Expecting a cold front? Protect tender plants from overnight frost by gently tying a plastic bag around them. The plastic buffer will keep the harsh wind and chill at bay by trapping warm air inside to insulate roots and branches.Make “Plarn” for Household Crafts

 

If you’re crafty and enjoy knitting or crocheting, you can turn grocery bags into plastic yarn (or plarn) to use in a zillion-and-one projects. Just lay your bags flat and cut across, top to bottom (discarding the handles), to create loops. Knot the loops together to create a long strand of material, then roll the strand into a ball and use it to create coasters, placemats, reusable bags, rugs, plant hangers, or any other creative notion your mind invents.

Line Your Trash Cans

 

Plastic grocery bags are the perfect size to line small trash cans in the bedroom and bathroom. Keep a stash of old grocery bags in an empty tissue box in your pantry or under the sink. You can easily grab one anytime you need a new garbage bag.

Create Textured Paint Surfaces

 

Faux finishers, take note! Many painting and glazing techniques can be achieved with the help of a recycled grocery bag. Cover a clean paint roller with a plastic bag, then roll it in paint and apply to the wall to create a textured effect, or achieve a faux leather look by taking a wadded up plastic bag to a coat of glaze to create random patterns.

Line a Paint Tray

Paint tray liners, the kind that can be slipped in and out of a paint tray to simplify post-painting clean-up, have become quite popular with DIYers. Convenient as they are, you don’t need a store-bought liner to achieve a mess-free paint job. Instead, line your paint tray with a plastic bag. Pour the paint into the tray, paint, and (when you’re done) remove the bag for effortless clean-up.

Sew Reusable Sandwich Wraps

 

Sew your own reusable sandwich wraps and you’ll not only recycle your plastic grocery bags, but avoid using plastic ziplock bags. First, fuse several layers of grocery bag plastic together by ironing them between layers of parchment paper. Then, sew your plastic sheet to a piece of cloth—the plastic side will form the liner of the wrapper. Attach some velcro and you’ll have a pocket to pack your sandwiches in that is both adorable and earth-friendly

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1. Protect your side view mirrors.
   During freezing weather, tie plastic bags around your side view mirrors to prevent them from frosting over. It will save you time in the morning because you don’t have to scrape them!
2. Cheap packing material.
   Substitute plastic bags as parcel padding for breakable or valuable items. You don’t have to purchase Styrofoam and it works just as well! Just make sure to pack it in securely.
3. Painting tool preservation.
   Place wet paint brushes inside plastic bags and tie them shut to keep them from drying out while you’re taking a break. You can also use plastic bags to seal paint cans by putting a plastic bag over the paint can opening before you put the lid on. This prevents old, dried paint from the lid from falling back into the can!
4. Keep your shoes in pristine condition.
   Walking through a muddy area? Is it snowing and you don’t have snowshoes? Tying plastic bags over your shoes can keep them clean and dry during adverse weather conditions. After washing your shoes, you can also ball plastic bags up and stuff them into your shoes while they are air-drying to help them keep their shape!
5. Plant protection.
   You can tie a plastic bag around your plant overnight to protect it from the frost. Just remember to remove it the next morning! You can also use plastic bags as additional padding for your knees when gardening by tying them around your knees. They also keep you clean!
6. Creative Craft.
   There are many creative crafts you can make from plastic bags! Here are just a few:
   • Rug
   • Woven basket
   • Jump Rope
   • Flowerpot
   • Crochet plastic yarn and more!

Uses for Paper Bags

1. Use them for compost.
   Collect kitchen scraps and other compost items in a paper bag and then when it’s time to compost, dump out the food scraps and then tear up the bag to go directly into the compost pile.
2. Use it as a recycling container.
   Paper bags are recyclable, so to make recycling paper easy, you can put all of your weekly paper recycling in a paper bag and then toss the whole thing into your recycling bin!
3. Cover books.
   Cut and tape paper bags to cover and protect your favorite books. They’re also great to protect kids’ textbooks from damage and allows them to decorate them however they want!
4. Moving or Traveling containers.
   Don’t want to pay for extra boxes when moving or traveling? No problem! Load up your paper bags with clothes, books, and more to make moving easier or to pack in the car for trips.
5. Prevent weeds in your garden.
   Place plain (no dye) paper bags on the soil around your plants before covering with compost or mulch. It adds an extra layer of weed prevention for your plants!
6. Use as gift bags and tags.
   With a little creativity, you can turn an old paper bag into a cute holiday gift bag. You can also turn paper bags into actual gift wrap by turning them inside out or turn them into gift tags!
7. Kid’s art activities.
   You can use paper bags to make masks for Halloween or play time. Just cut out eye and mouth holes and let them draw funny faces on them! You can also make a kite and many more kid-friendly crafts!

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Types of manufactured plastics after recycling

Rwanda Ecoplastic manufactures various plastics such as:

• Dustbin bags used while collecting waste,
• Impermeable bags used in medical area,
• Tubing bags used duplication of different crops,
• Sheetings used in building roofs,
• Purdue Improved Crop Storage (PICS), a hermetic bag used for storing food for a long time; etc

What is PICS?

