Treat Your Feet

Epsom salts in warm water is a great way to soothe tired feet! I hate achy feet! Personally, I have to soak my feet once or twice a week just to get through the week. So, if you have weary feet like me, check this out.

    What You'll Need:  

Foot spa or large tub

1 cup epsom salts

1/2 cup honey

2 drops of lavender essential oil

2 cups warm whole milk

1 gallon warm water

Mix well and ENJOY!

When Life Gives You Lemons...

Make lemonade. How cliche', right? Well, it's true. When it comes to beauty, lemons can be used in many different ways. In fact, fresh lemons can help improve your skin? Here are 3 ways to add a touch lemon-y sweetness to your beauty regime:

Lighten dark spots

Lemon helps to lighten the skin naturally due to its bleaching properties. Squeeze one lemon into a small bowl to prepare enough for one treatment. With a Q-Tip, apply the lemon juice to the darkened area and leave on for an hour.

Tighten pores

 

Honestly, it's impossible to permanently shrink large pores, but you can tighten them and reduce their appearance for a short time by using a lemon.

Lemon Facial Mask

1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice
two tablespoons of flour

two tablespoons of plain yogurt

Apply to the face

Allow mask to sit 10 to 15 minutes

Rinse with warm water

Soften dry darkened elbows

Mix fresh lemon juice and baking soda to make a thick paste, apply to dry elbows. Place your elbow in the lemon and twist the lemon for several minutes. Rinse and dry. Do this daily until the dark patches disappear.

Hope This Helps

Honey & Milk Mask

Honey is awesome! Not only does it taste good, but it's very beneficial for the skin. Cleopatra used milk and honey for her bath to keep her skin soft, supple and youthful. Honey is a natural humectant which means it attracts and retains moisture. It is often used in soaps, cleansers and moisturizers. That's why it makes a great moisture mask.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons of honey

2 tablespoons of milk

1 teaspoon of Vitamin E oil

1 Egg

Directions

 Mix it together and then massage it in all over your face.

Let it sit for 10 minutes.

Homemade Bath Salts

Making bath salts is quick, cheap and simple. All of the ingredients can be found at a local supermarket.

  

Ingredients

1 cup of Epsom Bath Salts

1 cup Kosher salt.

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon mineral oil

10 drops food coloring

Directions

Combine the salts with the vanilla & oil mixture and slowly add food coloring of your choice to the bath salt mixture. Regular food coloring will work perfectly.

Store extra in an airtight glass jar or storage container for future use.

How To Throw A Spa Party

Wanna throw a party, but tired of the same boring cocktail parties? How about throwing a spa party. Why not? It's fun, different and your besties will love it.



Spa Party Tips

Send Out Invitations -- Invite your real bffs. Ya know, the ones that know everything about you. I mean e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. The ride-or-die girlfriends that are down for whatever, even though they may have  a husband and three children now, for a good laugh, they may still have the urge to flash your grumpy, old neighbor. Tell everyone to bring the following:

• A robe
• A pair of slippers
• Comfortable PJs 

Make Gift Baskets -- Women love free stuff. Even silly things are awesome if they're free. A simple basket with a few items is all that is needed. 

• Manicure and pedicure kit
• Bath salts
• Bubble bath
• Essential oils
• Candles

Create A Spa Atmosphere -- Spas smell good. This is the perfect time to pull out 10 of the 50 scented candles you've received  over the years participating in Secret Santa with your co-workers. Incense are also a great touch. You should also have some new age music or soothing nature sounds playing in the background.

Spa Menu --  Refreshments are a must. You can go all out and make your menu luxurious like the top resort spas or you can keep it simple and choose drinks and finger foods that you know your guests will enjoy. Heck! Order a cake. This is a party, right? Other foods and drinks you might like:

• Sparkling water
• Margaritas
• Fruit smoothies
• Create your own spatini
• Fresh fruit and veggie trays with assorted dips
• Chips and salsa
• Shrimp cocktail on ice  

Treatments --  When you're with your besties, it's always a party, but for your spa party you may still want to do spa treatments.  Hire a professional. You can hire an esthetician, nail technician or massage therapist to come to your spa party. Having everyone on a rotating schedule would be a great idea if you decide to hire all three.  Here is what you can offer:

• Half an hour facial
• Half an hour massages
• Simple mani or pedi

Chick Flick -- After the relaxation is over. Rev things up by playing one of your favorite chick flicks. Who cares if you've seen Thelma and Louise a million times. Have you seen it with this group of women...in a robe...right after a professional massage therapists has rubbed knots out of your back? 

Games --This is a great opportunity to dust off your board games. It's also a great chance to get to know you newer girlfriends better by playing Truth or Dare or I Never.  

ENJOY

Strawberry Hand and Foot Exfoliant



Strawberries contain a natural fruit acid which aids in exfoliation.



What You Will Need:

8-10 Strawberries
2 tablespoons Olive Oil 

4 Almonds (with skin)

Directions:

Grate the almonds finely

Mash the strawberries. DO NOT use a blender. Doing so will make the strawberries watery.

Mix all of the ingredients together.

Massage into hands and feet.

Leave on for about 3-5 minutes, rinse, and pat dry.   

Store in a glass jar and refrigerate. This mixture stays good for about 7 days, at the most.

ENJOY

Make Your Own Bubble Bath

What woman doesn't like to soak in a long, hot, luxurious bubble bath? Well, lots of women do, but how many of us actually do it? Maybe making your own bubbles will tempt you to relax and soak a little more.

What You Need

Materials:
A pretty container for your bubble bath 

3 oz of Glycerin

4 oz Castille Soap

4 cups of Water

Your favorite essential oil

Instructions

Blend water with glycerin and castille soap 

Add 4-5 drops of your essential oil.

