DIY Life

When things start to melt, I get really excited. Maybe it is the fact that I can see my lawn again, or just that the air is starting to lose that cold little nip. Even though I can't pin down exactly what it is, the promise of springtime excites me.

With Spring's arrival, though, comes some new concerns. Capri pants and short sleeved shirts, for example. Not only do you have to start shaving your legs again, but you have got to do something about that winter dry skin.

Read on for recipes to get your skin ready to be bared, with scents to bring the fresh springtime air right into your bath.

Got an old pair of jeans just lying around? Why not turn them into a new stylish pair of shorts? It's really simple. Dig out those jeans you've been holding onto and increase your summer wardrobe with these easy instructions:

1. First, take out your old jeans (designer ones and all), lay them out flat on the table and measure the length you'd like your shorts to be. The inseam should be no shorter than 3" and no longer than just above the knees ... any lower and we wouldn't be making shorts!
   
2. It's time to cut them. Make sure you cut as straight as possible ... try to use scissors that are sharp or you'll be struggling through the material.
   
3. It's easy, but not that easy. At this stage they look, well, cut ... so you still have more to do. The idea is to make people think you bought these cool new shorts, so you're going to want to throw them in the washer and the dryer. This will give them that frayed looked -- and lucky for you -- that's what's in style this summer.
   
4. Now take them out of the dryer ... not what you were expecting? I know it looks like one tangled mess. But it's not, so just cut off all the white pieces of thread and leave the frayed part of the jeans.
   
5. That's it! Now you have a brand new pair of very cool shorts. And, now that you've saved all that money ... you'll be able to buy a shirt that goes with them.

DIY Tip: This works for the kids as well. In fact, most boys and girls grow faster in length than they do in width, so if you've got growing children, I highly recommend this. I think I turned at least 10 pair of last years jeans into wearable shorts for my kids this year.