“Home is where the great change will begin.
It is not where it ends.”
~Shannon Hayes, Radical Homemakers
“Oh Andrea! You know you can buy that kind of stuff at the store!?!”
From close friends to various family members, the above statement is often the response I hear whenever I say, “I just made some of that — fill in the blank — at home the other day!”
I’m well aware of what is offered on the shelves of the box stores that litter my city. I know that I could easily buy things like household cleaners, tooth paste, shampoo, bread, over-the-counter medications, laundry detergent, lotion and anything else that I’ve made before…at the store. And to be honest, sometimes I do buy those things. But it’s simply becoming less and less a part of my life.
What compels us to make things at home?
I know there are other people out there compelled to create things in this way.
I know because there are thousands of you who read this blog and hundreds of you who email me daily with words of excitement after creating your first herbal salve or batch of soap.
Could it be that by producing things at home — things that could easily be bought at the store — we are not only saving money, but fulfilling a need to be artistic and creative?
Why I Make It Homemade
We all have our own unique reasons for doing the things we do. Here are my reasons for making things at home:
- Cost savings. By making my own medicine, shampoo, and meals from scratch I do save money! It’s a fact, the raw materials needed for these things are definitely cheaper.
- Ingredient control. I have no doubts when it comes to knowing exactly what’s in the things I make. Reading the labels of things like processed foods, lotions and other body care products is scary — there are so many ingredients that are dangerous by-products of various corporate industries and have proven links to any number of illnesses…it just not worth it.
- Producer not consumer. Making it homemade has taught me how to reduce my own tendencies toward hyper-consumerism. I’ve become a lot more savvy…buying only what I need and learning to save for the things I really want.
- Reduced waste. Without all bring in all of the wasteful packaging that comes with buying things from the store…my home is definitely generating a lot less trash.
- Independence, Fulfillment, and Empowerment. And lastly, perhaps I have become accustom to the feelings of independence, fullfillment, and empowerment that come from this lifestyle. It satisfies something deep inside of me to know that by my own hand these things are produced. Which reminds me…
…a beautiful woman, wife, mother, and writter that I have grown to respect and admire — Renee Tougas of FIMBY — put whole idea of “being compelled to create” into words so eloquently when she wrote:
Recognizing myself as a creative is not about the giving myself permission to “make crafts” but is about a transformation in how I understand myself and view the world. Being a creative person is more than sewing a quilt, writing music, performing music, taking photos, etc. It’s about being a problem solver and a beauty maker and our homes needs that. The world needs that.
In her lovely ebook titled Nurturing Creativity: A Guide for Busy Moms, she continues:
I’ve come to describe what I do simply as creative living, not defined by any one craft or activity but an overall approach to life. An approach to life, I might add, that is helping our family to live our dreams and create a livelihood consistent with our values.
And that dear friends, is what it’s all about.
Now It’s Your Turn!
Tell me why you do this…what compels you to make things at home?
A Recipe for Homemade Garden Fresh Salsa
I love this blog! My husband and I are just starting our new lifestyle and building our homestead and I cannot tell you the amount of comments and negativity I’ve received from people who think what we’re doing is crazy! My husband and I decided last year that it’s time to make a change for our family especially our children. We wrote out a “five year” plan and have begun our journey. This blog made me cry because I haven’t been able to put into words how I exactly feel about changing our life style to our friends who are literally laughing at us. I find myself shocked at the need to even have to explain why this lifestyle choice is good; to me it’s obvious! This blog is exactly how I feel! Thank you!
I’ve gotten a lot of “REALLY?!” reactions as well as “ya’ll are just crazy” for how we are wanting to live our lives by trying to more self-sustainable and sufficient. I just laugh to myself because I’m really enjoying learning these new skills and liking the knowledge that I’m gaining. And with all the info I’ve learned about what goes into commercial products that I’m no longer oblivious to, I just think to myself “if ya’ll only knew.” LOL!
