Momathon Blog

DIY Gift: Rose and Grapefruit Oil Bath Salts

 

Looking for a fun gift to give your mom, sister or a friend on Valentines? Give the gift of pampering with this easy DIY gift you can make at home.  I have several recipes for bath salts, but I like this one best from Martha Stewart's magazine Whole Living. Stewart got the recipe from Bettijo Hirschi, founder of Bath by Bettijo. I also like the bath salt and shower scrub recipe by Kelly Wilkinson in her book I reviewed. (In Kelly's book she also shows you how to make a lovely label for the bath salts jar.)

The recipe below is similar to Martha's recipe, I made some changes to make it easy for you to whip up a batch with your kids helping. Also, remember some bath salts can irritate young children's skin, so this is not to be used in a child's bath.

Rose and Grapefruit Oil Bath Salts

Ingredients to make approximate 2-3 jars of bath salts:

• 4 cups sea salt (or kosher salt)
• 1 cup Epsom salts
• 1 cup baking soda (optional)
• 3/4 cup dried rose--or calendula, citrus rinds
• 2-3 drops soap coloring (optional)
• 3/4 tsp. grapefruit essential oil--or bergamot oil
• 2 or 3 air-tight jars like a mason jar to hold bath salts and labels or tags

(Note: This recipe makes a large amount. If you want to make a smaller amount, just divide this recipe in half)

Directions

1. Combine the dry ingredients: sea salt, epsom salt, and baking soda in a mixing bowl or a large ziplock baggie. 

NOTE: If you are doing this with kids, try mixing it up in a large ziplock baggie. Seal it tightly! And knead it.

2. Add essential oils (This is the fun part--pick the scents you like best!).

3. Add petals or citrus.

4. Let the mixture rest. After it rests for an hour or two, check to see if the scent is what you wanted. If you want to add scent, only add ONE drop at a time, then let it rest and check it again.

5. Divide the mixture into air-tight jars. Attach a label

How to use the bath salts: Just add one or three spoonfuls to the bath.

Recipe: Sugar Bliss Lip Scrub

 

Winter seems to do a number on my skin and my lips. In the morning when I put on layer after layer of my favorite lip gloss, my lips feel great for a while, but the flakiness always returns.The only trick I've found to restore my lips is a homemade lip scrub. 

If you are longing for the days when your lips felt soft and smooth, then try this homemade lip scrub to make your lips ultra kissable. The sugar in the recipe exfoliates and softens your lips and the Vaseline moisturizes and soothes your lips.

Recipe: Sugar Bliss Lip Scrub

• Moisturize your lips generously with Vaseline or generic petroleum jelly.
• Add a tsp. of sugar into a small bowl.
• Lightly moisten your finger in water and dip it into the sugar.
• Apply sugar to both the upper and lower lips with your finger. Gently rub the sugar into the Vaseline for about 30 seconds in a circular motion and you will remove the dry, flaky skin.
• Rinse off your lips with warm (not cold) water. Dry off your lips and add your favorite lip gloss or lipstick.

(Lip photo by Apdk on Flickr) 

When bad hair dye happens to good people

I am one of those moms who can speak up for her kids when something goes wrong, but for myself--silence. Even worse, I have been known to say thank you for really bad service.

Last week I went to the salon for partial highlights. Somehow the partial highlights turned into full. The "a few brown highlights here and there" idea ended up making my naturally blond hair turn an ashy brown with a few blond highlights.

I think after the unveiling in front of the mirror at the end of the appointment, if the stylist had looked at my eyes with my total deer-in-the-headlight look instead of my awkward smile, she may have realized that something had gone terribly wrong.

Bad hair dye and hair cuts happen all the time. Figuring out what to say to your stylist is the tricky part. According to Susan Wagner in a BlogHer post, how you communicate your concern is key: 

Call the salon as soon as possible; be specific about what exactly isn't right about your cut or color, but keep your cool. It won't help to yell or cry, even though you might feel like doing both. If you need to, make a list of things you would like the stylist to fix and take that with you to your appointment. It's important that you communicate clearly with your stylist in order to prevent a second mishap.

Is my new hair color worth a do-over? Evidently using highlights to completely change your hair color is a no-no. According to 10 Tips For Beautiful Dyed Hair From Oprah's Hair Expert, Rita Hazan says: The highlights are an accent to the color, not a color themselves.

