Winter Skin - update

A had to give y’all a mini update on my dry winter skin issues, because the advice you gave was so wonderful!


Julia suggested mixing sugar into some olive oil to slough off dead skin and moisturize. This advice has seriously changed my life! I’m not even kidding. I just poured a spoonful of sugar into a cup, poured a little olive oil on top, stirred it up, and went to work.

Note: If your husband gives you strange looks for taking a solo cup of goop into the shower with you, just assure him that you read about it on a blog. Mine is fully aware that blogging is the root cause of all of my strange behaviors, including taking twenty pictures of one pillow, standing precariously on furniture to get a good photo angle, and being obsessed with cleaning with vinegar, “Why does the house smell like pickles?” “Well I was reading this blog….”

I’ve used this mixture all over, but I really like it for my face and lips. Nothing says classy like giant flakes of skin hanging off your nose. Regular scrubs have always been too harsh for me to use in the winter, but this clears off all that yucky, scaly skin and leaves my face feeling super soft. Not only is this method effective, it’s also practically free and natural.

Strand family suggested lowering the temperature of my shower water. I am cold natured and I LOVE hot showers, but she is so, so right! Saying no to the super hot showers does make a difference. I’m trying to lower the temp little by little, and I’ve also taken to ending my shower with a dash of cool water. This helps close my pores and lessen the risk of skin irritations. Added benefit - the cool water has also made my hair much less frizzy. Apparently cold water smoothes hair cuticles.

Tracy suggested slathering on the moisturizer while still a little damp from the shower. I’ve been doing this and using Avalon Organics lavender body lotion. Since I shower before bed, I love that the lavender scent is nice and relaxing.

Ladies, thank you for all these wonderful tips! My skin is doing so much better. If you also suffer from dry skin, be sure to check the comments on the original post for more tips. If anyone has any additional dry skin advice, please share!

Don’t forget to enter my one year giveaway – I’ll be drawing a winner Thursday night at 7:00.

<3
Hattie

Winter Skin

"Really, cold front? Ten degrees! Really. You think ten degrees is acceptable Virginia weather? Because, really, this is the south and we don’t “do” ten degrees!" ~ This rant has been brought to you by my ridiculously dry skin that is crying for a little less brrrr.

Our cold snap is on it’s way to a four week run, and I don’t remember the last time my skin has felt this parched. My nose is flaking, my lips are so chapped they actually bled yesterday, my elbows and knees are not fit for human eyes, and my hair feels very straw-like. I need help! This is where you come in. I need some suggestions for how to treat all my scaly, flaky, cracked, and chapped skin issues. (This post is going to get some hits from very (ahem) interesting Google searches!)

Anyway, so far I’ve been applying Burt’s Bees lip balm like I own stock in the company and slathering on the Vitamin E oil morning and night. However, these measly measures are no match for the mighty wind of winter. So, any tips for turning my skin from armadillo tough to baby soft? I’d love to hear about the products you swear by, but I’m also super interested in home remedies. Extra kudos for natural and/or organic ideas and cheap and/or free ideas!

Please share, because most of the skin in America is also feeling the brunt of this deep freeze. We could all use a little TLC!

<3
Hattie

beauty school dropout

I have always (since about 15) worn makeup, but I've never been a layers and layers of make up girl. I started eating a lot of organic and natural foods and using a lot of organic and natural products about two years ago. The more I learned, the more I wanted to use only "less messed around with" products. As soon as Physician's Formula came out with their Organic wear line of makeup, I switched on over.



Making the switch really lightened my makeup bag! These are the only products I use on a regular basis.


First, I use a little Mary Kay water proof concealer under my eyes and on any blemishes. I know this product is far from organic, so I'd love to switch to something else. Has anyone found a GOOD natural/organic concealer? I tried the Organic wear version, but it's very thick and greasy.



Next, I use my fluffy brush to apply a dusting of the Organic wear medium translucent powder.



I Love the Organic wear bronzer and blush combo because it saves money and room in my makeup bag. I use my brush to apply a (very) light layer of the bronzer, and a little blush from the apples of my cheeks upward. I also use my index finger to apply a smidge of bronzer to the corners of my eyelids.


I finish my eyes with a smidge of Rimmel shimmer eyeshadow. As soon as I finish this, I'm going to replace it with an Organic wear eyeshadow.