Mix thoroughly.

Pour your bubble bath into the container.

*It should keep for quite a while*

Make Your Own Facial Mist

Ladies, create your very own homemade mists and toner that have all the benefits of the expensive brands at a fraction of the cost.

For Sensitive Skin:

CHAMOMILE MIST

Chamomile is known for its anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antibacterial, and anti-fungal  properties. It's great for rosacea, sun poison, calming irritated skin and sun burn.

Boil 1 chamomile herbal tea bag into 100ml boiling water for 5 minutes.

Refrigerate until it's cool.                                         

Pour into a small spray bottle and use after cleansing.

Mist on the face anytime throughout the day for a cool refreshment.

For oily skin:

VODKA MIST

Rose hip is a great skin regenerator. It is commonly used to restore firmness to skin, fight wrinkles, reduce scars, heal wounds, and skin diseases such as psoriasis. Lemons tighten the skin, control oil and fight blemishes. Vodka is a known antiseptic. 

2 ounces of rose hip tea

2 ounces of lemon juice

2 ounces of Russian vodka

Pour into a small spray bottle and use after cleansing.

Caution: It will sting if applied to broken skin. This formula will keep in the refrigerator for a week.

Mist on the face anytime throughout the day for a cool refreshment.

For dry skin:

WATERMELON TONER

Watermelon hydrates the skin and keeps it cool and refreshed.

2 tablespoons fresh watermelon juice
2 tablespoons witch hazel
2 tablespoons distilled water

Puree the watermelon.

Strain the watermelon juice to get rid of seeds.

Mix the ingredients in small bowl and stir well.

Dip a clean cotton pad into the mixture and apply to face.

Let it sit on the skin for 20 minutes.

Pour the remainder into an air-tight container.

Store in refrigerator.

This formula will keep in the refrigerator for a week.

Create Your Woman Cave

According to Beyonce, girls run the world. I agree. Not only are most of us bringing home the bacon, we're frying it up in the pan and serving it too. Question is, when do we get a break? Most women are so busy taking care of others that they never take care of themselves. Think about it, when was the last time you took time out for yourself?

Waiting...

If you had to pause, listen up! In these hard economic times, smart, responsible women are no longer spending $150 a month on spas visits. Smart, responsible women with just a little bit of imagination are bringing the spa experience to their very own bathrooms.

Create your woman cave.

Relax With Steam

Facial Steaming

What You'll Need:

6 drops of lavender or another essential oil

1 cup of fresh or dried herbs

How To Steam:

Add the lavender and herbs to a pot

Add 4 cups of boiling water and let it steep for 8-10 minutes

Pour the water into a large heat safe bowl

 Sit at a table with a towel draped over the top of your head and the bowl

Hold your face 8-10 inches from the bowl 

Steam for six minutes

Rinse your face with warm water

Pat the skin dry with a soft towel

Benefits:

Lavender is soothing. Inhaling it decreases anxiety and helps you relax.

Steam opens up the pores for better cleansing.

*If you have asthma, speak to your doctor before beginning any treatment that involves breathing in oils or herbs.

*Be careful that the steam is not too hot

*Frequent steaming is a bad idea as it could leave your skin more dehydrated

Got Chocolate Milk? Chocolate Milk Bath Recipe

For centuries women have been taking milk baths to improve the look and feel of their skin. Rumor has it that Cleopatra, Elizabeth I and Elisabeth of Bavaria were all great beauties who loved to soak in a tub full of milk. Ahhh...

Milk baths make the skin feel soft, silky and more resilient. Why? Because the lactic acid in milk acts similarly to the alpha hydroxy acids found in expensive skin creams.

Lactic acid dissolves the proteins that bind together dull, ashen, dead skin cells. A milk bath, in combination with an exfoliating loofah, will leave your skin feeling soft, silky and smooth. A milk bath with chocolate will make you feel like you're in heaven.


The thought sounds luxurious, doesn't it?




What You Will Need:

• 1 large mixing bowl
• 2 cups of powdered milk
• 1/4 cup of cocoa
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon, vanilla, mint or lavender. (Add just one drop at a time and stir it thoroughly into the powders before adding the next drop).

*Makes one bath treatment*   

And because the powdered milk contains lactic acid, which cleans oils and dirt from your skin, soap is unnecessary.

  

Enjoy.

Brown Suga and Honey Body Scrub

Okay, ladies, winter is officially outta here, and it's getting closer and closer to leg-baring time. Let's be real, the winter months really do a number on the skin. You're dry. You're flaky and you can actually see scales. Eck! Have no fear, chicas, help is on the way. It's time so slough off all that tired, old, dull skin and get smooth.

What You Will Need:

- 2 tablespoons of brown sugar

- 2 tablespoons of honey

- 3 teaspoons of jojoba or extra virgin olive oil

Brown sugar is excellent for exfoliating the skin while honey is a natural humectant that attracts and retains moisture. For oil, I went with Jojoba because I like the way it feels, but extra virgin olive oil is good too. Plus, you may already have some in your kitchen. Together these three ingredients make a winning team.

Fruit Facial

Going to the spa is cool, but sometimes a girl just doesn't have the time or money to go that route. If you’re fiending for a facial, but lacking the the green stuff, just head to the kitchen. I'm almost positive that you'll have everything that you need there for this facial.

Here's what you'll need:

• 1/2 cup of yogurt
• 1 chopped papaya
• 1 juiced lemon
• 1 teaspoon of honey

Put all ingredients in the blender and blend on low until it's pasty. Apply to face and leave on for at least 20 minutes. Rinse with warm water. Pat dry and add your favorite moisturizer.

Got any extra left over? Make a smoothie!

 

Here are three simple steps: