Category Archives: Homemade

Mushpa y Mensa’s Project Clean House 2014

 

mushpa y mensas clean hosue project 2014

I begin this year starting fresh with my posts, as I know that in December I was not keeping up with my partner in crime Mushpa’s amazing word press posting skills and motivation.

Here I will start by telling you that it was necessary for us to start the new year with an amazingly clean and organized home. For the past few days Mushpa y Mensa have re-energized our apartment, thrown out unnecessary trash, given away unused items, and said good bye to old memories, to make space for the journeys of the new year!

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My favorite project so far has been re-organizing the kitchen cabinets. We used old jars of pasta sauces and pickles, and  we cleaned them and re-labeled them in order to super organize everything from baking soda and stevia, to oats and chia seeds.  We also bought spices sold in bulk so we refilled empty spice jars, and re-labeled others for new spices! You don’t need anything fancy to make the labels…only card-stock, pen and tape…and voila!

JAR LABELS DIYJAR LABELS DIY  JAR LABELS DIYJAR LABELS DIY

Here are some good tips on what a good New Year Cleaning might be deserving of.

1. Kitchen: Clean all the cabinets inside and out, above and below…. and give away any unused cooking items. Our street-found iron pan, an old recipe book, a coffee grinder and random containers were among the items we left in a brown bag for people to pick and choose from at the entrance of our building.  Some people’s “trash”, other people’s treasures! Reduce, and someone else will most definitely reuse!

2. Bedroom and Studio: We cleaned and are almost finished reorganizing our studio and bedroom, yet one really important aspect of the process was to get rid of (and RECYCLE of course) all old paperwork that only took up space. Sometimes little mementos are nice to keep, and we do so in a small box in our bedroom where later on in they year they will probably be compiled into a scrapbook. Other papers/old pictures/brochures/receipts and such are in the “out” pile. It might seem crazy, but the house feels lighter without these items cluttering everywhere.

environmentally friendly cleaning product

3. Clean clean clean: And I mean clean….everything. I even vacuumed inside the stove stop where my hand and sponge couldn’t work. The best part of this is that you DO NOT NEED any harsh chemical products to have a clean home. We used our trusted Vinegar + Water + Peppermint Oil concoction for every surface. Works like a charm, and it smells nice too.  For the very touch stains, grease grime and soap scum, we use our trusted Bon Ami cleaner. It only has 5 ingredients including limestone, feldspar and baking soda derived from sustainable resources that won’t harm our earth!

Now our home feels lighter with better energy to start a new year. A few good prayers with incense and candles burning will add the perfect touch to the amazing energy that circles our home….

From our clean home, we wish you all a very Happy New Year!

Happy into the New Year!

 

Much love,

Mushpa y Mensa

 

Inspiration

http://vimeo.com/29702725

 

Sometimes I need a little inspiration to push ahead, so I am spending time today looking for new venues. Here is how I found Capsule.

Yes, I am inspired again. Just watch what a little bit of inspiration does for me. Unfortunately, 2014 NYC is locked down, so I guess you won’t see us there until 2015. The anticipation…

You gotta step up your game to make it to the top, so go!

:]

– La Mushpa

No Shipping??? Say What?

Gingerbread People Ornaments made from Recycled Plastic Bottle Felt

Yes, these cute, limited time only, eco-felt, naturally holiday scented (peppermint or cloves), so delicious that someone has already taken a bite off of their cute head and leg, Gingerbread Peeps tree ornaments, are coming to you free of any shipping charges from us here at Mushpa y Mensa. Not only are these little guys postage free, but everything in our shop is as well. Sadly, this fabulous sale ends December 31st, so get it while you can! :]

LIC Flea & Food Holiday Market

What you want another way to get free shipping? Come see us @LIC Flea & Food Holiday Market.  Not only do you get free shipping, but you can touch, see, smell, love everything before taking them home. You can feel the magic in person! :]

What? There’s more? Pictures with Santa? Yes. A fafillion artisans and culinary masters? Yes. Live jazz, DJs? Yes. The New York Cosmos soccer club (NASL Soccer Bowl Champions)? Again, yes. Bowling, Christmas trees, beer, wine and cocktails? Yes*5.

