Happy Healthy RD

Living a happy healthy life

DIY Face Wash – Just 1 ingredient

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I really have gotten into making homemade skin care.  I used to have a pretty serious Sephora habit but I was getting bogged down with just how many products I owned. My bathroom drawers were overflowing with tons of makeup, skincare, haircare products and I kept buying more! So I went cold turkey earlier this year and said no more. I pledged to use up all the products I owned and if I ran out of something I would try to make it myself.

Face wash was one of the first things I ran out of.  I found this recipe from Live Simply that is a mixture of honey and castile soap.  This was my first experience using honey in a face wash and I loved it.  I still use a version of this when I don’t use straight honey.

I don’t remember exactly where I read about using straight honey as a face wash, I think it might have actually been on .  Since I was already using a face wash with honey, I thought…why not just use straight honey?   I now keep a little jar of honey by my sink and do a honey facial every couple of days.   I use raw honey which has crystallized a bit but that doesn’t bother me.  It actually adds a little extra exfoliation.

Honey is a wonderful product to use on our skin.  It is moisturizing but also can help with acne due to it’s antibacterial properties.  I have very sensitive skin and many products sting and cause my face to turn very red.  Honey does the opposite.  It feels so soothing.

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I apply a thin layer of raw honey to dry skin and let it sit a minute or two while I brush my teeth.  Then rinse with warm water and a wash cloth.*  It washes right away and does not leave any stickiness behind.   If I am wearing a lot of eye makeup, I might remove that first but I find the honey combined with a warm wash cloth will remove the majority of my makeup.  After a honey facial, my skin feels soft and clean but does not have that tight, dry feeling that I get after some face cleansers.  I am definitely a honey facial convert for life!

*Bonus if you accidentally get some in your mouth!

I also love that since I already always have honey on hand, it isn’t another product to buy.  Plus I can find it locally. It’s a win, win!

Have you tried any DIY beauty recipes?  Please share any recipes that you love in the comments!

Be Happy, Be Healthy!

 




Filed Under: Beauty Tagged With: DIY beauty

Nature Inspired Holiday Decorations

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I love decorating with nature inspired items for the holidays.  I especially enjoy making wreathes and garlands out of greens that I can find in my own backyard.  I made this garland last weekend.  It’s a little wild and might not be everyone’s style but I love the look of lots of different shades of green combined with a variety of textures.

This was actually the first garland that I’ve made but I think it turned out well.  The first step was to gather different types of greens.  I used a few different types of evergreen branches, green ivy, and a few succulents I found still growing in our yard.


I used a green plastic covered wire as my anchor.  I would gather a substantial bunch of greens and then anchor it to the wire using green floral wire.  The general pattern I used was a bunch of evergreen and then add a green of interest like the succulent or ivy.  I repeated that step until all the wire was covered.  For the end, I attached a bunch going the opposite direction to finish off the garland.

I try to remember to mist the garland everyday with water to keep it fresh and so far it isn’t dropped any needles and it looks pretty good.  If a piece does start to look dried out it is easy to remove and go forage for a replacement.  Other additions that would look nice are some clementines strewn about or some pine cones tucked in.  

I used the same technique to make a wreath for our front door.  I also included boxwood and some dried herbs (lavender and thyme).  This was a grapevine wreath frame that I reuse every season.  For the fall, I had used bittersweet to make a wreath.  This winter I just unwound the floral wire and the old stuff fell right off.  I am even able to reuse the floral wire again and again.  I love that these decorations didn’t require any additional purchases and won’t result in much waste getting thrown out.  In this season of abundance, it is sometimes nice to keep things simple and natural.  Thank you Mother Earth with supplying me with these decorations! 

I also was lucky enough to find a little living tree this year.  It is quite small but I plan on decorating it with all edible decorations like dried orange slices and popcorn & cranberry garland.  I haven’t completed it yet but will be sure to share it when I do.

Be Happy, Be Healthy!




24 Days of Christmas

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Happy December!  Last night I decided to do a last minute ’24 Days of Christmas’ project.  We have done this a few times before and it is always a lot of fun.  I originally got the idea from Tina of Carrots n’ Cake.  I went the DIY recycled route and wrote the activities on squares of a paper bag and then clipped them to a old ribbon.   This weekend when we get all the Christmas decorations out, I’ll decorate it a little more since it is looking a little plain right now.   I numbered the activities randomly so each day it will be a surprise.  The best part is when we pick an activity that we wouldn’t normally do on a weeknight (like go out for a cocktail).

Here’s what we will be up to for the next 24 days:

  1. Watch a Christmas movie
  2. Take a drive to look at Christmas lights
  3. Take a holiday picture together
  4. Write a Christmas love letter to each other to open on Christmas morning
  5. Make hot chocolate
  6. Take a winter hike
  7. Play a board game
  8. Make popcorn for a garland (and eating)
  9. Bake cookies together
  10. Buy a Christmas present for the dogs & cat
  11. Go out for a fancy cocktail
  12. Make mason jar snowglobes
  13. Exchange foot rubs (use a peppermint scented lotion!)
  14. Take $5 and go buy each other stocking stuffers
  15. Donate food to local food pantry
  16. Make a fancy breakfast
  17. Dance to holiday music
  18. Kiss under the mistletoe
  19. Share a favorite Christmas memory
  20. Walk through the park with warm drinks
  21. Spend some time planning our next vacation
  22. Buy a Christmas ornament together
  23. Find old blankets and towels to donate to the ASPCA
  24. Try a new recipe

Be Healthy, Be Happy!




Filed Under: Life Tagged With: Christmas