Well done you on your new lifestyle…so long as you believe in what you are doing ignore the scoffers. We have got used to folk rolling their eyes at us. We have never tried to explain our choices either because we know that they will not understand. The ones who do understand ‘get’ our reasons and are usually on the same journey…enjoy. This blog is superb for support and .advice
Isn’t it amazing how negative people can be about such a positive thing? I recently started the same journey and have no support except for my husband who is just as excited as I am to create a sustainable homestead. I just keep telling myself those who matter don’t mind and those who mind don’t matter. Stay strong. What we’re doing is incredible. <3
You put so eloquently into words my reasons for “making my own”. I have always cooked the things I can cook and not use tools like Hamburger Helper and Kraft Mac and Cheese. It has been recently though, that I have starting making my own cleaners. First spurred out of saving money and a disdain for packaging, now I do find myself empowered and fulfilled- making things for my family. I have also found things that work BETTER than conventional products. I will probably never buy commercial deodorant again, it just doesn’t work right. Homemade stuff works GREAT! I don’t make everything, but this list of homemade products gets longer and longer.
I agree! My main reasons for DIY are cost savings and controlling my environment. I reduce chemicals coming into my house and I know what is in the things that I make for myself. Now, on the occasion when I do buy store bought, I cringe inside. I know if given enough time and the right ingredients, I could do it myself. Often that spurs me to come up with my own solution.
I agree as well. While I am just starting out making cleaners & such. I pretty much have always put up food that I grew or knew who grew each year.
Yet, I still get those comments too. My response to the crazy uncle that usually makes such comments, “No, I had no idea that you could buy canned or frozen corn or canned tomatoes!!!! When did they start doing that?”
I absolutely love that response! I, too, get the “she’s crazy, ” self righteous looks and I now can reply nicely to that!
I love knowing I am able to provide safer alternatives for my family. Love this blog,
I really enjoyed ready thisblog. For me the journey to self-sufficiency has just recently begun. You would think that I would have started a long time ago, but the delay has been part being oblivious to things going on around us and part laziness. I’m on my way now though. I now use baking soda and apple cidar vinegar to clean my hair; I’m making my own laundry detergent and household cleaners (thanks to the help of these blogs); and fixing to start the adventures of canning foods and learning to sew. I’m also trying to learn how to tan animal hides, weave baskets, and learn to do other things in the old fashions. I’ve wanted to do these things for so long but like I said…..a big part of the delay has been laziness. And growing up in a world where I was practically taught to just go to the store for everything I need does not help any either.
So I have woken up to reality. I am wanting to make things on my own and become self-suffient for a few reasons: 1….to be healthier; 2……to not depend on the government or on commericial foods; and 3…..to learn valuable skills. And I’m also enjoying learning these things and I get excited when I find something new to do. and it also beats sitting in front of the tv all day long and not doing anything constructive.
So I want to say thank you to all of those who post these blogs in helping me on my journey to self sufficiency.
I am really blessed. Every time I tell a friend or acquaintance about my current homemade product, their response is always, “Ooo, can I have the recipe?” I might get an odd look or a genuine question why, but I haven’t received any negativity.
As to why, I do it for the health aspect mainly, because a healthy body glorifies God. Getting off the consumer bandwagon is just a positive side effect.
What a wonderful article and an enlightening blog! I have followed you for awhile, and love each and every one of your articles. I currently make many things at home, but have also created a (long) list of new things to DIY, and plan on trying a couple every month. I get some strange comments from people, but have converted at least one friend to make homemade cleaners.
Being frugal and sustainable is just so…gratifying!
I do my best to make my own things for two main reasons; cost effectiveness and ingredient control. I have come to the realization that I will probably never work a full-time job and be a bread winner for my family. My husband does an amazing job of providing for us financially but being honest with myself, it’s not a thing for me. I will be a housewife! I’m fine with that, I enjoy that and my husband enjoys that. But I want to try and lessen the burden on him in trying to provide. So I grow as much food in our garden as possible so that I spend less at the grocery store (or can afford to buy those big things he likes, like unpasteurized white cheddar cheese or expensive coffee). I also make our own bread and yogurt, and within the next month or two, will be adding laundry detergent and dishwasher soap to that. The second reason as stated is ingredient control. I want to know that what I am feeding my family or cleaning the house with is safe, healthy and not going to hurt them. I just read an article while researching the dishwasher soap about a family where their 2 year old ate a handful of homemade dishwasher detergent. They called poison control, and when they told them it was dishwasher detergent, the lady on the other line was very concerned. That concern disappeared out the window as soon as they told her it was homemade. She’ll be fine, no problem. If I can make a cleaner that does a job as well as the store cleaner but without the skull and crossbones warning, then I will opt for that. The added benefit of making my own is quality! My homemade spaghetti sauce tastes WAY better than anything in the store. Same goes for my stewed tomatoes, lasagna, cookies, cake, pies, etc.
