DIY Life

I'm already brainstorming holiday gifts, and it's not even Halloween. Am I brainwashed or what? Regardless, trinket soaps are both fun and affordable, and I'd love to try my hand at creating a few gifts for family members this year. Luckily, this video gives step-by-step instructions for adorable trinket soaps that I can't wait to try!



A few important tips to keep in mind?:

1. Use a clear glycerin base if you want your object to be visible inside the soap, and a milky, opaque base if you want it to be a hidden surprise.
2. Avoid using a loaf-shaped soap mold-you'll have to slice up the finished soap, and may end up cutting through the objects inside.

And, of course, a bit of soapy food for thought:

Recently, it was my tenth anniversary. Ten years -- and ten pounds -- later, my diamond engagement ring needed to be resized.

Now, I am the first to admit that I completely abuse my ring: I rarely clean it, and I never take it off. So, it experiences soap scum, hair conditioner, dirty dishes, gardening, you name it. I describe my diamond as the frosted glass my husband gave me when he asked me to marry him.

When my husband picked my ring up from the jeweler's and opened the classy velvet pouch, he burst out laughing, asking the jeweler if he was sure that they gave him my ring. Well, it seems as though they cleaned it as well as sizing it. Honestly, I had forgotten what a beautiful ring I wore every day for the last ten years.

In my earnestness to keep my ring sparkly, I'll share with you the cleaning tips I gleaned from the Internet.

CasaSugar's got it right: most liquid soaps are filled with unnecessary chemicals and toxins. Antibacterial soaps are all the rage, but studies have shown that regular soap cleans just as well as chemical-laden soap, and it doesn't create super-bugs -- germs that are resistant to antibiotics.

If you've got a bar of plain old soap, you can turn it into liquid soap, natural and effective. This is also a way you can use up your soap scraps, or your soap trimmings if you make cold-process soap.

You'll need a bar of soap, distilled water, a grater, a big pot, and a hand blender. CasaSugar lists the detailed steps for making liquid soap in their article. Join me after the break for ideas on how to make your basic liquid soap into an everyday luxury.

Making handmade soap is an art form in itself. You can create swirls, layers, confetti, and textures in your cold process soap. It makes sense that you'd want to wrap your soap in a beautiful way too.

Your first instinct might be to use cellophane or another clear wrapper so you can see the gorgeous details of your soap, but if you make cold process soap from scratch, you will want to choose a more breathable wrapping.
The cold process soap likely retains some moisture from the curing process, which, unless you have been drying your soap for a year or so, is still not complete. Also, due to the high amount of naturally occurring glycerin in cold process soap, moisture is naturally attracted to it and you'll possibly end up with a soggy, moldy bar of soap if you use plastic.

After the jump, I'll share multitudes of wrapping ideas to make your soap look classy, country, funky, or somewhere in-between. In the meantime, peruse the gallery for some visual ideas.

If your pans and other cast iron cookware are well cared for, they will last a lifetime. Curing or seasoning is the process by which you fill the pores of the pan creating a smooth, non-stick surface. this should be done to the entire pan, even the lids.

Basically, you clean the pan thoroughly and cover it in shortening. Place it on a cooking sheet and put it in the oven at 350 degrees for 20 min. Take the pan out and drain the excess oil, then put it back in upside down, this time for a couple of hours. Make sure you read these full instructions and important tips for curing cast iron.

Even if your pans come "pre-seasoned" make sure you read the instructions for any specific cleaning details, and keep in mind that they will need to be re-seasoned regularly to keep them from sticking. Repeat seasons won't take as long, but it is one of the many important things to do when caring for cast iron cookware. Here are a few other useful tips:

• Don't wash cast iron in the dishwasher
• Scrub any rust spots with steel wool and mild soap
  
• Boiling water in your pan will wash away the seasoning

If you've invested in quality cookware, it will only work for you as well as you care for it. Take the time to season or cure it, then maintain it well.

OK, this is a trick that I used to use when I was really, really poor. You know how it is; your bar of soap gets so small that it's really hard to use? Or if you happen to use Ivory, it always seems to break into unusable chunks prematurely?

Well, here's a solution. I salvaged one of my old cotton socks. Whenever a bar of soap got into one of the afore mentioned conditions, I would pop the chunks or slivers into the sock. In fact, I would do it early. Once the sock had a decent content, I would wash with it.

It seemed to be a great solution because it turned out to be soap and washcloth all in one. Of course, if you're handy with a needle and thread, you could grind out something a little more elegant. I probably would have, but hey, I was just a wild young bachelor!

Join me each week as I explore the naturally aromatic side of DIY. Helpful recipes for your "scentual" pleasure: from essential oils, herbs, and other botanicals to soap-making, body care products and other useful blends.

I made several batches of soap today. There is nothing quite like being surrounded by the scent of essential oils, blending them, inhaling them. Ahhhhh...

