Super Cool Citrus Kool-Aid Bath Bombs

I'm going to be honest, there are a lot of things out there that I love. I love bubble baths and relaxing baths. I love to make my own bath treats. I LOVE Pinterest. For over a decade, I have kept a notebook at my desk, which I use to write down recipes. These recipes are not food recipes. Rather, they are recipes for home remedies and diy beauty products. When Pinterest came out, it made the process of locating recipes that much easier! Lately, I seen a huge amount of diy bath bomb recipes. The bath bomb is nothing new; it is certainly not a Pinterest generated creation. I have books that are far older than Pinterest that have recipes for such delights. However, Pinterest does have various recipes at hand, which enables me to compare and contrast ingredients and technique. 
So, I wanted to make a fizzy bath bomb. One of those treats that you drop into your bath water and the bomb begin to foam, makes tiny bubbles, release scent and pretty colors. The thing that bothered me about these recipes was that they all call for citric acid. I am not at all opposed to citric acid. It is essential for the bubble production. My beef with citric acid is that it is a bit of a pain to locate. During the jelly making season, it is easier to spot at the store. However, in the off season not only is it trickier to locate, but it is a bit pricey for a project that is supposed to be an inexpensive diy. Yes, I could find some online, but I don't want to do that. I really like my projects to be as hassle free as possible.

After doing a bit of research, I discovered that the citrus flavored Kool-Aid contains citric acid. Kool Aid not online is super inexpensive, but it also contains coloring and scent. This is great, because it helps me skip a few steps in the bath bomb making process. Also, if this craft failed, then I didn't invest a whole lot of money. So, here is my Super Cool Citrus Kool-Aid Bath Bomb craft.

For the craft you will need-

1 large mixing bowl
1 measuring cup
measuring spoons
latex gloves
10 oz. baking soda
4 packets of Strawberry Lemon Kool-Aid
2 packets of Lemon Lime Kool-Aid
6 oz. cornstarch
6 oz. Epsom Salts
4 tsp. water
4 tsp. olive oil ( grapeseed oil would also work)
6-8 drops orange essential oil (Optional)
6-8 drops grapefruit essential oil (Optional)
mini muffin molds

In a large mixing bowl, add all of the dry ingredients and optional essential oils and blend. In a measuring cup, blend the olive oil and water.

For the next step, you need to do wearing gloves, this is just to prevent the salts from drying out your skin. Also, if you have any cuts, salt would really hurt on the cut. In this step, you will SLOWLY add the water and oil blend. If you try to dump it all in at once, the moisture will activate the citric acid and it will ruin the fun. What I did that work best was, I mixed with one hand and slowly drizzled the liquid onto the top of my hand as I mixed. This made the water mixed very slowly mix with the powder. Also, because I was mixing as I drizzled, I was ab;e to blend the water into the powder before the citric acid could activate. The end result should look a bit like biscuit dough.

Using a measuring spoon, I evenly distributed the dough into mini muffin cup molds. Make certain to firmly press the dough into place.

I set the molds aside and I allowed the bath bombs to dry for 24 hours. Once they were set, I was able to remove them by flipping the pans upside down (much like remove cake from a cake pan) and they came out easily. These smell fantastic, a fresh burst of citrus punch! I store these in a dry/ air tight jar and they are ready for luxurious bath time. I made so much, I have extra for friends. 

Next time, I hope to make coconut oil lotion bars. I just need to locate one ingredient to make them. So far, I have not been very successful at finding what I need. With any luck, I'll be able to snag it this weekend. Until next time~Toodahloo!

Northanger Abbey and Calligraphy On A Sunday Afternoon

Last night, we were visited by yet another massive snow storm. When I took Fred outside this morning, I was met with snow all around; inches of snow waiting to be plowed into the ever growing mound. At this point the snow in the back yard is at level with the porch; which is above 2 feet in height. I saw all of the snow, reminded myself that we have five more weeks of winter and with a sigh carried on with my morning. I wished to bake today, but decided that, instead, today would be a languorous day of wearing lounge pants, sipping hot cocoa and watching a cheesy movie.

