Wash Your Hands! Home Remedies...

You've used the soap- but you're still plagued with "stinky hands"... You have kids with "Kool-Aid (tm) Smiles", been on a "finger painting fiasco", or you dipped your hands in the food coloring while making those wonderful Christmas cookies- we can get you "spiffy" in no time at all, here are some home solutions!

You don't want those nasty odors lingering... If you're somewhere near a kitchen, all hope is not lost. Plain water doesn't "cut it". Instead, use one of the following methods:

Salt: wet your hands and rub 1 teaspoon of salt between your hands, concentrating on fingernails & tips of fingers.

You can also use lemon: Simply rub the citrus juice on your skin, then rinse with water.

Another method is white vinegar: pour some on your hands, and rub them together well, then rinse. The vinegar scent will dissipate rather quickly, don't worry!

You could use baking soda: rub the powder all over your hands, then rinse.

Baking Christmas cookies is all fun, festive, and; well, quite messy! Use a dab of toothpaste, (not gel) to remove the lovely "palette" from your hands, (and arms, legs, etc.- if you've gotten into it that "deep")! This also works for the child's "Kool-Aid (tm) smile".

Paint and grease- but no Gojo (tm) (and not harsh like turpentine or acetone)? Try these alternate supplies:

Cooking spray: spray your hands, rub- then wash with soap and water. Your hands will be both cleaned and moisturized!

Vegetable oil and dish soap: use equal amounts of vegetable oil and dish soap into your cupped palm, scrub hands with mixture, then rinse with water. This will clean your hands, cleanse the pores, and leave hands moist and soft.

Mayonnaise or salad dressing (like Miracle Whip (tm)): do the same with it- basically the same result as the cooking spray.

Olive oil and salt or sugar: works as a scrub, for beautiful soft hands- great exfoliation!

Butter: Popcorn smelling hands! Take and place a teaspoon from the tub, or a slice from the stick, rub into hands- then wash with soap and water.

Baby Oil: do the same, expect the same results- but you wont smell like popcorn, rather like a baby's butt!

WD-40 (tm): spray some on- wipe hands clean with paper towel, then wash thoroughly with soap and water. (I doubt you'll find this item in the pantry, unless you're at a "bachelor pad"...).

That's it!

Oh, a soap "fast fact" for you: the first soap was made around 600 BC! The Phoenicians introduced it to the Romans and Greeks- but they didn't give them antibacterial gel. Keep some with you- it's cold and flu season!

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A shop "filled to the brim" with many homespun gifts and treasures!

Cleaning Your Toilet

Here are some alternative ways to clean that toilet!

Yeah, I know, I amaze even myself some of the things I will post about...

Okay, here's the "scoop"!

Did you know... You can clean your toilet with:

Coca Cola? Yeah, strange huh? They say to pour a can of Coca Cola into your toilet, allow it to set for an hour, brush, & flush! Who would have guessed? Such a versatile beverage, wouldn't you say?

Lemonade, (powdered mix): Two tablespoons into toilet, brush well- allow to set for an hour-brush again and flush. Clean & lemony fresh!

Alka-Seltzer tm): Two tablets dropped into toilet, allow to sit for twenty minutes- brush & flush.

Mouthwash: 1/4 cup poured into toilet- allow to sit for 30 minutes, brush and flush, disinfects too!

Kool Aid (tm): Any flavor, even Tutti-Fruity! Empty complete packet- scrub, & flush clean.

Gatorade (tm): 2 cups Gatorade poured into toilet bowl- allow to sit for 1 hour, brush and flush clean.

Dishwasher Detergent Powder: 1 teaspoon in toilet- brush well, allow to sit for 10 minutes, brush again & flush. This one is a real money saver!

Orange Powdered Drink Mix: 2 tablespoons in the toilet- wait 15 minutes, brush and flush.

White vinegar: 1 cup white vinegar into toilet- allow to set 10 minutes- flush. Notice this one wasn't "brush & flush"... Cheap too!

Denture cleaner: Two tablets into the toilet- allow to set for 5 minutes, scrub and flush.

And, when all is said and done...

Baby wipes: to wipe down rim, outer bowl, top and bottom of toilet....

Sparkly twinkly! Yay! :-)

Brought to you by Braggin' Rights: www.BragginRights.net! A shop "filled to the brim" with many handmade gifts and treasures!

Hawthorne Threads is Having a Giveaway!

