1. Age Spots (also known as liver spots) – applying coconut oil directly to the age spot will help it fade.

2. After Shave – coconut oil will help heal your skin after shaving without clogging pores. Great for razor burn!

3. Baldness – apply three times a day to affected area of hair loss. Coconut oil supports cell regeneration.

4. Body Scrub – mix coconut oil and sugar together and rub all over! Rinse off and your skin will be super soft! You can add in essential oils if you would like a specific smell.

5. Bug Bites – when applied directly to a bug bite, coconut oil can stop the itching and burning sensation as well as hasten the healing process.

6. Chapstick – just rub a little into lips and it not only acts as a softening agent but it also has an SPF of about 4 so you get a little protection!

7. Cradle Cap – having issues with dry skin on your baby’s scalp? Coconut oil will not only nourish your baby’s skin, it also helps eliminate cradle cap. Just rub a teaspoon onto scalp daily.

8. Dandruff – coconut oil soaks into the scalp moisturizing dry skin and relieves symptoms of dandruff. It also helps to control oil secretion from the scalp, another leading cause of dandruff.

9. Deodorant – coconut oil alone can be used as a deodorant, but even more effective in combination with cornstarch/arrowroot powder and baking soda!

10. Diaper Salve – very comforting on a rashy bum with no harsh chemicals. Also safe for cloth diapers.

11. Eye cream – apply under the eyes to reduce puffiness, bags and wrinkles. Use on the lids in the evening.

12. Face Wash/ Soap – mix equal parts coconut oil with olive oil, almond oil, avocado oil and castor oil and use in place of soap when washing your face. Wet face, rub oil in and leave on for two minutes, rinse and pat dry. One teaspoon should be adequate.

13. Hair conditioner/ Deep Treatment – use as a leave-in hair conditioner by applying a teaspoon of coconut oil to your ends and then running your fingers through your hair to distribute the rest!

14. Makeup Remover – use a cotton swab and a dab of coconut oil and you would be amazed at how well it works!

15. Moisturizer – simply scoop some out of the jar and apply all over your body, including neck and face.

16. Stretch Mark Cream – coconut oil is great at nourishing damaged skin. It may not be the magic stretch mark cure but it will help.

17. Toothpaste – mix coconut oil and baking soda and dab a little of the mix on your toothbrush as a toothpaste.

18. Wrinkle Prevention and Wrinkle Reducer – rubbing coconut oil on winkles and sagging skin helps strengthen the connective tissues to bring back that youthful look!

19. Breastfeeding – for breastfeeding moms, consuming 3 ½ tablespoons of coconut oil daily will enrich the milk supply.

20. Bones and Teeth – coconut oil aids in the absorption of calcium and magnesium leading to better development of bones and teeth.

21. Nausea – rub a dab of coconut oil on the inside for the wrist and forearm to calm an upset stomach.

22. Stress Relief – relieve mental fatigue by applying coconut oil to the head in a circular, massaging motion. The natural aroma of coconuts is extremely soothing thus helping to lower your stress level.

23. Chewing Gum in Hair Remover – just rub some coconut oil over the stuck chewing gum, leave in for about 30 minutes, then roll the gum between your fingertip. Voila! It’s out!

24. Goo Gone – just mix equal parts coconut oil and baking soda into a paste. Apply to the “sticky” area and let it set for a minute. Then scrub off with an old toothbrush or the scrubby side of a sponge.

25. Insect repellent – mix coconut oil with peppermint oil extract and rub it all over exposed skin. Keeps insects off better than anything with DEET! Tons safer too.

Have a wonderful holiday weekend!!

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We wanted it on the wall because 1- it’s supposedly the #1 source of accidents in houses with a toddler (and yes those are Aiden’s handprints smudged all over the bottom) and 2- I wanted the top of the sideboard clear (which didn’t end up happening at all).

We also put a picture rail above it because we wanted the TV at a good eye-level from the couch but wanted to make it look more cohesive and like all the different (all Ikea) pieces were a unit (which they are not). And we want to disguise it a little bit and make it seem less like the focal point since we’re fans of conversation as well as TV. A mustache would be awesome, but probably wouldn’t help for this purpose.

Not sure what Tuvia is doing with the flashlight in his mouth…I have to assume something needed to be done behind the TV

When we were trying to figure out the whole setup, we decided to get a white cover for the wires. Because we don’t own our apartment, we didn’t want to break down the wall to hide the wires so we got this cover from Best Buy instead.

Does not blend into the wall like I hoped it would

Tuvia also put the boxes on the bookshelves so they wouldn’t be a focal point either. We can’t put them all on one shelf because of wire reach and most of them shouldn’t have something on top (ventilation?). Eventually I want to get pretty storage for the DVDs so they’re right next to the DVD player but not in plain view. Right now they have any short books we can shove in there, but I am not loving the look.

There he is sitting on the sideboard again

In theory, having a white cover coming out of the TV didn’t bother me, but in reality it drives me nuuuuts! So we put up art to camouflage it a little bit. (Which also contributes to the disguising-the-TV thing we were going for)

Our first attempt at wire cover camo

The art on the sideboard as it is now…I like it better in person- still working on my photography skills!

We’ve gone through several variations on what we put there and while we like this setup, it presents two problems:

1- Aiden likes to play with his toys on the sideboard as it’s a good height for him and he sometimes knocks down the pictures which concerns us for his safety (and the pictures’ safety, let’s be honest)

and 2- we can’t figure out what to put on the picture rail above the TV without the whole thing looking too busy.

This is what we had on the picture rail originally, before we had anything on the sideboard:

I promise Tuvia doesn’t always sit on the sideboard. He just seems to in these pictures.

This is with art above and below the TV:

There was still some white peeking out and it looked way too busy. So we tried other things

It doesn’t vary much, but we wanted to work with what we had first. The picture rail art has changed about once a week since then with different photographs, frames, and art we have around the house and like the good blogger I am (womp, womp) I didn’t document it BUT we have a whole new plan now!

So you don’t have to scroll, here’s the picture again of how the art on the sideboard is now:

The art on the sideboard as it is now

There’s still some white peeking through and still the problem of Aiden knocking over the art, but this amount of white doesn’t bother me that much and once we finalize the art above AND below, there are ways to attach the art to the wall and maintain this casually leaning on the wall look.

So..we were at Target and as usual I kept pointing to things and saying things like “oh, hello there pretty thing” and “how did my throw pillow get in Target when it should be on our couch?” and I noticed that a vast majority of the things I was pointing to were from the new home decor line at Target, Threshold.

One of the many things that I made goo goo eyes at was this frame

I’ve been wanting to add some metallics (specifically, gold) to our home (and pink, but that’s another story) and really liked this as a start. We got it and liked how this picture of Mia looked in it

Mia’s gorgeous headband was made by my talented sister in law who lives in Israel

Since I’ve been really into gold lately, I also knew exactly what I wanted to go with it: a gold “LOVE” print from MadeByGirl by Jen Ramos. I am OBSESSED with her Cocoa & Hearts paintings, they are GORGEOUS and always sold out and if anyone wants to be my absolute favorite person forEVER then they will get me one. (We also have a MadeByGirl print in our room, but there will be NO updates on that until Mia is in the other room with Aiden and our bedroom stops looking like a ….okay I don’t want to say hurricane so soon after Sandy but you get what I’m saying)

Still in the plastic until we get it framed

We ordered the print and though we have yet to frame it, we are loving it where it is right now. We’re going to look for a thin gold frame like the one pictured below, at Target since Michael’s didn’t have one I liked and I do believe that the Threshold line has one…score!

Finally getting to the point of this post: we decided that (for now at least) we want to have the love print, the metallic frame with a picture of Mia in it, and a metallic frame with a picture of Aiden in it on the picture rail above the television. That way there will be some cohesion and simplicity.

In order to unify what is above and below the TV, we decided to paint the wooden frame of this picture gold

My bride from the 1920′s… from the FIT Special Collections department (a fantastic resource)

For this easy project, all we needed was some paint and a brush. We considered metallic spray paint, but felt like it was needless to expose ourselves to the toxic fumes the can warned us about when we had an easy alternative.

