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Zander and MagFree plans for kids!

In partnership with Lowe's Canada, Ruffman Entertainment has produced a video series of fun, colourful projects that families can build together

Each 3-5 minute episode is accompanied by downloadable step-by-step instructions loaded with extra tips and mini-lessons, so even if parents aren't experienced in building, they can learn alongside their kids!  

 

January 31, 2018

Dear Universe

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Dear Universe, 

I'm sorry I've been ignoring your messages. 

I'm sorry I forgot you had my back all along. I was too closed down to see the proof, no matter how many times you gave me obvious signs. 

I'm sorry I forgot our bond and lost trust in you.

I'm sorry I tried to take everything into my hands and control Life, instead of letting Life show me the 'next right thing'. 

Today I'm changing that. Today I'm opening myself to all of the hints, nudges, people, and ideas that I've walled myself off from. Today I'm giving up the power of choice that I've clung to for years, always insisting on selecting my own opportunities from an ever-diminishing field of options. 

Continue reading "Dear Universe" »

March 08, 2017

Catching Up with Mag Ruffman from Road to Avonlea

Thanks to Laura Grande for this lovely interview!

AuntOlivia

January 17, 2016

How to Make a DIY Meditation Fountain

 

Some of us tend to forget what we’ve accomplished in our lifetimes and we find ourselves feeling like we’ve never done anything meaningful, useful or worthwhile.

Some of us may even go through low spots when we feel that our lives haven’t had any validity.

But when we express that to friends, they're aghast, because that’s not their sense at all. They may think we’re highly accomplished, but we feel like impostors.

So, after a couple of years of feeling that way, I decided to start questioning that belief. Just for a few days.

And in that few days I looked back at all the things I’ve done and you know what? Just scrolling through the ridiculous number of things I’ve made, tried to make, or failed to make, I felt better.

Here’s an example: Episode 1 of Anything I Can Do – “Fountain Do” – how to make a meditation fountain. It was my first day on set with this show (early 2000) and I was giddy to the point of hysteria. But it was kinda fun. And I got to shoot the show on the same farm we used when we shot Road to Avonlea. Such beauty and happy memories. 

 

Get the free downloadable plans for making your own version of Mag's DIY Meditation Fountain. 

And if by some chance DIY isn't your thang, here's Episode #1 of my relationship show, Men On Women, which aired in Canada in 2000-2001. 

Topics:

  • Detecting attraction 
  • When a guy says "I'll call you" after a date, how long does a girl wait for him to call before she knows he was fibbing? And do women ever say "I'll call you" and not call?
  • Call from viewer: Why do guys make a distinction between a woman they'd want to marry and a woman who they want to fool around with?
  • Breast implants
  • Manly Moments: Kissing on a first date
  • Physical affection parameters
  • Rushing or not rushing a relationship
  • Audience question: On a first date, how do you know when you're not interested in a girl, and how do you let her know?
  • Relationships in art

 

June 06, 2015

Using your hands helps your brain and increases well-being

  • Crafting can help those who suffer from anxiety, depression or chronic pain, experts say
  • It may also ease stress, increase happiness by releasing neurotransmitter called dopamine
  • Leisure activities such as reading and crafting may protect brain from aging, study finds

via www.cnn.com

I abandoned my blog over a year ago. In a sense I abandoned myself, because my self was in a weird downward spiral.

When you can't pull up out of a gnarly place, sometimes it's better to not pay attention to your own thought processes.

Knitting got me through the last 18 months, which featured abrupt changes of fortune and emotional lows.

Recent neurological research shows that creating something - anything - interrupts negative emotional loops that can keep us stuck. Knitting helped me release stress and I'm certain that it prevented me from crashing into depression. I didn't quite have the heart for woodworking, welding or more challenging hobbies. But the soft, cozy yarn and the quiet click of my needles seemed to be the perfect tonic.

The CNN article above documents how others have experienced emotional healing through crafting. Maybe you'd like to share your own experience in the comments below. Or maybe just read the article and take comfort in knowing that there's an inexpensive, gentle solution waiting for you if you're in a dark time.