The cheesy movie of which I write is the gem "Swamp Thing." A Wes Craven masterpiece from the early 1980's that for some inexplicable reason I was totally fascinated with as a young girl. I can't say how many times I watched the movie when I was very small. I had not watched the movie in at least 20, if not 30 years, until I stumbled upon it on hulu.com.  I saved the movie to my queue and decided to watch it today. With a mug full of black coffee and a Rice Krispy treat (yep, I'm still working on them) I sat down to watch the movie. I don't I've laughed so much in a long while. The movie is ridiculous, and that is why I love it!

After watching the silly sci-fi movie, I felt the need to cleanse the soul. So, I switched to the itv version of "Northanger Abbey" which is also on hulu.com. This version stars Felicity Jones, J.J. Field and Carey Mulligan- all young actors I've seen in many other productions that I adore. Although I have The Complete Novels Of Jane Austen I have yet to read the story. After watching the film, I feel that I'll really enjoy reading it. It would be interesting to see if the movie was true to the novel. I've seen some wonderful film adaptations of other Austen novels, and I have seen a few terrible versions, too. However, I can't resist a Jane Austen novel and, usually, I gush over a good Austen-based movie.

After I was done with that, I decided to take out my new stationery supplies and play with my new rubber stamps and look over my calligraphy book. Tomorrow, I will resume the practice. It has been a few years since I've used a nib with ink. I think that it should be quite fun. Perhaps, tomorrow I shall bake something scrumptious- I feel as though I must. Until next time~ Toodahloo!

Looking Towards Spring: Nature Journals

Now that we are in the middle of February, I console myself with the knowledge that Spring is not far away. I recently acquired the book The Country Diary Of An Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden and this book is beautiful. I already had in my library The Edwardian Lady by Ina Taylor. It is a lovely companion to the Holden book, as it is a biography on the incredible life of Edith Holden. The Handbook Of Nature Study is an excellent resource for nature study. It was published in the same period of Edith Holden's nature journals. The Handbook Of Nature Study is full of ideas and challenges for nature study, as well as some background information on flora and fauna. I also have numerous resource books on tree and bird identification. The nature journals created by Edith Holden are so  nice to look at during these frigid days. She was an accomplished artist and illustrator. The book includes not just watercolor paintings of plants and animals, but also poems, Bible quotes and little bits about each month.
These books really are inspiring me to begin a nature journal this year. However, I think I'll wait until Spring. Were I to attempt to make a journal now, the pages would just look like blank pages. There is nothing but snow around. I did spot two birds outside my kitchen window yesterday and decided that they were drunk. Two drunk birds who wandered out of the nest and deeply regretted their choices. They were full of loathing.
On Pinterest, I saw a post about making a travel size art kit. I thought that it was a brilliant idea. In previous years, I've dabbled in nature journaling and it involved a heavy messenger bag filled with watercolor pencils, notepads and books. I think this will be an easier approach.
Here is how I made my travel nature journal-

A variety of textured paper for a variety of medium and small tubes of watercolors.

A travel portfolio, an Altoids tin and an empty gum pack.

I wanted to make a small sketch pad that could easily fit in my little portfolio. I also wanted various types of paper on hand so that I could have the option of drawing instead of painting, if I wished. I gathered several pages from my paper supply and I folded them in an accordion style; this made the pages easier to cut to size.

I added a small piece of cardboard to use for stability when using the paper. I attached the paper to the cardboard with a small clamp.

I tucked the pad of paper in a pocket in the back of the portfolio. This portfolio came in a binder style, which included a small note pad (great for taking field notes) and it also included a detachable, clear ruler.

I trimmed the empty gum package to fit inside my mint tin. I placed the package inside, so that it was nice and snug, and then I added some watercolor paint. I will be able to use the lid as a reservoir for water. If I'm outdoors, I'll have a water bottle with me; so I'll be able to get water from that.

The tin of watercolors is tucked inside the portfolio and there is extra space for pencils, sharpeners, erasers, brushes etc. I also have extra pockets that could hold my phone (in case I wanted to take some photographs). This will be great to keep in a bag with a resource book, and that will be enough for when I'm out. I can always add my artwork to a journal later and add anything else to that journal. This just makes the load a lot easier and a bit more practical for taking quick notes outdoors.

