We’ve already discussed the obsession of pairing your wines and appetizers with your DSLR. In sifting through old photos recently, I was shocked to realize that my photographic theme is about 80/20, food vs. other. When something looks good and tastes good it’s hard to not want to document it. But photography is a quick fix. In only a few seconds you’ve snapped what’s probably taken you (or someone else) a significant time to prep. So just like many food trends have started to incorporate “slow” elements, so has documenting them.

The new food porn? Drawing. Taking the old fashioned, hand-made mode of documentation and using it to highlight culinary works. I’ve seen several food-focused sketchbooks over the last few months, and much like well done travel journals make you want to drop everything and book a plane ticket, these works of art inspire a new-found love of food.

And although drawings and sketchbooks are a throwback to a time when we were less consumed by digital media, the internet is an excellent place to indulge in this new food porn. In fact, there’s an entire Flickr group devoted to it. Last summer, Etsy hosted a Competition for Food Art. This isn’t just sketching your wine glass on your dinner napkin; this is serious business.

My personal favorite source of creative inspiration is They Draw and Cook, a blog that focuses on depicting entire recipes through illustrations. And then there are artists like Emily Katz who take simple concoctions and turn them into masterpieces by drawing, painting and then outlining with the help of her sewing machine. The results are stunning. Illustrator Claudia Pearson is another, that not only draws greeting cards with recipes, but also has a “Buy Local” inspired calendar.

Why is food illustration taking off? Maybe it’s the combination of the love of food and art. Maybe it’s simply wanting to document the beauty of fresh vegetables. Or maybe it’s partnering DIY food culture with DIY art. Whatever it is, that sketchbook is certainly much more inconspicuous than a bright flash in the midst of dinner. Time to get to drawing.

Editor’s note: This is the latest installment of Anna Brones’s column at EcoSalon, Foodie Underground. Each week, Anna will be taking a look at something new and different that’s taking place in the underground food movement, from supper clubs to mini markets to culinary avant garde.

Images: Claudia Pearson, Laura Cooke

Stuck inside on a rainy, dreary day? Have a hankering to start a new, crafty project? Using random objects and materials from around your home, these fun and eco-friendly DIY projects will cost you little to nothing.

Scrap Paper Notebook

You have a scrap paper galore in the drawer next to your desk, but this clutter is starting to get out of control. No problem! Stack your scrap paper to make all of the edges line up neatly. Punch three holes along the length of the paper an inch from the left margin. (You may want to divide the stack to make this step a little easier.) Cut the front and back sides from a cereal box and punch three holes in each side to align with your stack of scrap paper. You can cover the box panels in anything you like – get creative. Use decorative ribbon to tie together the individual sheet and the cardboard cover.

Portable Scrap Paper Pad

Need something more portable for taking notes on the go? Remove the staple from an empty matchbook and slip out the piece of cardboard that mounted the matches. Measure the matchbook and cut pieces of scrap paper to fit neatly inside. Tuck them underneath the bottom lip and staple them down.

Magazine Envelopes

After flipping through your magazines dozens of times, what else can you do with them? Take apart an envelope to use as a template and trace this outline onto a cover or page of an outdated issue. (If you plan on sending this envelope in the mail, use pages with images instead of copy. This way, the address will stand out more clearly.) Cut along the lines and fold it along the creases that match that of the original envelope. Use non-toxic flue to seal down the flaps.

CD/DVD Coasters

When your favorite tunes or films start skipping too much to enjoy, just turn them into coasters. This one is a cinch. To cover up the images and text with something a little more decorative, trace the outline of the CD/DVD onto contact paper leftover from lining drawers and cut along the lines. Seal it to the surface with non-toxic glue.

Scented Drawer Satchels

Who wears nylons anymore? I know I don’t, but they’re still lurking in the lingerie drawer. But, just because they are no longer wearable doesn’t mean you have to toss them. Cut them up into sections and seal one end with a decorative ribbon. Fill each makeshift pouch with dried herbs, tie the other end shut and put them in your drawers for a fresh fragrance.

Magnetic Dry Erase Board

Measure the outline of a broken CD case and cut a piece of blank white paper down to the same dimensions. Slip it inside and use non-toxic glue to secure the front and back of the CD case together. Secure a magnet to the back and hang it on your refrigerator for quick notes.

Homemade Drip System

Interested in conserving water in your garden? Use a pin to punch tiny holes into a plastic bottle. Shred pieces of scrap fabric and stuff them in through the neck of the bottle. (This absorbent material will cause the water to drain gradually.) Bury the bottle in the soil up to the neck next to plants in your garden, so that it releases water almost directly to the roots. Use a funnel to fill the bottle with water.