Hand knit socks - ToolGirl Mag Ruffman
One pair of more than 40 sets of socks I've knitted in the last year

December 10, 2013

Upcycling - ideas to spike your creativity

If you're the type of person who gets fidgety while riding in the passenger seat of a car for prolonged periods of, say, 5-10 minutes, you may need to work with your hands to modulate your nervous energy. 

Crocheting bird feeders out of 40-pound test fishing line is satisfying and productive. Whittling is an effective way to build up your supply of tinder for the winter, and the pile of wood shavings under your feet will keep your toes warm on long winter drives.

Or you can turn to your smartphone for solace and revel in arty/crafty/hacky/buildy project tutorials and start plotting your next DIY attempt.  

If you're naturally frugal with a sideways imagination you might enjoy the incredible range of human ingenuity I've collected in my Upcycling board on Pinterest.  

Who wouldn't want to make a combination candle/TP holder from scrap lumber and steel pipe?

Upcycled toilet paper holder

Or make a bench from an old bed headboard/footboard...

Upcycled bench from bed headboard

Or build a side table out of cut-offs...

Stylish-diy-stools-made-of-wood-scraps-1

Is there any human who doesn't like to make new stuff out of old stuff?  I haven't met one yet.

Drool inducing unputdownable book for DIYers

This just landed on my Christmas list with a big gorgeous thud.  Kevin Kelly has been blogging about inventive gadgets and devices for as long as I've had a computer, and he's finally produced a compendium of his faves.  Don't put this book in the bathroom or you'll have a bum ring from sitting there far longer than necessary imagining all of the things you can do/build/make/share/hack. Glory tool-e-lujah, baby.

 

November 12, 2013

Christmas Tree Alternatives - why go traditional when your tree can scream quirkiness?

Things change in an average life and for some of us, that means hanging on to time-honoured traditions, like our Christmas tree style, with renewed tenacity. For others, it means jettisoning the familiar in an effort to redefine ourselves and acknowledge change.  For the latter group, here are a few suggestions for kicking up the festive while maximizing the restive. 

A driftwood Christmas tree...

 

Driftwood tree
http://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/111943107/tree-decoration-driftwood?ref=sr_gallery_10&ga_search_query=christmas+tree&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=all&ga_facet=christmas+tree


 

A homemade scrapwood Christmas tree...

 

Scrapwood tree
Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/woodwoolstool/5279640941/


 

A wall Christmas tree made from treasured ornaments...

 

Ornament wall tree
Source: http://nicety.livejournal.com/1013907.html


 

Another wall tree...

 

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Source: http://weheartit.com/entry/37853446

 

A cardboard Christmas tree...

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And of course, you can always create a DIY tree with used spindles, although one of my readers complained last year that it was god-awful and 'what was I thinking?'.  Of course, if you're a died-in-the-wool non-traditionalist, you're used to hearing that.  

What about you?  Any searingly unique tree installations to share?

October 16, 2013

Lowe's Family Fun Projects - Tween Projects

Tweens are hugely creative and we've been having a blast shooting new episodes featuring their designs - here are a few:

Zoe (12) and her swinging treehouse lounger

Lowe's Family Fun Projects - treehouse swinging bed

Ella (9) and her climbing net

Lowe's Family Fun Projects - climbing net

Lucas and Kevin (11) with the chalkboard desk they built (steel pipe base)

Lowe's Family Fun Projects - chalkboard desk with steel base

We'll be posting tween episodes on Lowe's Canada in time for the Christmas break - check out our other kids' projects (ages 3+) if you ever find yourself stuck indoors with rowdy kids!   

June 04, 2013

How to never again get attacked by an insect (black flies, mosquitoes, horse flies, even lice)

I've been exercising and working outdoors all spring, in clouds of black flies, and I don't have a single bite. In a normal year, my face, neck and arms would be covered in red welts that itch and burn and swell, in spite of wearing long sleeves AND a ridiculous hat made of netting that the bugs always infiltrate.  (Once you've got a black fly INSIDE your net hat, you're just a big meat sandwich to that little dork.)

