Our TeamEmil Evans

About Me

Emil is a landscape nerd, explorer, and lover of ambitious cooking projects. She lives in Oakland, CA with an ever-growing collection of houseplants.


Latest Stories

How I Find Cheap Frames for Gallery-Level Look on a Goodwill Budget
I never quite felt like a real adult until I framed my first piece of art. All through college, I pinned giant collages of unframed art to my walls like a life-size scrapbook. Post-grad, I’ve slowly started framing my favorite pieces. Custom framing is expensive, so I scour thrift stores for well-made frames with glass and hit up my local art supply store for the rest of what I need to do my own custom framing. Ready to get started?
Nov 16, 2024
5 Reasons Your Toilet Might Be Running — And How to Fix It Yourself
HOME PROJECTS
You can make most of these fixes without any tools.
Sep 30, 2023
The Complete Guide to Using and Caring for Copper Pots
Copper pans are loved for being quick to warm and for their extremely even distribution of heat. They are often specifically called for in candy-making and other heat-sensitive recipes, but copper is useful for almost all your cooking, since the increased control and evenness of temperature makes everything easier. Although copper is one of the most expensive materials for pans, for those who love to cook copper pots and pans are worth the investment.
Jul 15, 2020
Try This DIY Art Project: How To Make a Handmade Bird Mobile
Here’s a great idea for a DIY art project you can make, inspired by the art of Mark Hearld. Hearld is a British artist whose gorgeous prints, illustrations, and ceramics depict British fauna and flora dancing with color and movement. His installation at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park is a huge flock of painted wood birds suspended over visitors— something I dreamed of hanging in my house. Alas, I’ll have to (happily) make do with this DIY bird mobile I concocted instead.
May 4, 2019
The Best Non-Toxic Cleaners That You Already Have at Home
I took several printmaking classes in college, and I was astounded by how toxic a lot of the materials were— especially the mineral spirits and paint thinner. I later found out about totally nontoxic printmaking, pioneered by studios such as Zea Mays in Florence, Massachusetts. Inspired by some of these methods, here are eight ways you can make your house shine using common kitchen ingredients. Soy sauce is an excellent degreaser.
May 4, 2019
Emergency Cleanups: How To Remove Ink, Wine & Oil Stains
Spills are almost always unexpected, and always a pain. My mother clearly knew this: when I left for college she gave me a small, thick book called “Field Guide to Stains,” which I still have and reference more frequently than I ever thought I would. STAIN REMOVAL STAPLES I find the best way to deal with stains is to be prepared.
May 4, 2019
How to Clean Old Paintbrushes
Your walls are gleaming with new paint, but only three days later do you remember that you forgot to clean the brushes. Blame the chaos, the kids, the fact that you don’t have to be old to forget the obvious. Either way, that expensive paintbrush is trash for sure, right? Wrong! With a little patience — and minimal elbow grease — you can restore your brushes to their former glory. Paint tends to build up right near and inside the metal band, called the ferrule.
Feb 3, 2014