This is a great list and such a great reminder! We (often without thinking) come into contact with sooo many things we know nothing about everyday, including chemicals, when everything we own has been produced by someone else. Making things at home gives you control over that, as well as empowers you to not be the mindless consumer, as you mention. I’m going to keep this in mind and start by choosing one thing to make at home. I remember once I made my own deodorant, but I only used it a few times and soon forgot about it. Perhaps I’ll make toothpaste or something that I definitely use everyday and see how it goes. Thanks for the inspiration, compelling reasons, and ideas!
I couldn’t agree more, especially #5. The feeling I get when making things homemade is really why I love to create and saving money is second to that. I am always so inspired by your blog posts and often find myself trying out many of the things you post how to make and really love it. It is such a fun adventure, learning how to make all these things for our family. So thank you for sharing on this blog and helping the rest of us learn new, natural things we can create for ourselves and our families!
I’m a maker, a do-er if you will. I make things, I do stuff. I get true joy out of making things and doing stuff. I have no ability to do nothing. I cannot just sit around. I can’t just watch a movie. I get bored & itchy and Restless Leggy. I have to get up & find something to do. (I have been this way for as long as I can remember. I know I must have driven my mother crazy…) I see things differently than most people (I’m guessing anyway, since most people I know don’t spend time asking themselves how they can utilize things that can just as easily be thrown away…) I find that I like the things I make better than the things that I can buy, & I like to look around my home & see all of the things I’ve made for myself, my husband & my kids…I think the positive energy in my home is increased with each item I produce myself. I also hate all of the waste that I see around me & producing things myself reduces waste.
What a great post. I think all those reasons are part of why I am making more things at home, and wanting to make more and more. It is about independence, being *able* to make things and fix things myself, rather than depending on a system that is unsustainable; it is about being a producer rather than a consumer and the change in mindset that implies and hopefully engenders, and it is about being part of the solution to the unsustainable system – reducing my use of packaging, transportation costs, unethical labour practices and so on.
I think I’d like to read that book 🙂
I love the way you state this because it IS a compulsion. And why not make your own_? Why do we have to buy things all the time? A generation or two ago, that’s what people did–they made things.
I am always looking at things and thinking, ‘I wonder if I can make that?’ Part of it is the challenge, the other part is the satisfaction of doing something that works. I’ve been making soap for five years, and love it when a family member or friend compliments my product. I’ve made a bunch of herbal remedies–salves, syrups, teas for family, and now I get special requests for things. In the beginning, they gave me the side eye and I got those same questions of ‘why’.
Anyway, another great article! Your blog has really become my favorite! Keep up the great work!
You are spot on! I love knowing what’s in the things I eat as well as my hygiene products.
I make things at home for one of the biggest reasons around – my health! I have a rare immune disorder and don’t want chemicals in my products/food! I feel so much better and know that my family is healthier and I’m not as sick!! I am allergic to so, so, so many things in food, chemicals, products, etc. It was killing me. I had to do something before it did something to me!! I was even able to start my own business with what I’m doing (all my friends wanted what I was making!!).
~~I have been a creator from a very young age …my grandmother had fabrics from her drapery making workroom that she allowed me to cut and stitch by hand, anything I wanted , at the age of 3 or 4 that’s what I did . It fills a need in my Mind, Body, and Soul !! It’s like a compulsion , I can’t not make everything I possibly can in my life . It feels A Part of me to do so ~~!
To me , that is why we as human beings are alive , to make our own way as much as we can as an individual . Different from person to person . I am a clothing of fabric and yarn , jewelry & pottery designer and fabricator . Herbs have been a part of my life for many years . And, I thank you Andrea for doing the leg work of narrowing some of these things down , so many recipes out there , it can become so overwhelming in my head to pick and choose .
Love your blog! It is very informative! I too have gotten that strange look when I’ve made something from scratch. My love for making my own “recipes” when an Aunt gave me a simple recipe for pancake syrup. I was always tired of out of starting the pancakes then finding out I didn’t have any syrup. this recipe provided the basics and I could also make it any flavor! I was thrilled! My next great find was sweetened condensed milk recipe. I t was wonderful having these 2 recipes that I could make from having regular ingredients in the home. I was a single parent then, it saved time and money. My love for “recipes” has become a necessity as well as very fulfilling.