But this year I've been using a Canadian homeopathic preparation called Mozi-Q (one small tablet dissolved under the tongue a few minutes before going outside).

I have no bites. They don't even LAND.  Horse flies, mosquitoes, black flies, deer flies.  Apparently it even works on lice and bed bugs. The homeopathic effect is so thorough that you'll think irrational thoughts like, "Well, maybe the bugs just aren't biting this year."  

Then you'll make your friends try it.  And when they come back to you and say, "My god, I don't have a single bite, even after gardening all weekend", you'll maybe start to believe it really IS working.  

I've given it to 3 people besides me and they all said the same thing, "My god, I don't have a single bite!" 

So if you're suffering with the bugs this season, give Mozi-Q a try. (where to buy)

P.S. I've been using homeopathic treatments for 30 years and even took courses in homeopathy because it's such a fascinating and cool science.  Homeopathic remedies are prescribed extensively in England by physicians. The members of the royal family are huge fans of homeopathy. You can read about the origins of homeopathy in the lovely little book, "Heal Thyself" by Dr. Edward Bach. (available as a free PDF

Mozi-Q-EN-Packaging
Available online - about $25/season


Onward

I've been caught up in a number of eyebrow-blowing-off experiences lately.  

First, my talk at TEDxWaterloo at the end of March.  It consumed me.  I've never worked harder on anything, yet I still made crucial mistakes, which have driven me crazy for more than 2 months. Until this morning, when I realized that our mistakes become our future strengths so I should respect my mistakes, not revile them.

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I also started work on a new season of Lowe's Family Fun Projects.  This year we're working with Tweens. The kids have lots of cool design ideas (headboards, WarHammer terrains, treehouse upgrades). It's going to be amazing to watch them work with their hands. 

Zoe and Ella
Zoe (12) and Ella (9)


I've been experimenting with getting some cool finishes on furniture.  Here's one of them:

Textured marbled effect using Annie Sloan chalk paint
Marbling effect

And here's another:

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A finish I call, "Layered as an old fishing boat"


I made sheers after the blinds fell apart (employing doorknobs from the Habitat for Humanity ReStore)

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Daniel's leg-slinging ladder stylings


Kicked off the 2013 Habitat for Humanity WomenBuild. Want to join me in September?  

Mag Ruffman and Tina Holmes
With fellow WomenBuild ambassador Tina Holmes


Walked a lot.  (shades of Avonlea)

IMG_2007

And traveled to Saskatoon and Vancouver for Skills Canada's provincial and national competitions.  More on that this week from Vancouver with the adorable Mike Holmes.

Mag Ruffman at Saskatchewan Skills Competition, 2013, photo by stobbephoto.ca
Photo by Dave Stobbe, stobbephoto.ca


 

 

 

February 08, 2013

How to make a tinned picture frame

This week's free ToolGirl How-to video gives you a billion options for bone-easy handmade gifts.  You'll learn to frame any two-dimensional item using inexpensive materials and a soldering iron...

How To Make A Tinned Picture Frame  - step by step instructions

February 01, 2013

Got the winter blues? Let your fingers do the therapy!

 

the plight of un-busy hands
Photo credit: chris@APL via Flickr

 

If this crisp cold snap is making you frantic and testy, your hands can calm you down and put you in The Zone where time ceases to exist, all problems turn to vapor, and Winter is just a word that applies to some other part of the world. Here's my curated list of places to find craft instruction online.

Now, if you want a truly in-depth course from a world-class instructor at a fraction of the cost ($20-$40) you'd pay to take the course in person, here's a closer look at my favourite online learning resource, Craftsy.com: (Correction to article: Craftsy won't be offering 'food tech' in 2013, but they will be offering food and cooking courses)

Craftsy offers fantastic classes that show you in REAL time (not fast-forward-big-reveal TV style) how to actually DO something.  Grab a cup of coffee and peruse your options for learning how to quilt, weave, sew, crochet, knit, decorate cakes, cook, garden, and even re-finish furniture. TIP: When you're scrolling through Craftsy's Featured Classes, you can click on any of the Free Mini-Classes for a taste of the instructor's style and content.  