Oh- and it's a good one!

Their prizes are as follows:

• 1st Place: First place winner will receive a Firenze Bag Kit. This kit includes a pattern with instructions, fabrics, muslin, cording, color coordinated thread and zipper - all necessary materials except interfacing!
  
• 2nd & 3rd Place:Second and Third Place winners will receive a Fat Quarter set of Girly Girl in Sweet by Patricia Bravo. "Girly Girl blends flirty flower designs with geometric lines creating a charming look.

I hate to tell you to enter, as I did- and don't particularly want the competition- though I suppose you should have the wonderful opportunity as well, it's too good not to share!

Just go to: http://www.hawthornethreads.com/giveaway
to enter! :-)

Brought to you by Braggin' Rights: www.BragginRights.net!
A shop "filled to the brim" with many handmade gifts and treasures!

Home Remedies: Cold & Flu Season

I found alot of different unusual things to use to treat the symptoms of the flu! With it being cold and flue season, I thought they were certainly worth sharing!

Warning: some of these are extremely strange! LOL

Congestion:

• Yellow Mustard: apply a generous amount of the mustard onto the chest area- cover with a wrung out wash clothe (dampened with warm water). This makes an old-fashioned mustard plaster that relieves chest congestion! Who knew? Hmmm: Don't try this with Ketchup...! :-)
• Coffee: Sipping a cup of hot, black coffee through a straw helps relieve chest congestion....
• Chicken Noodle soup: Sipping a warm mug of chicken noodle soup will clear nasal passages, while providing re hydration & re-energizing the body with essential salts, (the re-energizing part accomplished through the salt only applies to chicken noodle soup made with garlic salt- or purchased canned soup, which has alot of salt in it.). The home made soup with garlic and salt would be a much better choice- as garlic is a natural antibiotic and antiseptic.
• Salt/for nasal congestion: Dissolve 1/2 teaspoon salt in 1 cup of warm water- insert a straw into the liquid (works easier with one that is flexible)- cover the open end with your finger; then insert the straw into the nostril, inhaling the liquid. Repeat several times, then blow your nose thoroughly.
• Peppermint: You can do this via sucking on peppermints, using peppermint extract topically (or in the bath tub), even eating a peppermint patty! Mmmm...
• Tomato juice & Tabasco (tm), (sounds like a Bloody Mary... almost): Take about 15 drops of the pepper sauce in a glass of tomato juice- drink it. Do this several times daily to help relieve congestion in the sinuses & lungs. You can also gargle w/10-20 of the pepper sauce- mix in a glass of water- this clears the respiratory tract.

Achy Muscles:

• Bathing with Alka-Seltzer (tm): fill the tub with six Alka-Seltzer tablets- lay back and enjoy! Do not use this method if you are allergic to aspirin, as it is the main ingredient in Alka-Seltzer (tm).
• Bathing in baking soda and Epsom salts, soothes those sore, tired muscles.
• Olive oil and horseradish: 1 tablespoon of horseradish and 1/2 cup olive oil rubbed/massaged into the body assists in the achy muscles , as well as relieves congestion.
• Tennis balls: take about 3 or 4 tennis balls and place in tube sock, tying the end, have someone you love roll this over your back (they use this technique to massage the backs of some women while in labor).
  

Ouch-nose hurt from too much rubbing and blowing? Try using petroleum jelly or chap stick, un-colored & unflavored). Apply to area that hurts.

Sore Throat:

• Hard candy will help in moisturizing your throat, any flavor, and even sugar-free!
• Sucking on a Popsicle (tm) will ease the throat as well, immediate relief- followed by coating of the throat and energy from the sugars in it.
• Apple cider vinegar and honey mixed at the same parts, make a bit so you can use throughout the day (example: 1/3 cup to 1/3 cup), Take 1 tablespoon 6 times daily. the vinegar kills the bacteria and the honey soothes your throat.
• Gargle with salt water, (not the same mixture that you used for your nostrils... ewww...).
  

Fever:

• Apply vodka to the forehead, chest & back as a liniment (this one you can do while taking the tomato juice/Tabasco (tm) tonic- you ARE a Bloody Mary!! LOL)
• Ice Pack
• Bath with lukewarm/slightly cool water.

