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
If you’re interested in more DIY skin-care potions, check out these posts.
Today we’re sharing the recipe for a super simple evening face oil.
This potion is much simpler than our winter face oil. As explained in that post, our winter face oil calls for a blend of different carrier and essential oils, each with their own beneficial properties from firming the skin to lightening aging spots.
With only three ingredients, today’s potion is much easier to make, but that doesn’t detract from its usefulness and indulgent properties. This oil smells amazing, and it’s is something that I like to use in the evenings because it does double duty: removes my makeup and moisturizes““““““““““` before bed.
Mint is our ingredient of the season. Look out for a season of cool posts.
This post was originally published in 2014. We’re republishing it this week because everyone’s at the shore and in need of a good foot scrub. We love the extra heft that the sand brings to this one.
A few weeks ago we shared ideas for rosemary body scrubs, reminding you that exfoliating goes a long way towards making your stems smooth with every shave. Did you try it out? What did you think? Today’s scrub will also work on your legs, but we think it makes a refreshing foot scrub. The sand and salt give it a bit more scrubbing power where it’s needed, the coconut oil will soften and hydrate, and the mint will cool your hard-working soles.
With the new year, we’re starting a new weekly series called “Waste Less Wednesdays”. Our passion for preserving Mather Nature is pretty strong, but we recognize that we live in a consumer-driven society. As such, we try to be honest with ourselves about our own consumption, our needs vs. wants, and the opportunities that we have to reduce waste. We are often sharing tips and tricks to reduce our consumption, and this series was born from those conversations. Read Katie’s previous post about the cup.
Today I’m here to tout my newest purchase, an Albatross Razor. For years, nah, a decade, I’ve used a simple 3-blade Venus razor. The amount of waste involved has always bothered me, like why does each razor head need to be individually wrapped in plastic inside of another box or piece of plastic? Strike one. The pain of chucking one of those plastic heads into the trash every two-three weeks without a way to recycle them, Strike two. The cost, about $5 per head, Strike three. Beyond that, I’m trying as hard as possible to purchase from companies with more integrity and while I won’t talk smack on Gillette, I wouldn’t say we’re aligned in our values.
Meanwhile, Albatross Designs is built around, “a desire to take back the metaphor of the albatross and return it to a symbol of good luck. If we give nature the respect it deserves, good fortune will follow.” The Schu family is already big fans of albatrosses and honestly, that’s why this particular razor company caught my eye early in my internet search to begin with. They ask customers to, “Please help us in our mission to “SHAVE” the World from Plastic.” and we’re so down with that.
There are many, many “zero-waste plastic” razor companies out there, but I’ll quickly note the reasons why Albatross stood out.
Integrity, mission, and motives behind the company – seriously, they cannot be beaten. Read all about Albatross here and you’ll want to support them.
Very minimal packaging! The razor is mailed in a cardboard envelope that contains a little burlap sack holding the razor and refills.
Simple design. Simple razor. Less waste. The butterfly razor design is pretty neat – you simply twist the bottom of the handle and the top splays open. Then you can easily take out the old blade and place the new one in.
This type of razor allows you to buy a year’s worth of blades at once without breaking the bank.
There’s no subscription hook or big starter pack filled with lotions and creams I’ll never use.
Albatross features a Take Back Program. You can send up to 40 used blades at a time back to the company. Albatross will then turn them into Take Back Ware! Pretty neat.
I will admit, I was a little worried I would cut myself to pieces with this razor. I’m not sure why, but they just seem more intimidating than the Venus razors. I appreciate the moisturizer on the Venus razor during the very first use, but by the second use they are enveloped in that gooey, lotiony, slime stuff, ick. Anyway, obviously not the case with Albatross. I use a bar of soap instead of shaving cream and then just glide away. It’s really no different than other razors. The ridged edge on the razor (not on the blade, but on the holder) provides a good guide for how much pressure to apply when shaving and I haven’t cut myself yet! It took me about a week to become brave enough to shave my armpits, I’m happy to report that it all worked out great!
I’m already loving the ease of use and not leaving a weird slime on my shower shelves. I also appreciate how easy it is to remove and store the blade, making this a safe razor to travel with. I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve cut myself multiple times in my life just by reaching into my disorganized toiletry bag and somehow grabbing the blade of a razor. Yikes! Never again. Another plus? Now that I’m the proud lucky owner of a hot tub, I’ve already had a friend or two wishing they would have shaved before soaking – no problemo now. With this razor, I can easily swap the blade and let them shave. Bonus? Each blade comes in a tiny paper envelope, so I write my friend’s name on the envelope and slide their blade back in for the next sleepover, hot tub time. It’s the tiny perks my friends! Seriously, this razor is a simple pleasure, but it truly does delight me.
