Coconut Oil
This has got to be the most versatile product that I have ever come across!! I use it for almost everything beauty or health related.
Here are my top 5 uses for Coconut Oil:
1. Homemade Baby Wipes: makes little bottoms clean and nourished...tutorial will be added soon.
2. Shaving Cream: great, great, great replacement for shave cream. Leaves skin super soft and silky...
3. Homemade Deodorant: one key ingredient in my homemade deodorant, but I have read where some use it as deodorant all by itself...tutorial will be added soon.
4. Lotion, body butter, or lotion bars: very moisturizing addition to any recipe or by itself.
5. Butter or oil replacement in cooking: great replacement for regular butter or margarine and oil in recipes. Simple easy swap and much healthier.
Hope you enjoy trying Coconut Oil for yourself! Let me know how you like to use yours in the comments J
Love,
Colleen
Vinegar
Mama always said “Vinegar is a woman’s best friend...”
Okay, well mine didn't, but I’m sure someone at some point in history has and if not then I am the one doing it!! My mom has promoted vinegar to me for years and it really is as good as she has said.
My Top 5 Uses for Vinegar:
1. All-purpose cleaner; floors, mirrors, and more... Throw vinegar and water in a spray bottle and you’re ready to go!
2. Laundry additive: From fabric softener to laundry freshener... Dump some in either part of your laundry cycle and see the difference!
3. Fabric freshener: Mix vinegar, water, and your favorite essential oils in a spray bottle and you have a homemade, non-toxic, “febreze” type fabric and carpet freshener.
4. Facial Toner: Mix water and apple cider vinegar for a cool, tingly, skin refreshing toner after washing your face.
5. Hair rinse/conditioner: Mix vinegar and water in an old shampoo bottle and squirt through hair after washing... also part of the No ‘Poo approach, then rinse.
Now I know there are sooo many more ways I use vinegar, but other than cooking, these are my favorites!
Let me know what your favorite uses for vinegar are in the comments.
Love,
Colleen
Baking Soda
Like the bag states...One Bag So Many Uses...
Here are my top 5 uses for baking soda:
1. Shampoo- mix ¼ cup of baking soda and ¾ cup of hot water in an old shampoo bottle and shake. Squirt all over wet hair, massage through, and leave on for a few minutes. Rinse. Now you just did a No ‘Poo shampoo!
2. Homemade Deodorant- one of the key ingredients in my homemade deodorant recipe!
3. Facial Scrub- mix 1 Tbsp. baking soda with enough water to make a paste and rub all over clean face to gently exfoliate. Rinse with cool water.
4. Stain Remover- when mixed with hydrogen peroxide and a little dish soap, baking soda is a powerful stain remover! I use this exclusively for all of our stain removal needs.
5. Cleaner for Stoneware- Just because you
can’t use soap on stoneware doesn't mean you can’t clean it. I scrub a little baking soda, under hot water, on my stoneware when they seem a little greasy and it freshens them right up!
So there you have it! My top 5 uses for my beloved baking soda! Have fun experimenting with it yourself!!!
Love,
Colleen
OK, actually there are more than three things I can't live without, but this is my secret ingredient list for almost all of my DIY beauty treatments and cleaning needs!
1. Baking Soda
2. Vinegar (white or apple cider)
3. Coconut Oil
Oh, the possibilities that I have found for these three things in my life have been endless!!!!
From shampoo to stain remover, facial toner to all purpose cleaner, hair treatment to homemade deodorant...
It's amazing how versatile just a few items can be!
Stay tuned next week for DIY creations to try with each of these incredible ingredients!
Love,
Colleen
Super Fun Hair Mask!!!
This is one of my and my girls favorite things to do...
We LOVE finding new, "kooky", homemade beauty regimens and giving them a try. So today I "suffered" through for the sake of the blog lovers I have and did a hair mask. :)
Here is how it turned out...
First you need: coconut oil, castor oil (it is a GREAT beauty product!), an egg, and another oil like sunflower, sweet almond, or jojoba.
I purchased all my products from Wal-mart with the exception of the huge jar of coconut oil from Sam's, but coconut oil is pretty popular now and you can find it many places.
Now that you have your miracle ingredients, let's start mixing!
So, crack your egg in a bowl and whip it till its blended...
Then in a separate bowl, slowly melt 2 Tbsp. of coconut oil on the stove or microwave. I do 15 sec. intervals in the microwave until its in liquid form.
While that is melting, mix 2 Tbsp. sunflower oil, and 1 Tbsp. castor oil in egg bowl. When coconut oil is melted add that in too and mix it all together.
Then comes the fun part!!
Make sure your hair is brushed through and start scooping the mix out by hand and
smearing it on your hair.
BTW, this isn't a clean process so make sure you are over the sink and wearing something that can get messy.
After you coat your hair, make sure mixture is worked through to ends, pin hair up
And cover with shower cap, or wrap plastic wrap around it, and let it sit for 30 mins.
Now after many years of dyeing my hair blonde (Surprise!! HAHA!) and birthing 4 kids, my hair has seen better days. But I do have to say, I can definitely tell a huge difference after this mask is washed out.
So, after the 30 mins. wash it out using whatever you normally use. But a few notes from someone who doesn't want to be held responsible for any unhappy experiences...
1. If you do NO 'POO, (if you DO then you know what I'm talking about...if you DON'T then look forward to another informational post!) break down and use it in this case! NO 'POO is great!!! The only way I wash (or don't wash) my hair, but regular hair oil is different from slathering your hair with 3 different types of oil and an egg, so NO 'POO won't get it out!
2. You will have to shampoo at least twice to get the oil and egg out of your hair. You can still use conditioner after the
second lather and rinse.
3. DO NOT USE HOT OR VERY WARM WATER!!! If you can not shower in tepid temp. water then, rinse and wash your hair in the sink but: DO NOT USE HOT OR VERY WARM WATER!!!
You will literally COOK the egg onto your hair and have to wash it out even longer! (If only I had pics from those "friends of mine" who did not listen...)
Now here is a before and after shot of my hair today:
BEFORE
AFTER
Now I don't know if you can tell but the ends of my hair are much smoother and definitely feel like hair and not straw!
This mask can be done once a week and you can adjust the measurements based on your hair. I actually need to start doubling my recipe since my hair has grown out.
This mask helps strengthen and grow your hair. I have seen drastic improvements in my hair by using this.
So, if you decide to jump in and try it out leave a comment so we know how it has worked for you!
I'd love to hear about any of your homemade beauty secrets, or if you have one you want to try but haven't, send it to me and I'll be the guinea pig...along with my daughters! HAHA!
Love,
Colleen
(I would like to give credit to my photographer Nellie Helton for all of the pictures in this post. Thanks girlie!)
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