DIY Lotion Bars Tutorial

Hello, my lovely readers!

I made some very neat lotion bars for my mom and my mother-in-law for Mother's Day this year.  They were so awesome that I thought I would share with you a tutorial on how to make them.  You may be wondering what lotion bars are.  Don't worry, I wondered the same thing too when I found the recipe.  Basically it is lotion that is made with beeswax so it stays in a solid form until you hold it.  Then it melts slightly so that you can rub it on your hands, elbows, knees, and other problem areas.  They are surprisingly easy and fun to make.

Ingredients:
Shea Butter (4 ounces)
Coconut Oil (4 ounces)
Beeswax (4.5 ounces)

You'll also need:
cupcake pan
double boiler (don't have one?  I'll share with you how to create your own at home...)
letter or food scale
measuring cups
spoons

If you live near a Michael's craft store, be sure to check out their weekly ad in the newspaper and on their website for coupons.  I purchased both the beeswax and the cupcake pan with 40% off coupons and saved several dollars on each one!

First, measure out all of your ingredients.  The coconut oil and shea butter are pretty easy to measure.  The beeswax on the other hand, is a little more difficult.  If you purchase a huge slab of beeswax like I did, don't spend tons of time trying to cut it with a knife like I did at first.  A simplier way is to place the beeswax in a plastic bag.  Be sure to tie it up so the beeswax doesn't get everywhere!  Prop up one end of the beeswax on a piece of wood or sidewalk.  Use a hammer to break up the beeswax into smaller pieces.  Once you have it broken up, place the pieces on your scale to measure the exact amount.

The next step is to combine all of the ingredients in a double boiler.  If you don't have a double boiler, fill a pot with two inches of water.  Place a glass bowl (I use Pyrex bowls... they are awesome) in the pot.  Be sure the bowl is bigger than the pot and that the water in the pot does not touch the bottom of the bowl.
Warning: the steam created from the pot can be very hot.  Watch for steam escaping from around the bowl.  You may need to move the bowl around a little bit with a towel or pot holder in order to prevent steam from escaping.

Next, pour the melted ingredients into your cupcake pan.  I recommend using a silicone cupcake pan to make it a little easier to pop out your finished lotion bars (I purchased this adorable silicone Wilton cupcake pan from my local Michael's).  If you find that you are having trouble pouring the mixture into the cupcake pan, transfer the mixture into a measuring cup first.

Let the mixture cool completely.  To make it even easier to pop out your bars, place the cupcake pan into the freezer and let cool for 30 minutes to an hour.  Be sure you let the bars cool completely before placing in the freezer.

Once you pull your bars out of the freezer, pop them out of the cupcake pan.  You're all done!

I hope that you enjoyed this tutorial.  If you try this recipe out, please let me know how yours turn out.  Stay tuned, there are more tutorials to come this summer! :)

This recipe was found at StyleList.com.

My Favorite Things: Clinique Chubby Stick

I decided to start a new segment called "My Favorite Things" here at Glass Slippers and Combat Boots.  Each month I will write about my favorite product of the month.

This month I chose:

the Clinique Chubby Stick

I recently got one as a part of the Clinique Bonus Time at my local mall.  I am obsessed with this product.  It is ah-mazing.  I have a confession, I am not a huge lipstick person.  Yes, I wear it on special occasions, but otherwise I stick to chapstick and lip stain.  The chubby stick is the perfect product for people like me.  Clinique calls the product a "moisturizing lip colour balm."  The chubby stick moisturizes and glides on like lip balm, but has color like lipstick.  It feels so soft and smooth on my lips and it lasts.

I chose the color Super Strawberry.  It is a very pretty pink color.  It would be a great color on any skin tone.

The chubby stick comes in a range of colors.  I can't wait to grab a few more.  I don't want to wear anything else on my lips anymore.

If you would like more information on the Clinique Chubby Stick, you can check out the product pages for on the websites for Clinique and Sephora.

Well, that's my favorite product of the month.  Have you tried the chubby stick?  If so, what do you think about it?  If not, what is your favorite product this month?

Please excuse the interruption

Hello, Dear Readers!

I am healing well after having my wisdom teeth removed last week.  I had a bit of a rough recovery, but I'm eating real food again, yay!  At my check up appointment earlier this week I was told that everything is healing well.  So, yay again!  :)

The pretty flowers that my husband gave me while I was sick :)

In other good news, after seeing the terribly embarrassing video of me singing a Lady Antebellum song while still high on the anesthesia after my surgery (if you would like to see it, click here... you know you want to), a radio station gave me free tickets to go to a Lady Antebellum concert!  I haven't gotten to see them in concert, but I've been a fan for a few years now.  Needless to say, I am super excited!!!

In other (but slightly sad) news, my summer classes begin Monday.  Thankfully they are the last two classes of my undergraduate career.  Graduation is getting closer and closer.

