Since I made the oatmeal lavendar soap and didn't want to waste the oats; I made this scrub.
Citrus Oatmeal Scrub
1/2 cup soaked oatmeal
1 tbsp baking soda
1 tbsp jojoba oil
1 tbsp castille soap
My quest for natural products and frugality continues. Today was foaming soap.
Oatmeal and Lavender Homemade Foaming Hand Wash
Ingredients
3 cups water
1/4 cup oatmeal (steel cut or rolled are fine)
1/4 cup liquid castile soap
6 – 12 drops lavender essential oil
1 tsp vitamin E oil
2 tsp jojoba oil
Plus you’ll need a foaming dispenser or two.
Directions
1. Bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Place oatmeal in a glass bowl and pour boiling water over oatmeal. Let sit for 1 – 2 hours and then strain water to remove oats from water. 
2. In a small bowl mix castile soap, essential oil, vitamin E oil, and jojoba oil until fully incorporated.
3. Pour enough of the soap/oil mixture to fill about 10 – 15% of your foaming soap dispenser.
4. Pour oatmeal infused water into the dispenser until nearly full. Twist the lid back on and you’re done!
*This recipe will fill two average sized dispensers.
Sunscreen blocks UV rays which can lead to a vitamin D deficiencies. Vitamin D has been shown to reduce the risk of many cancers and for someone like me with osteoporosis it's essential to keep my brittle bones strong.
Married to a redhead shows me just how easy it is to damage the skin and having spent my life in the sun baking myself slathered in cocoa butter; I am now rather obsessive about sunscreen. I see pasty white men riding shirtless around Phoenix and it makes me worry about their skin!
However the chemicals in sunscreens I am not so thrilled with. The pool chemicals are enough - our skin needs some natural protection and moisture. So I did some research, found some recipes and directions then modified it. Here goes!
DIY Natural Sunscreen
Ingredients:
1/2 cup Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
1/4 cup Shea Butter
1/4 cup Grated bees wax packed
2 Tbs Non nano Zinc Oxide Powder
A few drops of Vitamin E-Oil(optional)
10-20 drops Essential oils (for sun protection use carrot seed, mryhh - fot bug repellant option use Citronella, Cedar Wood, Lavender, Peppermint)
Start with 1/4 cup of organic Shea butter and 1/4 cup of grated organic beeswax.
Directions say to put those with 1/2 cup coconut oil into a double boiler. Except here in Arizona our coconut oil at room temp is already liquid.
I sprayed the mixer and whisk with olive oil for easier cleaning.
Homemade Body Wash
1/2 cup of liquid castile soap
1/4 cup of coconut oil
1/4 cup of filtered or distilled water
10 drops Ylang Ylang essestial oil
5 drops Idaho Blue Spruce essential
2 tsp glycerin
1 tsp vitamin E oil
Mix all together. Ylang Ylang and Blue Spruce are supposed to be great for getting in the mood…if you know what I mean!
It's been coming for a while. The shower has never had the best light and it's been getting harder to see the close up items as my presbyopia progressed. Wearing the contact lenses in the shower became ineffective due to poor lighting and wearing the bifocals impossible. A few years ago the daughter laughed at me when my armpits were hairy and said "I know, they are too close for you to see". Reality and truth hurts.
I have patiently waited for the body hair loss all older women report but it has thinned only. Still have random armpit and leg hair to my chagrin. Sparser sure, but still there. I still need to shave else I look like Mountain Girl. Hmph. It became worse and worse so before I hurt myself using a razor I broke down and bought this electric shaver. This way I can put on the bifocals, shave the legs then take a shower. Like old women do. Sure it works. It's not as close a shave and certainly not as convenient either. The worst part is it was the admission of my creeping codgerism.
"What a drag it is getting old" - Mick Jagger, Mother's Little Helper
Not sure what I expect. We've had the sun tea jar for over 15 years. Has a spigot and we bought it at Smitty's. Been used a lot. A few years back it started dripping so we would stop putting the jar in the fridge. Transfer it to a big-ass plastic pitcher. Just were mindful if the spigot. Today, bringing in the tea I was obviously not mindful of the spigot. It started pouring out all over the floor. Get the jar to the counter and stop the tea-bleeding. Turn to get the plastic pitcher and slip on the wet kitchen floor. Ass over teakettle onto my back. Smacked the hell out of my hip and shoulder. Bruised feelings over how scared I was! Kept thinking "I cannot fall and break a hip!". Sure I have osteoporosis but at age 56 years old (for NOW) do I really need to worry about broken hips? If so the next 20 years are going to be exhausting trying to stay vertical. Right now I just know I feel like I fell. It hurts and I am angry. Slathered in Muscle Spray and taking ibuprofen. Getting a new tea jar our of the deal though.
DIY lotion I made!
Ingredients:
– 1 cup shea butter
– 1/2 cup beeswax
– 1/2 cup jojoba oil
--1/2 drops vitamin e oil
– frankensense and Joy blend by Young Living essential oil (20-25 drops)
Tools:
– electric mixer or whisk
– glass bowl
– mixing bowl
– pot
– storage jar with lid
Instructions:
1. I measured out the shea butte and beeswax, placed them in bowl and set them outside. Phoenix in June quckly melted butter and wax..
2. Stirred in the jojoba oil and 20-25 drops of essential oil and distilled water.
3. I then whipped it with my KitcheAid with the whisk attachment until you have soft peaks and a creamy texture.
