{DIY} Essential Oil Shower Disks

Happy Monday!!

Of course I caught a head cold over the weekend. Which isn't surprising since I spent the last week helping out in Matt's classroom. I'm doing everything in my power to fight this cold off as quickly as possible and remembered seeing these essential oil diy disks on Pinterest to help ease the pain. 

If you’ve never heard of these shower disks before, they are disks that you place on the bottom of your shower, and the hot water and steam activates the fragrances that clear your sinuses while you’re showering.

They were rather easy to make. You will need:

• Baking soda (amount depends on how many you want to make. 2 1/2 lbs make about 18 disks.
• Doterra Essential oils: Rosemary, Eucalyptus, and Lavender.  (You can also substitute peppermint).
• About 1 1/2 cups of water.
• Muffin tins & liners (optional).

Directions:

• Mix the baking soda and water until it makes a paste.  If you put in too much water, add more baking soda.
• Add about 15 to 20 drops of EACH essential oil.
• Mix again, and make sure it is thoroughly blended.
• Pour into muffin tins (or liners).
• Either let sit about 12-18 hours, OR bake at 250º for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, until hardened.

Then, when you take a nice, hot shower, place the disks at the bottom of your shower, and let the vapors clear your sinuses and heal your cold.  It works wonderfully!

Store these in airtight containers, paper bags, or Ziploc baggies.  Baking soda and essential oils have no expiration dates, so they will last for quite some time. But I would suggest using them up within about 6 months or so, as they might lose a little of their potency.

Bye Bye Summer! Hello Fall!

If there's one thing that excites me about summer being over, it's the sweets and treats of fall. After Starbucks announced that they are changing their pumpkin spice latte to have real pumpkin puree, I nearly did a back flip! Now now, I know that here in Wisconsin we literally have 3 months of summer unless mother nature decides to start us late or cuts us short and gives us just 2. It only makes it an easy transition when I see the farmers markets and grocery stores turn their produce over to pumpkins galore. I have literally had everything pumpkin--milk, fudge, the obvious carbs, ravioli, butter, beer, so on and so forth. But today is not about pumpkins but rather apples. At the Milwaukee County Fair I had for the first time ever Apple Cider Donuts. I must have been hung up on pumpkin that I never even heard of this sugary spiced deliciousness. This is not my recipe by any means, but I did tweak it ever so slightly. This is a great weekend treat that you need two days for. One day for prep which took about one hour and the second for frying.

DOUGH
2 Apples--I used Red Delicious
1 1/2 cups Apple Cider--grab at your local farmers market YUM!
3 1/2 cups Flour
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/4 tsp Baking Powder
1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
2/3 cup Sugar
2 Eggs--1 whole, 1 yolk
1/4 cup Buttermilk

1 tsp Vanilla Extract
3 T Vegetable Shortening
Vegetable Oil--for frying

Doughnut Cutter

GLAZE

1 cup Apple Cider

1/2 cup Powdered Sugar

TOPPING

2 tsp Cinnamon

1 cup Sugar 

Peel the apples and depose of the core. Chop the apples up coarsely. Combine the apples with 1 1/2 cups of apple cider in a saucepan over medium heat. Cover and let the apples soften for about 10-15 minutes. Remove the cover and allow the cider to completely reduce--approximately 20 minutes. Grab a blender and puree the apples until it is a smooth sauce. You should have about 1 cup. Set aside to let cool.

In a medium size bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt. Set that aside and grab a large bowl. Combine the shortening and sugar in the large bowl and beat until you are left with a wet sand. Next beat in a large egg along with an egg yolk followed by the apple puree. Beat in half the flour, then the buttermilk, then the vanilla, and then the remaining flour. Don't over mix.

On a cookie sheet spread some flour. Take the dough (will be VERY sticky) and lay that on the cookie sheet. Form into a large ball and place dough into a plastic zip lock or plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight or at least 8 hours. 

Once your dough has chilled, heat a cast iron skillet on the stove with about 2 inches of vegetable oil. Meanwhile simmer 1 cup of apple cider in a small saucepan. Once it has reduced to about 1/4 cup whisk in the powdered sugar. You want to have a smooth and sticky consistency for the cinnamon/sugar topping to stick. 

Mix your topping together in a shallow bowl. Your oil should be heated up by now. Take the dough out of the refrigerator. Flour a surface and roll out your dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Press the doughnut cutter into the dough to form the shape. Once you have a couple cut out, put them into the hot oil. You need about 30-45 seconds per side. Take the doughnuts out of the oil and allow them to cool on a drying rack. After they are cooled down, dunk them into the glaze and top with cinnamon and sugar. Repeat the procedure.

Serve warm with a cold glass of milk.

Bye bye Summer. HELLO FALL.

At Home Manicure How-To

Did you know that Heidi and I are not only licensed to do hair, but we could also legally do you manicure for you?! Even though we don't perform them on a regular basis, here's our professional how-to for getting an a professional looking manicure at home! 

 Clip the nails, if necessary, after soaking for just a few seconds to prevent the nail from splintering when it is dry, then file them into shape.

Avoid metal or extremely coarse nail files to prevent splintering—opt for a gently abrasive emery board or crystal nail file instead. Smooth the tops and sides of the nails with a slightly abrasive buffer to get an even surface, but don't forget, if you buff the nails too smooth, the polish won't adhere as well. 

Ahh … the relaxing part. Place your hands in a bowl of warm (not too hot) water and add a bit of Epsom salt. Avoid putting detergent or soapy cleansers in the water because they can be drying and make your cuticles look worse. Soaking the cuticle before trimming is crucial to getting that polished nail look. 

When cutting away the thickened skin around the nail, applying a bit of cuticle remover can make all the difference in the world. By far the best and the least expensive one out there is Be Natural Cuticle Eliminator. 

