How to Make a Notebook in Under a Minute

I've been keeping notebooks, sketchbooks, and journals pretty much as far back as kindergarten and with daily regularity since my late teens. I've got notebooks for important purposes—a hardcover 5 x 8.25" Moleskine notebook for my bullet journal planner, a big journal for freewriting answers to tough questions when I'm looking for insight, several sizes of notebooks for personal study and random thoughts, a notebook for haiku, and several practice sketchbooks. Notebooks are so commonplace in my life that honestly, I'm more likely to leave my left foot at home.

Occasionally, though, I like to shake the dust off of my mind for a fresh perspective by changing my writing context. This is when I most often turn a tiny notebook that takes a single sheet of paper, one minute, and no tools to make but my hands. Read on for instructions!

… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/joelselby/posts/4844-how-to-make-a-notebook-in-under-a-minute

Old School Burns: Ancient People Had Some Amazing Insults and Jokes

Here's something that is completely useless for your everyday life. It will not help you dress well, or create a perfect mothers day gift, or fix your shoelaces, or build a dynamically-planted garden, or anything of the sort. But if you are at a… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/allan/posts/4846-old-school-burns-ancient-people-had-some-amazing-insults-and-jokes

This is the Only Way You Should Be Wrapping Up Your Headphones

Yesterday, I offered the thesis that if you're only going to learn to tie one knot, it should be the bowline: it's simple, can be easily untied, and is incredibly versatile for all sorts of situations. 

And all that is true. But, it's not the "knot" I employ most often. Because the reality is, most of us don't handle rope on a daily basis. We do, however, in the age of smartphones and podcasts and the entire history of recorded music available at your fingertips, engage with another long, stringy thing that needs to be dealt with on the regular: your headphones.

Or ear buds. Or ear phones. Or whatever you call those wired transducers that deliver all that sweet, sweet audio to your brain. And because you take them with your everywhere, they regularly get knotted and tangled up in your pocket or bag.

This is completely unnecessary. Because there's a five-second "knot" that can completely eliminate this problem, and it doesn't take any longer than other storage methods. So, now, I present to you, the actual most useful knot in the world.    … Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/chris/posts/4680-this-is-the-only-way-you-should-be-wrapping-up-your-headphones

Check This Out: The Museum of Online Museums

A DIY Weed Killer That Actually Works

Spring seems to have arrived overnight, and with it comes the explosion of green as everything wakes up from its winter nap. First up? Time to fend off the weeds. . . and please don’t reach for that toxic stuff. It’s nasty for you, your yard, and everything around it. Instead, try this safer and super effective recipe.   

… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/david/posts/4607-a-diy-weed-killer-that-actually-works

How to: DIY Metal Inlay in Wood

How to Turn Your Grill into a Smoker

With the temps warming up, it is most certainly time to get mouths a-watering for barbecue season. Whether gas or charcoal, most of us have a backyard grill, but a dedicated smoker can be a luxury. They take up space, can cost a lot, and while they make sense for true smoked food fans, might not be necessary for the average grill fan.
 

In fact, they're not necessary at all. Cause with a little creativity and DIY ingenuity, you can turn the grill you already own in a smoker that can turn out tender, fall apart food fused with the flavor of fire. 

… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/chris/posts/4244-how-to-turn-your-grill-into-a-smoker

It's Time to Clean Your Coffee Station. Here's What to Do.

As anyone who has worked in a high volume coffee establishment will tell you––and I am one of those people––keeping coffee equipment clean is a huge job. And while a professional shop has to maintain its equipment with a daily regimen of daily… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/allan/posts/4831-it-s-time-to-clean-your-coffee-station-here-s-what-to-do

Last Minute Mother's Day Gifts...That Will Still Arrive by Sunday

We know you love your mom, but life gets busy and we all fall behind. Luckily for you it's not too late show that incredible woman how much you love her with these unique gifts from Amazon Prime that if you buy today, will still arrive in time for you be the favorite son!   … Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/justin/posts/3637-last-minute-mother-s-day-gifts-that-will-still-arrive-by-sunday

10 Years Later, We're Still Catching Up With "The Wire"

"Have you seen 'The Wire'?" has somehow managed to become a cliche question and an earnest inquiry. On the one hand, for a long time, especially during the end of its TV run and right after it concluded, it was a question meant to signify one's own… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/allan/posts/4830-10-years-later-we-re-still-catching-up-with-the-wire

How to: Make a One Hour Walnut Cutting Board

Is there anyone more deserving of a beautiful handmade gift than all the mothers out there?  The short answer is “no."  There are hundreds of complex projects that you can build, make or create to give to your beloved wife, mom or grandma, for… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/brandon/posts/4838-how-to-make-a-one-hour-walnut-cutting-board

How I Finally Became a Morning Person

Let it be stated, for the record, that I'm naturally a night owl. I hate waking up in the morning.

