Self-reliance Archives - Backwoods Home Magazine

Sew a baby quilt in two days… for a lifetime of memories

By Ilene Duffy Issue #83 • September/October, 2003 During my last year of teaching school, I was pregnant with Jacob. I'll always remember receiving a beautifully crocheted baby blanket that one of my student's mothers made...

Small Town America: Thermopolis, WY — Horses and hot springs

By Emily Salinger Photos by Richard Coffinberry Issue #85 • January/February, 2004 When Nate and MaeCile Brown amble down the main street of Thermopolis, Wyoming, everybody recognizes them. They're old friends, honored citizens, and local characters. They...

Grandma will love this personal ‘Helping Hands’ wall hanging

By Sally Boulding Issue #46 • July/August, 1997 Here's a relatively easy gift that you and your child can make together. The instructions here are to make a wall hanging or a lap blanket, but consider...

Small camp security

By Gary Lewis Issue #148 • July/August, 2014 It might be a sleeping bag in a lean-to with a small warming fire at the entrance. It could be a wall tent with five or six hunters...

Modify an E-Tool to make your own Combi-Tool

By Dave Strom Issue #172 • July/August, 2018 Campers, soldiers, and off-roaders are familiar with military-issue Entrenching Tools, commonly called “E-Tools.” They are light, compact, and multipurpose. They can shovel, hoe, chop, pick, and scrape. The...

Seventeen great tips for caring for windows, mirrors, and other household glass

By Sandy Lindsey Issue #43 • January/February, 1997 1 To make windows and mirrors sparkle, dip a clean cloth in a 50/50 mixture of borax and water or denatured alcohol and wipe down. Polish with a...

Buy your country place from the government

By Dorothy Cady Issue #54 • November/December, 1998 While looking for your place in the country, you've probably been researching real estate books, newspaper ads, and maybe even using the Internet. You may have even considered...

10 country do’s and don’ts

By Julie Crist Issue #96 • November/December, 2005 When we moved from the city to the mountains, I kept my eyes open and my mouth shut and and paid very close attention to other people's botchery....

Oregon Trail preparedness: What supplies did the settlers carry?

By Don Lewis Issue #176 • April/May/June, 2019 The year was 1834, a year that didn’t really stand out as all that particularly important in American history. But like any other year, it had its share...

Clover — From Livestock Forage to Medicinal Tea, This Humble Plant is One of...

By Eugene Mitchell Issue #130 • July/August, 2011 Whether young or old, lying in the grass and searching for four-leafed clovers is timeless fun. Sometimes they're so elusive, like the leprechaun, it seems they don't exist....

What to do when there’s no doctor

By Gary F. Arnet, D.D.S. Issue #75 • May/June, 2002 We are used to being able to see a doctor at any time for any reason, no matter how small. Will this always be the case?...

The fire wick fire starter

By Len McDougall Issue #114 • November/December, 2008 When my hunting buddy Dar met me for lunch at our rendezvous point, he said he doubted we could make a small cookfire on the wet, snow-covered ground....

Start a post-construction cleaning business

By Dorothy Ainsworth Issue #76 • July/August, 2002 Wherever construction is going on, there will be a big mess left in its wake that somebody has to clean up. That somebody can be you, and you...

Storm survivors

By Anita Evangelista Issue #71 • September/October, 2001 First couple days of June, 1998, weather pretty good, a bit wetter than it is now. Clear day, clouds moving in during the afternoon. By suppertime, the sky...

An easier way to cut firewood By Larry LaVan

By Larry LaVan  Issue #159 • May/June, 2016 I've heated with firewood for nearly 50 years. In doing so, I knew my aging back would need...

Frostbite — Don’t flirt with this sneaky danger

By Tom and Joanne O’Toole Issue #96 • November/December, 2005 Frostbite can be defined, in its most severe stage, as when your fingers and toes freeze and have to be cut off because of gangrene. Wow,...