A Very Yummy Scrub

Salt and Honey Scrub with Grapefruit and RosemaryFills about 6 half-pint jars. Shelf life 4 months.

2 cups olive oil
2/3 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon grapefruit essential oil
1/4 teaspoon rosemary essential oil3 cups salt
sugar (optional)
red food coloring
Mix the first 4 ingredients together in a bowl. Gradually mix in the salt 1/2 cup at a time. It's easiest to mix with your hands. Wear gloves if you have sensitive skin.

Continue to mix until the oil is mostly absorbed into the grains. It will be very thick and mass together with a bit of oil seeping out. If it's not coming together after several minutes, add salt or sugar in half cup increments until it's a gritty oily paste (you will need more salt/sugar if using kosher salt and less if using a finer grain salt).

Add 2 drops red food coloring and mix well. Add additional essential oil at a rate of 1/4 teaspoon at a time for a stronger fragrance.

Scoop the scrub into little jars with holes large enough to dig the product out by hand. Wipe off the top of the jar before lidding as the salt can rust the metal lid.

To use, scoop a tablespoon of the scrub into damp hands and massage between your hands until you feel a gritty paste. Scrub your face and body in a circular motion until most of the salt crystals dissolve, then rinse.

http://daringbakerduluth.blogspot.com/2012/01/salt-and-honey-scrub-with-grapefruit.html

Homemade Body Wash

You can make this WAY cheaper than purchasing body wash. You can fragrance this or not, depending on your skin sensetivity. I have the items and am going to make one for me and one that is a man fragrance for my husband. This is a wonderful open house gift, a nice welcome gift for visiting guests, etc. You name it, you will love it!

Enjoy!

http://proverbs2six.blogspot.com/2010/01/homemade-bodywash.html

An Interesting Site

http://www.diy-home-remedies.com/index.html

Natural Beauty Remedies

In the Feb. 2012 issue of Woman's Day were some great natural beauty remedies. I am going to list some here worth checking out.

Have a pimple? Take fresh mint leaves and pulsate them in a food processor with 1 tsp. of lemon juice. Cover for 15 minutes, then rinse, twice a day.

Cellulite?  2 Tbsp. used coffee grounds (not decaf) and 4 tsp olive oil. Combine them and make a paste and spread on your trouble areas in strokes upward. Massage in for 2 minutes and then rinse. Best to do this in the shower and be careful of the shower floor being slick after the oil washes off.

Yellowed nails? Pour some ginger ale into a bowl and soak your nails for 10 minutes twice a week and then rinse.

Dark circles under your eyes? One small handful of fresh parsley with 2 Tbsp. of plain yogurt and combine in a food processor. Pulse until a smooth paste. Apply mixture generously to your under eye areas for 20 minutes before rinsing with warm water.

Face scrub needed? Take 4 tsp. of baking soda and 1 Tbsp. of water and form a paste. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wet skin and then massage in a circular motions avoiding eye areas. Rinse after a couple of minutes with warm water and end with a splash of cold water to close your pores.

Dry skin patches? Cut a lemon in half and rub on the area and rinse afterwards. It doesn't give any precautions, but avoid your eyes pretty please :)

Homemade Relaxation ...Bath Fizzies

Tools and Materials

• Baking soda
• Cornstarch
• Citric acid
• Spritzer bottles
• Food coloring
• Glass bowl
• Essential oil
• Baking molds

Bath Fizzies How-To1. Sift 1 3/4 cup baking soda, 1 cup citric acid, and 2 cups cornstarch through a sieve to remove chunks. To make different tints, fill small spritzer bottles with water and add about 6 drops of food coloring to each. 

2. Pour 1 cup of powdered mixture into a glass bowl. Lightly spritz, stirring after each spritz, until powder is desired color. Add water slowly, so mixture does not fizz. If mixing two tints, alternate colors as you spritz. Check the consistency of powder with your fingers; when it can be tightly packed or shaped, stop spritzing (this may take a little while).
3. Select an essential oil. Add 5 drops if it's one of the stronger scents (peppermint, lavender), 6 if it's a weaker one (lemon, grapefruit). Mix well. Firmly pack mixture into small baking molds. We used 1/4 cup for each fizzy, which is good for one bath. Allow mixture to set for 2 hours, then pop out carefully. Repeat with different tints for remaining powder.


http://www.marthastewart.com/280275/how-to-make-bath-fizzies?backto=true&backtourl=/photogallery/bath-and-spa-gifts

DIY Shavecream

I saw this on Pinterest and thought it was definitely worth sharing. I would say modify the ingredients depending on skin type ( ex. sensitive ) if you need to.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup conditioner
• 1 cup shampoo
• 5 tablespoons baby oil
• 5 tablespoons hand cream

Directions:

• Use a large bottle or some other large storage container to store the shave cream. Pour in conditioner first, then shampoo.
• Add baby oil; then hand cream.
• Secure the container and shake. Let mixture sit for about an hour.

This mixture supposedly lasts for a month, but I can tell you that I made mine a few months ago, and it is still good. The book advises that if the mixture separates, re- shake.

credit:  http://jandjnewleaf.blogspot.com/2011/08/homemade-beauty-shave-cream.html

Check This Out! Body Butter Bars!

Body Butter Bars

You'll Need
Mold (I used a silicone cupcake tin)
Double boiler of some sort
Shea Butter
Coconut Oil
Beeswax

1) Determine how much weight your mold can hold. I did this by placing my mold on my kitchen scale, hitting tare, and pour water in to the desired fullness. If you're using something like a cupcake tin, or something with multiple cavities you can just fill one and then multiply by the number of cavities. My cavities held 2 oz of water, so I needed a total of 24 oz of oils.

