay. I know, I know. Almost every mama understands that being home means being swarmed with children. But my kids are getting big. And I work from home two days a week. So they kind of get it. It was almost possible.

He agreed.

And I went into the sewing room with a cup of tea and closed the door behind me.

When I finally emerged two days later I had a craft-hangover. I think I would have vomited rickrack if I stayed in much longer. Seriously. So. Much. Sewing. It was insane.

And the kids were awesome. They would sometimes stand outside of the door saying, "Ring! Ring! I'm calling you at the cabin!" and we'd laugh as I opened the door and saw them with a shoe or a spoon on their ear as a phone.

Pete rocked it. He cooked every meal. Washed every dish. Got kids ready for bed every night.

He rocked it.

While I had a hundred projects I could have started, I began in a most simple place: the humble hot pad.

Those who have been around for a bit might recall that my everyday hot-pads are nothing short of disgusting. Truly, they should not be allowed near food.

I bought two of them while wearing Sage (now 10) in the sling. At K-Mart. They are pink/dirt colored and greasy/foul/funky/nasty.

I sewed a replacement that never really caught on but was used just enough to look almost as gross as the K-mart pair.

Seriously bad hot pad karma over here. (Okay. I have one awesome hot pad, made by the amazing GoodKarma Bren. But aside from that I'm a disaster.)

So finally, finally! I made a hot pad.

Crafted from a $0.50 pair of adult corduroy pants and scraps from previous projects (aprons, tote bags, bonnets) I cranked it out in less than an hour. And it's cute. Really cute. In that imperfect who-gives-a-crap way that a hot pad to replace a hideous one can only be.

I'm thrilled. With a hot pad.

Yes. Really.

And to prove how thrilled I am - much to Pete's horror - I'm showing you the old one. On my dirty, crumby table even.

Because come on. I'm crafty. So why was that thing on my table?

Oh, yes. All took was a weekend away at home, and finally, a decade later, we have one good hot pad. Adios foul greasy friend. Your K-mart kinfolk will soon be following.

Giveaway : : A crazy, fun, heap of goodness from me to you.

Because why not? It's my blog and I can give you random stuff if I want to.

I noticed earlier this week that I hit 2000 Facebook fans for Clean and almost 3000 for LuSa Organics. And frankly I was kind of jazzed. That's a decent number of folks who either show up to read to what I write each week - while wearing my pajamas - or love the products we create.

I mean seriously. How did you all find your way here?

I wonder that often.

You see, I started writing this blog as a way to create a bit of transparency between what we do for our income and who we are as people. Because lots of body care out there is... well... eh in my opinion.

Questionable safety records, sketchy ingredients, synthetic surfactants and fragrances, you know. Eh.

And much of it is made by companies you might not want anywhere near your skin (or your baby for that matter). But I don't think most people know that.

But we're us. We're parents. We're real and quirky and likable - okay, and perhaps a wee bit non-conformist - us.

And we make body care that you can trust with your precious baby and your precious body.

So I started to write.

And then a funny thing happened.

Writing here became a joy in and of itself.

Transparency for my business ceased to be my motivation. I simply love to share with you, why-ever you are here.

I love writing this blog.

And so I don't do it to create transparency anymore. I do it because I love it.

Today I wanted to say thank you for showing up.

For coming here and reading, maybe commenting, and perhaps even stretching what you've held before as truth. For learning and feeling and growing right along side me.

I love that even though we might see the world from different perches, what I share here has a chance of changing something in your life. What fun that is!

The same goes for me when you share of yourselves.

It's that connection is what keeps me coming back.

Maybe it's the same for you.

To celebrate all of you wonderful people coming along on this journey I'm hosting a random giveaway of all kinds of goodies I'm just dying to share.

I'll choose two winners. Each winner will receive the following:

Three bars of LuSa Organics soap (Because that's what got me into this to begin with!)

Three LuSa Organics lip balms (because they're crazy good)

An early copy of my soon-to-be released (first ever!) sewing pattern - Festive Felt Birthday Crowns - (Your early copy will come later this spring. The pattern will be in my Etsy shop this summer!)

A copy of Celia the Great - Tricks of Being a Happy Kid (Author Abby sent me two copies to share with you.)

A set of four wee little peg dolls, for your favorite board game. (Because they're adorable, that's why.)

One zipper pull of your choice from my Etsy shop (acorn or mushroom)

One favorite recipe from my family (you choose the type - main course, dessert, or side)

One of Sage's amazing sachets (Yes, yes. I'll pay him for it.)

And one big scoopful of Mid-March Wisconsin snow! (Okay. Not really. Now I'm just messing with you.)

How does that sound? Fun?

Yes indeed.

To be entered tell me something real and wonderful in the comments below. Something about you or your family or your heart or why you come here. It's that easy!

Oh. My. The comments you left on this post have cracked my heart wide open. I've cried over and over again and am humbled by what you have shared. Thank you. Thank each and every one of you for coming here to share your hearts.

Comments are now closed. The winners are...

Amy who said:

"Your blog is inspiring and real and honest, and I really appreciate it, and you for keeping it, and for sharing so much of what you do and who you are. We share very similar values and lifestyle choices, and it is nice to know other amazing people who are choosing to live consciously. I hope to move to a homestead one of these days in the near future, so it is extra fun and inspiring to read about your journey in that too. Thanks for being so cool! ;) And thanks for a yummy giveaway!"

and k who said:

"i found you via a random image on instagram. I'm always looking for natural products - especially ones good for travel. well, i bought my firsts from you last month and i loved everything. i smell great ;)"

You can also like my business or my writing on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, like, share, tweet, or pin this post, or talk me up to your friends.

But you don't have to. Because I'll keep writing anyway.

Thanks you lovely people. Have an awesome weekend!

So much love,
Rachel

Write a parenting mission statement.

Good morning, friends!

I'm over on Simple Homeschool this morning, talking about the power of a parenting mission statement. Drop on by to help find your own parenting groove - homeschooling or not.

It might just change everything.

My post is here. Enjoy!

Love,

Rachel

P.S. If you're new here or are just looking for a bit more parenting inspiration, I have archived peaceful parenting posts over here and words about mothering in general here. I think you'll find some resonant posts there to inspire your parenting.