A few months back I got a new ride, and it came with Sirius XM radio, which means I get to hipster-out regularly, discovering new music every day (except that I park it on the 90s alt rock station most of the time.. can’t get enough Alice in Chains and Elastica!). Occasionally I venture off to see what the cool kids are listening to and the other day was totally blown away by the poppy-gem, right when I needed a reason to smile. Perfection.
diy deodorant.. no, seriously.
Do you ever feel like really simple, little things can be totally life changing? Maybe the day before you didn’t know it existed, or at least, you didn’t care that it did, and you can’t believe how unenlightened you were? That’s how I felt about Buffy the Vampire Slayer, David Bowie’s “The Prettiest Star,” and kale. And now… the beautiful knowledge that I can make my own earth-friendly, aluminum free deodorant without smelling like that kind of hippie.
I made this super easy recipe from Crunchy Betty (heart her) and have been.. um.. testing it.. for the past several days. True, it’s been chilly and rainy here, and not exactly sweltering, sweaty weather for a hard-core smell test. But I can at least confidently say that this stuff works – smell and dryness- for normal day-to-day, spring weather with a sprinkling of cardio and yoga sessions.
It is so easy. You just mix the following ingredients together, and pour into a container.
- 1/4 c. baking soda
- 1/4 c. cornstarch (or arrowroot powder)
- 5 Tbsp. coconut oil
- Essential oils (I used peppermint – check out Crunchy Betty’s post for her suggestions)
The verdict: Everyone’s different in this department, but I am sold. Yes, you have to use your fingers for this instead of a stick you can just swipe on, but that doesn’t matter to me at all. Coconut oil begins to melt at room temp, so the consistency of this stuff will vary based on the temps in your bathroom. It’s going to last forEVER, because you only need a tiny amount. The smell is so lovely without the essential oils, so you could skip them, but I just really like to use them. And it’s really moisturizing, so no itchiness, but the baking soda and cornstarch keeps away the sweat.
The comments on the blog and in Crunchy Betty’s post led me to expect a period of adjustment while my body got used to gentler ingredients, but there was no adjustment for me. Perhaps that is because I’ve been using Alba brand for a while, which doesn’t contain the really harsh stuff found in Secret and other commercial brands. This, however, is better than Alba (or Tom’s) because while those didn’t make me stink, they didn’t keep me as dry.
Would you dare to give this a try?
make your own salad bar!
I love a salad bar as much as the next self-respecting veggie, but a) going out to lunch is expensive, and b) salad bars seem so germy! Shudder. What I love about them, though, is having all those OPTIONS. It is so much more fun to compile a salad with dabs of everything, isn’t it?
So, I decided to create my own, so I could pack a yummy salad every day for lunch at the office, and I might just do this every week! First, I chopped up lots of veggies, salad size, and put them in containers. I dumped a few canned goods like marinated peppers and artichoke hearts into their own containers, too. I whipped up a yummy marinated bean salad. I even threw some sunflower seeds in a small container. Then I put all those small tupperwares into one large plastic tote with a snap lid. Here’s my “salad bar:”
It fits nicely on the bottom shelf of my fridge so I can just grab the whole thing in the AM, and assemble a salad superquick. I even made some fast side salads with dinner during the week with it. Mix-and-match!
Notice just above, I pre-washed varieties of greens and mixed them together in a plastic container (the kind you buy bulk spinach in – just wash between uses). With a few paper towels in there the greens stayed fresh all week.
Do you love seeing what’s in people’s fridges? Welp here’s mine just for fun.
I use a bento box or a large, flat glasslock container (depending on what’s clean) to pack my salad. Then all the juicy stuff stays separate until ready to mix together and eat! I use silicone cupcake cups, small jars, etc in addition to the little plastic bento containers. It’s like food Tetris! 
Have fun playing with your food!
stretch that makeup budget with some mixology.
The other day I was doing a cosmetic and beauty product purge, as I’ve been replacing my commercial products with homemade varieties (more on that later). I wanted to share a couple fun and frugal discoveries I made.
