Yummy body scrubs

Natural, yummy smelling, super effective body scrubs! What more can you ask for?

Mrs Emma and I went into the kitchen and tested the recipes from Martha Steward. After a few test runs we came up with the following results:



We ended up tweaking the recipe a little. We used 2 cups of fine white sugar or roughly grained salt, 3/4 cup of oil and 12 drops of essential oils. The oils we used were peppermint, eucalyptus, lemon, and coconut. We wanted oils that were natural and not too heavy, and it also turned out that these mixes really well. We made a mint-coconut, mint-eucalyptus, mint, eucalyptus and coconut-lemon. It is hard to even choose a favorite from these. Finally we also added a few drops of food colouring for a nicer look.

We made some fantastic scrubs. I already tested one in the shower and the result and the smell is just perfect. And the ingredients are natural. In fact so natural that I even tasted some of the coconut-mint sugar scrub. Even the taste is good!

I am giving these away together with a little pillow to put in your wardrobe. These contain dried peppermint leaves and will leave all your clothes smelling minty fresh!

A few christmas ideas

There are so many fun and cool projects to do for christmas; this being both decorations and homemade gifts. We are trying to make both at our house, and so far we are doing kinda okay. However, there are a few things I just wont get done this year. But it is okay. I'll start on them sometime in January when I don't have any projects coming up anyway and then I should be done by next christmas, right? I am pretty sure that would work.

So on my to-do list for 2009 I have take care of the little man, my own Prince Charming and the little apartment and do these three projects. It sounds doable! Yey!

Mini stockings


Shimmering trees


The Button Wreath


For instructions on how to do make these lovlies, templates and so on, just click on the name of the project and you'll end up with Miss Martha Stewart - Yes, she is pretty annoying, but I'll forgive her, since she makes some good stuff!

A few projects

As we were making our christmas decorations I noticed that our straw wreaths were gone. I looked everywhere for them, but couldn't find them. Finally I figured that I must have thrown them out last christmas. It was the night before the 1st advent so I wanted to make a advent wreath of some sorts. It ended up as an advent plate. Here you see the result. Not exactly what I had in mind but I kinda like the result. It makes me think of the forrest, a forrest with pearls growing though!
Next year, however, there will be a real wreath, don't worry.


And then I started working on the sleeping bag for the little one. He really likes his old sleeping bag and he sleeps really well in it. Unfortunately he has outgrown it, and I couldn't find a new one that lived up to my criterias (easy to wash on a high temperature) so I decided to make one. This Sunday I figured I better get it over with and started on the project. It was much easier than I had feared and I really like the result. And most importantly the little one likes the result - and sleeps well. I haven't finished the trim at the top of the sleeping bag and I also want to cut off a little bit of the straps, but other than that here it is. I'll post nicer pictures of it when I've finished it.


And finally ... if you really want to do something, you'll find some way of squeezing it in. Thank you, Emma, for squeezing it in with me.



Recipes, tips and pictures of the finished product will come later.

I have this long list of things ...

Am I the only one? You know, am I the only one with a looong list of things that I want to do or to make? Christmas is getting closer and closer and our plan to make all our gifts ourselves ... well, let's just say it doesn't look too good right now.

So maybe you can be inspired by the things that I am wanting to do. If you make these, let me know how it went. And pictures, please do send pictures!



For instructions, just click here and here


Instructions here.

But thinking about it, it doesn't look that complicated, maybe I could just squeeze it in. That saltscrub, maybe with some vanilla and ...

Fabric Heaven

Far away from my little house lies the magic fabric heaven. That is where all the good little girls with sowing machines go when they die.

At least that is what it feels like when you go there - that you have died and gone to fabric heaven!

This week I loaded up the little one in his buggy, got my sister and the lovely Emma with me and took the train and the bus and ended up in fabric heaven. No, that is not the actual name of the store. It is my nickname for the store, but it very adequately describes the place!

I got loads of nice fabric - some to make a new (maybe even two) sleeping bag for the little guy, some for a funky dress for my friends daughter (She is two years old - should it worry me if I also want one for myself?), fabric for little cubes I want to make for Samuel for christmas, then some I just fell in love with because it was pink and soft to touch and so on and so on.

I am responsible for the christmas party at our church tomorrow, so I don't really have time to start working on any of the projects right now. However, tomorrow evening ... hmm! I have a date with my sowing machine. I did however use some of my new fabric to make little gifts for the babies at the party.

For now you can see a picture of some of the fabric I got.

Merry Christmas

On the 29th of November Mike and I started on the christmas decorating. We hung up a few things and made some simple decorations. We mainly used glass baubles and pine branches. Seeing as we are christians I like the decorations not to be focused on Santa Claus and elves. Instead we have a very simple nativity scene that I got at Woolworths a few years ago.


How can you resist these two guys?


I had bought different kinds of pine branches and for reasons unknown to me I also picked up a bouquet of small pink roses. They looked very cute, they were cheap and all, but why I decided to get them for our christmas decorations still puzzles me. Anyhow I decided to put them into a wreath together with some pine branches. I think the wreath would do wonders ... at a funeral.


I ended up hanging it on a cupboard in my crafting room. Cause after all I like the way it looks. It is just not right for christmas. Anyone going to a funeral soon?

These are some of the decorations we have around the house





My better half especially likes the decoration with the pinecones and glass baubles in the big glass vase. He thinks it is "Elle Decoration"-material. How can you not love him?

Merry Christmas everyone!