I have been itching to do stencil projects so I used this opportunity to buy stencil brushes and used those. I am sure I could have used others, but I like how it came out a little textured so I’m definitely happy with the purchase.

I painted on a different angle for each section and didn’t smooth out the paint to keep it a little more interesting. With only one coat you can still kind of see the “wood grain” (it’s Ikea so I have to assume it’s not actually wood) and I like how it came out!

I canNOT seem to get a picture of the whole frame that I like, but here it is:

And from various other angles…

It’s less mustardy yellow and more really pretty gold in real life.

And here is the finished product in it’s place:

The result is pretty subtle, but that works for me

And because there was some of the gold left on the plate and I could not bear to throw it out… I decided to do something else I’ve been meaning to try and I added a band of gold to the bottom of a glass jar. I used a washed out pasta sauce jar instead of one of our mason jars just in case I didn’t do it correctly or didn’t like how it came out….which is good because I didn’t read the instructions first and it didn’t come out at all like I thought it would

It could be that it’s because I didn’t clean it with alcohol first, maybe I needed a different brush, or maybe it just needs more coats. In the end though…I kind of like it.

The rest of the apartment better watch out though because just about everything looks prettier with some gold paint on it. Tuvia would look nice in gold….#goldcrazywifeontheloose

Anyone else going crazy for gold lately? It might be all the holiday decor I’m seeing everywhere, but sparkly=happy Gilit. Thanks for stopping by!

P.S. Check out this post by the ever fab Emily Henderson on disguising your TV

{<–my dearest & closest friend }

Ingredients Needed:

• 3 cups white sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup solid coconut oil {add more for a less gritty substance}
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of peppermint oil

How To:

• Put your coconut oil in a bowl and melt it. {You don’t want boiling hot, just melted.}

• Mix your sugar and cocoa powder together.

• Once it is mixed together well, add in your melted coconut oil and your peppermint oil.

and voila! dunzo! One batch is equivalent to a 16 oz jar.

Q’s & A’s:

• Why sugar? -It natural exfoliates your skin, helps eliminate blemishes, restores balance to your skin oils but does not clog pores. {via blog.hothousebotanicals.com}
• Why cocoa powder? -It is an antioxidant. Antioxidants work with the skin to diffuse damage caused by sun damage, pollution and smoking.  Antioxidants also help to protect skin from future damaged. {via annmariekostyk.com}
• Why coconut oil? -It acts as an effective moisturizer on all types of skins. Coconut oil is a safe solution for preventing dryness and flaking of skin. It also delays wrinkles, and sagging of skin which normally become prominent with age. {via organicfacts.net}
• Why peppermint oil? -Peppermint oil can help relieve problems with unhealthy skin, acne, soreness, and itching when applied. It also helps tone the skin by getting rid of red blotches, and enlivening dull skin. {via www.ehow.com}

Enjoy!

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From top:

1. For the tech-savvy-geeky boy: DIY racecar USB stick 
2. For the coffee junkie: Cork coasters and fun mugs
3. For the thoughtful guy: Wooden notepad
4. Ideal gift for the romantic: I love you frame
5. For the metro male: Pepper & Mint body scrub
6. For the office bound man: Pretty paper weights

{Like I haven’t been already }

Items Needed:

• Yarn
• Light Bulbs {I used two different sizes.}
• Glue Gun
• Scissors

How To:

• Wrap the bulbs in yarn, gluing as you go.

• Tie yarn around the top of each bulb, making a knot and linking it to the next bulb.

• Display! {I put two nails behind the picture frame and hung each end of the garland with the yarn.}

Cute, cute, cute right?! You could totally add a loop on the end of these and hang them as ornaments OR you could toss them in a lovely decorative bowl and display them on your coffee table. There is a TON of possibilities! So much inspiration going on in my mind right now…

I know you will have a blast making these!