If you don't have a local independent yarn store or craft retailer that offers classes, Craftsy.com is an amazing virtual resource.  You can study anytime, 24/7, talk to the instructor and/or fellow class-mates while the lesson is in progress, record personal notes onscreen, and instantly repeat the last 30 seconds of video if you missed something.  

Have fun!

P.S. I'm enrolled in two courses (so far) if you want to join me - Scrap Quilting and From Drab to Fab (upcycling furniture).  

Here are some of my classmates' furniture projects from our Drab to Fab course...cool eh?

Projects from learners

 

 

 

January 23, 2013

The Joy of Pyrography

Here's a classic for all lovers of wood.  Try not to be dissuaded by the fact that I can barely pronounce the word 'pyrography'.  

December 21, 2012

Turning old wool sweaters into felt

 

 

 

Tea cozy from felted sweaters
A bobble-headed tea cozy made from a felted cardigan


 

Felted wool blanket
Felted blanket in progress


 

Felt is my new BFF - it's cuddly, uncomplaining and easy to make, plus you can form it into endless cool projects.  

The steps are fast and simple.  Take a pile of wool sweaters, scarves and mitts, wash them a couple of times in the washing machine so they're good and matted, then cut them up into strips, shapes or blocks and reconstruct them into rugs, blankets, dog beds, soft sculpture, toys and accessories. 

[For more details on the felting process, see this week's column, I Felt That.]

You can join pieces of felt together by hand sewing it, machine sewing with a zigzag stitch, or by using a crochet needle.  

 

Crocheting felted wool
Crocheted edge-joining

 

Making rosettes using felted strips
Strips cut on the bias and joined with zigzag stitch

 

Felted wool bowl
A bowl made from strips of felted wool

 

 

Felted wool bowl (from strips of bias-cut felted sweater)
Bowl detail (upside down) - the concave bottom is a natural result of the sewing process. When you keep tension on the outside edge of the strip while sewing, the piece naturally forms into a bowl shape.


 

 

Joining felted pieces with a sewing machine
Random pieces of felted wool joined with zig zag stitch over flannel backing

 

Felted wool cat toy
The cat's favourite new toy - a felted wool ruffled mouse (ruffle-making details below)

 

Ruffled tea cozy from felted sweater
it's easy to create ruffles from strips of felted wool


 

You can create fast ruffles from strips of felted wool using nothing more than a crochet needle.  You end up with a robust and rambunctious spiral that you can turn into a bobble/pompom (like the one on top of the tea cozy at the top of this post).  Here are the steps.

 

Creating ruffles with felted wool
Using a small crochet needle (I used .75 mm or 1/2), pierce the end of a strip of felted wool.

 

 

Creating ruffles with felted strips of wool
Pull a loop of yarn through (I use mohair because it's thin, strong and slippery - and I used a contrasting colour so you can see it better)

 

 

Creating ruffles with felted strips of wool
Next, pierce the felt along the top edge of the strip

 

 

Creating ruffles with strips of felted wool
Then move about an inch along and pierce it again (I'm left handed, so you'll need to reverse directions if you're right-handed)

 

 

Creating ruffles with felted wool strips
Keep going till you've got 3 or 4 'stitches' on your needle

 

 

Creating ruffles with strips of felted wool
Now hook a loop of yarn and drag it backwards through all 4 stitches, including the mohair loop you made back at the beginning

 

 

Creating ruffles from strips of felted wool
Draw the yarn through that first loop and snug the ruffle gently so the yarn is taut

 

 

Creating ruffles from strips of felted wool
Your ruffle is starting to take shape

 

 

Creating ruffles with strips of felted wool
To join strips, just pierce the top edge of the new strip as though it were part of the existing strip. Felted wool doesn't ravel, so the raw edges won't give you any grief


Creating a ruffle with felted wool strips
Just keep going now, adding strips and continuing to draw the yarn through clumps of 3 or 4 'stitches'. The ruffle will start to spiral on itself and create a staunch and flirty effect. When you're ready to end the ruffle, just draw the yarn through itself a couple of times to make a locking knot.

