And the winner is number 19, Kentucky Frugalista who said "I follow you on GFC". Congratulations!! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! Thank you to everyone who participated.
True Random Number Generator 47 19
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Breaks are Good
Sometimes we just have to sit back and take a break from it all. Although, I have taken a break from blogging, it doesn't seem as though I've really had a break. Actually, I've gotten a lot done. We recently took a sort of mini-vacation to visit my aunt in Charlotte. It was anything but a rest. We were constantly on the go. But it was still fun. We took the kids to the largest mall any of us po-dunks have ever seen. It was a monstrosity!! 4 miles long!! My poor feet and legs. They haven't walked that much at one time in quite a while.
I made up a bunch of tutu's, hoping to sell some for some extra cash. Yeah, that didn't work. Although they are adorable! I will probably let the two little girls I babysit use them as dress up clothes. I've also made several hairbows for the baby's birthday next week, and a little hide and seek game that I'm putting together. I'll explain that in a minute. Now I am working on things in my yard as well as making a fairy play house for the older little girl's birthday coming up in January.
For my yard, I now have a fish hanging on a tree- he's my fish out of water. I also have a fairy shadow, tons of bubbles- yes bubbles floating around in various bushes and such. I have several butterfly clips on one bush, it's my butterfly bush of course. I am also working on making a bench. I rescued two cement pillars that will serve as the base. I have a mirror frame (in hot pink of course) that I plan to make a mosaic seat from. I have various pebbles, tumbled glass pieces and a ton of watch faces I plan to put in the mosaic. Pictures will follow, hopefully-- you know I have to rely on my kids to help with that.
Okay, the hide and seek game. I took a little wooden box, found 3 painted wooden puppies in a craft store and I'm making paw prints on card stock with simple directions on them...like, "look for me under a pillow", or "look for me in the kitchen". This is for a gift for the baby... I know she will only be 1, but she understands commands very well, plus her big sister can help I'm sure. As for the fairy house, well, the older one is just obsessed with Tinkerbell, so I decided I would make her a play house mimicking the one in the latest movie, "The Great Fairy Rescue".
Well, I need to get in the yard and work on that bench, it's not going to make itself-- wishful thinking.
I made up a bunch of tutu's, hoping to sell some for some extra cash. Yeah, that didn't work. Although they are adorable! I will probably let the two little girls I babysit use them as dress up clothes. I've also made several hairbows for the baby's birthday next week, and a little hide and seek game that I'm putting together. I'll explain that in a minute. Now I am working on things in my yard as well as making a fairy play house for the older little girl's birthday coming up in January.
For my yard, I now have a fish hanging on a tree- he's my fish out of water. I also have a fairy shadow, tons of bubbles- yes bubbles floating around in various bushes and such. I have several butterfly clips on one bush, it's my butterfly bush of course. I am also working on making a bench. I rescued two cement pillars that will serve as the base. I have a mirror frame (in hot pink of course) that I plan to make a mosaic seat from. I have various pebbles, tumbled glass pieces and a ton of watch faces I plan to put in the mosaic. Pictures will follow, hopefully-- you know I have to rely on my kids to help with that.
Okay, the hide and seek game. I took a little wooden box, found 3 painted wooden puppies in a craft store and I'm making paw prints on card stock with simple directions on them...like, "look for me under a pillow", or "look for me in the kitchen". This is for a gift for the baby... I know she will only be 1, but she understands commands very well, plus her big sister can help I'm sure. As for the fairy house, well, the older one is just obsessed with Tinkerbell, so I decided I would make her a play house mimicking the one in the latest movie, "The Great Fairy Rescue".
Well, I need to get in the yard and work on that bench, it's not going to make itself-- wishful thinking.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
BuySoapNuts Review and Giveaway
I recently had the opportunity to review two products that are all natural, green and from a renewable resource. That makes me feel good just to use all those words in one sentence! The products I am referring to are Soap Nuts and a bar of soap from BuySoapNuts.com . Now if you haven't heard of Soap Nuts, well, don't count yourself in the dark. I've just started hearing/reading more about them myself. It is an actual nut that grows on a tree, that when mixed with water makes a wonderful cleaner, laundry detergent, and dishwasher detergent.
I really wanted to put them to the test, and I have to say, they did a pretty amazing job. The nuts themselves come in a 1.1 lb. muslin bag, which also contains 3 smaller pouch type bags inside. My first experiment was of course as a laundry detergent. I placed 4 of the nuts in one of the smaller pouches and tossed it in the laundry. I washed my normal 4-5 loads of laundry and it worked great! Even on my husbands muddy jeans and socks. This isn't just any mud, it's GA RED CLAY! It got out the stains without the use of bleach or anything else. I was so pleased. I've since used the same pouch of soap nuts for 3 more loads and still it is cleaning well. The instructions on the back were to use for only 4-5 loads, but I wanted to stretch it as much as possible.
Well, my next experiments were as dishwasher detergent and all purpose cleaner. Now this was a little more labor intensive as well as you can only make in small batches because it will spoil easily. I followed the instructions on the back of the back to place 10 soap nuts in a pouch and place in a boiler, then cover with 6 cups of water. I brought it to a boil and let it simmer for about 30 minutes, reducing it to approx. 3 cups. I placed 2/3 of the liquid in a bottle and placed by the dishwasher to be used there. The other third, I placed in a spray bottle, filled the bottle the rest of the way with water and a couple of drops of tea tree oil. I have to say both worked beautifully. I have clean dishes and counters and with an all natural product! I am thoroughly pleased with my results.