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Now on to DIY things…

Our poor bedroom was in dire need of a bit of a facelift. I mean isn’t your bedroom supposed to be the ultimate room in your house? Your escape from every day life? Well, mine was not… nope, not. at. all. It looked like someone had just chucked a whole bunch of old-timey crap in there that didn’t even go together one bit. It was the room that had all the left over junk in it. I couldn’t stand it anymore. It needed a little A LOT of life. Many people like their bedroom to be calm, collected and soothing but for me and hubs we wanted it to be a little funky and fun. I find that patterns on a wall seem to lift the spirits in a room so what did I do? I went with a mod inspired wall. Luckily I had left over paint from a previous project so I didn’t have to buy ANY paint! YAY!

Check it out..

{I apologize for the grainy photos..the next bedroom update will have better photos. promise! }

Taped it off…

Then painted and once I pulled off the tape this is what I got…

You’ll see a little bit of craziness going on with the paint behind the pillow. That will ALL be covered by our headboard. Which leads me to my next project…. to make a headboard! Stoked!

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Coolest, simplest DIY gifts for women this Christmas. From top left:

1) Geometrical jewelry 2) Statement copper-piping necklace  3) Rose polymer clay earrings 4) Kate Spade handbag clutch 5) Contemporary gold bowl 6) Luxury body polish 7)Pretty bow necklace 8) Trendy rainbow bracelets 9) casual Chanel loafers

{FYI: You will feel a slight “discomfort” when you use this waxing recipe same as if you went to a professional to get it done.}

Supplies Needed:

• 1″ strips of cotton fabric {approx. 8″-10″ in length}
• Wooden popsicle sticks {or spatula}

Before getting started: Wash well with soap and water, removing all traces of oil, makeup, deodorant and dirt. Pat dry.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 cup of honey
• Juice from half of a lemon {Freshly squeezed}

Heating Instructions:

1. Combine ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat.
2. Once it starts to boil, reduce heat to low and cook until the mixture reaches 250 degrees Fahrenheit {constantly stirring in the process so it does not boil over} then remove from heat. **If a thicker paste is preferred, heat to 245 degrees Fahrenheit.**
3. Let it sit until it is warm then pour into a canning jar.
4. Continue to let it cool till it’s at room temp. **If not cooled properly, it can cause burns.**

How to Apply:

1. Lightly dust the surface with cornstarch and rub it in. Lightly is the key! {This will help protect the skin so the paste doesn’t stick as harshly to your skin, lessening the “discomfort”.}
2. Using the popsicles sticks, slather on a thin layer in the direction of the hair growth then cover with cotton strips.
3. Rub the fabric a few times firmly {in the direction of the hair growth}.
4. Let it sit approx. 1 minute.
5. Pull fabric off quickly in the opposite direction of the hair growth. {If mixture gets to cool you can reheat.}

{{Does this hurt? Yes, A wee bit. BUT the benefit of waxing opposed to shaving is when you wax you pull the root out instead of just cutting the tip of the hair off. This means it will take a lot longer for your hair to grow back.}}

Tips:

• Hair should be at least 1/4″ so the mix/paste has something to really grab onto.
• Hand wash the strips in warm soapy water, dry and reuse them again and again. {Muslin or diaper flannel work well.}
• Careful to avoid growths such as skin tags, warts and moles. Also avoid applying on top of stretch marks, abrasions, scrapes or cuts, scar tissue, delicate area around the eyes, rashes and varicose veins.
• Seal any leftovers in the jar and refrigerate to use later. {simply reheat}
• If paste is too hard to work with, add a spoonful of water and reheat in the microwave for a minute or until it’s hot. Stir then allow to cool as above.

What do you all think?! I’m hoping to start using this recipe more and shaving less!

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I honestly thought this would only be a 2 part story (and one week job) but alas, here we are, in the second week of construction (or deconstruction as I like to call it) and only the second part to this neverending story. When we started the demo, we ran into more problems than anticipated. It turns out the plumbing was horribly undersized and questionably installed. We had to basically rip it all out and start anew.

Here we are starting the demo all bright-eyed and bushy tailed.  Only if we knew what lay ahead…

We ripped out the old gyp board and uncovered metal tile and a declaration of love from the previous owners.

Post demo.  This is what I refer to as The Walking Dead bathroom.  I was tempted to board the door shut and spray paint “Don’t Open, Dead Inside.”