Sometimes I wish they weren't so expensive, because I would do a pure rose otto soap, which would only be about a hundred dollars a bar! Or how about a dripping-in-neroli body butter? Well, OK, I might do that last one if I were feeling particularly decadent.

One of the fun things about becoming skilled at blending is the way you can stretch your expensive luxury scents with other more affordable essential oils to create scents that satisfy, without breaking the bank -- too much anyway!

After the break, I'll discuss floral waxes and give away some blending secrets you don't want to miss.

OK, so that title might be a bit misleading. If you have stretch marks, you know, they simply cannot be banished completely. You'll probably have those little war wounds for the rest of your life. The good news is that they don't have to be as noticeable as they are now.

As soon as something is branded as a stretch mark remedy, the price tag goes up. It just kills me that our insecurities can be so exploited as to have us pay considerably more for something in search of a magical cure.

What's the solution? Shea butter. It is a common remedy for stretch marks. While it won't give you the same results as dramatic dermatological procedures, with a bit more time, it will come awfully close. So, walk right past that expensive stretch mark cream and make your own organic Shea butter soap.

These soaps can be used daily in the shower to improve the health and elasticity of your skin. I'll share the ingredients after the break.

Blending can be a tricky endeavor. Just because you love an essential oil scent blend that you have created doesn't mean that it will work as a soap. It may lack staying power, or it may fall flat, losing the complexity it had when it was just a mixture of oils.

How do you know when a blend won't work? Essential oils aren't cheap. You want to get it right, or at least know how to alter your so-so blend to make it great: balanced, long-lasting and not too overwhelming.

Your goal with soap scent blends is to make them hang around as long as possible. What can get in the way of that? The temperature at which you mix your soap, the age of your soap, and the balance of your blend can all play an important role.

After the break, you can read detailed tips on how to make soap scents that stick.

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.

I was searching for ways to get peanut butter out of carpet and found these instructions claiming that peanut butter can actually be just the thing you need to get gum out of your carpet. I was just as shocked as you, but reading through the reasoning it sounds like a great solution.

Scrape off as much gum as you can, then rub on some creamy peanut butter. The peanut butter will take the stick out of the gum. It should wipe away easily. Reading trough the instructions I thought "that's great, but what about my original problem of having peanut butter in the carpet?" Well, it turns out that isn't quite the problem I imagined it to be. A simple, homemade solution will wash way the peanut butter and your carpet will be as stunning as it started (or in our house, will only have the stains that existed before the gum and peanut butter).

Do you like Lush? The famous UK retailer has expanded their US business a lot in the last few years, but knockoff products preceded the company's wares onto American shelves: we were familiar with bath bombs long before we could easily purchase a Tisty-Tosty or Avobath.

Two of the major draws of Lush's products, aside from their fabulous scents, are their natural ingredients and the fact that they're handmade. Fans of the company know that their wares aren't exactly cheap, but think they're worth every penny.

But if you like handmade natural bath and body products, it's simple to make your own, or at least to add your own custom scent blends to basic lotions, oils, and soaps. And once you've paid more than $5 for an admittedly divine single-use bath item, you may become even more interested in the concept.

Learn more about it after the break! You'll find links to some great recipes, as well as suggested sources for any supplies you might need. There's still plenty of time to make something for everyone on your holiday gift list.

As the cold air nips at our noses and the snow descends on the earth, you may think it is time to get out the winter coats, put the shovels on alert and light a fire.

I suppose you'd be right, but I was thinking that it was time to make some winter soaps. You may remember the summer scent blends that got us all in the spirit for sun and fun, so now let's get creative and winterize our soap scents.

Again, we will focus on natural blends only, using essential oils and infusions, and we will create a balanced blend so that the scents last as long as our bar of soap does.

You probably haven't used your fireplace since last winter. For us, we haven't used it yet in our new (but 35 year old) house. I was interested in learning what cleaning and and preparation needed to be done before lighting our first fire this season. Brian got me started last month when he wrote about the fireplace check-up. I found some more information to add to his findings. Here I'll cover instructions for a thorough clean and a season ready check list.

If you did a thorough clean after your last fire then you can skip way down to the seasonal check. If you didn't, you'll want to start with a good clean. If it's a particularly big job, follow these instructions:

1. Remove as much of the deposit as you can with a vacuum or scrub brush and water
   
2. Heat 4 oz of nappa soap in 1 quart of water until the soap dissolves. Let it cool
   
3. Add in 1/2 pound of powdered pumice and 1/2 cup of household ammonia
4. Mix well
5. Apply a coating of this soap solution with a paintbrush
6. Let it stand for 30-60 min.
7. Scrub it off with a brush and warm water
8. Rinse well, and sponge it off

Once you've made your way through the layers of smoky deposit, give your hearth and screen a good cleaning. You fireplace is starting to look ready, but there are still some important seasonal checks that need to be done before lighting your first fire. Follow me through the break and I'll outline your final steps to a healthy fireplace.