This is just one of many reasons why I love Pinterest, that site is such an excellent resource for inspiration! By the time this is posted, I will be out and about with my bestie and having a fabulous girl day. Apparently, it is going to start snowing tonight and continue into the morning. I really hope that this does not put a damper on tomorrow's plans. If that does happen, I'm sure I can entertain myself in some way. It won't be nearly as exciting as a girl day, though. My fingers are crossed for an excellent girl day! Until next time~ Toodahloo!

A Fabulous Facial On A Frosty Day

If you live in the north, you can take a peek outside your window and see all kinds of white. I see an obscene amount of snow (with more on the way, apparently) and so many icicles that the entire outdoors looks like a death trap. Sigh. Over the past two weeks I haven't been getting good sleep. I mostly catnap at night, now. When I do manage to get some sleep I have nightmares, without fail. As a result, I am exhausted all day long. At this point, I think I have so much coffee running through my system, it's enough to make a barrista blush.

The lack of sleep is very draining. The constant dry air and sleep deprivation is making my skin totally freak out one me. I need a relaxing facial. This is how I do it. First, I begin with relaxing music. For some this would be something like Enya or New Agey soulful sounds of angels type of thing. I prefer Take That! Next, I light a candle. I nice smelling candle and the little flame help to create a sense of calm. Then, I put on something warm, loose and cozy....hello foxy yoga pants! At last, I am ready to begin my facial.

So, I gather my supplies 1) an exfoliating scrub, 2) a clarifying mask, 3) a serum and moisturizer combo. 4) a facial sauna ( a snazzy Conair machine that produces nice steam for the face) and then I begin the business of bliss.

Before I begin the steam, I use my Freeman Facial Polishing Mask to exfoliate the skin on my face. This is mask that has sugar and charcoal in it. However, I think it works great as an exfoliator. The sugar paste is more gentle on my skin than a scrub that has crushed seeds or pits in it. Once my skin is buffed and all of the dead skin is removed, my skin is ready for steam. I use the facial sauna for 10 minutes. My sauna has a timer on it; so it's great. as I never have to worry about keeping track of time. Instead, I can drift away into British boy/man band goodness. Once the time is up, I immediately slap on the clay mask. I do this because I want to get the mask on while my pores are still open. That way, the clay mask can penetrate the skin better and suck the living life out of my skin.

Once the clay mask has dried, I rinse it off with warm water and then I use a damp hot cloth to rest on my face a bit in order to soothe my skin. Then, I pat on some Vitamin C serum and follow that up with my Vitamin E skin care cream. The Fruit Of The Earth Vitamin E Skin Care Cream is crazy stuff! This moisturizer is astonishingly inexpensive (I think I bought a two pack for around $3.00) and it is full of ingredients that I've found in high end moisturizers. The best part is, this stuff works! I like to use this at night, it even is great in the summer and I have oily skin! Seriously, I'm not getting paid to sing it's praises; I just love this stuff. At any rate, that is my facial routine. Once I've cleaned up the mess I made, I usually enjoy a nice chamomile tea or some hot cocoa. This pamper time is a great way for me to soothe whatever ails me.

In a couple of days I am having another girl day with the bestie. It is very much needed. I can't remember the last time we've been able to get together. I think it's been a couple of months, at least. It will be nice to do girly things and have good coffee! Maybe a bit of girl time will mellow me out and then I'll be able to sleep again. Hmm, I'll see how that works out. Until next time~ Toodahloo!

Another Snowy Sunday

Bingo has the right idea- find a dark corner and sleep!

Ugh, yet again, another snow storm has hit New England and another is on it's way in a few days. How many times have I written this winter about snow storms? It's not so much that it's a constant in my life, I really don't mind the snow. What bothers me is the amount of the snow with the addition of insanely strong winds. It is 6 degrees F. outside at the moment, and I can't even guess what the wind chill factor is. At this point, it doesn't matter, cold is cold.