Rwanda Ecoplastic in partnership with Purdue University, the later agreed to transfer its PICS technologyto allow the manufacturer to use it. PICS is a hermetic bag that allows its user to avoid fungal growth and aflatoxin contamination of the harvest mainly grains, PICS has three layers, these layers prevent the oxygen inflow and the leak of dioxide carbon, which gives it a capacity to store for more than three years without losing the quality of stored crops. PICS has been a very successful storage bag, especially in Africa which is in a very sunny region and has not acquired latest storing technologies yet.

Plastic bags threats

Earth Policy Institute statistics states that almost a trillion plastic bags are used every year in the world and they are contributing to ecosystem pollution. Plastic bags are not biodegradable and take many years to decompose.

According to the BBC plastic bags are also a threat to animals, more than 70% of cattle and sheep that diein the capital of Mauritania, Nouakchott, are killed by eating plastic bags. When plastics are thrown in oceans that have been used to carry food, marine animals are attracted to eat the food and end up eating plastic, and also getting entangled in the plastic, which most of the time leads to death. Also when fish consume small plastics with toxins, they might not die, but this toxin is later consumed by human beings.

Rwanda is progressing well in environmental management and does not hesitate in making tough decisions such as banning plastic bags. Recycling is one of the long term solutions and the government of Rwanda encourages such cleanleaps through providing tax incentives on the importation of recycling machines to drive investment, to help the country to reach its vision 2020 to be the cleanest country in the world, and help create jobs in waste management.

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New eats

June’s All Day is named for master sommelier June Rodil, so there’s (unsurprisingly) a great wine list.

Courtesy June’s All Day

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UNIQUE LANDMARKS TO VISIT

• Barton Springs: Texas’ oldest man-made swimming pool is located in Zilker Park, and is fed by the water from the Main Barton Spring, the fourth largest spring in Texas. A great way to keep cool when the temperature gets extreme! Admission is $3 for adults.
• The Bat Bridge: The Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge houses the largest urban population of Mexican free-tailed bats in the world, with up to 1.5 million bats taking residence. Over 100,000 visitors come every year to watch the bats emerge.
• Lady Bird Lake: Formerly known as Town Lake, Lady Bird Lake is a reservoir in downtown Austin that was created by the Longhorn Dam in the 1960s at the (then) eastern border of the City of Austin. Open for rowing, swimming, and fishing.
• Mount Bonnell: Alongside the Lake Austin portion of the Colorado River, Mount Bonnell offers stunning views of the City of Austin, and has been a popular tourist destination since 1850.
• Capitol Building. The Texas State Capitol was completed in 1888, and is a stunning example of 19th century architecture. Based on the United States Capitol, the Texas State Capitol surpasses the United States Capitol by 15 feet. Admission is free, and the Capitol Visitor’s Center has free brochures for self-guided tours.

INTERESTING WALKS

• Check out the 357-acre University of Texas campus, including the LBJ Library and Museum, and the Darrell K. Royal/Texas Memorial Stadium.
• Schoal Creek trail is in the heart of downtown Austin, eventually joining the Town Lake Trail at what is now Lady Bird Lake. The walk is about 4.4 miles (7.1 km), and takes you through the greenbelt and a number of parks.
• A serial killer haunted Austin in the 19th century, and the city erected moonlight towers, many of which are still standing today. You may spot them as you walk through the city!

LOCAL WISDOM

• Don’t forget to hydrate! Drink plenty of water, especially in the hotter months.
• The “lakes” are not really lakes, but rather parts of the Colorado River that have been designated as lakes by small dams. The lakes all maintain a current from the Colorado River.
• E. 6th Street is often closed to traffic on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights and open only to pedestrians.
• Austin is famous for its numerous festivals, in particular South by Southwest (SXSW). Any local knows to avoid Austin during SXSW – when Silicon Valley essentially invades Austin. If you’re going to be attending SXSW, it is recommended you reserve your accommodations at least 9 months in advance.
• Where to find good cheap eats: everywhere! But you can’t miss The Whip In. This convenience mart, gastropub, and live music venue has the best Texan-Indian fusion. Austin is one of the best cities for street food, and food trucks can be found everywhere. Check out listings on Yelp for more recommendations.
• Dangerous areas: Austin is a very safe city. Take note to avoid walking alone at night in Pleasant Valley.

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Working with small businesses and other entrepreneurs has been a goal of mine for some time. I assist with photoshoots and the photographer at my full-time job, so I’ve seen how lifestyle brand shoots work.

Austin Down to Earth is a small business that designs jewelry in Austin, Tx. Created by Mary Werner, Austin Down to Earth provides gorgeous and simple jewelry for any woman from the everyday pieces to special moments. Mary and I consulted for a month leading up to her shoot date on location, models, how many pieces she wanted, the style of shooting, etc. We went over a lot of details, and even after shooting, I realized there were things we didn’t consider.

