Our group of lifestyle experts began this blog a year ago with the collaborative intent to highlight our varied skill sets under the umbrella of lifestyle insights | real women. real life. We programmed, we planned and, most importantly, we wrote — each talented woman contributing her unique insights, observations and stories. As a result, we have a collection of distinctive voices that strikes a harmonious note as it imparts information to women in the day-to-day world.

This blog will remain posted as a viable reference tool for individuals and companies alike. If you’d like to hear about our methodology, feel free to email us. You can continue to follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

As we began this blog with a tale of the town of Sisters, Ore., and their annual quilt show, it seems only appropriate that we end with images from this year’s wonderful fabric fest.

WELLNESS | by POSY GERING

IT’S JULY 4TH WEEKEND — don’t be mindless about it. This is an opportunity to look at what you are enslaved to and declare independence. What are your “vampire energy suckers,” the things you do because you believe others expect them of you, yet they don’t feed you? What are the assumptions you make about why you must continue doing them?

Declare your intention for independence to your family. Ask them what their assumptions are about “vampire energy suckers” and share yours. Chances are that everyone will be surprised. Once you expose the assumptions, you can collectively design different strategies or stop doing it altogether. We often blame others when we feel trapped, but what we’re really trapped by are our assumptions about it.

SUSTAINABLE LIVING | by CELESTE TELL

GRILLING SEASON IS HERE. We love to grill: meat, fish, veggies, you name it. Through September we grill. A lot. With charcoal.

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I, of course, worry about the carbon footprint of it all. On the surface, it seems pretty straightforward: Charcoal grills emit two to three times as much carbon as gas grills. OK. Go buy a gas grill. Case closed.

Or not.

The Oak Ridge National Laboratory reports that charcoal is a renewable resource, while natural gas is not. Charcoal, which is made from wood, is part of a natural carbon cycle, thus having a net-zero carbon footprint.

Most charcoal is made of waste wood or, if new wood is used, it comes from FSC-certified sources. In fact, Kingsford — the gold standard of charcoal — had its humble beginnings as a way for Henry Ford to use his sawdust and waste wood almost 100 years ago.

But wait.

There are two basic types of charcoal, briquettes and lump. Lump charcoal is just that — wood that is charred until it becomes coal-like lumps. Briquettes, on the other hand, contain ground up lump charcoal combined with other ingredients. Those additives put particulate matter into the air and leave behind a residue; lump charcoal burns clean and leaves almost no perceptible ash.

This residue and particulate matter is the heart of the controversy over the environmental impact of charcoal grilling.

In response, small producers, Original Charcoal (sold under private label by Trader Joe’s) and, yes, even Kingsford now sell a range of “100% natural” briquette products.

Bottom line?

Stay away from lighter fluid and instant-light briquettes, which do put VOCs into the atmosphere. Beyond that? Since barbecue emissions represent 0.0003 of the total U.S. annual carbon footprint, go ahead and grill however you like. Just maybe think about taking the bus to your next picnic.

CELEBRATIONS | by DEBRA PRINZING

THE ECO-WEDDING IS BOTH OLD AND NEW. After all, the Boomers who wed in the 1960s and ’70s loved the notion of unconventional settings (such as a meadow or forest) and nontraditional vows: Barefoot brides and grooms eschewed phrases like “to obey” and instead read poetry or sang to one another.

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Fast-forward to the 21st century, where the green wedding is big business. A New York Times environmental reporter last year published “Green Weddings: Planning your eco-friendly celebration”, advising sustainably-minded brides on topics such as the venue, gifts, the gown, invitations, decor, reception, honeymoon and how to calculate the carbon footprint of one’s guests.

Thinking that sustainable weddings were oh-so-contemporary, I was delighted recently to find a 1996 paperback book on the shelf of my local library entitled “Green Weddings That Don’t Cost the Earth”, by Carol Reed-Jones. Reed-Jones wrote this tiny volume out of frustration with not being able to find ideas and information for her own eco-themed nuptials. She shares detailed instructions for making many items by hand, such as bouquets, favors and natural wedding cakes, and offers suggestions for recycling and reusing leftovers.

Reed-Jones wrote, for example: “Use organically grown, local flowers in season or grow your own. Locally-grown flowers don’t need much transportation to get to you. Out of season flowers will have to be transported long distances, contributing to pollution (and costing a small fortune).”