And my new haggard look isn't just a normal mommy condition. My new ashy hair color could be the problem. According to Hazan, "Colors that are too beige or ashy don't complement skin tones." Gold or warm tones give the skin a more youthful, healthy glow.

Well, enough about me. Evidently lots of moms feel guilty about going to the salon and then complaining later. 

Over at the blog The Laughing Stork, Candy says:

I was expecting to relax and revel in a much-needed ego boost from my fabulous new style. Instead, I sat down in the chair, and the stylist (whom we’ll randomly call Dick) tilted his head and pursed his lips at me. “Can we talk about your color?  It is SO DINGY,” Dick clucked.

Yep. We have all heard our stylists complain about our hair. And we just sit there and take the abuse because heaven forbid we make a scene.

Fortunately, good dye (and good cuts) can happen to good people. All it takes is good communication between you and your stylist. As Candy says at the end of her post:

The point is (yes, I DO have one, thankyouverymuch), when you are in customer service, you do not greet a new client by insulting her hair.  Everyone knows you’re supposed to start off by insulting something small, like lipstick color, then work your way up to hair color.  Customer Service 101. Duh...

I don't love my new hair color. However, I DO like my hair stylist. This episode is just a fluke event. So, what should I do? My good friend and mentor for all things style says I need to put on my big girl pants and tell my stylist that my new hair color is not what I asked for and ask her to fix it.

Sigh. Sounds easy enough. Three days later and I am still working up the nerve to do this. And I'm remembering my mom's advice, "even a bad haircut grows out."

Wonder how those blond roots growing in will look? 

Should an 8-yr-old get a bikini wax?

 

What happened to childhood? A new salon trend has girls before they reach puberty getting a "virgin" wax. Sounds outrageous to me. My big question is why? 

Evidently moms are scheduling virgin waxes for their young girls because they think getting a wax treatment at an early age will prevent future hair growth. That's news to me. I have never heard my pediatrician bring up virgin waxing as an option.

According to an article in Gothamist, Wanda Stawczyk, who runs Wanda's European Skin Care on West 57th Street:

"Virgin-waxing for children 8 years old and up who have never shaved before. Virgin hair can be waxed so successfully that growth can be permanently stopped in just 2 to 6 sessions. Save your child a lifetime of waxing... and put the money in the bank for her college education instead."

And this makes me ask again... WHY? Does an 8-yr-old even have pubic hair? According to dermatology.com, the barely noticeable pre-puberty hair is called vellus. This fine, non-pigmented hair covers the body of children. 

Except for the advice of the salon worker quoted above, I'm not sure this shaving will prevent hair growth in the future. Besides, if vellus is not noticeable, why should anyone shave it?

What happened to childhood? Virgin waxing is one more way very young girls are asked to grow up way too fast. 

(Photo above by Tom@HK.)

Make my life simpler: Back-of-the-cab makeup

 

 

Love it! Easy-to-use makeup for busy moms. This portable pen brightens eyes and erases the dark circles from middle of the night feedings or whatever else keeps you awake.

Tinted Eye Brightener by Bobbi Brown is available in eight shades. $38.00

(Photo: Bobbi Brown website)

DIY: Homemade sugar bliss lip scrub

 

 

Feeling a bit flaky? I know the feeling. In the morning when I put on layer after layer of my favorite cotton candy gloss, sometimes the flakiness won't go away. 

If you are longing for the days when your lips felt soft and smooth, then try this homemade lip scrub to make your lips ultra kissable. The sugar in the recipe exfoliates and softens your lips and the Vaseline moisturizes and soothes your lips. 

Sugar Bliss Lip Scrub:

• Moisturize your lips generously with Vaseline or generic petroleum jelly.
• Add a tsp. of sugar into a small bowl.
• Lightly moisten your finger in water and dip it into the sugar.
• Apply sugar to both the upper and lower lips with your finger.
• Gently rub the sugar into the Vaseline for about 30 seconds in a circular motion and you will remove the dry, flaky skin.
• Rinse off your lips with warm (not cold) water.
• Dry off your lips and add your favorite lip gloss or lipstick.

(Lip photo by Apdk on Flickr)