Islamic Geometric Patterns

May 2, 2016

Design

I’m making an effort (not always successful) to avoid falling down the Google/Facebook/Youtube hole vortex in the evening. The siren song of internet distraction rarely leads anywhere useful and I’ve never regretted turning the damn thing off and taking up pencil and paper. Through some library serendipity, I discovered Islamic Geometric Patterns by Eric Broug. It’s a book of step by step drawing instructions. All you need is a ruler, compass, pe...

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084 How to Make Your Own Cheese with David Asher

Mr. Homegrown

May 4, 2016

Fermentation, Food, Podcasts

1 Comment

...rennet. Using cardoon flowers instead of rennet. Tools you need for cheesemaking. Hacking a fridge to make your own cheese cave. Using leftover whey for fertilizer and cooking. Making chèvre. How to store cheese. The cheese scene in Canada and the legality of raw milk. Raw milk cheeses in Quebec. To find out about David’s classes visit his website The Black Sheep School of Cheesemaking. If you want to leave a question for the Root Simple Podcast...

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Harry Partch: Woodworker and Composer

Mr. Homegrown

May 12, 2016

Design, Music, Thoughtstylings

5 Comments

...ngularis Reversum. Gourd Tree and Gongs Partch was a master of up-cycling, making use of military and industrial surplus. Below, his “cloud chamber bowls” made from the tops and bottoms of 12-gallon Pyrex carboys found in a UC Berkeley radiation lab. Cloud chamber bowls. Here’s Partch talking about the cloud chamber bowls and playing them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfZrNaLxH-0 You can see all of Partch’s instruments here. Partch’s music can...

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Salted Spruce Tips and Pine Infused Garlic Salt

Mrs. Homegrown

July 1, 2016

Food, Foraging, How-to, Recipes

5 Comments

...and see how it goes, because you can always add more. Feline assistance in making the pine garlic salt. A Tale of Two Salts To give you some concrete examples, I made two small batches of salt today. I often make herbed salt in tiny batches that get used up quickly, because I like to experiment. The first one I made was with spruce tips. These are the fresh spring growth of a fir tree, the tender chartreuse tips which stand out in such brilliant c...

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Restoring the Original Black Box: Our Western Electric 534A Subset

Mr. Homegrown

June 14, 2016

Appropriate Technology, Thoughtstylings

7 Comments

...posted a video of the interior of our ringer box in action. This, ladies and gentlemen, is what it sounded like when the phone rang in 1920s: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2VHhmKTFsQ And, yes, I will be making this available as a ringtone in about a week. Though, I’ll note, you probably won’t be able to fix your iPhone 96 years in the future. Does your old house still have a ringer box?...

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