Thrifty Co-Worker

One of my co-workers and I have bonded over our love of a good sale. She gives me a heads up for online sales I can't miss and is happy to show off her most recent finds. Needless to say, I was thrilled when we were recently able to go to the Goodwill Outlet together.

I was able to find the cutest little antique looking Christmas tree decorations (originally $20 at Anthropologie,) a Vera Bradley notebook (which I can't wait to put my organic recipes in,) a liquid/dry measuring cup (with the metric system,) Ann Taylor Loft jeans, and gray leggings (with the tag still on them!)

But how much did it all cost you ask? Only $2.51! What a steal!

Natural Hair and Body Care

In this week's natural living class we covered hair and body care! To make your own shampoo, conditioner, body scrub, and bath salts you will need:

1. Coconut Oil
2. Castile Soap
3. Olive Oil
4. Essential Oils
5. Water
6. Guar Gum
7. Epsom Salts
8. Baking Soda
9. Raw Sugar

Here are the recipes we used:

Shampoo
2 Tbsp. Coconut Oil
5 Tbsp. Castile Soap
1/4 - 1/2 tsp. Olive Oil (for dry hair)
10 drops Essential Oil

• Lavender for oily hair
• Cedar Wood for oily hair and to strengthen and thicken hair
• Peppermint for dry hair
• Lemon for oily hair and to strengthen hair
• Mel A (Tea Tree) for oily hair and dandrif

I did not add olive oil, and I used 10 drops of Mel A.

This shampoo is very gentle, you should use about 1/2 tsp. at a time.
Shampoo should be refrigerated if you won't use it up in a week. Otherwise the coconut milk may go bad.

Conditioner
1/4 - 1/3 Cup of Water (use less water for dryer hair/thicker conditioner)
1/3 tsp. Olive Oil
1/2 tsp. Guar Gum
5-10 drops Essential Oil (same as shampoo)

I used Mel A again. I love it's smell!

Conditioner will expire when the oil expires, or the first expiration date of the ingredients.

Body Scrub
3 Tbsp. Coconut Oil - melt
3 Tbsp. Sugar (raw cane or brown sugar)
10 drops Essential Oil

• Lemon to brighten, cleanse, and detox skin
• Frankincense to detox skin
• Lavender for eczema, sensitive, and dry skin
• Orange and Mel A to tighten, firm, anti-aging, and fight cellulite
• Mel A and Purification to fight acne

I chose Orange and Mel A and use it every other day in place of body wash.

Bath Salts

1/2 Cup Epsom Salts

1/4 Cup Baking Soda

10 drops Essential Oils (choose depending on your need)

• Sick: Thieves and RC
• Pain: Peppermint
• Relax: Lavender & Frankincense
• Detox: Lemon & Ginger
• Anxiety: Lavender, Blue Spruce/Balsam Fur
• Sore Muscles: Peppermint & Copaiba
• Energy: Peppermint/Citrus
• Sleep: Lavender & Cedar Wood

I used 5 drops of Lavender and 3 drops of Frankincense for relaxing. This will make enough for two bathes.

I really liked the bath salts and would definitely make that recipe again (even for gifts for friends!) I also liked the body scrub which left my skin feeling SO moist and rejuvenated. The shampoo left my hair feeling very clean and the conditioner was a great texture. However, my hair quickly felt and looked oily, so jury's still out on those.

Natural Body Care Products

In this week's natural living class we made chap stick, a lotion bar, and deodorant. So exciting! To make these body care products you will need:

1. Coconut oil
2. Shea butter
3. Mango butter
4. Beeswax (best to use pre-shredded)
5. Vitamin E
6. Arrow root starch
7. Baking Soda
8. Essential Oils

Here are the recipes we used:

Chapstick

1/2 tsp. beeswax

1 tsp. shea butter

1 tsp. mango butter

10 drops essential oils of your choice

Lotion Bar

1 Tbsp. coconut oil

1 Tbsp. shea butter

1 Tbsp. beeswax

1 capsule Vitamin E (400 IU)

20 drops essential oils of your choice

Deodorant

2 Tbsp. coconut oil

1 Tbsp. shea butter

1 Tbsp. mango butter

2 Tbsp. beeswax

1 capsule Vitamin E (400 IU)

2 Tbsp. arrow root starch

2 Tbsp. baking soda

30 drops essential oils of your choice

We started by melting the beeswax, shea butter, and mango butter for the chap stick in a double boiler on the stove. Once the ingredients were melted we added our essential oils and poured the chap stick into containers. I wear contacts and have TONS of extra contact cases so I re-purposed some into chap stick holders. For this recipe I used 5 drops of lavender and 5 drops of orange, both are great for your skin.