2) Measure oils. I decided that I would use equal parts of beeswax, shea butter and coconut oil, so I measure out 8 oz of each.

**NOTE: When buying beeswax, it's probably better to buy the pastilles or 1 oz blocks. I bought the 1 lb blocks because they were cheaper (I regret that decision). It took me 10 minutes to figure out how I was going to break down that block of beeswax. I ended up just breaking it into pieces with a hammer.**


3) Melt oils. You can do this step however you feel comfortable. Options include in the microwave, crockpot or using some sort of double boiler. My double boiler was actually a steaming pot that I set a 4 cup, glass Pyrex measuring cup in (it made for easy pouring).

I did find that the oils melted faster if I put the lid on. Also the beeswax takes the longest to melt so you might want to put that on the bottom.

This is what everything looks like when it's melted. Those little bits on top are beeswax that didn't fully melt. (Don't worry about them)

4) Pour melted oil into mold.

5) Put mold in freezer. My bars were completely cooled in 33 minutes. (I know because that's exactly how long I was exercising)

6) Remove from mold and enjoy! After taking my bars out the mold, I wrapped the ones I didn't intend to use right away in wax paper and put them in the freezer.

Check her blog out/Credit: http://ourgreenexperiments.blogspot.com/2011/03/making-body-butter-bars.html

How To Fix Broken Eyeshadow, Like New!

I wanted to share this with everyone since I found it a couple months ago. A huge game changer and money saver!

http://petitelefant.com/how-to-repair-a-shattered-eyeshadow/

Skeptical of Deodorant?

Ok I have to admit, I am skeptical of deodorant, and all the things in it. I do believe that our bodies are meant to sweat, but I definitely do not want to stink! lol

There are all sorts of homemade deodorants out there, but I believe I have the most simple one of all.. simple baking soda straight out of the box.

I take a powder brush and just drop it in the top of a box of baking soda, bang it against the sides of the box to get the excess off, and then I powder it on under my armpits. It definitely doesn't allow me to smell :) Now, if there is an event or a day planned that requires me to not sweat, then I will use a deodorant stick :)

Tip....lesson learned rather, don't look at your armpit while dusting the baking soda on, you might get it in your eyes.

I hope this helps, and as always....Enjoy!

Eye Makeup Remover

Ok, I have heard this, but never tried it....not sure why, silly huh? Here is a super easy eye makeup remover you can do at home.

Mix together:

1 Cup of water
1 1/2 TBSP of Tear free baby shampoo
1/8 tsp of olive oil (if you are worried about oil around the eyes, consult a physician or feel free to eliminate this ingredient)

Store in sterile container.

Super easy and extremely cost effective! Gotta love it!

Enjoy!

Clementines Are Not Just For Eating...

Clementines are becoming a rather popular item in store bought skin care items. In Whole Living, November 2011, issue they have published a clementine face and body mask.  The citric acid will act like a chemical peel and sluff off the old layer of skin to reveal a healthier skin. They also note that it is an anti-inflammatory and a blemish fighter....SCORE!

So, instead of paying for these store bought brands, Mor Neroli or Skinnyskinny, make your own on the cheap :)

Ingredients:

1 Clementine
1/2 cup Ground rolled oats
3 Tbsp. of raw honey
2 tsp. of Jojoba oil

Instructions:

Peel the clementine and dispose of peel. Puree the fruit of the clementine. Put the clementine puree into a bowl and add the ground rolled oats, honey and oil. Mix together thoroughly (if you prefer a thinner variety you can add a little water) and apply to face and leave for 10 minutes. Rinse with warm water and pat dry with towel. You can use this mask once a week. Any unused portion can be stored in an air tight container for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

DIY Beautiful Lip Gloss

I have been making my own tinted lip gloss for a little over a year now and must say, I love it. It is so incredibly easy, and you will cringe at all the money you have wasted buying gloss at the store.

Materials:

Petroleum Jelly (Vaseline)
Cocoa powder or Dig out old lipstick that is too low to use  (cocoa for brown and natural tints)
Package of small paint containers like this:


Instructions:

Take the petroleum jelly and put in a microwave safe bowl (I use a glass condiment bowl)
Put the bowl containing the petroleum jelly into the microwave and heat in 30 second intervals and stir after each heating (always use caution when heating items in the microwave, refer to use and care instructions provided to you by your manufacturer or can be found online through your manufacturer's website)
Once you have achieved total liquidation of the jelly, carefully remove from the microwave with hot pads to protect your hands from burning.
Add small amounts of your cocoa/lipstick while stirring until you achieve the color intensity you prefer
While still in liquid form, pour into clean/sterile containers and allow to cool then top.

To give your gloss a more healing property, feel free to add Aloe to the mixture (straight from plant or store bought)

Enjoy!

Teeth Whitening, DIY....my grandmother was right...I should've listened

Ok, so I have extremely sensetive teeth and wish I could use a teeth whitener, BUT I can now! Yippeee. I found and have used a DIY teeth whitener. I have used it a couple times and am very impressed already with the result, so I am gonna say it's a keeper :)

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Peroxide

Directions:

Put ingredients in a smal bowl and stir. You may have to add some more baking soda until it is a thick paste. I don't mix more than a one-time-use amount at a time. I brushed my teeth and then did a cheese type smile in the mirror and just caked it on continuously with my toothbrush. I tried brushing my teeth with it and it tasted salty so I decided to just paste it on :)

Enjoy!