Coffee Break Links: Cat Experiments

Those of us cat owners know how much fun it can be to play little pranks on their cat every now and then :-). At least I enjoy playing little pranks to my cat Sean. Here's one fun and easy prank you can try with your cat with tape. Just be sure that you don't press the tape so hard onto the cat that you can't get it off afterward. I tried it on Sean and he had the same reaction as this cat in the video as well.

Did you tried this prank on your cat? What was his/her reaction? Leave a comment here!

New Conversation Heart Brooch in HomemadeZen

Introducing these cute Conversation Heart Brooches for my shop! These beautiful pins are crocheted with fine sport-weight acrylic yarn, which gives a good medium to do letter embroidery on it. These pins can will look perfect for celebrating valentines day! Put them on your jacket, sweater, or use them to decorate your purses and bags. Tuck them into your love one's lunch bag for a lovely valentines day surprise, or just reminding them how much you love them.

These brooches will be available for purchase in my Etsy shop. There will be a variety to choose from, so be sure to check back often for new colors and sayings! Custom orders will also be available if you have a saying you'd like to see as well.

If you'll like to know how to crochet these beautiful conversation heart brooches, I'll be posting the pattern on my blog next week. So be sure to check back!

Comments? Leave them here!

Merry Christmas in the Military 2010

Merry Christmas! Going through Christmas as a military spouse means that you don't always quite know if your loved one will be home for Christmas. Luckily for me my husband had always been home for Christmas despite his unpredictable USMC deployment schedule. I recently came across this video on the recent homecoming in camp Pendleton, which is really sweet and reminds me a lot of my husband's homecoming last year as well.

Since 9/11, about 1.2 million spouses and more than 2 million children have coped with at least one deployment of a loved one in Iraq or Afghanistan. In this 2010 Christmas season, about 140,000 troops will be away from home.

The simplest, and often most personal, way to find a member of the military to cheer up this year is to ask around and. Many families have loved ones serving overseas right now, and that personal connection you already have will let them know that they are remembered back home. Celebrate with them if they just return from their duty as well, they will appreciate your friendship and reconnecting with you.

Last, but not least, please continue to remember, thank, and send to these service members throughout the year. Your continue support means a lot to them.

At this, I wish you a very merry Christmas. Enjoy the celebration of our Christ's birth!

Coffee Break Recommended Links

Take a coffee break and watch this interesting dog trick. Apparently it's too hard to train a guy to flush the toilet and put the seat down, so this women trained her dog to do it for her. I showed this video to my husband and he just can't stop laughing. Thankfully my husband is very well trained when it comes to toilet manners, otherwise I might have to think about training my cat to put the seat down and flush the toilet as well. (too bad I don't have a dog)

The animal planet website also have a video showing how they train the dog to do this trick, which is also very interesting. I highly recommend watching it if you want to know how you can train your dog to perform this trick as well.

Did you enjoy this video? Leave a comment here!

Surprising Ways to Prevent Spreading the Flu

Do you have the flu and worry about spreading it to your family? Or maybe your kids are sick and you don't want it to spread to everyone in the house?

Ever wonder why people tend to get the flu during winter and not summer? According to the Journal PLOS pathogens study in 2007, influenza is most stable in cold dry air. What that means is that the colder and dryer the air is, the more likely the flu can survive and stay around to infect you.

The most optimum temperature for influenza virus is 68 degrees F (20 degrees Celsius) and 20% humidity. At this temperature and humidity, the infection rate is close to 100%. Interestingly, this is also the typical temperature and humidity of an American home in the winter months. No wonder the flu spread like wildfire in the wintertime! Survivability and transmission of the virus is completely blocked at 86 degrees F (30 degrees Celsius) and 80% humidity.

The good news is that even a moderate increase of humidity with a humidifier will help decrease the transmission rate. After all, who have all the money in the world to keep the house feeling like a tropical island in the wintertime? The transmission rate is reduced to 25% at 68 degrees Celsius and 50% humidity. So keeping the air in your home moist with a humidifier is a must to help reduce your chance of getting a flu or infecting others.

Keep in mind that the temperature and humidity does not affect your own body's immune response, which means that if you have a strong immune system you might be able to fend off the flu even in its optimal environment. For those of us who don't want to take any chances, the combination of a healthy diet/exercise plan plus adjusting the temperature/humidity of our house will gives us the best chance of preventing the flu this season.

Healthy recipe to prevent flu

Have this been useful to you to prevent the flu? Leave a comment here!

My cat's squirrel dream

This past weekend I caught my cat Sean staring at the squirrel outside the window and just had to take a photo of it. The squirrel is eating a nut and seem obvious to Sean's hungry stares. I wonder what Sean is thinking?

"Dinner is so close, yet so far..."

HomemadeZen Hoilday Shop Announcement 2010

The end of 2010 is fast approaching! Here's a few HomemadeZen holiday shop announcements:

• The last day for all U.S. Christmas orders is Saturday, December 17, 2010. Make sure you make your purchase so it can arrive by December 24!
• There's a SALE on selected amigurumi and wristlet! Check out my sales section to see if your favorite item is on sale. The sale will only be available until Jan 2, so don't miss out!
  