I know many people who absolutely love the snow. My nephews love the multitude of snow days they've been treated to and they love to go sledding. Were I still living near a ski region, many of my friends would be excited for all of the snow to play on. I would be there with them, snowboarding my little heart out. Instead, I'm inside reading, watching Netflix shows and napping. Lately, I have been too exhausted to be very active. I have been trying to do more crafts and I've actually managed to get some craft projects done. However, I'd like to do more. This week will prove to me more productive.

Now that it is Sunday evening, I am preparing for a fresh new week. Heartland is on right now and after that I'll switch the channel from CBC to PBS and watch The Great British Baking Show, Downton Abbey and then Grantchester. I must admit, I've become a bit obsessed with Grantchester and slightly smitten with the character "Sidney;" who happens to be a vicar with a knack for solving murders.

So, tonight, I will relax with my shows, have a facial, eat some chocolate and hope to sleep better. There will be more crazies throughout the week and I'll be posting as things unfold.
Until next time~ Toodahloo!

Perfectly Pink Cereal Treats

One of my favorite movies to watch, when I'm in the mood for something silly, is the movie "Peggy Sue Got Married." I don't think that the movie was a smash hit, but it's something that I enjoy watching on days when I'm so heavy with cold or a headache that I'm too pathetic to function. It's fun to curl up under a pile of blankets and watch a light-hearted comedy. The movie appeals to me for many reasons. One of the things that I like about the movie are all of the funny lines that I like to quote. There is a scene in which the main character decides to ditch her best friends party. Her mother fervently protests and gives of a long list of reasons why she must go. One reason that her mother felt rather strongly about, was due to the fact that she "baked Rice Krispie Squares" as though she had slaved in the kitchen "baking" this marvel of a treat.

The treat, like the movie, is a classic. I can remember many Christmas and Valentine's Day parties at school where at least one classmate brought in Rice Krispie Treats. This was back when it was still okay to bring sweets to school and nobody knew anyone with a peanut or a gluten allergy. So, since tomorrow is Valentine's Day, I thought I'd "bake Rice Krispie squares." I made mine extra special.

You will need:

Two cups chocolate chips, any flavor you like
3 tbsp butter
1 (10 oz) pkg of pink marshmallows ( mine were peppermint flavored)
6 cups of Rice cereal

In a large mixing bowl, measure out the cereal and place into the bowl. You want this to be ready when it is time to add the marshmallow mixture.

In a large saucepan, melt butter on medium heat.

Add the pink marshmallows to the pot of butter.

Spray a wooden spoon with non-stick butter spray and use that to stir the marshmallows and butter until thoroughly melted and smooth. The marshmallow mixture can get very hot, so it is important to use a stirring utensil that can hold up to the heat. When I was in Jr. High, I made the mistake of using a rubber spatula and totally melted the rubber into the marshmallow mixture; so yes, you CAN mess up this recipe. I sprayed the wooden spoon so that it would be easy to get the marshmallow mixture off of the spoon.

Pour the marshmallow mixture onto the the cereal and blend; make sure that all of the cereal is evenly blended into the mixture.

Once the cereal is blended and the mix begins to cool down, dump the mixture into a greased 9x13x2 inch pan.

Spread the cereal mixture evenly into the pan and press into place. Mmmmm, pink marshmallowy goodness.

Then, melt the chocolate. You can use whatever method you like. You can melt the chocolate using a double boiler or you could melt the chocolate in the microwave, like I did. Whatever method works for you, do what you like. Once the chocolate is evenly melted, stir the chocolate and pour it onto the cereal that was pressed into place. Quickly spread the chocolate evenly onto the surface of the cereal. You might need to work quickly, as the chocolate can cool fast.

Allow the chocolate to cool and harden, then cut the cereal treats into squares. There you have it, delicious pink cereal treats to celebrate Valentine's Day. It takes very little effort and only a few ingredients, but it makes me super happy. In fact, I think I might watch "Peggy Sue Got Married" tomorrow and snack on these delicious treats while I watch! I can't begin to explain how much I love pink desserts. I have more projects that I'm currently working on and I will explain more on that in another post. Until next time~ Toodahloo!

