homemade lip balm & dry shampoo.

i have been trying to perfect my lip balm recipe. i would love to start an etsy seller account and sell homemade beauty products, but i am very picky and particular about things.. also it's going to be a large investment in the beginning so i want it to be perfect. there are several recipes other brilliant people have created that i adore.. one of my favorite recipe books out there is Organic Body Care Recipes by Stephanie Tourles. there are a few lip balm recipes in it which were all very nice but not quite what i wanted. after several trials, including the recipe from this site, i finally made it my own and i'm very happy with the results. instead of olive, shea or almond oil i settled finally on using organic coconut oil.. though i might end up charging a little more than i planned starting out because this stuff is not cheap. i would share this recipe but i would like it to remain mine.. sorry. if you send me a nice message i might just send you little test batch sample. ;)

amidst lip balm sciencing i noticed that i was running low on my LUSH coconut deodorant powder.. which is one of my favorite products. ever. i rub it all in my scalp on days i don't want to wash my hair as well as use it under my armpits. BUT with our budget and baby on the way i just cannot justify spending extra on too much personal girly stuff. i decided i can make this too! sorta.. i read several sites that had dry shampoo recipes (including this one on PetitElefant), i made note of the consistent ingredients i saw. i also checked out the ingredient list of the LUSH stuff. i ended up creating this recipe:

Charlsie's Coconut Dry Shampoo/Deodorant Powder

• 4 tablespoons cornstarch
• 4 tablespoons baking soda
• 4 tablespoons tapioca flour
• 4 tablespoons coconut flour

this made enough to fill four glass spice shakers that i bought at The Container Store. it felt really great to make these things myself. i hope my friends like my concoctions and maybe someday soon i will make a little extra cash making people smell & feel prettier.

homemade trail mix!

patrick says trail mix is his favorite thing to have with him while he's working long days outside. easy energy! but it is so pricey... I decided I can do it better!

here are the ingredients i used:

• unsweetened coconut flakes

• mini m&ms

• almonds

• dry roasted peanuts

• dried apples

• dried cranberries

• golden raisins

• sunflower seeds

you just put it all in a big freezer bag and mix it up! I think I'll get a big container to stay on the counter top and fill it up!