Blessings!
I am a working mom of 2 and I make my own items to mostly save $$! I love what you said about being ‘artistic and creative.’ I think when we create we are fulfilling some of our most innate purposes in life. I am a ‘cloth-diaperer’ who makes her own laundry detergent and baby formula. (from Nourishing Traditions) I am also newly in to making Kombucha Tea and yogurt. We are also a ‘green smoothie’ house. Thank you fo all of your wonderful posts that have helped inspire me to do more! I have found that when I create it, it’s the ‘genuine article.’ There is also something so satisfying about creating to serve a purpose, not to mention the amazing health benefits.
I think if we stopped living out of convenience, we’d do more. I love to inspire others to ‘do it themselves.’ I have worked on finding ‘fast and easy’ in DIY because as a working mom, I have limited time. I believe a lot of people don’t do it because they feel they don’t have the ‘time, money, expertise, etc.’ But thanks to blogs you can really learn how to cut corners while creating health alternatives for your family!
Thank you for articulating all those unnamed feelings I have re making things myself instead of buying mass produced. Your December 2011 post, on similar topic, is great, also.
I make things myself for many of the same reasons you listed and also for the self-fulfillment. Each time I reach to use something I made myself I am reminded of that fact and feel a sense of satisfaction and pride which isn’t something I get from grabbing for the store-bought item.
Such an awesome post! I have begun making so much stuff at home over the past couple of years and it is so fulfilling to create things at home versus purchasing them at the store.
My husband was reaching into the cupboard for an item and discovered a can of bug spray that had leaked out. It had a foamy sticky discharge that was creepy. It had eatten through the linoleum that was covering our shelf and into the wood also. He brought it out to show me and said “this is what we spray on ourselves and the grands”??? So needless to say I was quickly looking up natural alternatives to replace that “toxic mess” as my daughter called it. We have juvenile diabestes and allergies in the grands so we try to be careful what they use and eat.
Really appreciate the hurrah for the naturals, thanks.
Keep up the good work! People question what they don’t understand and maybe are afraid of.
I get all kinds of comments on the things we do or don’t do, sometimes the comments are good but mostly not so much.
I really enjoy your blog, please keep going!
We get the same thing as well. We have 5 kids and one on the way and I get all kids of “advice” on what I should be doing instead of “wasting my time” on things I can buy.
well put!!! i love this blog! great ideas, truly inspired me to build up my own medicine cabinet. I save money, produce less waste, and honestly save time! making deodorant this morning took a couple minutes instead of loading up the kids and driving to the store.
I Love, Love, Love to make my own products, cleaning products, cosmetics, you name it. Most people think I’m a little “out there”, to be nice. Even my own mother! I don’t care. It’s better for my family and the environment. Most of the toxic chemicals they put into everything nowadays (as we know) is so harmful. When I stopped coloring my hair, my body stopped itching. A lot of problems I had went away. Imagine. I know make my own laundry detergent, dishwashing detergent and most everything else! What a sense of accomplishment that comes with that! Thank you Andrea for all of your wonderful ideas and wonderful products. I LOVE your shampoo. I buy that from you as well as your beeswax to make a host of products. You’ve taught me a lot!
I do it because I love the challenge of picking something up at the store and wondering how easy it would be to make my own…or if I could do it cheaper, safer, or better.
And this might be a horrid reason….but I have to admit, I do it, too, because I love the look on people’s faces when they say – with amazement – “You MADE that??” And I say, totally nonchallantly, “Yea. It was no big deal”. Like I’m my own kind of Martha Stewart. Not altruistic, I admit. But it is a reason why I do it.
I agree with all the responses above and have to add…it’s fun ;D Yeah, I’m that shallow at times.
I have to be honest, I am just now getting into making some of my own things and it is a very slow process for me. I love to create, mostly crochet and sewing, but I often find myself with too little time and too much fear of failure.
