Let's Talk Conditioner

I have this thing with my hair.

If I have to choose whether to style my hair before leaving the house and putting on makeup, I will choose my hair every time.

I have a very specific routine for washing my hair too. First of all, I never wash it more than once or twice a week. It's so drying! Also, the water has to be only lukewarm, and cooler if I can stand it. My hair is the first thing I wash when I get into the shower. I shampoo, blot out as much water as possible, apply conditioner, clip it up with one of those claw clippies, then put on a shower cap to hold it all in while I finish my shower.

I am constantly on the lookout for the next best conditioner. I like really thick ones that coat my hair. They have to smell like food of some sort; no floral scents for me. I like vanilla and fruit smells.

Like I said. I'm very specific!

I received an offer to try out this conditioner:

from Maple Holistics. Not only is it paraben and silicone free, it smells like vanilla! Sold! (well, free, but you know what I mean)

I'm going to be honest with you. I did NOT like this conditioner the first few weeks I used it. Even though it came out of the bottle looking thick, it quickly felt like it was watered down as it was being applied to my hair. I'm used to being able to feel a conditioner start to work as it's being applied, and I didn't feel that with this one. I also like to feel like the strands of hair are silky smooth as I rinse, and this barely felt like I had used any conditioner at all. My hair basically felt the same.

Needless to say, I was not impressed.

Here's the thing though: the shower in our master bedroom is one of those tiny stall ones, and space is at a premium. That means there is only room for the products that I am actually, currently using, and anything else gets stored under the sink.

Out of reach of the shower.

So my regular conditioner was across the bathroom, and the Maple Holistics one was in the shower, so therefore I kept using it because I kept forgetting to swap them out before I got in.

And something started to happen.

My hair? I noticed it was REALLY soft and smooth when I styled it. My hair started to feel more smooth when I rinsed it in the shower. It was shinier too.

So maybe this conditioner wasn't so bad after all. It takes several (AHEM) washes to get your hair to respond, but when it gradually does, you definitely see the difference. I'm okay with leaving my old conditioner in the cabinet now. This smells delicious, my hair is soft and smooth and shiny, and it's pretty reasonably priced for not being a drugstore product.

I'm glad I let it stick around.




***I received this product for free in exchange for posting a review. I was not told what to say, only to be honest. I did not receive any monetary compensation.***

Testing. 3/10/19

DIY Eco-friendly Duster Refills for Only 50 Cents Each!

The last year or so, I've been in a serious funk.  I stopped doing a lot of the stuff I loved, had record amounts of insomnia, and totally backslid on all of my cooking and cleaning efforts, let alone cooking healthy and cleaning green.

Didn't nobody have time for that!

But I'm on a new medication, and it's a new year, and I can feel the fog lifting again.  What I'm realizing?  I am fat and my house is a MESS.  Time to get back to business.  First order of business - dusting.

I have come to realize that if I don't dust, no one will.  It's so freaking gross, you guys.  Let's not forget to add in that I live in the desert, so things are naturally pretty dusty as it is.  You add in only the most basic of housecleaning for almost a year and well... it's nasty.  I'm just keeping it real here.

I personally have a teensy Swiffer Duster addiction.  The problem is, when your house is really dusty, you go through them pretty fast.  They are not cheap, and they definitely are not good for the environment.  I needed to come up with an alternative, and fast!  I know that a lot of people swear by feather dusters, but I've tried several different kinds and just don't care for them.  I prefer knowing I'm tossing out the dust when I'm done cleaning.  Sure I could use a cleaning rag, but then I have to actually touch the dirt (ick, gag) more than I'd like.

Solution?

I picked up some microfiber cleaning towels in the automotive section of my local Dollar Tree.  They are a pretty good size, and you get two to a package. They came in neon green and blue.  I opted for the more obnoxious color, seeing as that's how I roll.

You're also going to need the handle from your Swiffer Duster.

Take one of the towels and cut it into quarters, keeping the finished seams on the bottom.

Cut the finished seams from the sides, but leave the one at the bottom. That will make it easier to put the finished duster on the handle. Stack all of the pieces together.

Lay the handle in the middle of the stacked and with a fine tipped marker (I used a green Sharpie to coordinate with my cloths) make a dotted line around the handle.  Pin the layers together.

Starting at the top of the "u" shape, stitch straight down the center line.  Be sure to backstitch at the beginning and end to secure.  Then, sew the "u" shape, also being sure to backstitch at the beginning and end.

Pull out your pins and even up the sides.  I trimmed about an inch off the end and rounded the corners too.

Make cuts along the sides, about 3/4" apart and stopping 1/2" from your stitching.

Slide the handle into the layers and give it a good shake to separate the layers.  I'm going to warn you though - this step is MESSY.  You will have little balls of whatever color you chose fluff all over the place!

But think of how much money you're going to save on refills, and how many little fluffy bits of paper and fibers you're going to keep out of the landfill, and give yourself a pat on the back.

These took about five minutes each, from start to finish, and I made six, for a grand total of $3.00 and some thread. Not too shabby!

Give Thanks

I want to get back in the habit of keeping a gratitude journal.  I find that it really does help with my attitude toward things.  I mean, it's not like I have a bad attitude toward things.  I just think it's a good exercise for being more mindful in general.

In the past I've kept a separate gratitude journal, but I thought it might simplify things to just keep it going in my planner.  I made up these little stickers to help me in this endeavor:

I just printed them out on sticker paper/full sheet labels and I'll be sticking one on each day in my planner so that I can jot down at least one thing each day for which I am thankful.  You can download your own pdf of this file by visiting my Facebook page.  As always, these are for personal use only.  Please do not reproduce them for sale.  Also please do not pin to Pinterest from anywhere except this blog post.

Thanks and enjoy!

Hey Planner Junkies!

Okay, here is a list of the things I *should* be doing:

1.  Cleaning my house for the arrival of visitors this weekend.

2.  Figuring out how to decorate my mantel.

3.  Figuring out how to decorate the currently bare hutch in our entryway.

4.  Working on my Project Life.

Here is a list of what I am doing instead:

1.  Listening to the 90's R&B Radio station on Pandora.  SO.  FREAKING.  AWESOME.

2.  Making stickers for my planner.

To be fair, I did make it a goal to do a better job keeping up with my planner this year. I found a set of sticky notes on Pinterest that contained the "dire" and "important" wording, and then I came up with the rest.  Now, if my Google skills are correct, these should fit the little squares in the Erin Condren planners too.  Each sticker should end up an inch and a half wide and just under two inches tall.  This means you could easily use them in a traditional Filofax-type planner, or one from Target like I have.

I thought they were fun, and I thought I would share.  Of course, like all my printables, the deal is the same.  Visit (and hopefully Like if you have not already!) my Facebook page for instructions on how to download these for yourself.  Please keep them for your own personal use and don't sell or modify them.

Now, I printed mine on sticker paper that I bought at an Office Supply store and cut apart, but since they're only 1 1/2" wide they would also easily fit into a small sticker maker machine like the Xyron 150.  Heck, you could print them out and just smear a glue stick on the back as you need them.  That part is entirely up to you.

Enjoy!