Vela Creations is an in-depth resource for off grid living. The site documents our research and experiences, hoping that they might help others interested in pursuing this lifestyle. This blog is designed to document our day to day experiences as we build our new, sustainable homestead. If you are interested in seeing more photos and videos, we have a flickr account at the following url: http://flickr.com/photos/35090117@N05/collections/

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Winston Churchill

"Solitary trees, if they grow at all, grow strong." - Winston Churchill

Monday, December 28, 2015

Sitting Bull

"The earth has received the embrace of the sun and we shall see the results of that love." - Sitting Bull

Sunday, December 27, 2015

Leigh Hunt

"Colors are the smiles of nature." - Leigh Hunt

Saturday, December 26, 2015

Marilyn French

"Nature is inside art as its content, not outside as its model." - Marilyn French

Friday, December 25, 2015

John Lubbock

"Sunsets are so beautiful that they almost seem as if we were looking through the gates of Heaven." - John Lubbock

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

George Bernard Shaw

"The best place to find God is in a garden. You can dig for him there." - George Bernard Shaw

Monday, December 21, 2015

Dennis Franz

"Coming from Chicago, I like a white Christmas." - Dennis Franz

Sunday, December 20, 2015

Aesop

"It is not only fine feathers that make fine birds." - Aesop

How would chickens l


How would chickens l - http://ift.tt/1OgXbqm

Preserve your harves


Preserve your harves - http://ift.tt/1OEvimi

What to think about


What to think about - http://ift.tt/1OgXam9

Overcoming Homestead


Overcoming Homestead - http://ift.tt/1OEvge6

How to extract the g


How to extract the g - http://ift.tt/1OgXbqa

Interested in fresh


Interested in fresh - http://ift.tt/1OEvge4

The cheapest and eas


The cheapest and eas - http://ift.tt/1OgXbq6

Put cardboard & comp


Put cardboard & comp - http://ift.tt/1OEvge0

So you dream about h


So you dream about h - http://ift.tt/1OgXam0

Growing hazelnuts is


Growing hazelnuts is - http://ift.tt/1OEvfXG

Preserving Prickly P


Preserving Prickly P - http://ift.tt/1OgXa5G

Ever wondered how of


Ever wondered how of - http://ift.tt/1OEvimc

Rabbit meat is popul


Rabbit meat is popul - http://ift.tt/1OgXa5A

Anyone grow Potatoes


Anyone grow Potatoes - http://ift.tt/1OEvim8

How to make a Desert


How to make a Desert - http://ift.tt/1OgXb9G

In a long-term disas


In a long-term disas - http://ift.tt/1OEvfXu

How to feed your ani


How to feed your ani - http://ift.tt/1OgXb9z

The Ultimate Homeste


The Ultimate Homeste - http://ift.tt/1OEvi5M

Homesteading Through


Homesteading Through - http://ift.tt/1OgXaTl

Food Web, make more


Food Web, make more - http://ift.tt/1OEvi5E

Why I Love Raising M


Why I Love Raising M - http://ift.tt/1OgXa5v

Murano Chicken Farm:


Murano Chicken Farm: - http://ift.tt/1OEvi5A

How to Grow Mushroom


How to Grow Mushroom - http://ift.tt/1OgX9Pf

Get your children involved in homesteading - try these ideas.

Get your children involved in homesteading - try these ideas.

[Hydro Power] High Quality Youtube Channel Documenting a Large-Scale Personal Hydro Plant. Civil, Mechanical, Electrical Engineering... it's all here

[Hydro Power] High Quality Youtube Channel Documenting a Large-Scale Personal Hydro Plant. Civil, Mechanical, Electrical Engineering... it's all here

6,000 square foot aquaponic growing facility going up at the new Denver Mental Health Facility.

6,000 square foot aquaponic growing facility going up at the new Denver Mental Health Facility.

Saturday, December 19, 2015

V. S. Naipaul

"The world is always in movement." - V. S. Naipaul

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Duke Kahanamoku

"I have never seen snow and do not know what winter means." - Duke Kahanamoku

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Arthur C. Clarke

"Human judges can show mercy. But against the laws of nature, there is no appeal." - Arthur C. Clarke

Monday, December 14, 2015

Percy Bysshe Shelley

"O, wind, if winter comes, can spring be far behind?" - Percy Bysshe Shelley

RMH Bench

RMH0084

A few years ago, we made a Rocket Mass Heater in our living room. There wasn't much space, so the design had to be fairly compact, but it still worked great. We can light a fire in the evening for a couple of hours, and the thermal mass will still be warm in the morning. The only thing we regret is that we hadn't known about the concept of an RMH before we started building, so that we could have put a larger one into the house design.

The town house, on the other hand, has plenty of room, mainly because we don't actually live there. So, we figured we'd use some of the space in its living room to try out a larger design. It is now finished, and turned out really beautifully.

RMH0020It has the wood part in the corner, with an ash box under it. The riser is made out of firebricks and perlite, and it is contained within a 55 gallon barrel, which acts as a very efficient heat exchanger. The heat then travels through 8" stove pipe all the way to the other end of the room and back. This length of pipe is contained within sand under a bench.

We've only run it for an hour or two so far, as it hasn't been that cold. It heats up the room fine in that time, but hasn't yet been able to warm up the whole bench. Although neither of us likes the cold, we're kind of hoping for a front to move in, just so we try out our new butt-warmer.

Check out the full flickr set for a better idea of how it was all put together.

The post RMH Bench appeared first on VelaCreations.