 

 

Creating a ruffle with corked wool
By the way, you can use the same process to create a ruffle using tubes of corking

 


Because felted wool doesn't ravel, you can cut it into fringe, too.  I'll keep posting pictures of the stuff I'm making for my last minute Christmas gifts.  Or if you can't wait to see mine, you can find a lot of cool ideas here.


Hobbit coasters - felted wool
Felted coasters that I subsequently needle-felted, inspired by the ironwork design on the inside of Hobbit doors

Felted sweaters turned into dog bed
Why is it that everything you make for a dog gets taken over by a cat?





 

 

December 03, 2012

Moving video about kids and power tools

This really touched me.  What a great way to connect kids to their inner brilliance.  

 

October 02, 2012

How to appliqué almost anything on a candle

It's getting to be gifty season and I've got a hostess treat that's fast and classy depending on your definition of classy.  This quick video contains my hard-earned tips for festooning candles with microwave-pressed flowers (or hardware for a more manly version).  

September 21, 2012

Today is National Tradesperson's Day - thank someone handy!

 

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Two young tradespeople in training - Photo by Photo Dudes on Flickr


 

Irwin Tools has declared that today is National Tradesperson Day in the U.S. and Canada.  I'm heading out to join CHCH's Bob Cowan to celebrate this morning.  Please tune in to CHCH at 9:15 if you get the channel where you live.  

When I get back from Hamilton I'm going to publish thank you notes from approximately 200 readers who sent me details about their favourite tradespeople.  

In the meantime, show some appreciation today for the people who keep our world humming - carpenters, plumbers, electricians, auto mechanics, welders, machinists, ship builders - by buying them a cup of coffee, calling up to say 'thanks for all you do', dropping off cookies at a local job site, or hugging a tradesman in line at Tim Horton's.  

For more info, visit Irwin's salute to tradespeople everywhere.  If you're a young person with a great 3D aptitude, visit Skills Canada to explore careers that'll let you use it!

 

 

September 18, 2012

Just got my 'nails' done for @HabitatToronto and @HomeShowsTO's #UpcycleChalllenge

ToolGirl Mag Ruffman's #UpcycleChallenge welded garden art
2,498 masonry nails, 3 wrenches, and 3 handsaw blades plus 11 pounds of MIG wire and 50 hours of welding!

The lovely folks at Habitat for Humanity Toronto and Toronto's Fall Home Show have come up with the most fantastic contest this year.  They asked 13 designer/DIYer/blogger types to go shopping at one of Toronto's 5 Habitat for Humanity ReStores (where they sell amazing building supplies and archtectural salvage for 50-80% less than retail).
We were each allowed to spend up to $100 to get something to repurpose into a household item.  The entries are fantastically creative. (You can vote for the project that you like best, or better yet, go to the Fall Home Show or place an online bid for your favourite piece.  All proceeds go to Habitat for Humanity to build more great homes for great families.)
Re: the sculpture above:
The first panel (far left) is a plain rectangle and is the first geometric thing I've made since my math debacle in Grade 10 (I got 11 out of 100 on my geometry final).  So I've officially made peace with geometry.  
The middle panel strays into a more organic shape, and the third panel is full-on entropy in the shape of a female form (or two lovebirds according to my Facebook friend Moe).  
 