Just come!

Mushpa y Mensa

Super Delicious Chocolate Oat Bran Cookies

Dukan Diet Chocolate Oat Bran Cookies

I have been working tirelessly on the greatest oat bran cookie recipe ever! I feel like I finally have one worthy enough to put in our blog. It is sugar free as well (for all you diabetics), we use Truvia Spoonable instead.

Here it is:

Dry Ingredients

12 Tablespoons of organic oat bran

5 Tablespoons organic Dutch processed cocoa powder

2 Tablespoons organic flax seeds

3.5 Tablespoons Truvia Spoonable

2 Teaspoons baking powder

Dry

Wet Ingredients

3 Tablespoons alcohol-free vanilla

2 whipped egg whites (dry or liquid)

3 Tablespoons Trader Joe’s fat-free sour cream (or organic nonfat Greek yogurt)

egg whites

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl, then mix the wet ingredients in another bowl, then mix them all together. Mix ingredients for a few minutes till the oat bran and cocoa soak up all the fluids. You don’t want it runny. Then put some aluminum foil down on the baking sheet, grab a big spoon, dig in the batter and scoop out a spoonful onto the cookie sheet 12 times! Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Take out, cool and eat!

Cookie Sheet

Keep the leftovers in the refrigerator since there are not any preservatives. This way they will last about a week. Use the sour cream if you want more of a brownie type of cookie. If you want a denser cookie use the Greek yogurt. They both are delicious just different.

Enjoy!!!

– Mushpa

The Healthiest Dessert: Tofu Chocolate Pudding!

The yummiest, and healthiest dessert you will ever eat….

And you can make it in less than 5 minutes.

chocolate pudding tofu

-1 package of Silken Tofu

-1 tablespoon of sweetener (We like Stevia/Truvia. Adjust if you want more or less. I started sprinkling and kept adding until I reached about 1tbsp.)

-2 tablespoons of powdered cocoa (adjust as well…I started sprinkling and mixing until chocolatey goodness was reached)

-1 teaspoon of vanilla essence

Mix all ingredients in a food processor or blender….and boom! That’s it.
It was so good, that I realized that I should probably take a picture after I had finished it all!

-Mensa

Mushpa y Mensa’s Super Fly New Site

Mensa y MushpaCheck out Mushpa y Mensa’s super fly new site (beta style), www.mushpamensa.com.

Nice.

– Mushpa y Mensa

Go Green, Live Rich

The Universe

Mensa and I are blessed by the Universe daily. It occurs so often we sometimes take for granted all the little miracles happening all around us. We were talking about it last night, about how we need to acknowledge them, recognize them for what they are, validate and appreciate. :]

For example, I was thinking the other day after picking up some eucalyptus, rosemary and tea tree oil* for Mensa’s allergies that we should start doing some aromatherapy. It reminded me when I was the body care buyer for Whole Foods and was in charge of buying essential oils. The reps gave me oils to sample and some really nice ceramic aromatherapy candle essential oil burners. I have no idea where they have gone over the years, but I thought we should get one and get back into it. The next thing you know I get a text from Mensa with this photo below.

aromatherapy candle lamp essential oil burner

She had found this ceramic aromatherapy essential oil burner on the sidewalk, clean and in prefect condition. The funny thing was I had never even mentioned that I was thinking about this. Little things you see.

Then we were walking around Brooklyn the other day and found some books. One of them was, “Go Green, Live Rich“, by David Bach. Green, check, rich, not yet but lets see what he has to say. Rewards for doing the right thing sounds good to us. :]

The first chapter is about measuring your carbon footprint. The site David Bach recommends is www.earthlab.com/createprofile. I went and set up a profile and answered their questions. My results are below:

Results

It’s nice if you set up a profile because then you may calculate your ECP (Earth Conservation Plan) and see what the averages are in your area, state and country. I’m super competitive. :]

My Profile

Lastly, you may set up pledges to do more amazing things in your life. You start out checking what you already are doing and then from there grow.

PledgesGo hard or go home.

