Rosemary Mint Body Scrub

When I was in college I was obsessed with Aveda's rosemary mint hair products. I loved the faint tingle the shampoo gave my scalp and the sharp and sweet smell that lingered all day. Luckily for my college student budget, I had friends who worked in salons and Aveda shops who were able to feed my obsession keep me supplied with rosemary-mint goodness. Now that I'm older, I've graduated to using all natural tea tree products for my hair, but I still love the combination of rosemary and mint. So, this sweet combination seemed like the logical choice when I decided to make my own body scrub.

For some reason I haven't been overly particular about using all natural products when it comes to skin and hair care. I've always been one to read labels and try to purchase the best products, but despite being very conscious of what goes in my body, I haven't been equally as conscious about what goes on it. Well, no more. I've switched out my supposedly sulfate-free shampoo for one made from tea tree oil and plant extracts and have embarked upon making my own body scrubs. The process was simple and allowed me to control how much or how little fragrance went into the product. Also, the obvious plus is that there are four {count them, only four} ingredients here.

How-to:

approx. 1/2 cup coarse salt

approx. 1/2 cup grapeseed oil (or olive or coconut)

lots of rosemary and mint leaves*, chopped

Fill a container of choice with salt and add just enough oil to wet the salt. Add in the chopped leaves and mix well. If your container is small, you may need to transfer the mixture to a bowl in order to thoroughly combine all the ingredients. If you want a stronger fragrance, add more leaves.  
*Note: you could also use a few drops of essential oils instead of actual herbs.

Next up, it's a sugar scrub with coconut oil and lavender.

xoxo

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Megga Veggie Pizza

When it comes to food and cooking, I love trying new and different things, so part of me is slightly ashamed to admit that pizza is probably my favorite food. Not exactly the most grown-up choice, but a good slice of pizza can make just about any bad day better. So, this past Friday night, I decided that a homemade pizza was the perfect cure for the work week blues.

I cheated a bit and bought dough from the bakery. Homemade pizza dough can be a bit tricky.

Freshly grated mozzerella, onions, green bell pepper, marinated artichokes, black olives, spinach, and fire roasted tomatoes made up the toppings.

Fresh basil leaves and just a bit of minced garlic for extra flavor.

Delicious.

Happy (pizza) eating.
xoxo



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DIY days

one of the things i love about summer is having a bit of free time to invest in all the DIY projects that have been collecting during the semester. here are a few that i have planned for the next month or so...

homemade citronella candles in a variety of interesting containers will keep the mosquitoes away while we enjoy dinner & mojitos on the back porch.


continuing to redesign our office... i am searching for some inexpensive file cabinets and plan on giving them a wallpaper face-lift!


this self-watering herb garden is the perfect way to add a few more herbs to my collection. i love the re-purposing of old bottles, and the ease of a window-sill garden. i think i may use wine bottles to allow the plants a bit more room to grow.


i am so in love with these filament lights! they would look great over the bookshelf that will soon inhabit our living room. this project, however, may be a bit more complicated, so i may have to call for backup. good thing my dad is an electrician.


do you have any projects planned for the summer? do share!
xoxo


images via design*sponge
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finishing touches

with the cool weather setting in

and the thanksgiving holiday around the corner,

i have started to think more and more about christmas presents.

{things to give, not receive!}

this year i decided to make all of my presents in the kitchen.

although a bit nervous about this rather large undertaking,

i think it will be a fun, personal way to give one of the things that i love the most,

the comfort of homemade, delicious food.

i am still tweaking the recipe list,

{check back for a detailed account later!}

but i have started to think about packaging a bit.

i know i want to find some mini mason jars for one of the goodies,

and i stumbled upon nice package when looking for finishing touches.

the site has adorable tags, twine, boxes,

and anything else you may need to wrap sweet little gifts

{or even do a bit of decorating}

i love these metallic tab stickers, especially as a garland on a brown box

personalized award ribbon tags

to make brown paper packages that much more special

this pennant bunting is simple and sweet

i love the personalized simplicity of it all,

and i think it is quite perfect for the types of gifts i will be giving this year.