I'm not one of those people who are wired to pop out of bed, to the tune of that Rossini piece that plays at sunrise in cartoons, with a spring in my step and a grin on my face. (Being a morning person is so out of my orbit that I don't know if that's how early birds actually feel, or if it's just my pre-coffee-grump perception.)

You know what I do love? The feeling of accomplishing so many of the day's to-dos, especially the things that are both short-term urgent and long-term important, and looking up at the clock to realize it's barely lunchtime. I love reaching the end of a work day with the relief that comes with giving the whole day my full effort. I love the feeling of being proactive, which means that, though being an early bird isn't my natural inclination, I love its effects.

So, how did I ditch the hoot owls and start rising to catch the proverbial worm? Read on for some tips that helped me.… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/joelselby/posts/4832-how-i-finally-became-a-morning-person

ManMade Guide: Everything You Need to Know to Make Awesome Beer Cocktails

Our love for beer is sincere and it grows stronger every year (and so does our beer belly, but it's so worth it.) Like whiskey or quality tequila, it can be perfect just by itself, in a glass, alongside a meal and preferably outside.

But beer's unique flavor profile - bitter, sweet, acidic, malty - as well as its texture and carbonation also make it a great backbone for cocktails. And in this ManMade Guide, we're giving you the basics to make the perfect beer cocktails.

… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/gabriel/posts/3056-manmade-guide-everything-you-need-to-know-to-make-awesome-beer-cocktails

How to: Make Your Own Typographic Illustrations and Artwork

Everyone likes a nice motivational quote with a fine adventurous backdrop and some nice typography that reminds us to get outside.   … Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/chris/posts/3933-how-to-make-your-own-typographic-illustrations-and-artwork

What You Need to Know Before Buying a House

 

Owning your own home has long been considered a big part of the “American Dream”, and there’s a reason for that…it’s a big deal to buy your first (or second) house.  It usually requires months of planning and years of saving money for what is… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/brandon/posts/4833-what-you-need-to-know-before-buying-a-house

30 Woodworking Accounts You Should Follow on Instagram

I confess, I'm a shop rat. It doesn't matter what craft—shoemaking, blacksmithing, coffee roasting, even those little watch repair caves with the observation window in jewelry stores at the mall—if there are four walls, some tools, and skilled hands, I'm all over it like white on rice in a glass of milk on a paper plate in a snowstorm.

Other than drawing and writing, I've committed to the handicraft of artisan printing, slinging ink in the letterpress and screen printing arena at my main job. But when I can, I soak up other skills on a hobbyist level to round out my skillset, to apply lessons from other disciplines into my chosen craft, and to just have fun making stuff without the pressure of harnessing it to make a living.

Woodworking is one of those pools that I'm just now starting to wade into, and since I have no idea what I'm doing, I love watching the real deal to see how it's really done. To that end, I've curated the following list of my favorite woodworking accounts on Instagram.

… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/joelselby/posts/4814-30-woodworking-accounts-you-should-follow-on-instagram

How To: Memorize Any Number Using Mnemonics

As if pens and Post-Its weren't enough, the smartphone era has provided a plethora of memory aids. Apps designed to store, sort, and spit out information whenever we want it seem to have rendered redundant the need for a good memory.

But I'm of the mind that tools work best when they augment our skills and strengths, and that when we start to allow machines to fully replace human work, we ourselves begin to atrophy. Since having begun the assembling my memorization toolkit and putting it to use in the last year, I've found that I think more clearly, remember things better, and rely on my physical and digital tools much less. (Not to mention, I'd be lying if I said it didn't feel awesome to perfectly recall a 12-digit number after less than 10 minutes' worth of work.)

We've covered one of those big tools, the memory palace, in a guide here at Man Made DIY. One of the main techniques incorporated in the article, specifically used to memorize numbers, is called the Major System; it's such a powerful in itself that it's worth its own guide. 

So, let's dig in to how you can custom-tailor your own major system to help you remember long strings of numbers!

… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/joelselby/posts/4817-how-to-memorize-any-number-using-mnemonics

How to: Make Your Own Iced Coffee Soda

Now that the days are warming up the thought of a hot latte with milk and cinnamon sure adds a drop of sweat to my brow. It's usually this time of year, I swap my typical addiction to hot coffee to sweet, syrupy iced coffee. I just can't get enough of the stuff!

… Continue reading on ManMadeDIY.com

source http://www.manmadediy.com/users/bryson/posts/3599-how-to-make-your-own-iced-coffee-soda