Finally, I put on a little Burt's Bees pomegranate lip balm. It has just a hint of pink.

For special occasions I use a little eyeliner and real lipstick. But for ordinary days, my little routine only takes about ten minutes.
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If you're thinking of trimming down your own beauty routine, I hope this post inspires you to try to a little less and see what happens. I for one am loving the saving in time, money, and room on my dresser! Oh yeah, and I have far less breakouts now that I use more natural products!

<3
Hattie

p.s. Physician's Formula didn't pay me anything to rave about them, I just happen to be a truly satisfied customer!

Ain't no party like a tea party!

So, the Mother's Day tea party on Saturday was so much fun! We all enjoyed being girly, getting dressed up, and eating tiny food. My mom and grandma even wore fancy straw hats. I'll have to post some pictures later so you can see what southern belles we were. For now, I have some pictures of the tables and decorations.

Here is everything right before I laid out the goodies.

I searched everywhere for a little tablecloth or runner, but I couldn't find anything I liked. On Friday I spotted a pack of five flour sack cloths at Wal-Mart and got a brainstorm. I took those suckers home, printed out a few of my clip-art flowers on some iron-on sheets, and made two tiny custom tablecloths.

A little close up of the center piece.

While I was on a clip-art kick, I also made laminated name cards for each place setting.

So, yes, it is a little matchy-cutesy, but tea parties scream for matchy-cutesy. Plus, it's really fun to go all out girly every once and awhile.

Here's a better look at the whole table.

I experimented a little with the tea party spread. I usually just lay everything out on plates and trays, but I thought it would be more visually appealing to have things at varying heights. I only have one real cake stand, so I had to get a little creative.

Why yes, those are indeed upside down milk glass vases. I just stuck a little plastic wrap between the vases and the plates to keep things from shifting around.

It worked pretty well, and it was fun to do something different.

Here is everything with the goodies all spread out.

Yummy!

Happy Mother's Day Mom and Grandma! I love you both very much!

<3

Hattie

Better Biscuits

I really love a hot biscuit with dinner, but I don’t love the time it takes to make them from scratch, or how unhealthy they can be.

Fortunately, I discovered Bisquick heart smart baking mix.



All you need is the mix and milk, a few minutes in the oven, and presto- hot biscuits. Of course I can’t leave anything alone and just follow the package directions, so I have a few favorite things to add to the mix to give the biscuits a little extra yum factor.



For 4 big garlic cheese biscuits

Preheat the oven to 375 (you can fudge a little on this. If you need it at 350 or 400 to cook something else, that’s fine, just adjust the baking time).

In a bowl combine ¾ cup baking mix, a large handful shredded light cheddar cheese, a dash of season salt, a dash of garlic powder or fresh minced garlic, and a few dashes of dried parsley, or a handful of chopped fresh. Stir in ¼ to ½ cup milk (I use 1%) starting with ¼ cup and adding until the mixture forms a goopy dough. Line a baking sheet with tinfoil and spray with Pam (I like the organic olive oil Pam).



Drop dough by the heaping tablespoonful – use an actual serving spoon, not a measuring spoon - about four biscuits. Spray tops of biscuits with a little extra Pam. Bake for 8 -10 minutes.

Don't they look yummy?


Variations – You can change pretty much any of this to suit your personal tastes. I think shredded mozzarella, basil, and garlic would also be good. The plain batter is mild enough that you could also make these more like scones. Golden raisins, a little brown sugar and a milk and powder sugar glaze would probably be yummy!

<3

Hattie

This Chicken is hot!

I love dinners that are fast and easy to prepare, don’t break the bank, and are on the healthy side. I recently came up with a chicken dish that fits the bill. I spotted a new to me baja lime marinade by Annie’s Organics at Wal-Mart a month or so ago, and decided to give it a whirl. I hardly ever plan dinner far enough a head of time to actually marinate anything overnight, so I simply basted chicken breasts as they cooked. The results were pretty good, but I wanted more punch. To add a little “wow” I added garlic powder (or freshly minced garlic), cumin, and cilantro (I used dried, but fresh would be awesome).