What about you? What razors are you using? Who do you purchase them from? Are you happy with your current setup? Let me know if you have any questions!
The cold and dry air of winter has a way of wreaking havoc on our skin and nails. Our remedies include drinking plenty of water and creating barriers to moisture loss.
For our hands, we’re a huge fan of balms. Most of ours are made at home with a combination of beeswax, moisturizing carrier oils, and nourishing extracts and essential oils (think calendula, lavender, comfrey).
We won’t shy away from using a balm on our cheeks if we’re heading out for a day in the elements, but for everyday use, we want some thing a touch lighter than. And that’s when we grab a DIY face oil.
This was originally posted on 8/26/15, but with a weekend at the beach coming, I thought we should all give it a look again. Be earth concious, but more importantly, enjoy that outdoor shower!
Taking an outdoor shower is hands down my favorite way to bathe. A couple years ago, our father installed one at the beach and since then the whole crew has paraded in and out trying to wash the sand from our tootsies. Because I would rather take all my showers outside under the moonlight, I thought it would be helpful to share our five favorite earth friendly products for the outdoor shower. These products are all biodegradable and earth friendly, but what does that mean really?
Today’s post is brought to you Kristin, our middle sister, she’s been known to make a simple craft or two. She actually makes lots of really neat decor. I think we’ve bugged her enough that she will be contributing here more often. Another thing about Kris? She gives the best gifts! Last year I was gifted the sweetest smelling candles and this year a whole pile of soaps and bath bombs. I’m making a mental note (and a virtual one?!) to get her candle recipe for you too, but we’ll start with what we have and that’s a fiz-tastic recipe for DIY bath bombs. Add that to Webster’s.
This! This little concoction has made my days in Colorado a little bit better. I suffer from chronic sinus pain and pressure. When I travel to locations that are particularly dry like Colorado, my sinuses swell and create intense pressure in my entire face. I mixed up this invigorating essential oil solution for instant sinus pressure relief. On a daily basis, it basically feels like my head weighs fifty pounds and whichever way I move it I feel the pressure shift and it causes pain and irritation. You know that feeling when your ears pop when you travel up or down in altitude? How about the feeling when you know your ears need to pop, but they won’t? Like your entire head is full of something? That’s what it feels like too. It’s kind of a bummer and it puts me in a bit of a fog. I become irritated easier and instead of enjoying moments of calm, I’m focused on the nagging pain.
Dealing with sinus pressure is really a way of life for me. Sinus pain interrupts my favorite activities like yoga and hiking so I’m always seeking relief. At home, I sleep with a humidifier running. I’m always downing liquids in hopes that I’ll hydrate my system. Anywhere there is steam, you’ll find me standing over it. I’m constantly putting wet washcloths in the microwave and then laying them over my face in hopes of a few minutes relief. Sometimes I even resort to Aleve or some other pain medication. If it’s really bad, I’ll stand under a scalding hot shower until the water runs cold. Even with access to a steam room here in Colorado, I was looking for a quick solution that would be easy and safe for multiple uses throughout the day. I looked in a few homeopathic guides and this invigorating essential oil solution is the best remedy I’ve found for instant sinus pressure relief.
Today I’m here to talk about what to do with that little bit of pumpkin sitting at the bottom of the can. You’ll be faced with this problem if you make our pumpkin cookies or the whoopie piesmuffin tops, as both recipes call for slightly less than a whole can of pumpkin. I’ve been giving some of that pumpkin to Luc, but the kiddo can only eat so much before he’s going to turn orange. And we put some in our oatmeal and yogurt… but I’m already making so many pumpkin treat that I don’t want every to tire of pumpkin before the season’s over. So, if you don’t eat it, wear it (at least that’s Luc’s motto!).
Hands down, one of our favorite perks at the beach is the outdoor shower. We love it for clearing away the sand after a day at the beach, but we also love to bring sand INTO the shower in the form of scrubs. Today’s lemon, sugar, and sand scrub is the perfect zesty indulgence as we’re looking to make the most of these late summer days.
