DIY: How to Make Lavender Sugar

DIY Lavender Sugar, Kiku Corner

This is a lovely way to lightly scent sugar with the floral essence of lavender. I like to use it in place of regular white sugar in some baking (excellent in shortbreads), sprinkled on some sugar cookies, or even as a sweetener in a cup of tea. It takes a few days to ‘steep,’ but […]

DIY: Lavender Sugar + Salt Scrub

DIY Lavender Sugar + Salt Scrub, Kiku Corner

Greece. Indonesia. Thailand. Whenever our family would visit a beach during our vacations, our mom would always sit in the shallows and rub sand over her arms and legs. While we kids were playing and messing around, we laughed at how she looked covered in damp sand. But it seems like she had the last laugh, since […]

DIY: Make Your Own Powdered Laundry Soap

DIY Powdered Laundry Soap, Kiku Corner

This is a great basic laundry soap that gets my clothes as clean as the storebought variety. I also made an unscented batch for my mom, so she can wash our dad’s shirts for the office. The washing soda is, chemically, sodium carbonate (versus baking soda, which is sodium bicarbonate). It is included in homemade laundry soap […]

How I Organized My Spices and Herbs

How I Organized My Spices, Kiku Corner

I do a lot of cooking from different cuisines…Indian, Japanese, Persian, Arab, Mediterranean, Canadian among them. All of these use varying spices and herbs. Naturally I had to store these spices so they would be easily reached while cooking. I put two Ikea inserts into a drawer next to my stove to hold my spice […]

DIY: Knit a Silk Bamboo Scarf

DIY: Knitted Purple Silk Bambo Scarf, Kiku Corner

This scarf is perfect for anyone that cannot wear wool. The fibres are so glossy and soft that there is no chance of any wool-related itch. I wanted to make a gift for our mother, who is both sensitive to wool’s scratchiness and is always too warm. Basically, she is never cold and I needed to find […]