Curl Up With A Good Book…

“That’s it!” Angie giggled, moving so the spray of the shower hit Chris directly in the face. “Some of us have to work for a livin’!” Chris laughed with her and, reluctantly, stepped out of the shower.   ~ Falling In Love

And with this post, we will ~ as reluctantly as Chris ~ move on from the bath.  But first, one more favorite, this time with salts.

Sea salts are fabulous for when you are sore.  If you’ve been working out too hard or sitting still too long, nothing feels quite as good as a sea salt soak.  And none of the other bath products cost as much.  But you know we’ve got a solution to that…

• 3/4 c sea salt (available at any grocery store.  you may use coarse or fine.  I prefer the coarse but it really doesn’t matter)
• 1/4 c Epsom salts (also available at the grocery store)
• 1/4 c almond or mineral oil
• 8-10 drops essential oil, eucalyptus (any oil can be used for a nice bath; eucalyptus will be particularly helpful to sore muscles, though)

Combine the sea salt and the Epsom salts.  Whisk together the almond or mineral oil and the essential oil, until well blended.  Mix the oil into the salt slowly, breaking up clumps as they occur.  Store in an airtight container in the bathroom, where it’s close at hand.   Add 3-4 T to running water.  Soak for at least 15 minutes so that the salts have a chance to work on your muscles.  This also makes a lovely foot bath at the end of a long day of standing or walking.

A sea salt soak for sore muscles.  The exact same thing we can get a spa for almost $100.  At home.  For less than twenty bucks.

It’s a champagne life…on a beer budget!

~ Pauline

As I mentioned briefly last week, essential oils can burn if you’re not careful with them.  Diluting them in a milder oil ~ what’s known as a “carrier” oil ~ is really important.  The most common carrier oils (okay, the ones that I know of) are almond oil, mineral oil and good old fashioned vegetable oil.  Personally, I prefer almond oil when I’m closer to the champagne end of the spectrum and mineral oil for when I’m leaning a little more toward the beer budget.  I have never knowingly put vegetable oil in my tub, I have to be honest.  I think I would feel like a frying chicken, regardless of the scent I had added.  It can, however, be done.

Moving on ~ be sure to keep your blend somewhere between 1 oz carrier oil and 15-30 drops of essential oil.  Great.  Wonderful.  Thank you.  But where’s the recipe?  What’s this week’s suggestion for not having to drop huge amounts of money on bath oils or at a spa?  I’m glad you asked…

This is my favorite concoction during the winter months.  The constant changing temperatures from the cold outside to the heated inside, the dry heat in all the buildings, the rougher materials in our clothing…My skin takes a beating, honestly.  And then there’s my soul.  My soul doesn’t do so well, either, in the cloudy, foggy, snowy, rainy, shortened daylight, longer nightime months.  Make this bath your Power Bath at least once a month in winter and your skin, as well as your soul, will thank you.

Oil Bath (for winter when it’s dry, dry, dry to help moisturize and energize)

• 1 c mineral oil
• 4 vitamin E caplets (the kind you buy at the store)
• 8-10 drops mint essential oil
• 8-10 drops rosemary essential oil

Cut open the vitamin E caplets and drain them into the mineral oil.  Mix well.  Add the oils and blend.  Store in a pretty (or funky, depending on your style) squeeze bottle in the bathroom.  Shake well each time before adding to the bath.  Be careful getting out, as the tub will be slippery.  This is supposed to feel good, after all.

And enjoy.  It’s a champagne life…on a beer budget!

~ Pauline

Historians and hedonists alike tout the fact that Cleopatra, arguably the greatest and most beautiful queen of all time, bathed in milk for her skin. To this day, a milk bath can soften your skin in a way that is truly wonderful…and usually expensive. While I love a milk bath, dropping ten bucks on a bottle of milk bath that gives me three baths may be champagne life. It’s hardly beer budget. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 c. powdered milk (yep, just a box from the grocery store)
• 1 T. corn starch (again, just from the grocery store)
• Optional: your favorite essential oil (I love lavender for relaxing and eucalyptus for when I’m sore)
• Optional: oatmeal (the whole grains, not the instant stuff)

Mix the powdered milk and the corn starch. Add no fewer than 5 drops of the oil until you are happy with the scent and mix again. Be sure to break up any clumps that might form. You can make as much of this as you’d like, just make sure you keep the proportions relatively close.  Be sure to store any leftovers in an airtight jar (I keep mine in a glass bottle with a cork).  When you run your bath, put a couple tablespoons of this under the running water, soak, and relax.

What about the oatmeal? You have two options here: a slightly more expensive/complicated yet much cleaner one or a less expensive/less complicated yet messy one. Cleaner – add about ¼ c oats to a muslin bag or cloth teabag and drop it in the bath. After the bath, rinse the bag or throw it out. Muslin or tea bags can be found at most craft shops. The other option is to wrap the same amount of oats to a washcloth, tie it up with a hair band, and drop it in the bath. Afterwards, you have to throw the washcloth in the laundry (learn from my mistake – do NOT wash it with the clothes you absolutely must have clean tomorrow).

The Disclaimer: Please be careful with essential oils.  Some are very strong.  Some can actually burn skin (cinnamon is a surprising one).  And, of course, only you know what your allergies are, so take them into consideration.  Next week, we’re talking about oil baths so we’ll get into it more then.  Until then, be smart about it and enjoy!

Put all this together with your Power Bath tools from last week…heavenly soft skin with ingredients you have in your pantry. It’s a champagne life…on a beer budget.

~ Pauline