I took a video to show the demo since the bathroom is so tiny it is hard to get a good shot in there.  Note: in the last second of the video you can see a cutout of Chris Carpenter’s head on the wall of the living room.  He is my wife’s favorite Cardinal and it has nothing to do with his skills as a pitcher…’nuff said.

My sister-in-law (also my contractor/tile installer/interior designer) snagged this action shot of me ripping out the studs between the shower and the master bedroom closet.  There wasn’t enough room to put the shower valve in the existing wall so a new 2×4 stud wall needed to be built and believe it or not, but the hard hat was necessarily with all of the plaster chunks falling from the ceiling.

Well, on Monday we’ll be starting week 3 and hopefully the last post in this God forsaken home “improvement.”  Here we go…

This DIY is literally as simple as buying a sheet of cork (from any good art store), and cutting out a toast-shape. Do this by simply creating one toast, and using its shape to trace other toasts

{Via: Ffffound}

{Via: Our Vintage Home Love}

{Via: The Shelterness}

{Via: HotPod}

{Via: One Lucky Day}

{Via: Dishfunctionaldesigns}

{Via: Apartment Therapy}

{Via: El hada de papel}

{Via: Collected Ideas}

{Via: Sunday In Bed}

{Via: come-over0}

{Via: Bloesem}

{Via: My Scandinavian Home}

{Via: All Washi Tape}

aaaand we can’t forget about the kiddos…

{Via: Ramble on Cat}

Can’t wait to try some of these out in different rooms in my home!

Have a great weekend!

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We all know Christmas is right around the corner and yet I still have pumpkins outside of my house. {EEPS! No bueno.} It was time to chuck those pumpkins and bring a little Christmas spirit to my outdoors. I decided to start off the outdoor decorating by making a wreath to warm up the front door! Check it out!

–ITEMS NEEDED:

• Styrofoam Wreath {Buy them here for $4.99}
• Felt {I used approx. 1 yard}
• Glue Gun
• Scissors
• Measuring Tape
• Ribbon {optional}
• Ornament {optional}

–HOW TO:

1. Cut out strips from your felt. {I cut 1 x 15 in. strips. You can cut them as thick or thin as you would like depending on how thick you want them to be.}
2. Twist the felt strip to make a flower. {Here is a tutorial on how to make fabric flowers.}
3. Glue your flowers onto the styrofoam wreath.
4. Add your ornament. {Mine did not have a thick enough bottom to glue on so I used sewing pins and spray painted the top of them.} 
5. Add a ribbon and display!

{I love my $1.79 Walmart reindeer!}

I just had to add this last pic of my munchkin in!

Have fun DIY-ing!!

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This DIY was inspired by the beautiful Nadine, from Flamboyant (here). Here is how to create this OutNet blouse:

1. Supplies: A white blouse, a square sponge, red & black fabric paint
2. Mix the red fabric paint with a touch of black paint. This will create a dark red, maroon-ish colour
3. Use the sponge as a stamp. Stamp the shirt at the hem, and without adding new paint, stamp upwards 3 – 4 times.
4. Continue this process until the entire shirt’s hem is complete.
5. Mix more red to the dark red. Repeat step 3 & 4 with the new colour.
6. Take plain red and stamp randomly where colour seems very dark, or empty.
7. Leave the paint to dry for 24 hours, and iron over the paint to make it last.
8. Voila, a pretty blouse

{Typically Mondays are “Crock Pot Monday” but with this past week being a holiday it kind of threw me off my schedule. We will resume with “Crock Pot Monday” next week! }

Thanksgiving has barely come and gone and Christmas is in FULL swing around here! {We don’t mess around with our holidays in this household. We make the most of every. single. one.} Two weeks ago I put up our tree, started setting out Christmas decor on the mantle and of course I was adding pine cones in the mix wherever I could. {I know, too soon right?} Everything was looking great until I turned my eyes toward my kitchen table. {Dun, dun, dun…} Completely EMPTY! It needed some Christmas pizzazz, a little h0liday cheer and yet I had nothing {nothing!} left out of my decor to put there! I wanted a budget friendly DIY sooo I ran by the ol’ trusty Walmart and picked up a few mini trees for $0.75 a piece {basically a steal} and decided to make snow globes! Using mason jars, salt and mini trees I was able to create a cozy Christmas display that was uber cheap. Check it out!