Things to know about the flu:

• The flu is never associated with sneezing. A running nose, sore throat & sneezing are symptoms of a cold.
• A flu has headache, hacking cough, fatigue (extreme), & muscle aches. These symptoms generally do not accompany a cold.
• Surviving 1 type of flue, or being vaccinated for 1 type only makes you immune to that particular strain of the flu. All other types you are still susceptible to.
• Antibiotics do nothing for the flu- the flu is a virus.
• The common cold usually lasts longer than the flu.

Hope these tips/tricks help you this season. I thought about this post because my poor, loving husband is suffering with the flu currently... It's 'going around' pretty heavily this year. Keep washing your hands, and take care!

Brought to you by Braggin' Rights: www.BragginRights.net!
A shop "filled to the brim" with many handmade gifts and treasures!

Having a Bad Hair Day... ? Bad Hair Life?

Evidently, this long-awaited post is about hair! I know, it was really hard to guess that!

I am going to address some of the hair problems/dilemmas that we face, and some home-based resolutions for them.

They say that 90% of baldness can be attributed to genetics, it's hereditary. Do I have a "cure" for that? Well, I'm not sure, I have a solution that I have taken note of- though do not know of anyone who has tried it... You may get a "stinky head", but:

• It has been said that if you take a garlic clove- slice it open & rub it on the bald area; then, in about an hour, massage your scalp with olive oil, put on a shower cap and go to bed for the night with it on, (don't forget to shampoo in the morning!)- it can work. You must do this everyday consistently, and they say that new growth should be seen in as little as a few weeks, & that additional hair will stop falling out! Hmmm... Sounds like it would be worth trying to alot of people, I know alot of them try soooo many other methods: hair plugs, etc.

Looking to make that head of your's a bit more "sparkly-twinkly"? Here are a couple tips for dull hair:

• Rinse with vinegar after shampooing- it takes the build up out, and makes your hair shine, (I do this one on occasion...).
• Brunette's alternate method: make a rinse in a glass bowl: adding 3 tablespoons of parsley, rosemary, or sage; and about 8 cups of boiling water. Tip, let it cool... Strain through muslin or a very fine strainer. You can keep the unused for another time. After you shampoo your hair, massage the herb water into your scalp, then rinse. Mmmm, good enough to eat!
• Blonde's alternate method: your rinse is simply chamomile (3 tablespoons) to the 8 cups of boiling water. You could also use chamomile tea bags from the grocery store, and not have to strain mixture... If you choose to get your chamomile from the health store, you will have to strain it the same way as the previous rinse. Applied the same as well. Should be calming, hopefully, if you do this in the A.M., it doesn't make you want to go back to bed!

Revitalize that hair! If your hair needs a "pick me up", avoid the salon's money hungry racks! Here is a great way to do this at home:

• Take 1/2 cup olive oil, some essential oil, (just a couple drops of your desired scent), "suck it up" into an eye-dropper, apply to your hair & massage into the scalp. You can warm it if desired, I think it would make it very soothing... Once you are done, shampoo very well, until all the oil is washed out.

Last, but not least: gray hair... No guarantee- but they are said to work!

• Take B Complex daily, they say in a couple months it will restore hair back to it's original color... Sounds too good to be true, but, worth trying. The B Complex is good for you anyway!
• Elixir: Take a glass of water, mix 2 tablespoons each of: raw honey (room temperature), apple cider vinegar, & blackstrap molasses. Drink first thing in the morning everyday. I don't know about the duration in which it takes to get results on this one- but they say that it will give you energy too!
• Scalp tonic: combine ginger root juice & ground cloves, massage into the scalp. Time for results- no clue, but it sound invigorating!

Well. I know it's been quite some time since I last offered a tip, trick, remedy, or solution; but- that will be it for today! Wishing you many more "good hair days"!

Have some tips/tricks/home remedies you'd like to share? We're listening! Just give us the "scoop"!

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ArtFire's Continuing Support for Artisans

They just keep on going...

In their continued efforts to provide both a premium selling and buying platform, they are very close to splitting up the top level categories! With feedback from the artisans and the buying community they are confident that this step will help increase both the buying and selling experience on ArtFire. The six top level categories: Handmade, Fine Art, Design, Media, Vintage, and Supplies will each have their own landing pages. Over time these pages will become more unique and optimized for the specific elements of the category. Giving a much more pleasurable experience for the buyer, while allowing the artisan to more effectively categorize their items!

This Blog Will Not Have Further Postings Until Mid- October

Thank you for your understanding! I'm in the process of moving!