• All amigurumi and wristlet orders made between December 22 to January 2 will be shipped in January 3rd, 2011.
• All pattern orders will be sent out as usual throughout Christmas and new years. Expect to receive it within 24 hrs.

Thank you for all your support in 2010! It has been a pleasure creating these beautiful handmade amigurumi for all of you. I will be announcing some shop changes in 2011, so stay tune!

Regretsy: Weird Handmade Showcase

Want to find out the truly weird handmade items on Etsy? Regretsy is a veritable showcase of handcrafts gone wrong. Arranged in categories such as Décor, Pet Humiliation, and Christmas, Regretsy showcases the best of the worst, ranging from the hilariously absurd to the purely horrifying.

The site is not just for laughs, profits generated by Regretsy.com are donated to charitable works. Check out their Charity page for complete information.

Regretsy has been made into a book as well. From the author, "Each page of this jaw-dropping volume features the actual seller’s online listing with a light coat of snarky commentary to give it a good shellacking."

I certainly has an amusing time browsing Regretsy blog. What do you think about it? Amused or horrified? Leave a comment here!

Turn your Cat into a Remote Rest

My cat Sean was sleeping so soundly on the couch and I couldn't resist. Humm, I wonder if he would wake up when I put this TV remote on him. Would he immediately wake up and spoil the fun? The cat must be having a great sleep, because he didn't flinch as I put the TV remote and the DVD remote on him. Doesn't he look adorable?

How to Select the Perfect Christmas Present

Are you still looking for a Christmas present but don't know what to get? There are a lot of gift guides out there to assist you; Etsy even have a facebook app that gives you personalized suggestion based on your friend's "likes". How do you find a gift that your recipient will enjoy?

A question to ask when considering a particular gift is: "Why doesn't he/she already have it?" If he/she really wanted something, wouldn't he/she go and buy it already?

In general, there are 3 reasons why a person might not already have the gift that you are considering to buy:

1. Haven't thought about it: This is a good reason to buy the gift quickly, before the recipient think of it himself/herself. Obviously, this also assumes that you know the person enough to know that he/she will enjoy something that they don't know about yet.
   
   
2. Can't afford it: This might be something that the person had previously expressed interest in, but did not get it because they don't have enough money. This maybe a good gift to buy if you can afford the item and would like to bless him/her with this gift. A potential downside of such gifts is that it may make the recipient feel like they are obligated to return the favor, which may become a burden to them if they cannot. Be clear in communicating your intentions may help prevent the recipient from feelings of obligations. Sometimes it's probably best to skip this type of gift, especially if you cannot afford the gift as well.
   
   
3. Don't actually want it: So don't buy the gift. (Duh)

What makes a great gift? A great gift is a tangible demonstration of love to someone that you cared about. When selecting a gift, put aside every desire that you have other than the desire to bless someone and make them feel loved. Every person is different and every relationship is different, so what that "tangible demonstration of love" will be different for everyone. For some, it maybe a handmade gift. For others, it might be a gift card. Just because a gift is generally considered "tacky" does not necessary mean it's a bad gift if it's something that the recipient will love and enjoy. There's a reason why people say "It's the thought that counts", because the thought really do count. The gift is the tangible result of that thought.

Now go have fun and get the presents for your love ones!

Thoughts? Leave a comment here!

New Whale Amigurumi in HomemadeZen

Introducing Mama and Baby Whale in my shop! They enjoy swimming, playing hide-and-seek, and making friends with everyone. They are both crocheted with acrylic yarn and stuffed with fiberfill so they are soft and very squishy. I love the little puff of steam coming out of their blowhole. So cute!

I came up with the pattern during thanksgiving. Stuffed and feeling bloated like a whale after my turkey dinner, I decided to try my hand at creating a round squishy whale. I think the result looks pretty cute and adorable, don't you think?

Baby Whale measures 4 inches (10.2cm) long and 3 inches (7.6cm) wide, and Mama Whale is larger at 7 inches (17.8cm) long and 4.5 inches (11.4cm). Both Amigurumi are available at HomemadeZen now, so be sure to check it out!


If you are interested in the crochet pattern, it will be available at my store in about 2 weeks. I'm currently writing up the pattern and I will list it when I'm finished.

Do you like Mama and Baby Whale Amigurumi? Leave a comment and let me know!

Handmade Gift Picks for Hanukkah

Happy Hanukkah! In the spirit of the celebration, I compiled this Hanukkah gift guide treasury full of unique handmade gifts for sale at Etsy. I loved it that there's awesome gifts for everyone: from the fortune cookie catnip toy for your cats to the star of david cuff link for the guys. I also loved the personalized hand-painted plate, because I can see it becoming a family heirloom for a family over the years.

Hanukkah gift giving history

Hanukkah, or the festival of lights, is the celebration of the victory of the Maccabees and the rededication of the Jerusalem Temple. There are many traditions associated with Hanukkah celebrations, and gift giving is a tradition that has evolved out of the gelt giving tradition.

What is gelt giving?

In the past, the children were tested about their knowledge on Hanukkah. If they could answer these questions correctly, they were rewarded with gelt, which comprised of a token of money that brought cheers among the children. Today, Jewish children receive gifts for Hanukkah – often one gift for each of the eight nights of the holiday.

Do you love this gift selection? Leave a comment here!