Very gently push the cuticle back away from the nail with a cuticle pushing tool, but don't push it too far because it can damage nail growth or fray the cuticles. Be careful NOT to pull, lift, tear, rip, force, or cut into the cuticle in any way. Do NOT clip into the cuticle; merely nip off the free edge with a pair of metal cuticle nippers. It's better to under-do this step than to overdo it because the cuticle helps protect the nail bed from bacteria and damage. This is also the time to remove hangnails around the sides of the nail as well, but again, be careful not to cut into the nail itself or to cut into the skin too deeply; otherwise, you will look like you were tuning up your car, not giving yourself a manicure. 

Moisturizing ingredients of any kind left on the nail will prevent polish from adhering properly. Using a cotton swab or pad, apply nail-polish remover over the nail's surface to remove any residue. While it helps to avoid getting remover on the cuticle because you want to keep that area moisturized, don't worry if you do because you're going to apply moisturizer on your nails again once the polish is dry.

If you have weak or brittle nails, use a base coat of ridge-filling nail polish to shore up the nail. A base coat also protects nails from staining and prevents chipping. Next, apply your color polish in layers, allowing each layer to dry between coats. Two coats of color polish, followed by a top coat to add shine and luster should do the trick. Use a lighter shade of polish if you're a novice at painting nails- any mistakes will be less noticeable!

Pure White Make Over

Well I pretty much finished up the master bedroom that had been a fathers day gift for my husband while he was away for work. I had 1 week to complete, which I somewhat did. The only thing that held me back was pinterest. I cannot tell you how much it bugs me when you come across something you desperately want, you click the picture, you follow the link to the website, you purchase only to find out it is on back order. Wouldn't you think like "hey this item is trending like crazy we should really stock up?". No, so I of course  still order it, in hopes that a miracle happens. Well, unfortunately one month later I still didn't receive my shipment. I decided to cancel and move on. I am so so so glad I did.

Lets get started on the before pictures...
A year and a half ago I received a pottery barn catalog and saw this great color Homburg Gray. Loved it. Didn't even thinks twice to check it out at Sherwin Williams. I purchased it brought it home and painted.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHH......

I guess I was just expecting more gray charcoal than gray blue/green. Well we lived with it for a little over a year and I couldn't take it anymore. It was cold, dark, and just plain yuck.

So Thomas left and I went to the drawing board. I wanted white and a boho feel. Try going to the paint store and picking a white with limited time. I rather give birth again, seriously!

I ended up choosing Snowbound, its pretty pure white, maybe a slight warmth to it.

New York City Map -IKEA
8x10 Frame -IKEA
Hello Pillow-Etsy
But seriously let's make out pillow- Etsy
Houndstooth Loveseat- Cederburg Flea Market
Airplant and planter- West Elm Local
Take me to NY Print- Etsy
Somewhere between here and there Print- Urban Outfitters
Macrame Plant Hanger- DIY
Black and White Pillow- Target

Blown up instagram photos - Walgreens

Plant-Home Depot
Phone Print- Chicago Boutique
Gray Vase- CB2
Tobacco Candle-Home Goods

 

This picture was taking with my phone in Williamsburg. I loved it so much I took it over to Kinkos (local print shop) and had them do a blueprint for only 7 dollars!!! 

 

 

It so much brighter and airier. White walls used to be boring to me and now they are amazing, it allows you to add so much without limiting any colors.

[ Get What You Want At The Hair Salon ]

+ We love when clients bring in pictures! Show me what you want, show me what you don't want, bring it all! We won't be offended. Photos are especially key for communicating length and color preferences. My definition of strawberry blonde is probably very different than yours, as is the phrase 'too short.'

+ When you're gathering your inspirational photos, don't limit yourself to red carpet shots of celebrities. Those styles are often done up to perfection with extensions. Street style photos, catalog shots from a brand you love and can yield inspiration that works in real life.

+ We cannot stress this enough — manage your expectations! If you want a lob, but only have enough hair for a bob, you probably won't be able to get what you're looking for, at least not at this appointment. Texture, color, density, and age (yes I said it!), all dictate what your hair can and can't do. If you have fine, Norwegian cornsilk hair, it's not wise to show your stylist a picture of a wild, curly, coarse-haired Italian beauty."

+ Please please please tell your stylist what you've done to your hair previously. This includes any permanent or semi-permanent hair color, keratin treatments, hennas, if you heat style it often. They can all affect the result of any color, cut, or chemical service you get. 

+ The word 'trim' is extremely different from person to person.  Make sure to demonstrate how much hair you'd like cut off. Asking for bangs? Words like "blunt," "strong," "soft," and "wispy" will translate your desired look. And if you're after layers, it's worth taking a spin in your chair to discuss them from all angles: Do you want layers that continue all around the head or just frame the face?

+ If your stylist asks to try something new; ombre highlights, long side bangs, or other current hair trends- don't be afraid to embrace the new. They aren't doing it for their own health, they think it will look good. Shooting them down without thinking it through is doing yourself and your mane a disservice.

+ A busy hairdresser's time is very valuable. Being five minutes late can throw off your stylist's entire day. If you're running late, call. And never pull a no-show. On the same note, don't phone at the last minute and ask to get "squeezed in." We'll most likely try to accommodate you, but it may mean staying late or rearranging our personal schedules. 

+ Stylists stock products we believe in. It's frustrating for them to see a client pay good money for great color or a trendy cut but then buy drugstore shampoo and conditioner to save a few bucks. Your stylist can tell you exactly what you need to maintain your hair—and save you from playing the drugstore guessing game. We're here to give you the right advice and we'll gladly exchange anything that's not working for you.