Hire a Hair and Makeup artist (or even solely Makeup artist)

Mary decided to not hire a makeup artist (or MUA) because she wanted to keep costs low. This was a wise decision, but in the future, I would highly encourage hiring a MUA or HMUA. A HMUA or MUA is able to create certain looks that others on the team wouldn’t be able to. You want a specific look for your models? That’s where the HMUA or MUA comes in! Even with doing touch-ups during the shoot is very helpful.

Have a shoot list

We knew which pieces to photograph, but we didn’t have a specific shoot list. Looking back, having a shoot list would have been amazing to determine which pieces would be ideal for the website, or for social, or just for product images. A shoot list would also have been a good reminder to mix up the type of photos I was taking and how I was framing the photos.

Shoot to your strengths

I’ve never shot in a studio or used studio lighting before. I told Mary this right off the bat, so we would have to use natural light. Instead of trying to cram new information and education into my head before a client session, I prefer to shoot to my strengths. I could have tried to learn the new information and practice, but that was still a risk especially with a client that is relying on my photography.

Find ideal models

I loved working with our models! Both Alejandra Palomo and Shelby Sawyer did a great job with modeling the jewelry and were great to work with! Both were found through the Austin Area Models and Photographers Facebook group. Looking through each of their website portfolios and Instagram (which most of the time is their portfolio rather than a website) was a task to make sure we got girls who would do a good job. I also made it a point to make sure we got models of varying race and ethnic backgrounds. That way, not every photo looks the same, and the photos can help build the brand to be more diverse.

Rent out an airbnb

I didn’t think of this at first, but Mary wanted to rent out an airbnb. I was looking through studio space to try and find a good place at a low cost. A lot of the studios were indoor only where you have to use flash photography, or they were far out of our price range. Mary had the idea of renting out an airbnb, and it was the best idea! We got to use the interior of the little house we rented as well as the yard to get some nice photos outside when the weather was a little better.

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Pro No. 1: Your neighborhood will look good.

Generally, an HOA establishes rules to ensure the neighborhood looks sharp, says Brad Pauly, owner and broker at Pauly Presley Realty in Austin, Texas. These include strict guidelines about keeping lawns manicured, restrictions on parking boats and other large vehicles on the street, and limitations on exterior paint colors.

“This type of oversight eliminates issues with one or two properties weighing down all property values due to an unpleasant exterior,” says John Lyons, a broker with Baird & Warner in Chicago.

Pro No. 2: You’ll enjoy access to amenities.

An HOA usually offers community amenities such as a pool, a fitness center, parks, children’s play areas and security gates, Pauly says.

Pro No. 3: Your maintenance costs will be shared.

HOA dues are earmarked for maintenance of shared spaces, according to Lyons. This includes community lawn care (but not for your own yard), community snow removal (but not for your own property) and upkeep of common areas like the pool or the fitness center.

Pro No. 4: You’ve got a built-in mediator.

Involved in a tiff with your neighbor over that big oak tree that’s losing limbs? You can settle some confrontations with your neighbors by taking your grievances to the HOA’s board or management company, Lyons says.

Pro No. 5: You can get to know your neighbors.

Gina Estrada, who lives in a gated HOA community in Clovis, Calif., says that if you’re elected to serve on the HOA board or are otherwise active in the association, you’ll become better acquainted with your neighbors. Heck, you might even make some new friends. “I believe we should know our surroundings, including the people in them,” Estrada says.

Con No. 1: You’ll fork over HOA dues.

When buying a home in a community with an HOA, you’ve got to add HOA dues to your budget. The dues vary, but typically run in the hundreds of dollars per month.

Con No. 2: Your hands will be (somewhat) tied.

If someone buys a home in an HOA community and wants to make changes to the property, such as the addition of an enclosed patio, it normally must be approved by the HOA’s board. “It’s possible that an HOA could prevent certain updates on a home,” Pauly says.

Con No. 3: You might be hampered by an HOA’s financial woes.

If an HOA is facing financial problems or is ensnared in a lawsuit, it could harm your ability to obtain a loan for a home and could hurt sale prices of homes in the community, Pauly says.

Con No. 4: You’ll lose some of your freedom.

When you live in a community governed by a HOA, you’ll have to follow its rules, even if you think they’re ridiculous, Lyons says.

“You do, however, have the option of petitioning the homeowners’ association to change any rule you don’t agree with. But if you lose, you will have to live with it,” Lyons says.

Con No. 5: You might be the victim of a “rogue” board member.

Estrada says her HOA elected a “rogue” homeowner to the board who decided to flout the rules and do whatever he wanted. For instance, Estrada says, the rogue board member thought the community needed speed bumps to slow down speeding drivers, so he had them installed. That move caused a neighborhood uproar. The process to take out the speed bumps and remove the rogue homeowner from the board cost several thousand dollars, including legal fees, she says.

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