My husband is much more the make-it-yourself part of our family. Sometimes it frustrates me that we don’t just go out and buy some little gadget that we need, or want. But he has told me time and again that he simply enjoys the craft and the stretching of his brain that comes with. And with that stretching came a camping invention that we have sold locally to accompany another locally made item. It will never make us millions, and likely not even thousands, but I am so proud to say that my hubby made it!
I was always frustrated that my talents lay in the old fashion areas, creative and practical, always felt I should have been born medieval times, now I am putting my skills to use I feel so much better, I have not bought a hand bag or purse in years I always make my own and I can make it just the way I want it, my house is decorated with old sturdy second hand furniture with some paint, second hand cloths, and now making my own cleaning products, I am sensitive to chemicals and have a few skin allergies so making my own is great and I save money. I now have a handmade recipe book to keep them all in one place.
The mother hen instinct in me forces me to create! I love, love, love the feeling of providing for my little chicks by making! There is something so primal and basic about it to me. I would rather spend hours in my kitchen, garden, sewing table, etc than ANY job!
I love the challenge and excitement and learning something new when I make something at home. I’ve never made things like lotions before, but now I can put it on the homemaking bucket list.
Hi Andrea! While I am not NEARLY as homemade as you (!!!), I make things to reduce my carbon footprint with all the packaging, future landfill, disposable everything. It disgusts me. The other day someone asked for a plastic grocery bag while at my house and was SHOCKED when I did not have one and looked at me with that “she is totally nuts!” look when I explained why I did not have one. Recenly, my naturopath suggested that I not use any body products or cosmetics with parabens and some other toxic ingredients….when I went to make sure none of my products had them, the ingredient lists were so long and unpronounceable on some of them that my first thought was “well now I need to just make everything so that I have ingredient control!” Your blog will help a lot with that or I will buy it from you! <3 Steph.
Pretty much close to the same response I got from people when we decided to home school over 16 years ago. Little by little, we are working on making our home a homemade home. God laid it on my heart a few years ago that we need to be self sustaining so that’s the direction we are heading. I was so excited to find your blog!!! Thank you for taking the time to do this!!!
Gina
Thank you so much for this blog. I love it.
I started making my own cleaning products years ago to save money and avoid the nasty chemicals. I’ve used cloth nappies on all 3 of my kids. Since reading so many stories set hundreds of years ago as a kid I’ve had the feeling I was born to the wrong era. I yearn for the simpler times of good strong communities and people looking after the earth and it’s resources instead of maximum exploitation. We have 6 veggie beds that have been a source of great delight and satisfaction. My two oldest children love helping in the garden and my oldest will proudly tell people that he only likes beans fresh from the garden. I would love to go back a few hundred years before all the technology but I do love the way the internet etc can connect us from all over the world. With tools like this blog we can each help each other be an example in our community of how to live simpler more fulfilling lives.
This is a wonderful post. It’s awe inspiring to see so many people share this view and are either changing to a more sustainable life style or are maintaining this life style. It gives me hope for our generation and for our children.
For me, the decision to make my own *insert whatever*, basically comes from NEED. I need to do this. I need to be creative. I need to teach my children how to fend for themselves: to be resourceful, to take care of themselves, to not buy into consumerism. I realized a few years ago that I wasn’t practicing what I was preaching. Little by little, I am turning my baby steps into big strides. It’s liberating. It fills a primal need to be a provider for my family, to know that I can take care of them the best way that I know how. Not just with a natural or organic products, but by teaching them these tools. I HAVE to do this. For me and for them.
i absolutely agree with all of your reasons here. especially with respect to ingredient control.. but also with the fact that i just feel awesome that i’m not entirely reliant on a corrupt, wasteful, and damaging system of consumption and production. it’s kind of like the first time i got my own drill and installed my first curtain rod.. it was like “heck yeah! i can do that! and that makes me powerful”. more powerful than any system can dictate i’m not. imagine if we all felt that way….
p.s. i’d also love to see you at the Wednesday Fresh Foods Blog Hop tomorrow – feel free to make it if you can. xo, kristy.
I read where you have a recipe for making your own deodorant and was wondering if you could share it. I made a personal “bug spray” after that freak findings of the can of bug spray. It is almond oil and citronella essential oil. love it and it works.
love this post, thank you and I love all the responses. It is wonderful to know I am not the only ‘crazy’ person out there. Tee hee.