To every locavore bride and groom who take public transportation to their reception (like my friends Britt and Bryon did when they rode Portland’s MAX light rail from church to banquet hall) and celebrates the regional harvest of food, wine and flowers, I say:

Congratulations. You’re making a green statement that brings friends and family members along for the experience, while not being pushy or preachy.

BACK TO BASICS | by JEAN GALTON

IF YOU ASK ME, MOST ICE-CREAM SANDWICHES aren’t very exciting. They’re usually two tasteless chocolate cookies filled with bland vanilla ice cream. Summer calls for much more rewarding treats. Here’s one to make: fab ginger cookies filled with soft peach ice cream.

Ginger-Cookie Ice-Cream Sandwiches
Makes about 12 sandwiches

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1 large egg
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
Demerara or turbinado sugar
1 pint peach ice cream

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl stir together the butter, brown sugar and molasses. Stir in the egg.
2. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Stir into the butter mixture.
3. Place the Demerara or turbinado sugar in a bowl. Scoop out a heaping tablespoon of dough and roll into a ball with your hands. Coat the ball with the Demerara sugar by rolling it in the sugar and place it on a parchment or Teflon-pad-lined cookie sheet. Repeat this process, spacing the balls approximately one inch apart on the sheet.
4. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until the bottoms of the cookies are lightly browned. Transfer them to cooling racks and let cool completely. Sandwich peach ice cream between cookies and serve.

PASSIONS | by SHERRY STRIPLING

LAST YEAR’S GARDEN WAS PROLIFIC, but the corn came on while we were away, the excess acorn squash ended up in a compost pile and we toyed with renaming our place Zucchini Acres.

So we are planting strategically this year, popping in only the ingredients we need for our favorite summer dish: Gado Gado.

Described as an “Indonesia extravaganza,” our Gado Gado includes yellow rice (the glow comes from turmeric) on a bed of spinach, covered with vegetables, tofu and hard-boiled eggs from our own chickens. It’s all topped by a spicy peanut sauce.

We can’t grow the rice or the peanuts in our northern climes, but we can grow spinach, cabbage, green beans, carrots and onions (Gado Gado with Walla Walla onions has a nice ring).

No broccoli or celery, both suggested ingredients in our dog-eared 1977 Moosewood Cookbook original recipe, but we will grow our own favorite additions, potatoes and cucumbers. Not a zucchini in the bunch!

You can find other Gado Gado recipes online or get the lighter, improved version with The New Moosewood Cookbook. For a sampling of other vegetarian recipes, visit the Moosewood Restaurant or Molly Katzen’s archives.

Peanut Sauce
From “The New Moosewood Cookbook”
Makes 2 cups
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 heaping tablespoon grated ginger
1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 cups hot water
4 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoon soy sauce
Crushed red pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients, spoon over Gado Gado (or anything else), and enjoy.

BACK TO BASICS | by KAT SPELLMAN

I BOUGHT ONE OF THOSE GREAT limonatta bottles (with the attached plastic cork and metal cage/hinge) at Trader Joe’s a while back — so classic Euro-looking and fun. Once the bubbly beverage was gone, I washed the bottle and set it aside.

Fast-forward to some neighbor kids swinging by to play in the yard on a hot afternoon. No lemonade or Izze to be had in the house — nothing “fun”.  So, quick, I pop some chilled water into that cute bottle (pouring it through a frosting tip as I can’t find a funnel), pop the stopper back on top, put out some tiny juice-jar-like glasses (the ones us adults use for wine so our kids’ footballs or the Labrador’s tail doesn’t knock ‘em over) and set them on a tray with paper cocktail napkins and pretty slices of apples.

Me?  Walk outside with it, all nonchalant-like, and pop it on the porch.

The kids? Four boys and girls, ages 3 to 10, in an hour (bladders busting, no doubt) drink four bottles of that plain chilled water. They play, come back, sit in the shade of our dogwood tree, and pour more for themselves and one another. The ritual and style clearly make it special and they’re all giddy with excitement.

And me? I just pretend not to notice, as I keep popping back into the kitchen to fill up that same recycled bottle with plain old chilled water from our Britta pitcher. Shhhh.

DESIGN | by JANNA LUFKIN

THE FARMHOUSE: I KNOW IT WELL. I grew up with it, I live in it, I get it. It’s second nature to me, ingrained in my soul. My grandparents lived on the family farm. A good deal of my childhood was spent there. Truly some of my happiest days were with my grandmother. I’m sure I became a stylist and a designer because of her and that farm. To this day, Benham Lane remains my favorite place.