My Mom's Chop Suey

Ahhhhh, Chop Suey and biscuits, just the thing when you're cold and need a bit of comfort. I grew up having this throughout my childhood, never knowing that it was going to become the comfort food of all comfort food in my adult years. As far as I was concerned when I was growing up, this was the only Chop Suey. Imagine my surprise (and slight disappointment) when my 13 year-old self ordered Chop Suey from Chinese take-out and got something completely different! In my defense, it seemed totally logical to find this on the menu, when the menu also offered hamburger plates and chicken nugget platters. When I was in my twenties, I had to spend nearly two weeks at Tuft's NEMC. The food served there was actually quite good, but not home food. On occasion, my Dad would go to Au Bon Pain and treat me to a latte or grab me a mini pizza from Pizza Hut; those treats brought a wonderful break from the hospital cuisine. When it was time for me to return home, my aunts gathered together to rally me home and to help my parents settle back into normal life. One of my aunts offered to make me a dinner, anything that I wanted and she'd have it ready when we got back. I could have anything that I wanted; so, I asked her to make me Chop Suey. To me, nothing could be better than homemade Chop Suey after weeks of eating away from home. When I finally was able to eat the meal she prepared for me, it tasted gourmet.... it was exquisite!

Chop Suey has all the perfect ingredients to soothe most of my nerves- pasta, tomatoes and beef. It is simple, easy to make, cheap to make, and you can make a huge batch of it to feed many or if you want something to last for days. Chop Suey is also one of those magical dishes that tastes even better the next day.

Here is the recipe if you feel like trying it out.-

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
2 large cans of stewed tomatoes (don't drain)
1 small can of tomato paste
1 lb of macaroni pasta

Directions:
In a large pan, brown the beef. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Add the tomato paste and then fill the tomato paste can with water and dump it into the beef and tomato mixture. Fill the tomato paste can with water one more time and add to the mixture. Stir the mixture to blend together and bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer.

While the beef mixture simmers, boil water in a large pot and cook your macaroni until tender. Drain the pasta and then add the pasta to the tomato and beef mixture. Stir everything together, making certain to cover the pasta with the sauce. Turn off the heat and it's ready to eat. You can season this any way you like. I just add salt and pepper to taste.

For the biscuits, we use the recipe on the back of the can of Bake-Well Cream and they always come out perfectly.

This dish makes me very happy. It is just the thing on a dreary winter day! When I'm not busy eating comfort food, I've been reading, having a Netflix binge ( watching the show Wolfblood to lighten my mood after watching The Returned), and working on some crafts. I will reveal more about this in future posts. Until next time~ Toodahloo!

Scones On A Snowy Sunday

It has been snowing all day today. It is nearly 7 pm and I just stepped outside to see that the snow is really coming down, now. It's a wonder there will be any school tomorrow. On days like today, with slightly stormy weather, I like to make the house cozy inside. I thought that scones would be just the thing. I've been baking cranberry orange scones for years. I love them, they are a family favorite. However, I like to change and try new things every now and then. My recipe tends to be very sweet. I wanted more authenticish scones. I found a recipe on Pinterest from BBC Good Food for "Ultimate Scones." Well, I figured the BBC would be a good place to find a true scone recipe and with a name like "Ultimate Scones" I felt that I couldn't go wrong. These are delicious. I did need to adjust the recipe and convert the measurements, but it was worth it. Here is the original recipe- http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1729/ultimate-scones The next time you find grey skies outside, bake these and brew some Earl Grey Tea, you'll thank me later.

A pile of stage and technical make-up instruction books. That I recently acquired.

I might have mentioned before that I studied Visual and Performing Art when I was in college. It involved a lot of art/ film history, improvisational method, design, studio art and jazz hands! I kept things in balance by studying science too. Do science and art go together? It depends on who you ask, but for me it was essential to my being awesome. At any rate, I have a nice collection of beauty make-up books, Kevin Aucoin, Bobbi Brown, etc. and I wanted to add to the mix. These books are usually very expensive, but I lucked out and found all of these for less than $10.00. I also managed to get more costume design books thrown in the mix, too. These will be very useful in the Fall for some posts that I intend to do.