Here is how I did it as you’ll see in the pics below as well…

• Glue your object {tree, pine cone, ornament, etc.} to the inside of the mason jar lid.

• Fill your mason jar up with “snow”. {I just used sea salt for mine.}
• Put your lid on the mason jar and flip upside down.

Boom. You are done. Now have fun decorating around the snow globes!

Have fun decorating!

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Here is a very easy tutorial to create a very trendy feature to stress your neckline;

1. Supplies: Balsa-wood, a cutting blade, ringlets and a chain, paint
2. Cut a triangle from the wood and
3. paint the triangle with the design you wish
4. with a toothpick pierce holes in 2 corners of the triangle
5. carefully put the ringlets through the holes, and add the chains
6. Make many many more designs!

With prom season coming up I would like to dedicate a few DIY posts for to create your perfect prom and its accessories. I found this amazing blog that is on prom fashion, (here) and would like you use this as inspiration … what do you think? Send me a message to let me know what you would like to see!

The bathroom renovation has commenced. This has been a long time coming. This renovation will include a new vanity built by yours truly as well as all new finishes. We’re replacing the shower tile which is currently a cream-colored 5×5 square tile and will be replaced with a bright white subway tile with a mosaic accent band. Unfortunately, the original honeycomb floor tile that we discovered after removing the crappy Pergo wood laminate, which should never had been installed in a bathroom in the first place, couldn’t be repaired so it will be replaced by a 12×24 white floor tile with a linen texture laid in a brick pattern.

Also, the chocolate brown paint that we chose when we moved in 4 years ago will be going.  We’re opting for a lighter french grey that will hopefully lighten up the space.  The wainscot will also be replaced with something similar but we are opting dropping the height of the trip so that it doesn’t intersect the light switches, mirror frame, etc.

As I stated early, I will attempt to build the vanity.  The base will be constructed out of poplar, stained a dark brown (kona is the actual color), and the top is a butcher block scrap I bought from the Schaumburg IKEA on my September trip to Chicago (Go Cards!), which I purchased for $3.  The vessel sink has a chip in it, because I’m like a bull in a china shop and this is a tiny bathroom, but we like it and it’s the smallest sink we can find so we purchased the same sink from Lowe’s ($80).

The reason I am building a vanity is that the bathroom is so narrow we have been unable to find a vanity available that is shallow enough.  The vanity I am building is only 12″ deep where the smallest we have found is 16″.  We did find a 12″ vanity at IKEA on our Chicago trip this past fall, the same trip we picked up the butcher block, but the sink was too small and  we liked the vessel sink we already had.

The tile will be laid starting this Tuesday, which will take away the only bathroom we have in the house so we will be temporarily housed at my sister-in-law’s house, who also will be laying the tile – the best in St. Louis I guarantee – contact me if your in the region and need work done.

The plan is the demo will be completed this weekend as well as the vanity construction.  I will post a mid-week update and then a final post hopefully that will be near the end of the week because if it takes longer than that my wife may boot me out of the house!

{Wish us luck }

The Fall and Winter seasons are giving me the cravings something bad. With all the coziness of the holidays it makes me want to eat sweets every stinkin’ day of my life. Hubs knows I’m ALWAYS a sucker for a tasty treat so he decided to whip something up for me…uh-hum, I mean us. Here’s his recipe! Dun…dun…dun…

DOUGHNUT DROPS

INGREDIENTS:

• vegetable oil

• 1 1/3 cup pancake mix

• 1 egg

• 1/3 cup milk

• 2 tablespoon sugar

• powdered sugar

• cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine pancake mix, sugar, milk and egg.
2. Stir until pancake mix is moistened.
3. In a saucepan, heat approximately 1 in of vege oil until boiling.
4. Drop approx. 1 tablespoon of batter into the boiling oil.
5. Brown both sides, then drain on paper towels.
6. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and cinnamon.
7. Repeat.