Speaking of graduating, several of my friends graduated last weekend.  So I would like to say a few words to my recently graduated friends:

First, I am so excited for all of you as you begin new chapters in your lives!  I know the amount of hard work it took you to get to this point.  All the late nights you spent working on homework and projects, all the weekends you stayed in, rather than going out... you earned your degree.  With that being said, take some time to relax now.  You deserve it.  I love you all and I can't wait to see what adventures you take next. 

Congratulations class of 2012!!!  You did it!!!

I'm hoping that means that my recently graduated friends will spend some time writing in their blogs (that especially means my friends over at Unwritten, Amapola Style, and Love Fearlessly). :)

Now that it is the summer time, I will have a little more free time (I hope).  So look for new posts coming soon, including some fun DIY projects.  In fact, my first DIY project will be posted no later than Monday, as I am working on the project as I type.  It is really fun as well as useful, so I know you will enjoy it.  There are also several events occurring within the next month (*cough cough* my birthday is Tuesday, May 15th *cough*) haha ;)

If you have any suggestions for new posts, please let me know in the comments below.  I would love some ideas.  Also, if you just want to say hello or tell me what you think, feel free to post that too.  I love hearing from all of you!  Last but not least, if you enjoy reading, feel free to click that button that says "Join this Site" on the top right side of the page, or follow by email (also on the right side of the page). :)

I hope everyone has a lovely weekend!

Wisdom Teeth

I went to the dentist back in December for the first time since high school.  The good news was that I didn't have any cavities.  The bad news was that I had four impacted wisdom teeth that needed to be removed as soon as possible.  Even worse was that due to my school schedule and some insurance issues I had to wait 5 months until I was able to get them out.

Waiting for my surgery to begin.

I decided to get them out May 1st.  Since my classes finished the week before and my next classes don't start until May 14th, I decided it was the best time to have them out.  Being the paranoid person that I am I was completely stressed out prior to my surgery.  Thankfully I had an awesome oral surgeon who was very nice and helped put me at ease.  The last thing I remember before the surgery was the nurse putting giving me some of the laughing gas and telling me to take deep breaths.  I remember him walking out of the room, and because I was so loopy, I remember thinking to myself, "Now I know why people do drugs" then I began to giggle in a really creepy way.  The oral surgeon then gave me an IV and that is all I remember before the surgery.

Afterwards I woke up in the recovery room and I was feeling really good.  The radio was on in the room and a Backstreet Boys song came on, so naturally I began to sing... loudly.  Between the drugs and my mouth filled with gauze it sounded terrible.  My mom and the nurses thought I was hilarious though.  In fact, the nurse even turned up the radio for me since I enjoyed so much.  Haha.

I then sang along to the radio the entire way home.   The anesthesia hadn't fully worn off yet and I was in quite the singing mood. I love Lady Antebellum, so I had my mom play one of their songs for me on the drive home. I wasn't aware at the time that I was being filmed.  So now, I present to you my drugged up rendition of their song, "Just a Kiss."







Sadly, the drugs eventually wore off.  Haha.  The first night and morning after were really bad because the painkillers made me nauseous and I couldn't keep anything down.  The oral surgeon prescribed me some medicine to help with the nauseousness and that has helped tremendously.  On the first day I was told that I could only have cold soft foods.  As big as my sweet tooth is (excuse the cheesy joke) I got sick of sweet stuff pretty quickly.  On the second day I was able to start eating some warm foods and found that refried beans and melted cheese (basically the inside of a bean burrito) really hit the spot.  I have also found that coke Icees, and Jello Temptations are awesome soft foods.  I have been keeping ice packs on my face almost constantly and that seems to help with the pain too.
Besides the pain I have found that one of the downsides to having any type of surgery is being stuck in bed.  It gets kind of boring to be stuck in bed all day.  I'm hoping that I will be able to move around a little bit better tomorrow.  On the bright side, I have found that between my husband and my mother I am being well taken care of.  It is so nice to not have to worry about anything because they have taken care of everything for me.
Well, I guess I better go rest some more.  If you have gotten your wisdom teeth out and have any tips or suggestions, I would love to hear from you!  For those of you who may have to get your wisdom teeth out in the future, I will post my own tips and suggestions after I recover.

 

It's been awhile...

Photo Credit

Hello, my lovely readers!

I know it has been forever since I last posted.  Things have been incredibly busy here.  I thought I would give you a post of the major updates, and then post more later.

For starters, the Spring 2012 semester is finally over.  Hooray!  This semester has been incredibly busy.  It seemed like the second half of the semester was much more difficult than the first half.

Second, we moved once again!  One of my mom's neighbors needed a house sitter for the next several months, so we decided to help her out.  The hubby and I are so excited to be in a house instead of an apartment.  It is a blessing to have gotten such a wonderful opportunity!

Yesterday I got my wisdom teeth out.  Not fun.  All four were impacted and doing funky stuff, so all four had to be surgically removed.  This morning I was in terrible pain, but thankfully I have been doing a lot better this afternoon.