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But you don’t have to grow up with a farmhouse to create one of your own. These five elements can help yours stand the test of time:

• White paint. Above all, the quintessential farmhouse is white. Use it liberally. It’s fresh and clean and it will never go out of style.
• Tongue-and-groove paneling. Add it as wainscoting, or panel an entire room with it. It’s great on ceilings and as backing for bookcases, cupboards and cabinets.
• Wood floors. Left natural or painted, with or without rugs, wood floors in a farmhouse tell a story. The worn look of well-used stairs and thresholds add character and charm.
• Simple, utilitarian fabrics. Think blue-and-white mattress ticking, burlap, hemp, canvas, worn linen grain sacks and unbleached muslin. Keep it simple.
• Anything galvanized. From buckets to washtubs, watering cans to planters, you can’t go wrong when you bring in these hard-working basics. Put them to use in creative and unexpected ways.

When I remodeled my own home, the family farm oozed out of me. I’m sure I was guided by my grandmother’s hand. When a client says to me, “I want that Farmhouse Feel,” I close my eyes and just imagine myself down home.

PASSIONS | by SHERRY STRIPLING

I HATE TO SAY I’M A USER BUT WHEN WE TOOK OUR SON, then a toddler, on his first overnight hike, I was already looking ahead to the day I’d need him to help tote the heaviest stuff up the hill. Fortunately, a love of hiking took, so I can look back now and say confidently that what we did worked.

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The safest time for a first overnight is in prime hiking season, often mid-July to mid-September. We picked a postcard-perfect setting with a lake that was more drive up than walk in, just a mile from where we parked the car.

Where we went wrong:

• At age 3, a mile uphill might have been too long for his little legs, but he made it.
• A good pair of sneakers would have helped. Rubber boots were a challenge.

Where we went right:

• We took lots of snacks and stopped often to eat, which I still claim was for his sake.
• We took his fishing pole, dog, good books for lantern storytelling and comfy sleeping gear.
• We picked good weather but prepared for whatever mountain weather can bring, understanding that toddlers lose body heat quickly when they’re not moving.
• He carried his own light pack with snacks.
• We devoted our attention to him entirely, knowing that the lake, getting lost and the campfire were all hazards.
• We kept a change of dry clothes in the car.

Most people think of hiking with small children as a way of keeping their own passions going despite having kids. As I load up my son with the stove, fuel and extra food now that I’m over the hill, I see it as a rare investment that paid off big.

DESIGN | by DEBRA PRINZING

LOSING THE LAWN DOES NOT MEAN you will be shunned by your neighbors. In fact, the “anti-lawn” is a hip and sustainable alternative to the resource-gobbling ritual of daily irrigation and frequent applications of fertilizer.

© DEBRA PRINZING

It’s hard to break off our emotional connection to lawns, but there are healthy ― and beautiful ― alternatives. While you wean yourself (or your spouse) from green turf, you’ll discover an exciting array of groundcovers and no-grass (or less-grass) design solutions.

Here are five ideas to try:

• Grow an “eco-lawn,” such as a custom-blended seed mix that fits the conditions for your region. For example, Portland, Ore.-based Hobbs & Hopkins Ltd. developed “Fleur de Lawn,” a meadow-like mix of small flowers and low-growing clover combined with a specialty variety of dwarf perennial rye grass. Once established, it is naturally self-fertilizing, requires no watering and needs infrequent mowing.
• Learn to live with “golden.” Allow your lawn to go dormant in the summer. When cooler weather and seasonal showers return in the fall, the grass will revive and turn a brilliant green, irrigated naturally by rain.
• Adjust your watering practices. Lawns require more water than other plants, so separate the lawn-watering system from trees, shrubs and flowerbeds.
• Shrink the green. Gradually reduce the size of your lawn, replacing sections of grass with native ornamentals or low-water plants like succulents. You can satisfy your urge for green with alternatives such as thyme, which is visually appealing, aromatic and even edible.
• Replace grass with gravel. I ripped out all of the lawn in my backyard and created a Mediterranean-inspired gravel garden. The warm gold gravel covers all the pathways that surround planted beds, borders and islands. The gravel is permeable, uses no water and is weed-free (thanks to a hidden layer of landscape cloth underneath it).