I will warn you… You’re taste buds will be rejoicingggg. These are incredibly addicting and uber tasty!

Thanks hubs for letting me share your amazing recipe!

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I’m anxious to share the recipe for this cream! DIY-ers, it’s a MUST try! In my little family all of us have eczema and we’ve used everything you can think of including prescription medications and nothing {Yes, nothing!} has worked. THIS is our life saver. {sighhh of relief} End. of. story. {dramatic much? }

This recipe can be used as a daily skin moisturizer to prevent eczema from flaring up. If by chance it does still appear this helps to nip it in the bud quickly! You ready for the best moisturizer recipe ever??? Well, let’s get to it!

HOMEMADE ECZEMA CREAM/SKIN MOISTURIZER

Items needed:

• 1/4 cup of oats
• 3/4 cup of coconut oil
• Few drops of rosemary oil {optional}
• 1 tbsp of olive oil

Recipe:

1. Finely grind the oats to a powder/flour consistency and set aside. {You can use a blender, food processor or a Magic Bullet type of appliance.}
2. Over a low heat, melt the coconut oil in a pan until it has a liquid consistency.
3. Add in a few drops of Rosemary Oil. {If you are adding it.}
4. Add ground oats in the pan and mix until well blended.
5. Now, pour the olive oil into the mixture until blended.

{This is what it will look like once all items are added…}

6. Once all ingredients are mixed, remove from heat and pour in to a small storage container. {It filled up 1 1/2 baby food jars.} Let it harden for several hours.

Now that your recipe is complete… Apply to hands and skin as needed and feel the magic at work! This recipe lasts for a long period of time so enjoy!

• WHY OATS? Oatmeal contains healthy fats. When they come into contact with your skin, these fats help to add moisture to soften and repair your skin.
• WHY COCONUT OIL? Coconut oil works wonders as a moisturizer for all skin types, especially dry skin and aging skin, leaving you refreshed and looking wide-awake. The fat in the oil helps reduce the appearance of wrinkles without any irritation.
• WHY OLIVE OIL? It is a great skin moisturizer, in part because it contains linoleic acid, a compound not made by the body, but which prevents water from evaporating.
• WHY ROSEMARY OIL? Rosemary essential helps in toning your skin and removing dryness.

Source: The Thrifty Couple

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Click here to see the items available: Http://www.etsy.com/shop/PlainPosh

There are many ear warmers for sell like these for only $10!! Perfect for a stocking stuffer or a Christmas gift.

Have a spectacular day DIY-ers!

ITEMS NEEDED:

• Canvas {the size is your choice– I used a 16 x 16}

• Graphic Mail Box Numbers/Letters {You can purchase a pack of them at Walmart for $1.79}

• Mod Podge {I actually used a standard clear sealer as you’ll see in the pics}

• Scissors

• Paint Brush

• Pencil

HOW TO:

1.}} Decide how far apart you would like your lines/phrases to be and lightly draw a line across the canvas with your pencil.

{If you want to be precise with your spacing, divide the length of your canvas by how many lines/phrases you are wanting and the number you are left with will be how many inches you will need to space your words apart.}

EXAMPLE: 16 in canvas divided by 4 lines/phrases = a new line/phrase every 4 inches on your canvas.

2.}} Cut out your numbers/letters, peel the back off and lay them out on your canvas as desired.

3.}} Erase the pencil markings you made.

4.}} Cover your canvas {generously} with mod podge/sealer covering all letters/numbers in the process. {You will want a trash bag, newspaper, etc. under the canvas for this process.}

5.}} Let dry. {approx 1 hour}

6.}} Display your art!

Feel free to share the phrase you use for your art!