This summer is going to be quite busy!  My birthday is coming up in a couple weeks, and then I will also be starting my summer courses.  As much as I am not looking forward to being back in school so quickly, I am excited that there are only two classes left for me to take before my final internship this fall.  I can't believe that my graduation is 7 months away!  While that still seems pretty far off, it looks pretty close when I look back at how long I have been in school.  The month of May will also be filled with many other fun events, such as the wedding of a dear friend of mine.  In June, I will be celebrating my first wedding anniversary!  I can't believe it!  As for the rest of the summer, I plan on getting my tan on and doing more fun summery things.  It is definitely my favorite time of the year!

Well, that is all for now.  Check back tomorrow for a new, more detailed post! :)

Spring Break Adventures: Tarpon Springs

As my spring break comes to a close, I thought I would write a post about one of my adventures this week.  My mother and I decided to take a drive to spend the day in the Sponge Docks in Tarpon Springs, Florida. The town of Tarpon Springs was built around the sponge docks.  Many Greek sponge divers came to Tarpon Springs, and today the town still has a strong Greek influence.  While visiting Tarpon Springs you can sample Greek cuisine from one of the many Greek restaurants, purchase sponges and souvineers, visit the aquarium or the museum, or take a tour of the sponge docks.

Mom and me

Saganaki (flaming cheese)... seriously delish

Bread, Saganaki, Greek salad, and Greek pizza

Sponge boats and sponges

"T-Shirt Outlet
Voted #1 in Tarpon Springs by our mom
Hours
Open: When we are here
Closed: When we are not"

We had a lot of fun shopping and walking around.  One shop had homemade soaps made with goat milk, olive oil, and all-natural ingredients.  The soaps came in a variety of scents.  I chose oatmeal honey, sugared citrus, sandlewood, and blackberry vanilla.  If you would like to check out their soaps and other products, you can visit their website, here.  I also got two new necklaces, two sets of bracelets, and a pair of earrings that match one of the necklaces.

All in all, it was a great day!  If you would like to find out more about Tarpon Springs, click here.

How to Give Yourself the Perfect Pedicure at Home

It's that time of year again!  SPRING BREAK!  Spring break is a sign it is time to break out some of my favorite things... flip flops.  Flip flops are a spring break must have if you are headed to the pool, the beach, or when you are making a quick run to the store for party supplies.  Here in the Sunshine state though, we tend to wear flip flops and sandals almost year round.

After wearing boots and tennis shoes for most of the "winter" (yes, I put it in quotes because in Florida we don't have much of a winter).  I decided that it was time to give myself a pedicure.  The dry weather combined with my love of boots has really taken it's toll on my feel.  They aren't pretty.  So today I decided it was time for a pedicure.  Naturally I don't feel like spending a ton of money for pedicures every week, but with a few supplies I can do my own at home.

Step 1:

Take off any polish that is on your toes.

Step 2:

Clip your toenails.  Clip them straight across and do not round the edges.  Doing so prevents getting ingrown toenails!  If you would like to file your nails, file them the same way (rather than back and forth) as it helps to prevent your nails from breaking.

Step 3:

Add a little bit of cuticle cream if you would like (I used Sally Hansen Healthy Cuticles Now).  Gently, push back cuticles with an orangewood stick.  If you start to push back the skin around your toes... STOP.

Step 4:

Fill up your bathtub or a small bin with warm water.  Let your feet soak in the water for at least 15 minutes (the more dead skin you have on your feet, the longer you'll need to soak them).  Add a few drops of some essential oils (such as peppermint) or bath salts if you would like to.

Step 5:

This is the gross part.  Scrape the dead skin off of your feet focusing on your heels, the balls of your feet, and the sides of your feet.  For this you can use a foot scraper or pumice stone (I use a Ped Egg).  Warning: Do not scrub too hard.  If your skin looks pink stop.  The point is to take off the excess rough skin, but you do need some tough skin left to help protect your feet.  I use the Ped Egg.

Step 6:

Slather on a foot cream.  Put on socks to help the cream to really soak into your feet.  For added hydration, leave your socks on overnight.  I used Gold Bond Ultimate Softening Foot Cream with Shea Butter.

Step 7:

Put on a thin coat of nail polish base.  This helps to protect your nails from being stained by your nail polish, as well as help your polish last longer.  I used Sally Hansen Diamond Strength Diamond Shine Base & Top Coat.  Make sure that you wash all cream off of your nails before applying your base or polish.

Step 8:

Paint your nails with your favorite nail polish.  Use cotton balls to keep your toes from touching each other.

I chose China Glaze nail polish in Re-Fresh Mint.

Step 9:

After your polish dries, add a clear top coat to help your polish last longer.

You're all finished!  Make sure your polish is completely dry before putting on shoes or walking around too much.  If your polish starts to chip, it's time to give yourself another pedicure!

What is your spring polish color?  Do you prefer the DIY yourself approach, or do you visit the salon.