Now for the second product I was given to review, the bar soap. I have a positive note as well as a negative note to share about that. I used the soap in the shower, it contains olive oil, coconut oil and saponin from the soap nuts as well as glycerin. The bar does not lather very much, which is not a problem. Where I normally have to apply lotion after showering, I didn't using the soapnut bar. My skin stayed soft and silky all day. My only negative comment would be that it didn't have a smell. I would have liked to had a lavender smell or rosemary mint. But aside from that, I loved the product. It would be great for someone who does not tolerate perfumey smells.
All in all, I give soapnuts a two thumbs up on both products!
You can buy soapnuts here at http://buysoapnuts.com or enter here for a chance to win both products from the company.The contest will run from Oct. 3 through Oct. 17.Winner will receive a 1.1 lb bag of soapnuts and a bar of soap made from soapnuts.
Mandatory entry: You must leave a comment here with an email address so I can contact you if you win and follow this blog. http://downroadslesstraveled.blogspot.com If you are not comfortable leaving your email address on the blog you may email me at downroadslesstraveled at gmail dot com.
Extra entries: Subscribe to email from downroadslesstraveled.blogspot.com
Subscribe to RSS feed from downroadslesstraveled.blogspot.com
Follow me as paintrgrl on twitter.
Tweet about this giveaway (may do this daily for additional entries)
Follow me through Google Friend Connect
Post this giveaway on your blog for 5 additional entries (must comment 5 times on this
giveaway and leave a link back so I can see that you posted it)
Winner will be chosen using random.org. Winner will have 48 hours to contact me after I contact you through your provided email. If said winner does not respond in the given amount of time, then another winner will be chosen again through random.org.Participants must be from and in US or Canada
*Disclosure* I was not prompted in any way to give a positive review of buysoapnuts.com. All opinions expressed here about soapnuts are exclusively mine. The only compensation I received for this review and giveaway was the products themselves to test and use for myself and my family.
I really wanted to put them to the test, and I have to say, they did a pretty amazing job. The nuts themselves come in a 1.1 lb. muslin bag, which also contains 3 smaller pouch type bags inside. My first experiment was of course as a laundry detergent. I placed 4 of the nuts in one of the smaller pouches and tossed it in the laundry. I washed my normal 4-5 loads of laundry and it worked great! Even on my husbands muddy jeans and socks. This isn't just any mud, it's GA RED CLAY! It got out the stains without the use of bleach or anything else. I was so pleased. I've since used the same pouch of soap nuts for 3 more loads and still it is cleaning well. The instructions on the back were to use for only 4-5 loads, but I wanted to stretch it as much as possible.
Well, my next experiments were as dishwasher detergent and all purpose cleaner. Now this was a little more labor intensive as well as you can only make in small batches because it will spoil easily. I followed the instructions on the back of the back to place 10 soap nuts in a pouch and place in a boiler, then cover with 6 cups of water. I brought it to a boil and let it simmer for about 30 minutes, reducing it to approx. 3 cups. I placed 2/3 of the liquid in a bottle and placed by the dishwasher to be used there. The other third, I placed in a spray bottle, filled the bottle the rest of the way with water and a couple of drops of tea tree oil. I have to say both worked beautifully. I have clean dishes and counters and with an all natural product! I am thoroughly pleased with my results.
Now for the second product I was given to review, the bar soap. I have a positive note as well as a negative note to share about that. I used the soap in the shower, it contains olive oil, coconut oil and saponin from the soap nuts as well as glycerin. The bar does not lather very much, which is not a problem. Where I normally have to apply lotion after showering, I didn't using the soapnut bar. My skin stayed soft and silky all day. My only negative comment would be that it didn't have a smell. I would have liked to had a lavender smell or rosemary mint. But aside from that, I loved the product. It would be great for someone who does not tolerate perfumey smells.
All in all, I give soapnuts a two thumbs up on both products!
You can buy soapnuts here at http://buysoapnuts.com or enter here for a chance to win both products from the company.The contest will run from Oct. 3 through Oct. 17.Winner will receive a 1.1 lb bag of soapnuts and a bar of soap made from soapnuts.
Mandatory entry: You must leave a comment here with an email address so I can contact you if you win and follow this blog. http://downroadslesstraveled.blogspot.com If you are not comfortable leaving your email address on the blog you may email me at downroadslesstraveled at gmail dot com.
Extra entries: Subscribe to email from downroadslesstraveled.blogspot.com
Subscribe to RSS feed from downroadslesstraveled.blogspot.com
Follow me as paintrgrl on twitter.
Tweet about this giveaway (may do this daily for additional entries)
Follow me through Google Friend Connect
Post this giveaway on your blog for 5 additional entries (must comment 5 times on this
giveaway and leave a link back so I can see that you posted it)
Winner will be chosen using random.org. Winner will have 48 hours to contact me after I contact you through your provided email. If said winner does not respond in the given amount of time, then another winner will be chosen again through random.org.Participants must be from and in US or Canada
*Disclosure* I was not prompted in any way to give a positive review of buysoapnuts.com. All opinions expressed here about soapnuts are exclusively mine. The only compensation I received for this review and giveaway was the products themselves to test and use for myself and my family.
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