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I am so sorry that I’ve not been an active blogger this last month. I’ve been swapped with exams, DIYing my house (will post posts once it is complete), and working like a dog AND planning the next phase of Made in Pretoria. But alas, I am back

Here is a simple DIY to create a beautiful, spring hairdo:

1. Supplies: A bush of faux flowers, a needle and thread, a thin ribbon, a bobby pin
2. Cut the bulbs off from the flower bunch
3. Hand sew the flowers onto the ribbon, about 2cm apart
4. tie the ribbon to the bobby pin
5. When you make the 3 sections for your braid, pin the bobby pin to one section. take the ribbon with the hair section and braid as usual
6. Voila! Absolute prettiness

As you all know I’m switching a couple things up in my craft room at the moment {just to spice it up a bit}. I originally had a very thin, modern chair sitting at my craft table but I decided to move it into another room. I really wanted a chair a little more “boxy” at my craft table {that my wonderful hubs made!} to take up more of the space since the table is so large. Months ago we had bought two bar stools and three wooden chairs at an auction for $1. YES, $1 for ALL of them! I didn’t even reeeeally care about ANY of the chairs but no one, not ONE person was bidding on them and geez…$1? You can’t even buy a pack of gum for a dollar now days! We snagged them up and what do you know…?! I’ve loved them! I decided they needed a little bit of a modern touch though since they are more of traditional style chairs and I don’t fit the bill for a “traditional style” girl. I didn’t necessarily want to paint the entire chair because the color of the wood is lovely sooo I decided to dip-dye the chair{s} and make that my craft room seat. I mean, what’s more fun than dip-dying furniture?!? Here’s how…

1st things 1st}} TAPE IT OFF how high you would like the “dip-dye” look to go on your piece of furniture.

2nd}} PAINT up to the taped off area.

3rd}} TAKE OFF TAPE and VOILA!

I can’t wait to show you what it looks like in the craft room!

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PIN IT HERE:

http://pinterest.com/pin/219620919299951800/

As you all know, I am giving my craft room/office a little TLC {let me tell ya, it is in dire need of it!}. I’m incredibly thankful that I have a space to call “my own” and in saying that… I need to use my space wisely. In the rest of our home it’s mostly “put together” but my craft room, uh hum, it’s clutter fest and of course I’m the person who claims to HATE clutter. I’m hoping soon to go room by room in my house and organize sharing the process with you all! Well now that I’ve “confessed”… let’s move on since this post IS on my thrifted lamp & lampshade makeover and NOT on organization. lol. {In my upcoming posts for my craft room makeover there will be organization tips. Stay tuned }

I found this lamp over a year ago at an antique store in Lafayette but could not find a lampshade to fit nor could I find one I liked. For a “quick fix” I spray painted the lamp and covered the lampshade with some fabric and plopped it in my craft room but it never grew on me. It’s been sitting there for months that way, all dull and boring and I can’t take it another stinkin’ day. It’s time to give my lampshade some LIFE!

Here’s how I did it…

First, I found a lampshade at Goodwill that fit perfectly for only $3.99. {Say whaaaaat?! Yes, $3.99! What a steal right?}

Second, using Frog Tape I taped off stripes on the lampshade.

Third, using one of the “mis-tinted” paints I found on sale at Walmart, I painted over the whole lampshade.

FOURTH, I let it set to dry for approx. 1 hour.

FIFTH, Once it was completely dry, I pulled off the tape and BOOM, stripes!

Can’t wait to share more!

For more tips and tricks, follow me on FACEBOOK and TWITTER!

Have a great weekend!!

the appetizer!

Craft Table Makeover

Before:

{Taped off the design I wanted…}

{Painted over it with white paint and when I took off the tape this is what I got…}

After:

{{There will be better pictures of the table to come! I just didn’t want to give the mini-makeover of the room away just yet! Once I show the individual DIY’s I will show the room as a whole so you get a better idea! Can’t wait!}}

Enjoy your day!
Follow along with me on Facebook and/or Twitter!

I just wanted to pop in for a moment and reveal who the winner of the $25 Joanne Fabrics gift card is! Thanks to everyone who entered the contest! ALL of the DIY projects were fantastic! This contest was judged by whoever received the most Facebook “likes” on their DIY photo though AAAAAANNNDDDD the winner of this contest IS…………..

Kristen Drury!!!

These DIY fabric covered blocks she did for her daughters nursery are adorable! ) Check them out…

I can’t wait to have another giveaway… I LOVE giveaways!

Well, I’m off to get things together for our Halloween party tonight! Pics to come.

Have a great weekend!