First, I gathered up all the eyeshadows I just wasn’t using. You know- those palettes with a couple colors you never use? Or one that I just couldn’t use because it make my eyes itchy? Since all my wayward shadows are random shades of brown and tan, I decided to see if I could make my own bronzing powder with them. Because bronzing powder is the only thing I always wear, besides mascara, I knew that I would definitely use it up that way! All you need for this is the shadow palettes, and corn starch. I also had a tiny bit of another bronzing palette (Physician’s Formula) and a Bare Minerals bronzing powder to mix in.
I made two variations. For the first, I used my lighter, brighter shades – anything with gold shimmeries and pinky hues. Pretty!
I crushed it up with the back of a spoon until it was in a fine powder, then added corn starch a teaspoon at a time until it was the color saturation I wanted.
In the photo above you’ll see a little bottle of lavender essential oil – I added one drop and mixed well to give it a nice scent – but this isn’t necessary at all. This powder came out lovely! It’s a great everyday powder, over foundation or not, and has a tiny subtle highlighting. The cornstarch doesn’t dry out my skin at all – and I have dry skin! In fact, I have dry shiny skin. Which doesn’t make sense, but it’s true. This powder gives me a nice glow while still making my forehead look less reflective – haha!
The second powder I made was created using up some browner shades, and turned out much darker – more of a contouring powder, which may be fun (if I were more adept at applying makeup! I will have to practice..). I decanted my powders into little plastic containers with lids. These are the kind you make jello shots with, but they are perfect for little projects like this.
The second fun thing I made is a really easy tinted moisturizer. I am a bit of a cheapskate, but somehow I had been suckered into indulging in some seriously spendy (for me) beauty products last fall. First, some MAC foundation I didn’t actually love (it was too heavy) and some Philosophy moisturizer that justified its way into my life on a particularly low self-esteem kind of day (damn you, you genius anti-aging marketing ploys!). Well, I forced myself to use up that MAC foundation to justify the cost, and both products were running low. The little pump on the foundation was not able to get anymore from the bottle, but there must have still been $5 worth of makeup in there!
Rather than toss it, I thought I would mix the products together and make a super fabulous tinted moisturizer. Turns out – that works perfectly – but even that tiny dab of makeup went really far when mixed with the cream, so I ended up making two small containers of it.. for the second I used the end of another face lotion I had – Boots brand. The Philosophy creme made a nicely-textured tinted moisturizer, but the Boots one is slightly oilier-feeling and I don’t know why. Since I have dry skin, a little extra oil isn’t a big deal, but I thought I would mention it.
I won’t have to buy makeup for months – and because all of the resulting concoctions are lighter and brighter than the products I used to make them from, they are perfect for summer.
What do you think? Do you mix up your own custom cosmetics – or would you try this?
There is nothing like this song.
deck season.
Being someone who can only tolerate temperatures of 55 degrees Fahrenheit and higher, I feel like the year is really divided into only two seasons: deck season, and no-deck season. As soon as the snow is melting and the sun is out, our deck becomes another room of the house. For eating, for studying, for wine-sipping, for cooking… for basically anything that doesn’t require privacy.
Though nothing fancy, the deck was my favorite aspect of this house when we were putting an offer on it (this is two years ago, pre-lawn).
Well, the girl is getting fancier this summer. We are in the process of building it out about 3 feet, and painting it up to match the house. I’m so excited!!! So much so that I can’t stop thinking of how I’m going to prettify it once it’s done. Here’s my Zen-space mood board for the new-and-improved deck:
Mostly DIY here, but I definitely want to paint up the dining table/chairs, add some additional seating, and add some decor to make it lovelier and nice for entertaining.
We’ve got a LOT happening in our yard right now and I can’t wait to mind the details. Some more outdoor living space inspiration from Pinterest:
The stained glass! The jewel tones! This is so pretty.. and actually attainable. Source.
I love everything about this, and it is super low-maintenance. Source.
I think I have blogged this picture 3 times now! Everything looks good with a coat of teal and that door is insanely beautiful. Teal has got to be my favorite color {if I were forced to choose}, and I love the look of it against bright green foliage. Dig the global vibe, too. Source.
So… what are you working on/planning for spring/summer??
green grocery shopping + a buy local challenge
The other day I was unloading groceries on the kitchen counter. It’s a bit of an ordeal because I have to take all my mason jars from the pantry to decant my bags of dry goods into them, and take the produce out of their little reusable baggies so I can roll them up with my Envirosax bags.