Last year my husband changed jobs. We are both getting older and he was having trouble at his old job with the hours. His new job was not what he had been told to expect and we realized almost immediately we would need to make major changes. It wasn’t as much income as they told him and the insurance was non-existent. I have health issues and had to make some decisions. After much prayer and meditation I weaned off all my medications and prepared myself for a detox fast of 20 days. This changed my life. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 2009 and that medication lead to another medication which caused this and lead to that and more medication. I was put on high blood pressure meds and high cholesterol meds and then told I was type 2 diabetic. I have never had high blood pressure until this time. Soooooo I went through the fast. Now…..8 months later I am no longer hypertensive or diabetic and I am working on the cholesterol. I take NO prescribed medications. What has this got to do with your blog. Well, in the middle of all this I also had to find other ways to save money. I had already been making my own laundry detergent. So I began to search for other recipes for homemade cleansers…..and FOUND THEM!!! I am in the process of becoming shampoo-less and I no longer buy facial cleansers, I make my own lotion and on and on. This has revolutionized our household and my approach to how I look at life in many ways. People do look at me funny when I talk about making my own cleansers and such. And I am okay with that. Let them look funny. I look just fine…thank you!!
Tanya, what a great story about getting off meds!! I like it. I am not anti-med when they are necessary, but I also like it when I see others living without them.
I make some things from scratch, but not as much as I’d like….it’s a process. But I am conscious that for some people, it is just really hard that there are people like us out there who don’t just go with the majority view. I can’t say I love being in the minority, but I do love making my own decisions and wish that others would respect me more for that, as to me that is a basic human dignity issue (the freedom to live according to your values, not according to someone else’s).
“Yay” to all of us who are living according to our values. 🙂
I like to make things because I find it incredibly satisfying. LOOK, I MADE THAT! And it’s something I can USE!
I make things for a variety of reasons. We save money by not buying the products at the store ($13 for 40 loads of laundry detergent in my area…. really? Of COURSE I’m making a years’ supply for $8 or less!), I know what is going into my products, I can feel safe knowing that the ingredients I use are not harmful to small children (even though I still use cabinet locks.. some of it smells good enough to eat!) and I spend a noticeable amount of time LESS in the store… I can look at an aisle (say, shampoos for instance) and know that I don’t need ANYTHING there. Same with the toothpaste and deodorant aisle, cold remedies, packaged foods, most dairy products, baby supplies (diapers, wipes, baby food, lotions, toys, blankets, clothing etc.. -yes, I’m under the age of 35 and I am fluent with a sewing machine!), and bread. I made it my goal in the last half of 2012 to become more self-sufficient, and to have 2013 be my year to find ways to save $10,000. With what I have learned from this blog and others, I’m at $800, and it’s only the end of January (with a monthly goal- and a PLAN- of $1100 every month after!)
Every time I walk through the aisle at the store where the laundry detergent and fabric softeners are located I feel great knowing that I have made those things at home for truly a fraction of the cost and I know exactly what is in each of them. It gives me a great feeling and I am exploring other things that I can make at home and just walk by in the store feeling great. My family very much prefers my homemade bread to anything that I buy at the foodstore or bakery. My children have various health difficulties and I know that when my son has a cough or my daughter has a sore throat I can make them something right in my kitchen, from natural safe items that will give them relief and help speed their recovery is wonderful. When my oldest daughter has a problem with her cheering outfit I can be of assistance because of the sewing skills I have learned. Right now I am making a quilt for my oldest daughter’s Sweet Sixteen. I am making a lasting memory for my daughter and myself and you can’t buy those in any store no matter how much money you may have.
My reasons:
1. With a long period of no employment and picking up just odd jobs to make ends meet meant the need to get cheap in price but with substitutes that work as good or better.
2. I have always wanted things that the market does not provide, so I make it. If I can find what I need at a quality I want and a good price then I don’t make it, I buy it.
3. I stay well longer if I cook for myself. Restaurants whether fancy or fast food are so short staff that when employees are sick they are encouraged to work anyway. If I cook at home then I do not have to worry if the chef or waitress is sick and ready to pass germs to me in my dinner. I just stay healthier if I do the cooking.
4. In many instances I can produce a healthier product with ingredients I want and that is the best choice environmentally.
5. You will have a very hard time finding tomatoes that taste as good from the market as the ones you can grow yourself.