– Mushpa

*These particular oils are good at clearing you up. You can include myrtle oil but it costs a fortune, 30 something dollars for 15ml, so we skipped that one. Plus, you can only find it online, even in NYC. As a quick aside this is what you do to help with allergies, fill a saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat, take the pan off the stove top and add 3 drops eucalyptus essential oil, 3 drops rosemary essential oil, 2 drops myrtle essential oil and 2 drops tea tree essential oil. Tent a bath towel over the saucepan (keep your face just far enough away from the steam to avoid burns) and inhale deeply for 5 to 10 minutes. Repeat 1 to 3 times a day.

Free 99 Cents Shelf

Sometimes we drool over the furniture on the street. Ok, correction. I drool over the furniture on the street and Mushpa tries to convince me not to bring trash into our home, and be a bit more…what shall we say, selective?

When we have more space, we will be bringing in all sorts of furniture to re-vamp and re-furbish, and potentially sell in our shop as well! This goes back to our idea of making things “from scratch”. On our 100th Blog Post we tried to explain our approach to doing things from now on. If we have the tools to be able to make it, then why not try to do it ourselves? Here is a perfect example.

reburbished furniture DIY

This is one of the pieces we found a block down from our home. We decided that if it was still there when we came back from our walk, that we would take it in.

reburbished furniture DIY

We needed storage, and we got some for free! With a few left-over spray paint cans, we painted it and now it looks fantabulous on our studio!

diy refurbisehd shelf

Thank you Mushpa for this one!

: )

-Mensa

Free 99¢ Shelf

Sometimes we drool over the furniture on the street. Ok, correction. I drool over the furniture on the street and Mushpa tries to convince me not to bring trash into our home, and be a bit more…what shall we say, selective?

When we have more space, we will be bringing in all sorts of furniture to re-vamp and re-furbish, and potentially sell in our shop as well! This goes back to our idea of making things “from scratch”. On our 100th Blog Post we tried to explain our approach to doing things from now on. If we have the tools to be able to make it, then why not try to do it ourselves? Here is a perfect example.

reburbished furniture DIY

This is one of the pieces we found a block down from our home. We decided that if it was still there when we came back from our walk, that we would take it in.

reburbished furniture DIY

We needed storage, and we got some for free! With a few left-over spray paint cans, we painted it and now it looks fantabulous on our studio!

diy refurbisehd shelf

Thank you Mushpa for this one!

: )

-Mensa

The 100th Post of La Mushpa y La Mensa

Jefe Helping
Jefe Helping…

Mensa and I are always talking about consuming less, needing less, getting rid of excess. Things that anchor us to one place be it literally, monetarily or mentally.

We do little things like take our worn out old clothes, wash them and then cut them into a million little pieces to stuff our Plush Pets…

Plush Rabbit
Pierre, the Lavender, Recycled Fabric, Eco-Felt Plush Pet

…or make some deeelicious seitan from scratch, while whipping up some organic, coconut oil based mayo… I personally am extremely gifted in mixing alcohol with almost any “leftover” liquids (frozen or flowing) and it tasting like nothing you’ve ever had before (in a very good way).

Drinks on Me
Cocktails Anyone?

Some bigger things are Mensa creating an amazing backpack out of an old bag, after her million year old bag disintegrated right before our very eyes. The very backpack we packed with soy milk (something we have talked about learning how to make since we consume so much of it…stay tuned) and such this weekend after working in the co-op (don’t ask). We biked over 8 miles and this revitalized beauty made it through like a champion!

The Bag
The Bag That Rocks

We also made our fantastical Mushpa y Mensa cloth sign out of old pillow cases and fabric pieces. See below…

Mushpa y Mensa Sign
Mushpa y Mensa – Arts Not Crafts!

We are making it happen more and more every day, but we need a challenge….something to keep our momentum soaring towards our destiny. What we came up with is…well let’s start slow, why don’t you get to know us first…see what we mean when we say “from scratch”.

From the Inside
La Mensa’s Robot Girl With a Twist

We are here for a reason, all of us. Let’s make some stuff together, see what we think, then figure something out. Let’s connect as they say, in a good way.

This is our 100th blog post and the start of something gargantuous! :] Life, as La Mensa would say is, “pretty bad-ass.”

– La Mushpa