But, by ordeal I don’t mean that I hate it. I actually realized just then, I’ve come to absolutely love my food-getting routine because I have it pared down to an Eco-friendly science at this point, and I save a lot of money. It’s one of only a few things I have a sense of control over in my life. However, what it isn’t, anymore, is convenient. At least, not when compared to the way grocery stores want you, and lead you, to shop. And that, too, gives me a sense of rebellion I have grown to be addicted to (starting with one itty bitty thing will make you want to examine everything else you do in life, and improve them all.)
So, because it’s awesome to be a tree-hugger, and because I’m getting pretty good at it, I thought I would share some of my greener ways (I promise it’s more worth it than painful). I am starting with my grocery routine. Here are some ideas:
- Ditch all disposable bags. This is the obvious one and most people are using reusable bags these days. I have been using the same set of Envirosax I got on Amazon for several years because they hold a lot, are really cute, roll up small, and are washable. A set of 5 is around $35 and I use them for everything! But you can take it further and reduce the use of the thin, disposable bags for produce and bulk items, by bringing your own reusable bags and containers. I use small muslin bags for bulk items like beans and grains, and thin mesh bags for produce. Extra hippie points if you make your own from old fabric items, but I purchased mine at an Eco shop (locally made by someone way cooler than me).
- Reduce other packaging. Bulk bins are the way to go, even if you don’t bring your own containers. The packaging is still less, and it’s far less expensive. I think dry beans are about 1/5 the cost of a can of beans (serving for serving). Most grocery stores will allow you to use your own containers for things like spices, as well. You weigh the container first, then when you are checking out your items you have them subtract the container weight. Easy! And while you will spend something like $4 for a small bottle of most spices in the spice aisle, you will pay cents for bulk equivalents. You will feel like you totally robbed them the first time. I use these containers for spices, and you can see my post here about it (three years later, a different kitchen, and I still love my system).
- Figure out a good food storage system. Of course, if you buy in bulk and use your own bags, the stuff you buy won’t come in its own package. Investing in food storage containers is crucial to saving money in the long run. I use canning jars for my dry goods and it’s perfect. You can keep using them forever.
- Buy local. In the summer I go to the Farmer’s Market to get lots of things, and there is no down side to it. It’s cheaper, it’s healthier, it supports your local community and farms, and nothing has to be shipped from across the country. Plus it’s wayyy more fun than going to a grocery store. Also, I’ve recently starting participating in a local co-op for produce and bread. Every Saturday I pick up my box, and it’s a real bargain. If you have one in the area, give it a shot!
- Have things delivered. We also have our milk, eggs, cheese, and Greek yogurt delivered from a local dairy only 1 mile away. Everything is hormone-free and local. The eggs are cage-free and organic. Between the dairy delivery, and produce/bread pickups, I don’t go to the store very often anymore. It saves money (less impulse buying) and time.. which totally makes up for the excess time I spend container-wrangling.
- Eat mostly veggies. Factory farming is bad for the planet. You can’t reuse or recycle much of the gross packaging from meat, either. Eating more plants and less meat will save money and resources.
- Buy versatile products. When a recipe I want to make calls for an ingredient I don’t have, I Google substitutes for it before buying it. It’s likely I already have something that will work. Pantry staples are pretty versatile. Also, some products are just worth every penny because you can use them in place of so many expensive alternatives. I’d never used coconut oil until about a year ago (Skinny Bitch in the Kitch recommends it for many recipes). I’ve since discovered it’s great for greasing muffin tins/bread pans when baking, as a facial moisturizer, as a leave-in hair conditioner, as lotion (in a pinch), as a mouth wash (really!), to remove labels from things (like its own jar when you want to reuse it for something else!), as a sun screen.. the list goes on. No jars of random, unused (or once-used) products.
- Compost the scraps. All the veggies peels, apple cores, celery ends, etc, can be composted if you have a garden (even a flower garden). This goes above-and-beyond the grocery store trip, but is worth mentioning!
There are probably lots of things I didn’t think of – so let me know if you have other good tips!
Finally.. a challenge! It’s been a long time since I’ve done one, so I thought April 1 I would begin one for the fun of it. Starting April 1 (for one month) I will be doing a buy-local challenge. That means only buying from locally owned/operated establishments, and eating in local restaurants that feature, where possible, locally-made products. That was a mouthful, but I am stoked. Who’s in?