Reusable Shopping Tote

Dig through your pajama drawer to find an old, baggy t-shirt. Flip it inside out and remove the sleeves. Cut around the neck hole, making it several inches wider. Stitch the bottom hems of the shirt together. (You may want to sew a reinforcement seam for extra strength.) Flip your new reusable shopping tote right side out and use the sleeve holes as handles.

Tea Tin Candle

Following these steps, turn empty tea tins into decorative soy candles.

Bird Feeder

Rinse out an empty milk carton. Cut out two ample-sized openings on parallel sides and, about an inch below each, poke a hole using the tip of a pencil. Insert a rod through both holes to act as a perch for your feathered friends. Run a wire or string through the top of the carton to hang from a tree branch. To make it a bit more ornamental, embellish the carton with milk paint and secure popsicle sticks on the top slopes with non-toxic glue to look like shingles.

Upcycled Picture Frames

Rinse out some glass jars and completely remove any labels. With the images on the outside, roll up pictures of your friends and family, and insert them upside-down into the openings of the jars. Flip the jars over and display them on tabletops and shelves around your home.

Drawer Dividers

Do you cringe at the thought of organizing your infamous junk drawer? With some homemade cardboard dividers, it’s easy to keep it orderly. Just measure the length, width and height of your drawers. Break down a cardboard box and, based on your measurements, cut enough strips to create as many compartments as you want. Slice a slit halfway through the width of each strip to easily interconnect these pieces.

Bonus idea: taking inspiration from the image at the top of the post, why not spend an hour at the park or in the garden collecting seeds, nuts, flower bulbs, twigs, leaves or other pretty organic items to make a seasonal still life? All you need is a favorite dish or bowl and a spot to place it.

For more projects, check out Mike’s ideas.

Images: Er.We, adiything, ♥ellie♥, thebittenword.com, ***FanchTheSystem!***, How can I recycle this, Mulad, Niffty.., Indie Bands With A Mission, Edgar Zuniga Jnr., sfllaw, Idle Type, Vali….

After major holidays and lifetime milestones, you clear your mantle of thoughtful cards from your family and friends and hesitate on the way to the recycling bin. After all, such artsy stationary could be put to some better use, right? You bet! Here’s a list of creative projects to reinvent your stack of old greeting cards.

Learn how to give old greeting cards new life as a small gift box.
Cut the front side of the card into strips and use them to hold your place in your latest reads. Never again will you have to fold over the edge of a page in absence of a bookmark.

Use these instructions to create handmade ornaments from old greeting cards.

All you need to transform the front side of a greeting card into a postcard is an address and some stamps. Pretty resourceful, huh?

When your grandmother, the Food Network or a colleague passes on a new recipe, jot it down on the back of a greeting cards beautiful imagery for a visually appealing cookbook.

Using the front side of a variety of greeting cards, follow these steps to make a uniquely colorful journal.

Set the cover of an elaborate greeting card on a cutting board and use an exacto knife to slice it into pieces of different shapes and sizes. Wondering what you could possibly do with these? Give them to the little ones as a homemade puzzle.

Make your own luminary from old greeting cards.

Image: vieux bandit

I love big rings, but sometimes big rings don’t love me – making my fingers spread uncomfortably or being so top-heavy they swirl upside down. Don’t get me animated lest I go clocking someone in the head with my hand. It’s happened before and it can happen again.

If you wear big rings, you know what I’m talking about. So when I came across Patchwork Pillow rings by Raeburn Ink I was elated.

Raeburn Ink designer Jenn Cooke says at her site: “I’ve been saving odds and ends of fabric for a while now. I recently started collaging them together, and loving the results. These became my Patchwork Collection.

They are pieced together from linen, cotton, and silk fabrics, and filled with ultra soft stuffing. The printed fabric pieces are original screen prints from my Macro/Micro and Geographic collections – the placement of the print varies a little bit on each ring, so they won’t all look exactly like the picture. I’ve added contrast stitching in a stripe pattern with orange thread. The finger loop is made from a soft and stretchy material that is super comfortable.”

Choose from smaller chunky to totally funky big pillow rings that spice up an outfit or, for you designers, serve as a place to put your pins while working.

The designer pads her cushy line with other accessories as well as organic t-shirts, pillows and bags.

By surrounding yourself with Raeburn Ink pieces there’s the potential to make your life that much softer. And people will absolutely be transfixed at parties when you talk. Not to mention you’ll avert potential injuries as you gab.

Now that’s a way to keep friends.