Here’s the process:
- Heat a grill pan over medium to medium high heat.
- Add chicken breasts and brush both sides with marinade
- Sprinkle cumin, garlic powder, and cilantro over each side to taste. I go pretty heavy on the cilantro because I love it so much.
- Baste frequently with extra marinade until chicken is cooked through. I haven’t timed this, but it’s around 15-20 minutes depending on thickness.

This is great with rice and a salad. I think next time I’m going to make extra and use it the next day for burritos. Shredded chicken, rice, black beans, salsa, sour cream, and an extra squeeze of lime juice or marinade – I’m thinking, YES!

<3

Hattie

It’s cheaper being green

In my quest to switch over to natural cleaning products, I’ve discovered that it’s actually often cheaper to use green products.

1st switch – I was pretty much addicted to cleaning wipes because of how convenient and easy they are to use, but they get to be expensive and wasteful, not to mention how toxic a lot of the ingredients are. So, when Target had all of the back to college stuff marked down cheap at the end of the summer, I bought a huge stack of plain white wash cloths for about two bucks. I use these with a non-toxic all purpose cleaner to wipe down everything from kitchen counters to bathroom surfaces. I pop the cloths in the wash once a week, but if any of them ever get too gross to re-use, I don’t have to cry over it because of how inexpensive they were.

2nd switch – Our bathroom sink is prone to the occasional clog and I’ve found a cool new way to fix them. Drain cleaners are full of gross chemicals, but there is a simple and fun way to get rid of the gunk. Start by pouring some good old baking soda down the drain. Be pretty generous. Next, pour some plain white vinegar over it until you get a little volcano fizz a la 5th grade science fair. Wait until it stops fizzing, and then pour a little more. Repeat until the fizzing stops. Leave the drain alone for a few hours and it should be as good as new. Really gross clogs may need a second dose.

3rd switch – Speaking of vinegar, it is seriously a super hero. You can use it to clean pretty much anything. I buy it in a huge jug and use it all the time. You can use it to clean everything from mirrors to toilets. If you add half a cup to a load of dingy whites it brightens them up. It is my favorite thing to use to clean the coffee maker. I usually run a cup mixed with two cups of water through the machine about once a month.

4th switch – No more dryer sheets. I had a really bad skin reaction a few months ago, and in an effort to figure out what was causing the irritation I stopped using dryer sheets. I don’t miss them one little bit.

Any other ideas for inexpensive and natural ways to keep things neat?

<3

Hattie

A little switch = big savings

I’m always looking for simple ways to spend less. Brad and I changed the way we make one of our favorite meals, and it has really cut down our weekly grocery bill. We like to eat salmon once a week because it is yummy and full of healthy omega 3’s. For almost a year, we purchased pre-packaged lemon butter salmon fillets and pre bagged salad mix. It made for a fast, healthy, and fairly cheap dinner. However, this meal still cost about seven bucks for both of us, and I felt like I could make a homemade version for less.

Wal-Mart has these great wild Alaskan salmon fillets in the seafood section. A bag of four is only four bucks and change - less than half the price of the pre-packaged kind we used to buy.



When I get home from work I pull two out of the freezer and stick them in a bowl of warm water for about 15 minutes or so. Once they are almost thawed, I melt a smidge of butter in a grill pan over medium heat. You can also use a plain skillet. I like to use Smart Balance 50/50 stick “butter” for this, but you could use pretty much anything. While the butter melts, I grind some of Trader Joe’s awesome lemon pepper over both sides of the fillets. I usually add an extra dash of plain ground pepper to Brad’s.



The fillets only need to cook for five minutes on each side so it’s a super fast dinner. While the salmon is doing its thing, I make a salad. I used to love the pre-shredded bagged salads because of how fast and easy they were to just dump in a bowl. Fast and easy does not equal cheap, however. Now I buy Trader Joe’s organic hearts of romaine.



It really only takes a few seconds longer to wash and tear a few leaves for a salad, and it tastes so much better. Plus, you get twice as much lettuce for almost half the price, and it stays fresh for about a week longer. Back to the salmon - once it flakes with a fork, I pull it off the heat and squeeze lemon juice over each fillet. Fresh lemon is great, but they make some pretty good organic stuff in a squeeze bottle. Add some bread and you have a cheap, healthy, and yummy dinner in about 30 minutes. Who doesn’t love that?

<3

Hattie