00:00I'm Lucy Fink, and this is 5 Days of DIY.
00:07DIY, or do-it-yourself, is related to arts and crafts and offers an alternative to our classic consumer culture
00:15where we rely on other people to fulfill our needs.
00:18This week, I'm taking on 5 DIY projects, all in different areas of my life.
00:24So today is plant day.
00:26Many of my coworkers at Refinery29 have plants on their desks, and I think they look really nice.
00:31I just moved desks, so now I sit next to a bright and sunny window.
00:35I figured, I don't know if I have a green thumb, but I might.
00:40This idea came from Pass the Pistol, and it's a great one.
00:44I started with 4 glass storage jars.
00:46Since it's not a good idea to make holes in glass, but plants need drainage,
00:50I needed to figure out a way to make a makeshift drainage system.
00:54To do this, I put a thin layer of stones on the bottom,
00:57followed by about an inch of perlite to absorb any excess water,
01:01a thin layer of activated charcoal to reduce any mold or bacteria growth,
01:05and then filled them up with soil.
01:07I added my seeds, but I watered them and set them up at my desk.
01:10Now I officially have parsley, arugula, sage, and basil growing in jars!
01:20DIY, take two!
01:21I found this next craft idea from Bash Studio, and just could knock it over how cool they looked.
01:28DIY, modern placemats.
01:30Now let me tell you, I think my parents have placemats just like these that they bought at a store.
01:35Yet they didn't know they could make them virtually for free!
01:38Did ya mom?
01:39If you have a hot glue gun and some spray paint lying around, this one's for you.
01:43I started with a strip of wax paper, traced the shape of a plate,
01:47and then I just started squiggling around with a hot glue gun,
01:49making sure to cover the surface area that was larger than my plate.
01:53I did whatever my heart and my hands were telling me to do,
01:56and wound up with a sort of criss-cross squiggle design.
01:59But you can take this and do with it whatever you want.
02:02You can take the hot glue gun and make snowflakes and then stick them to the window.
02:06Cracky!
02:07Major tip here, make sure you have a lot of extra glue sticks handy,
02:10because you run through them real quickly.
02:12I brought my placemat outside and spray painted it turquoise.
02:15Truthfully, it was a little bit messy.
02:17The corners were not all properly connected with one another.
02:20Not perfect. Nobody's perfect.
02:22But it's mine. And I love it.
02:27Today is my coworker Angela's birthday,
02:29and I don't think that there are many things in this world that are nicer than giving somebody a handmade
02:34gift.
02:34She absolutely loves jewelry. She's so trendy, so fashionable.
02:39So I was really inspired by this article from Refinery29 about how to make a choker out of anything.
02:44It gave me some cool ideas. You can use a simple shoelace.
02:47You can use a keyring and a ribbon.
02:49You can even take the casing of an Asian pear and pull it over your neck and get that nice
02:54netted look.
02:55And then I realized it's borderline rude to give someone a shoestring for their birthday.
03:00So hear me out. I know this is five days of DIY,
03:03but I think sometimes you have to D-I-W-O-P-S-T-C-T-Y-H-T-C
03:13-I-Y.
03:14Right?
03:15I partnered up with Vera Romero, a junior graphic designer at Refinery29,
03:20who makes her own jewelry on the side.
03:22We started by sketching out what we wanted to make,
03:24mapping out the measurements of each tile,
03:27and then using a ruler to trace and cut out the perfect sized pieces from the lenticular paper.
03:32Using permanent double sided tape, we put ultra suede fabric on the back of each tile for comfort,
03:37and then hole punch slots for the jump rings so that we could connect each piece.
03:41We added a chain and a clasp, and just like that, we had a choker!
03:45The entire process took no more than 20 minutes, and then I went and hand delivered my handmade gift to
03:51Angela.
03:51Did you make this?
03:52We made it!
03:53Do you love it?
03:54I love it!
03:55Lift your hair up!
03:56It feels good enough to give somebody a gift that you purchased,
03:59but there's a whole new level of satisfaction that comes with giving a gift that you made.
04:04Thank you!
04:06Truthfully, I wanted to keep the choker for myself because I loved it so much,
04:10but I'll make another one.
04:11This one was for Angela.
04:15In the spirit of doing it with other people so they can teach you how to do it yourself,
04:20I had an idea of what I wanted to do today, and I knew just the person who could help
04:25me out.
04:26Remember Lauren Singer from when I did Five Days of Zero Waste?
04:29So I went over to her Brooklyn apartment today to learn how to make DIY zero waste toothpaste and deodorant.
04:36So I've been making my own products forever.
04:38Besides the environmental reasons for making my own products,
04:42the personal health reasons are what is the most gratifying to me.
04:46I know exactly what's going on in the products that I'm using on my body,
04:49and that's really fulfilling.
04:51Okay, this is the easiest thing in the world.
04:54Okay.
04:55And it's just baking soda, coconut oil, stevia, and essential oils.
05:01Then you just stir it, and then that's kind of it.
05:04That's it.
05:05This is my toothpaste?
05:06That's toothpaste.
05:08Here we go.
05:20Up next, we're making zero waste deodorant.
05:24It's really, really easy.
05:25All you need is just two tablespoons of arrowroot powder,
05:29one tablespoon of baking soda,
05:31one tablespoon of shea butter,
05:35and then one tablespoon of coconut oil.
05:40Then everything will melt.
05:44So then we just take it and bring it back over.
05:51Lemongrass.
05:52Oh, it smells so good.
05:55Look at our deodes.
05:58Really cool.
05:59I love this.
06:00Deodorant.
06:00Done.
06:01Lauren.
06:01You've done it again.
06:03You did it.
06:04You did it all.
06:10Happy Friday.
06:12Rearrange those letters.
06:13You've got DIY.
06:14We're approaching the holidays, and I wanted to give my family a nice gift.
06:18And what better gift for an Italian family that loves to cook
06:21than some homemade, DIY-infused olive oils.
06:25I got this DIY idea from Lucy's Morsels.
06:29Great name, Lucy.
06:30This one is so simple and had my apartment smelling like an Italian feast.
06:34I bought some glass bottles from a local craft store with clamp stoppers on them,
06:38and then I measured out olive oil in each to make sure it would fit,
06:41transferred that olive oil onto the stove in separate pots,
06:44and I made three different concoctions.
06:46So one had the peel from two lemons,
06:48one had six peeled garlic cloves with a little bit of chili flakes,
06:51and the third had four sprigs of rosemary.
06:54They simmered on low heat for separate amounts of time,
06:57and then as soon as they were done, I transferred them into bowls to cool
07:00and then poured them right into the bottles.
07:02And just like that, a thoughtful, delicious, wonderful smelling DIY
07:06that's perfect for the holidays at about $6 a bottle.
07:09Please let me know if you try any of these crafts.
07:11I want to see what they come out looking like,
07:13so tag me on Instagram, at Lucy B. Fink.
07:16And as always, let me know what you want to see next time on Try Living with Lucy.
07:19See you there.
07:20Hey YouTube, it's me, Lucy.
07:22Click here to watch another video on Refinery's channel,
07:25and right here to subscribe to us so you can get notified when we release cool vids.
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