Magic Hand and Foot Care

Within the past couple of months I stumbled upon products that have been downright magical for my hands and feet. Two different items providing two fantastic solutions, and this is me shouting it from the rooftops… I feel extra excited to share the moisturizing lotion because it helped me in a completely unexpected way.

Foot Mask

I don’t have a regular foot care routine, but when I feel like my feet need some exfoliation, I’ll reach for one of our DIY foot scrubs:

This spring I felt like my feet were more callused than usual, so before reaching for a scrub, I thought that I’d try one of these exfoliating foot peels. It worked like magic!

As suggested in the instructions, I soaked my feet for about an hour before putting on the booties (which contain the mask). I kept the booties on for another, and then washed off the mask. Like clockwork, about a week later, the skin on my feet started peeling!

The peeling doesn’t hurt, and it basically looks like peeling skin after a sunburn. My feet have been peeling for close to a week now, but this is the last of the dead skin, and feet are looking and feeling so soft.

I like to walk around barefoot, and I was curious if the newly uncovered skin would be more sensitive, but fortunately it’s not. It’s just baby soft and not looking so “rugged”.

Moisturizing Lotion

This magical (not-nail-or-hand-specific) lotion has nipped my nail-biting habit in the bud! How could that be? Let me explain.

Over the years I’ve come to realize that my nail-biting doesn’t have to do with fidgeting, wanting to put things in my mouth, wanting my nails to be short, etc…

It has to do with one thing: when my nails are chipped, splitting, or peeling, it drives me crazy and I want to “smooth” them out. So I do that by biting them, which makes the problem worse, then I bit them some more. And this sadly this applied to the skin around my nails too. It would be dry and peeling, I’d pick at it, the cycle would repeat itself.

Over the years I’ve tried a number of solutions. I used to paint them religiously (see photo above!) because this would make them less prone to drying out and damage, but as the polish peeled off, I would then start to bite them.

I’d use gloves when washing dishes to minimize drying, but it still didn’t solve the problem. I’d put all sorts of salves on my fingers (plenty of them were homemade!). But alas, nothing stopped the nail biting. UNTIL NOW!

Long story a little bit longer: we got this lotion because hyaluronic acid has great reviews for moisturizing skin, plumping it up, reducing wrinkles, etc. After we got the lotion, I was putting a little bit on my face each night before bed. After a few weeks I realized that my hands, specifically my nails, were looking fantastic!

It took me a day or two to realize that the only change in my routine was the lotion. It’s now been close to two months, my nails are so strong, there’s no dryness, and I’m completely hooked. I still just put the lotion on my face and rub it into my hands before bed. I can’t tell if it’s made much of a difference to my face, but given how well it’s worked on my hands, I’m not going to stop any time soon.

There are many hyaluronic acid lotions and supplements out there. I linked to the exact lotion that we’re using, and because it’s working so well, we haven’t tried anything else.

So, if your nail biting habit is anything like mine, give this lotion a try. I’d love to hear if it works for more people!

Homemade Yogurt in the Instapot

Hey there, it’s time for a very irregular installment of some of my favorite things!



I’ve been using my Instantpot to make yogurt this winter, and we are hooked, as in multiple-batches-per-week hooked.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that the results are just like using using our yogurt maker. So why switch?

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Embroidered Photos

These embroidered photos were one of my favorite holiday gifts this season!

This project is perfect for giving at any time of year (birthdays!, Valentine’s Day!, etc.) because there’s a lot of room for customization, from the photo you choose to the embroidered design. Bonus points with this one because it’s really not difficult. In this post I’ll share all of the details and resources that I used. It’s the perfect sort of DIY gift that’s fun for both the maker and the receiver.

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Make with Me: Cabled Sweater!

You can find our full archive of knitting projects here. And, of course, we have many projects that don’t involve knitting; there’s embroidery and sewing too!

If you’re following our Instagram stories, then you saw me sewing up the seams of this sweater during the month of December. Knowing that I’d have to knit the sweater in parts and then sew it together almost stopped me from evening making this one, but I’m so glad that I jumped in and learned something new!

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Oat & Honey Face Mask

Looking for more winter skin care options? Check out our pumpkin + honey face mask, winter face oil, and coconut + rose makeup remover and evening oil.

Hey there! Happy New Year!

Popping in with a quick and simple DIY face mask that’s the perfect fix for dry winter skin.

About a month ago, my skin was really suffering from the dry Colorado air. It was dry and tight, and starting to break out. After ignoring it for about a week, I realized that I needed a fix, but I wanted to keep it simple, and with only three ingredients, this recipe fit the bill.

Oat & Honey Face Mask

As you’ll see, precise measurements aren’t necessary for this recipe.

  • ground whole oats
  • water
  • honey

Use a blade coffee grinder to pulverize about 2 Tbsp of oats. If your coffee grinder is dirty from coffee or other spices, you can easily clean it by grinding up a small amount of rice before grinding the oats.

Place the ground oats in a small bowl and add enough water to make a thick paste. Mix thoroughly to break up any oat lumps.

Add some honey, about equal to half of your oat paste. Stir until blended, and then it’s ready to use!

Apply the mask to your face and let it sit for a couple of minutes. Just before it’s starting to get hard around the edges, wipe off and apply your favorite moisturizer or serum. I use our DIY face serum.

Because this is so easy to make, I recommend making a small amount, about enough for one or two applications. Or you can grind a bunch of oats to have on hand for the next time that you want to make more. I don’t recommend mixing a large batch because it may go bad before you use it up.

Wishing you a happy new year and some healthy winter skin! xo

Waste Less Wednesday: Halloween Costume

It’s our very irregular Wednesday series where we share simple tips to reduce your consumption and environmental impact. You can find our full WLW archive here.

Halloween’s just 5 days away! Don’t have a costume yet? We have a pretty simple suggestion that’s going to cost you less than $10, and you may not even have to leave your house to get it.

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