P.S. Here's the 'Before' shot!
P1080902
I seriously love welding.  I bought a Hobart Handler 125 for about $300 a few years ago and it's become my favourite weapon of mass construction.  
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Last week I taught Oli, my niece-in-law, to weld.
Mag Ruffman and her niece Oli; welding lessons
Welding, the most popular activity at Ruffman reunions (besides eating)
I also gave my sister a few lessons last week and she went straight home and bought her own welder - a classy Lincoln package that included a helmet emblazoned with red flames!  She's making sculptures out of farm implements. 
Gillian on her first day with her new Lincoln MIG welder
A metal artist at work


 

September 11, 2012

Super-easy decoupaged mirror frame to build with your favourite kid

My friend Shyenna (7) has an eye for colour.  When there's paint around, she cuts loose.  Her choices are instant and fearless.  I love watching her because it inspires me to go with my own instincts, even though I've always doubted them.  

And this project isn't just about decorating with fabric and paint.  We also built the mirror frame from scratch.  It's a simple, fun project that any beginner can accomplish.  (Plus there's a monster who lives in the mirror!)

 

August 10, 2012

National Tradesperson Day is coming September 21!

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Photo by keltickelton via flickr.com

This just in from Irwin, makers of some of my favourite hand tools.  (I've upgraded the term 'Tradesmen' to Tradespeople in a few places and like it better!)

The second annual National Tradesmen Day will be held on Friday, Sept. 21, 2012, and IRWIN® Tools encourages all Canadians to make plans to recognize Canada’s tradespeople – the men and women who are the backbone of our nation. The country’s skilled craftsmen should be proud of their incredible skills and talents.  And they deserve to be recognized for their hard work, which is often performed in difficult environments under stressful conditions. 

National Tradesmen Day, held each year on the third Friday in September, is a day when the nation pauses to thank skilled workers like auto mechanics, roofers, bricklayers, plumbers, woodworkers, electricians, carpenters, and others who help keep Canada running. During last year’s inaugural National Tradesmen Day festivities, many people found ways to show appreciation and gratitude for tradespeople by holding celebrations, recognition events and activities throughout the country. 

It’s vitally important that we say thanks and find ways to encourage skilled trades as valuable career choices for young people. Without these hard working men and women, Canada’s infrastructure and our way of life would come to a screeching halt. Despite the fact that these jobs are so important there is a looming skills shortage in Canada.  The Construction Sector Council projects that over the next 8 years there will be a shortfall of 156,000 skilled workers across the country.  This shortfall is driven primarily by expected retirements.  Between 2012 and 2020 there are 219,000 workers expected to retire and not all of these jobs will be filled through expected workforce growth.  The projected gap of 156,000 workers is a serious issue that could create project and service delays in many important areas of the economy.  

This year, IRWIN is coordinating multiple activities throughout the nation and is partnering with retailers and community groups for National Tradesmen Day celebrations. IRWIN offers some ideas Canadians can use to show their appreciation of skilled tradesmen:

  • Call your favorite handyperson and simply say “thanks for all you do.” 
  • Send this Video Link to tradespeople you know and say thanks.
  • Stop by a local jobsite where tradespeople are working and leave a box of donuts or cookies. 
  • Buy a tradesperson a cup of coffee.  
  • If your friend, husband, wife, daughter, or son is a tradesperson, make September 21 an extra special day for him/her. 
  • Support trade schools that train future trades workers, and urge governments to adopt workforce development policies for skilled trades. 
  • Talk with your children about the endless career opportunities in skilled trades, and visit Skills Canada (http://www.skillscanada.com) to learn more about a national organization serving teachers, high school and college students preparing for careers in technical, skilled and service occupations. 

For more information visit www.nationaltradesmenday.com or http://www.facebook.com/nationaltradesmenday.

 

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Mag's Books

  • : We're All In This Together

    We're All In This Together
    Based on four years of interviews with Steve Smith, Mag's unconventional biography reveals the personal stories, sorrows and joys that continue to inspire the man behind the Red Green legacy.

  • : How Hard Can It Be?

    How Hard Can It Be?
    Mag's quirky and entertaining book of home improvement projects for beginners.

Nota Bene

  • It’s never too late to be who you might have been. - George Eliot (1819-1880)
  • Simplicity of character is the natural result of profound thought. - My fortune cookie