This past year, I've observed the importance in maintaining hobbies or even developing new ones. Through hobbies, you gain more skills, you can meet like minded people, you can make things that are useful, you can find ways to save money by making things on your own. Most importantly, you stay connected to that little piece of you that makes you smile. I've had friends who never new that they could be fantastic cooks until they decided to branch out and try new recipes. I've seen friends discover that they love to bake cakes. What is so wonderful about it is that they get a confidence boost and it is so good for their self-esteem. There is this big myth that you grow up and suddenly, your hair is amazing and your make-up is always perfect, your skin is suddenly flawless and everything is perfect. What a big lie! The sad thing is, somewhere between college and the road to a career, we got so busy that we forgot about our hobbies. Some people think hobbies are frivolous and even dorky. Well yes, most of my hobbies are dorky; but at my age I don't care about trying to impress the big man on campus.

I like to sew quilts and rag dolls. I like to read Victorian literature and I love Shakespeare. I like to sew dresses, make hand bags, build costumes and do experimental make-up. I like playing outside in the woods because I love the smell of ferns, pine and lichen on trees. I still do ballet barre exercises, because I'm a bit a a fancy pants princess and it keeps me in shape. I like my silly dance music, 80's retro, 90's boy and girl bands. I like dorky British anything and tall & skinny Irish men. I still get super excited/giddy and even squeal at the sight of a glacial erratic, because Geology is and always will be my jam. I love the smell of old books, which is why I always buy second hands books. I am at an age now, where my sequined covered freak flag is always flying high, flapping in the wind and I'm totally cool with it. So, if you had a hobby that you lost touch with and you feel a little lonely without it, hop back on that train. Whether your hobby was drawing unicorns, writing dark stories, painting,
 D & D, what have you, snap back into what makes you happy. You could even try a new hobby; who knows, you might be an excellent clog dancer!

Until next time~ Toodahloo!

It's Finally February...Six More Weeks of Winter

At last, at last, February has arrived! January was so dreary and it seemed to last longer than it did. February is here; the first week has been dominated by snowstorms, but I'm just happy that January is over. So, what have I been doing the first week of February? I've been doing a lot of waiting. I've been waiting for shipments to arrive and anxiously waiting for other things. Waiting for a fun package, such as books, can be fun, but also very aggravating when you don't have a useful tracking number. I love the handy tracking number, I enjoy the thrill of stalking a package and seeing how close it gets to arrival. When I'm given a tracking number that is a bit of a dud, it isn't as fun waiting for the arrival. Also, when a package arrives later than expected, it makes it difficult to write a blog post. I digress....

For the first week of February, I've been held up in my lair. All of this snow has made me a bit grumpy. Also, with some things on my mind, I haven't been sleeping properly, so I've been very tired. I have recently acquired the first and the third book of the "Emily" trilogy. I already had the second book, but I needed the other two. "Emily" is another Lucy Maud Montgomery character. Her full name is "Emily Byrd Starr" and she lives at New Moon in Blair Water, PEI. This particular character reminds me a lot of L.M. Montgomery, herself. My favorite Montgomery heroines are "Anne Shirley," "Emily Starr" and "Pat Gardiner." These girls have similar personalities and the books they are featured in have a nice variety of characters.

There was a tv series based on the "Emily" books; well, loosely based on the books. I have the series on DVD and I like the series, although I do wish they had stuck to the story. I really do love the "Emily" trilogy and I wanted to get the other books to add to my Montgomery collection. I nearly have all of her books now. Some, I have on my Kindle, but I'd like to get the physical books, too.

I have been reading the books this week and cuddling with Fred. Frederick doesn't like to be away from me. He is much like "Isis" on Downton Abbey, always at "Lord Grantham's" side (when permitted), but Fred is far more babied. He really likes to be held cradled like a baby. I have a bad habit of taking off my pull-over sweaters and placing them at the foot of my bed. Fred sees this as the perfect opportunity to make a cozy nest with warm sweaters that smell like me. This wouldn't bother me as much, if my sweaters were not cashmere. It's really my fault for not putting them away. Oh well, were I in his paws, I'd do the same.

I have more packages arriving this week and next, I hope to be able to play with the new toys, get crafty and share more projects with you soon. Until next time~ Toodahloo!