DIY Life

I caught a re-run of Shear Genius last week, and the topic was timely for me. During the show, hair stylists cut and styled women's hair. But the twist was that for judging, the women needed to replicate the style on their own.

I know I've been in that type of predicament with my hair before. I'll sit in a stylist's chair and love, love, love what they did. But the next day I discover that I'm completely incapable of recreating the style on my own. Unless you're lucky enough to have the funds to pay for a personal stylist, what good is a hair cut if you can't style it yourself?

Last Friday I got a pretty drastic hair cut. I sat there watching inches of my hair fall to the floor and worried that I wouldn't be able to style it myself. Then I remembered the episode of Shear Genius, and I decided to take a few tips from the show. I'll share some ideas after the break.

Your 'do is getting a bit faded, but you just don't have time to get to the stylist , or you don't want to fork out that much money so soon. You could put off the trip to the salon another three or four weeks if it weren't for your bangs, which are in your eyes and driving you crazy!

What to do?

With this very simple trick from Darla at Chic Critique, you can get yourself those extra days, and you can do it yourself!

You know how it is: gals with straight hair envy their curly-haired friends, and ladies with straight hair wish they could have bouncy ringlets. As a member of the curly-hair club, I've always envied the people I know whose stick-straight hair looks terrific first thing in the morning -- and doesn't go frizzy at the first sign of humidity.

After years (and years, and years) of trying to wrestle my locks into submission, I've learned to embrace the corkscrews and go with the flow. With a little patience, you can learn to love your locks, and here are some of the best tips I've found:

How green is your bathroom? I thought I was doing pretty good, since I abandoned my chemical rich cleaners for baking soda and vinegar the way Anna recommends. This change is important, but only one small step towards an eco-friendly bathroom.

The video above explains how to go green in the bathroom by conserving water, minimizing energy usage, adding plants, and choosing natural products. Here's what you'll need:

1. Fluorescent light bulbs
2. Plants
3. Food coloring
4. Natural hair and body care products
5. Vinegar
6. Baking soda
7. Low flow shower-head
8. Low flow toilet

Replacing your light bulbs and bringing in a plant are cheap, quick, and effective changes. Making the change-over to a low-flow shower head and toilet can be a bit more costly. If you're contemplating a low-flow shower head, first consider Ryan's pros and cons list. He suggests an alternative to the costly purchase by opening the valve partially, allowing less water to pass through.

The low-flow toilet is another source of water conservation and financial savings. Some municipalities even offer partial rebates on their purchase. If you're not sure where to start looking for the right low-flow toilet, this article, The best low-flow toilets will point you in the right direction.

If you're still not convinced that you want to buy a new one, and this eco-friendly bathroom hasn't quite scratched your DIY itch, then Gary has a project for you. He points us to a toilet hack that allows you to pre-use the water that fills your toilet tank after flushing.

What changes have you made towards a greener bathroom?