I Pinned This - Foam Soap

Do you know the repercussions of asking someone to go wash their hands?  If yes, you must have a toddler/preschooler.  Bubbles and water everywhere, and an almost empty bottle of soap next to the facet.  When I saw this pin, I knew we needed this.  I've bought foaming soap before but it is so drying on my skin, the amount of lotion it takes to not feel like my hands are going to bleed defeats the idea of saving the soap.  Maybe if I can use a soap that doesn't leave my skin crying for moisture, the foam will be perfect in our bathroom.

Here's what Pinterest promises:  (actually Pinterest doesn't promise anything, but the link from Pinterest says:)
Next fill the bottle approximately one inch full with soap
Then fill to the top with hot water
Then shake well.
Hot water is important because it helps to dissolve the soap so it will mix better. If you don't mix it well enough the first few pumps will be quite soapy instead of foamy. Just shake it again and it should be fine. (Adventures of a DIY Mom)

Here's what I did:
I had an almost empty foam bottle that I'd bought from The Dollar Tree moons ago.  I started by rinsing it out.  When I was pumping clean water through, I cannot believe how much soap is stored in the pump itself! I pumped through 1/4 bottle of clean water and soap was still coming out until I said "good enough".

I used a bottle of regular soap we've had since before we bought the foaming soap, I figure it doesn't matter what type of soap is used but I'm thinking Bath & Body works Warm Vanilla Sugar would be amazing!

Following directions, I put in maybe 1" (maybe a little less) of soap into the empty bottle and filled the rest up with hot water.  (Leave some room at the top when filling the bottle for shaking purposes).  After 20-30 seconds the soap was dissolved.

There's really soap in there, the bubbles at the top look like the pump but I promise its not. 

Time to test this bad boy out! 

Seems legit.  I washed my hands a couple of times to compare it to the other foaming soap and regular soap.  It lost some of the fragrance from the regular soap but cleaned my hands like I would expect any soap to.  

My hands are very dry after using this, much like the original foaming soap.  Conclusion - foaming soap is not for sensitive or prone-to-dryness skin types. 

Do you have problems with soap and your hands?

XO! 

How to Clean Your Make-up Brushes

We all know how gross make-up brushes can get.  When I stop to think about the amount of old, bacteria caked make-up is being rubbed onto my face... I want to throw up a little.  What's the best way to solve that problem?  Keep your brushes clean! Keeping them clean, helps them to last longer, too.

There are many different suggestions for cleaning brushes that range from buying expensive brush solution, to ingredients from your own cabinet.  Guess which one I use.

My 'go to' method has always been a little bit of baby shampoo and some warm water.

Don't let the amount of brushes in the jar fool you, make-up is a rarity around these parts.  Why do it if you never leave the house?

Add a small amount of baby shampoo into a bowl (I put just enough to lightly cover the bottom of the bowl) and some warm water.  Begin swooshing your brush around in the water, making sure to smoosh the bristles against the bottom of the bowl to get any make-up that's jammed way into the the brush.

It's been a very long time since I've washed mine, but with all of the browns and pinks I wear, the water gets really disgusting, really quick.  

As the water gets cloudier, dump it and start again.  I dumped my water 3 times.  If there's one thing that grosser than dirty brushes - its dirty brushes that have are coated in other wet make-up. 

After cleaning a few brushes, rinse them under warm water.  As you "ring" out the extra water, shape the bristles back to their original shape and lay to dry on a clean towel. 

Smaller brushes obviously dry faster than big brushes, but I let mine lay down for a few hours before putting them back into the jar.  

If you don't have baby shampoo, or are interested in other ways to clean your brushes I've seen some people use: warm vinegar and Dawn dish soap, olive oil and Dawn dish soap, or face wash.  The idea is the same with any of those so pick whichever works best for you. 

Until next time...

XO!

2 Ingredient Shower Scrub DIY

If you're anything like me... winter is a KILLER on your skin.  My skin is very dry all the time, but with these bitterly cold days, I can't do anything but iiiiitttttccccchhhhh. Here is a scrub that you can make and take with you into the shower once a week to help slough off the dead skin and moisturize what's left.

You need Brown Sugar and Olive Oil - that's it! You have those in the cupboard on any given day.

Don't worry about any specific measurements, just put in enough brown sugar to cover your body keeping in mind it will "melt" a little when you pour in the olive oil.

And you're done!  How easy was that?

*Be careful in the shower when using this scrub, the olive oil can make the floor slippery.

Bonus Scrub
My mother-in-law used to sell Mary Kay and I was always gifted products during Christmas or birthdays. One of my favorite things I was given was the TimeWise Microdermabrasion set. (it also came with a shimmery lotion which I really like, but it's not moisturizing enough for the winter)

The sad news about this stuff is the cost.  If it wasn't a gift, I would have never spent the $40 on it.  

Luckily, the lotion has lasted longer (since I don't use it as often) and was able to create a similar scrub for my face.  And you're not going to believe this... it's even easier than the sugar scrub above!

A small amount of baking soda and a teeny amount of water.  Approximatly.. $.02 compared to $20.. I'll take it!  Plus, I feel like it works just as well, as long as you use your regular facewash before this. 

Now all I need to discover is a good hair treatment and I can have a spa day at home for pennies! 

Until next time... XO!