RMH Bench

Saturday, December 12, 2015

John McGraw

"My boy, one small breeze doesn't make a wind storm." - John McGraw

RMH


RMH -

Thursday, December 10, 2015

James M. Barrie

"God gave us memory so that we might have roses in December." - James M. Barrie

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Pamela Hansford Johnson

"The sky broke like an egg into full sunset and the water caught fire." - Pamela Hansford Johnson

Monday, December 7, 2015

Andy Warhol

"Land really is the best art." - Andy Warhol

Sunday, December 6, 2015

Loren Eiseley

"One could not pluck a flower without troubling a star." - Loren Eiseley

Saturday, December 5, 2015

Duke Ellington

"Gray skies are just clouds passing over." - Duke Ellington

puppies


Friday, December 4, 2015

Nursery continued

trees

Do you ever feel like your husband is trying to plant you out of house and home?

trees2

trees3

The post Nursery continued appeared first on VelaCreations.



Nursery continued

Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Jacques Yves Cousteau

"The happiness of the bee and the dolphin is to exist. For man it is to know that and to wonder at it." - Jacques Yves Cousteau

FunFortless

funfortless

A couple of years we ago, we made the kids a Funfort in their room (see howto here.). It was awesome and the kids loved it.

The only downside was that it was pretty big and took up quite a bit of the space in their small room. They started bringing more and more toys downstairs to be somewhere with more area to play. So, with their permission and approval, I took it all apart and converted all the lumber into shelving for around their room.

funfortless2The room has now been rearranged to fit the new furniture. There is plenty of space for all their toys (and, of course, all the toys we inherited from Abe's childhood too!). They have joint shelves and individual shelves, so that Leo can keep his stuff as organized as he wants, while Nicky can have his as messy as he wants.

It should work fine until we get to build our room on the west end of the house (whenever that might be), at which time the kids will have a room each.

The post FunFortless appeared first on VelaCreations.



FunFortless

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Walter Scott

"We build statues out of snow, and weep to see them melt." - Walter Scott

Monday, November 30, 2015

Puppies

puppies

We dropped the ball on Sophie's (our female dog) contraceptive. Somehow we miscalculated the date and she came into heat without us getting her another shot. Anyway, as soon as we realized what we'd done, we put her in one of the barn rooms, hoping that she may have avoided being bred. You may have gathered by the title of this post that we were wrong!

The other day, she disappeared. Given that our male, Sam, was still around (they often go off hiking together) and that it was around the due date, we assumed that it was her time. The only problem was that we couldn't find her anywhere, and it happened to be the one day in months that it was pouring with rain. Soaking wet and chilly, we gave up looking.

All of a sudden she came to the front door, birthed a puppy on the doorstep and then took off. I wrapped the pup in a blanket and gave it to the boys to keep warm and then went looking for her again. I eventually found her and brought her into the house with her pup, and set her up on a pile of old sheets. She instantly relaxed and went on to have a total of 9 puppies. They are all camped out in the entranceway room (as are the boys most of the time), and seem to be happy and healthy. Sophie is almost excessively attentive, although she does occasionally go outside, even if just for a little bit.

Once this litter is weaned, we will get her spayed. It was always our intention to let her breed once with Sam (although ideally we would have wanted her to be closer to 2 years old than to 1). Our other dog, Salsa, came from a shelter and was fixed before being released, and it always seemed a shame that she never got to be a mother. In the meantime, we get to enjoy these warm and fuzzy little bundles of joy!

The post Puppies appeared first on VelaCreations.



Puppies

Sunday, November 29, 2015

Saturday, November 28, 2015

Raising Chicks - How to Guide

Raising Chicks - How to Guide

Can Killer Bees Save America? - With scientists unable to solve the great honeybee die-out, the search for alternate pollinators is on—and killer bees are proving the most resilient, and terrifying, of the bunch.

Can Killer Bees Save America? - With scientists unable to solve the great honeybee die-out, the search for alternate pollinators is on—and killer bees are proving the most resilient, and terrifying, of the bunch.

How to dry food: A beginners guide

How to dry food: A beginners guide

5 Reasons You Should Seriously Consider Raising Chickens

5 Reasons You Should Seriously Consider Raising Chickens

Five Ways to Start Eating Insects

Five Ways to Start Eating Insects

Resettled refugees grow food as part of the International Rescue Committee’s New Roots Program.

Resettled refugees grow food as part of the International Rescue Committee’s New Roots Program.

DIY hypertufa projec


DIY hypertufa projec - http://ift.tt/1Q4AGDj

Non-invasive Treatme


Non-invasive Treatme - http://ift.tt/1lmJBVc

Learning how to grow


Learning how to grow - http://ift.tt/1Q4AGDf

How to make an immun


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Mini root cellar to


Mini root cellar to - http://ift.tt/1lmJzwi

Fermented Chicken Fe


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Gleaning can be part


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home russian heater


home russian heater - http://ift.tt/1Q4AIej

Picture of How to be


Picture of How to be - http://ift.tt/1Q4AGmR

Friday, November 27, 2015

Hal Borland

"Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. Knowing grass, I can appreciate persistence." - Hal Borland

Thursday, November 26, 2015

Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton

"Truth makes on the ocean of nature no one track of light; every eye, looking on, finds its own." - Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Plautus

"The day, water, sun, moon, night - I do not have to purchase these things with money." - Plautus

Monday, November 23, 2015

Robert Browning

"Autumn wins you best by this its mute appeal to sympathy for its decay." - Robert Browning

Sunday, November 22, 2015

Leonardo da Vinci

"Water is the driving force of all nature." - Leonardo da Vinci

Saturday, November 21, 2015

Alfred Austin

"Show me your garden and I shall tell you what you are." - Alfred Austin

24 Lost Homestead Su


24 Lost Homestead Su - http://ift.tt/1QAxjpe

Earth Tubes passive


Earth Tubes passive - http://ift.tt/1SbcK0n

Top Bar Beehive Expl


Top Bar Beehive Expl - http://ift.tt/1QAxjp8

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