Please note that it is important to not let your essential oils get too hot or they may start to loose some of their healing properties. You should add the oil once you have taken the jar out of the double boiler.

Next we made lotion bars melting the coconut oil, shea butter, and beeswax in the double boiler. Once those ingredients were melted we added Vitamin E and essential oils. I used 10 drops of pan away and 10 drops of peppermint to make a "pain relief bar."

The deodorant was very similar. We melted the coconut oil, shea butter, mango butter, and beeswax in the double boiler. Then we added the Vitamin E, arrow root starch, baking soda, and essential oils. I used 10 drops of Mel A (tea tree oil), 10 drops of lemon, and 10 drops of peppermint. This combination will be antiseptic, bactericide, anti-fungal, and refreshing.

We poured both the lotion bars and deodorant into muffin wrappers but a recycled deodorant stick would also work very well.

If you are planning to use the same melting jar for each recipe it is important to save the deodorant for last. You don't want any left over baking soda (a salt) drying up your lips or skin!

I have really liked all of these products and would definitely make them again. The deodorant is AMAZING and I think I will quickly be making a permanent home for it in my bathroom cabinet.

For last week's natural living class on makeup click here.

Goodwill Outlet... Again!

What's a gal to do while her husband spends hours and hours in the library archives? Check out the local Goodwill Outlet of course!

As I leisurely learned the lay of land I was able to snag a few deals. For only $2.15 I got a vintage fur (NO RIPS OR TEARS,) a mint condition Nine West purse, and a wooden hanger.

I was SO blown away by the great price for my finds that I think I'll be back.

Natural Makeup

Yesterday one of my girlfriends hosted the first of multiple natural living classes. The theme was MAKEUP, so naturally I was the first one there!

Using a few basic ingredients and recycled baby food jars we made a face scrub, moisturizer, powder foundation, powder bronzer, and a cream eye shadow.

If you'd like to join me in a more natural makeup routine you will need:

1. Arrow root starch
2. Cocoa
3. Cinnamon
4. Ginger
5. Paprika
6. Coconut oil
7. Baking soda
8. Lemon juice
9. Honey
10. Vitamin E
11. Essential oil(s) of your choice

Here are the recipes we used:

Exfoliating Face Scrub

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. lemon juice

4 Tbsp. honey

Moisturizer (Combo/Oily Skin)

4 Tbsp. coconut oil

1 capsule Vitamin E (400 IU)

10 drops essential oil (I used orange)

Heat 10 seconds in microwave to stir, let firm

Powder Foundation

1 Tbsp. arrow root starch

spices to color (I used 1/2 tsp. cocoa, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/8 tsp. ginger, and a smidgen of paprika)

Powder Bronzer

1/2 tsp. arrow root starch

1/2 tsp. cocoa

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Cream Eye Shadow

1/4 tsp. coconut oil

Bronzer powder to color

(3 parts powder to 1 part oil)

I really like the face scrub and moisturizer and plan to continue using them. The powder foundation and bronzer looked nice and went on well but weren't long lasting. The cream eye shadow was difficult to apply and immediately migrated to the creases in my eyelids, I probably won't use it again.

Do you use natural makeup? Feel free to share your favorite recipes and brands!

Car Seat Cover

I was recently asked to make a custom car seat cover for a friend. I loved that I was able to choose the material with her and make it match her nursery perfectly. I bought these matching prints at JoAnn's and used a pattern I found through Pinterest here.

I diverted from the pattern a little bit by adding a layer of quilt batting in the middle for extra insulation and warmth.

Figuring out where to place the handles was a bit of challenge because I don't have a car seat readily available to measure against and my friend didn't have her car seat yet. So, I took the whole project to church with me a borrowed one from a gracious mama to measure. I placed the top outside corner of my sewn square 16 1/2 inches down from the top and 10 inches in from the side.

I even added a "handmade by Marissa" tag that my mama gave me for Christmas last year.

I even had to borrow a co-workers car seat to display the finished product! This was a quick and easy project and I would definitely do it again.

Happy Valentine's Day

Here is a little sneak peak at the Valentine cards I intend to send to a select group of people. Winter is dreary and seems to drag on forever. I fight the winter doldrums with cheery Valentine cards. These are really straight forward so I won't bore you with the details. If you like them just CASE them. (Copy And Share Everything).

A little birdie told me.

Just a little bit of vintage stamping.

Fun with punches.

A variation with the punches.