stop by nice package and look through their creative gift wrap ideas.

which one is your favorite?

xoxo

images courtesy of nice package

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Easter Cupcakes

After reading a post on one of my favorite blogs, Cupcakes and Cashmere, I decided to give these Vanilla Cupcakes a try. I used the Vanilla Buttercream icing that the bakery recommended, and the treats were divine! The only change that I will make in the future is that I will decrease the amount of confectioner sugar in the icing. I found it to be just a little too sweet. Also, I would like to play around a bit more with the decorations on top. I was slightly rushed with these since I made them Sunday morning before heading to K's parents' house for lunch. Despite my thoughts on the icing, the cupcakes were a hit with everyone! I would definitely recommend the recipe!

Easter has been a favorite holiday of mine since I was a child, and I always spend the day surrounded by family and friends. I do hope that you all were able to do the same and that you had a very happy Easter Sunday!

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Under the Tree...

I took a break from studying on Monday to do a bit of gift wrapping. Part of the reason that I love Christmas is giving gifts to the people that I love. Each year I try to do something a bit different with my wrapping without going too overboard. I just can't see spending a ton of money on paper, but I definitely want the gifts reflect the effort put into them. Also, I often try to use recycled papers or natural embellishments such as pine cones, cranberries, or pieces of old jewelry. 

I have a total of four nieces and nephews, and I absolutely love watching them open their gifts! This year I chose a bright, vintage-inspired set of wrapping paper for their presents. I fashioned a bow out of crumpled strips of the same or coordinating paper, and I am quite pleased with the result. I have found that although they may appreciate the pretty packaging, children tend to enjoy ripping it open a bit more, so I like to keep their packages slightly simpler.

I love the paisley print the most! The snowflakes were picked out by my nephews, and the other pink paper by my niece.

I love the use of vintage linens  in these two images from Martha Stewart. Napkins and tea towels work wonderfully for wrapping, especially when giving kitchen or home-oriented gifts. They are also really adorable for wrapping edible homemade goodies or wine bottles.

This is probably one of my top few favorites when it comes to wrapping. I used this idea last year, and it got great reviews! Instead of just using newspaper for your wrapping, find newspapers written in a foreign language, and then tie a coordinating bow around the middle. I used a french newspaper and solid color ribbons, and I loved the outcome. Martha Stewart suggests Japanese newsprint and a corresponding floral print ribbon, which looks great.

This is the paper that I will be using for my adult gifts this year. I love the simple elegance of the black and white and the use of cameos as embellishments. (I adore cameos in any setting.) I think I may also recycle some silver, sparkly broaches and charms to use as gift toppers as well. The wonderful thing about this paper? You can print it directly from the Martha Stewart website! Talk about convenience. 

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Holiday Baking

Baking with my mom and sister is one of my favorite holiday traditions. We usually begin around Thanksgiving and continue throughout December. Since I am in Athens this year we haven't been able to completely fulfill the tradition, but starting next week, the fun will begin again! Here's a peek at a couple goodies that we made for Thanksgiving.

I used a heart-shaped cookie cutter and a knife to make leaves for the top of the pie.

After finishing the weaving and leaves, brush over the pie with an egg wash to ensure a crisp, golden finish!

We used the boxed pie crust mix to make things a bit easier (making crust from scratch can be a bit dodgy!) and found a can of cranberry-apple filling in the seasonal section at a local market. To make the weave top of the pie, simply roll out your second crust and it into strips. If you don't have a roller, you can use a tall glass like we did! Then weave the strips in one by one until the pie is covered. 

The finished product: Cranberry-Apple Pie. Yum!

Next we made pumpkin bars with homemade cream cheese icing. The icing was super easy to make and tasted delicious. These were definitely a hit at Thanksgiving dinner, especially in the bite size bars that we cut them into. The longest part of this treat is the baking time, but everything else is pretty simple.

 

We also made some whip cream for our coffee. Homemade whip cream is one of my favorite things to make, and it is so easy! Just add 8 oz of whipping cream, 1/4 cup sugar, and a capful of vanilla extract and beat. It makes a great addition to a piece of pie, a cup of coffee, or even ice cream!

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