I must have missed this!I love it! I love the look of the cherub perched on the ball. I have some of those wire baskets somewhere,and I've been seeing a lot of cherubs lately at yard sales and thrift stores, I should have snagged one to make this. I have a plastic birdbath that's wobbly,and DH keeps saying he's going to fill the bottom with cement and use it as a form to make a base,then cut the plastic off. This would be the perfect project:) And Pattico I love yours,too! Hmmmmmm, I'm running out of choices for blooming plants! lol

The building codes affecting the use of strawbale vary considerably from one state to another, and often even more so within a state. While I've seen/heard/read of much relaxing of prohibitions, and there is apparently a considerable "push" towards alternatives such as strawbale in the Northwest, in general, it seems to me that strawbale is still considered outrè in most areas -- there is an aura of NIMBY. When I consider some of the truly abominable examples of SB (in appearance and/or in construction), I can understand NIMBY. When I also consider that the very word "strawbale" can refer to two distinctly different methods of construction, I can understand the reluctance of officialdom to accept a generic definition. Strawbale houses ARE being built, but mostly they are accepted on a case by case basis ~~ and require an astounding amount of supportive paperwork to get that approval. In my local area, SB as a structural material pretty much remains unacceptable. I do know of a couple instances of SB-structural construction, but they are very much in remote areas which have almost no official oversight. (I guess this is a good place to say that at least one of these homes was built under the non-benevolent eye of a structural engineer, who ended up being quite impressed by the finished product.) SB as an insulative material may or may not be locally acceptable (depending on both county and the individual official), but there IS a certain amount of official acceptance which wasn't case even several years ago. In the past decade, there have been several "House Tours" of SB construction (and those were really gorgeous houses), but I don't personally know anyone who has managed to get official approval to build smaller SB-structural residences. As far as using SB in multi-family or in commercial structures.... no, there are none that I know of, but I'm not up to date.

Hello ~ I bought ten acres in a rural are twenty five years ago, & have dealt with many of the issues on this forum. I'd like to add my comments re recyclables: If you find yourself with a lot of non-recyclable 'garbbage' it's often a sign you are eating things that are *not healthful.* These days, most *aware* non-vegetarians now realize the hazzards of corporate-produced meat ~ & the presence of heavy metals, like mercury, in seafood. So either raise some rabbits (easily done, even in the city!), or chickens for meat--or stop buying meat on styrofoam trays! Change your grocery shopping habits: take shopping bags along--filled with your own reusable plastic bags, etc. Buy in bulk when possible ~ cheaper &, if you buy organic, much healthier & more *delicious. Re-think products you buy & use in your homes: Years ago I learned that baking soda & vinegar were safe & inexpensive replacements for nearly all household cleaning products! Chemical cleaners are seldom needed & harmful to you & your environment. Baking soda will scrub a tub or sink, remove odors from the refrig, & makes an excellent substitute for toothpaste ~ & now we've learned that fluoride in toothpaste is carcinogenic, it's best avoided ~ & one more item stays out of a land fill. Nothing cleans & shines windows & glass better than vinegar & water; use wadded newspaper to shine the glass! It can't be beat. Once you begin shopping regularly at bulk/health food stores, you'll learn to take along your own jars & containers: for bulk honey, peanut butter, cooking oil, soy sauce, even shampoo & lotions, etc. Take stock of your recyclables--& one by one--try to replace items by 'bulk buy' or making at home. Years ago I noticed yogurt tubs comprised the bulk of my plastic recyclables. I've since made yogurt at home with organic milk ~ a process that takes only *minutes & requires nothing more than clean jars, a floating thermometer, & a small picnic cooler. Voila! Now, must head out to replant the strawberry bed! Just my 2 cents, LOL-- Cheers!

OK, if this shows up 2x I am sorry, I was typing along and the message just disappeared. I use one of the Mayo jars to keep my cone filters in that go with my coffee pot. If you wanted to disguise it, you could get a small bit of shelf liner or wall paper, put on the top, (molding and cutting so you can still open it) and then glue or screw a drawer pull to use as an opener. the only thing I am thinking of right now for the Benifiber jars is a Snowman or Santa, much like the Angel you already mentioned. I guess you could paint them up to look like Gnome/Fairey houses and stick them in your garden. Ellie