Another personal care product

I made this moisturizer by whipping shea butter, jojoba oil, rose water, aloe vera juice with sandalwood, geranium and jasmine oils. Outstanding result!!!

Short Stories Anyone?

Even though this is not new, I still love this (very short) short story –

For sale: baby shoes, never worn. ~ Ernest Hemingway

Here are some more gems for your reading pleasure...

The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door... ~ Fredric Brown (could be a whole story.)

Why She Sits in Silence

Time had used up all her words, and left her behind. ~ Pam Estalilla

Three to Iraq. One came back. ~ Graeme Gibson

This one is mine: 

She opened the door and said “Goodbye”. That was the last time anyone saw her.

Do you have any favorite short-short stories to share?


Happy Holidays!!

Sugar & Spice

Since ‘tis the season of giving, here is a simple recipe to make sugar scrub (a nice personalized touch). Here is what you will need –

Small mason jar

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

Olive oil

Lemon juice and zest

Vanilla essence or essential oil of lavender

1) Thoroughly mix the brown and white sugar in a bowl.

2) Add oil slowly, continuously mixing it with the sugar, so that it is no longer crumbly-looking*.

3) Fill the jar completely with the mix, adding a little more oil to cover the sugar.

4) Add lemon juice and zest to mask smell of oil.

5) Add a few drops of vanilla essence or lavender oil.

*You can use almond oil or baby oil instead of olive oil.

Close the lid tightly, add a personalized card, and voila, your gift is ready.

Sugar scrubs make a wonderful addition to skin-care regimen, though they may not keep for long, so don’t make too much of it. Great looking, easy to make, and an excellent exfoliant...this scrub is sure to get under your skin (pun intended)!

It's cold out there...

I wanted to use this blog in order to share my thoughts, ideas, and beliefs. Hope you find them interesting.  So here goes….

Since this is the season of colds and coughs, let us start off with three home remedies for the common cold. They are natural alternatives to over-the-counter medications.

Ginger is a super root, as far as cold remedies are concerned. It can be used fresh or in powder form. Please note that ginger is a blood thinner. So if you are taking aspirin, take it two hours before or after these remedies.

Remedy 1
Extract  a few drops of juice  from grated ginger root and mix with honey to get relief from cold and sore throat. Of course, this won't work if you are allergic to honey! 

Remedy 2
Here is a recipe for ginger-infused tea, which is excellent for relieving cold symptoms:
~ Mix 3 parts cinnamon with 2 parts ginger root powder and a pinch of cardamom powder. 
~Steep a spoonful of the mixture in a cup of boiling hot water for 5 minutes. 
~When ready to drink, add honey to taste.


You can make a batch of powder ahead of time to use when necessary, just make sure to store it in a sealed container.


Remedy 3
Adding crushed root when boiling water for your favorite tea also gives relief from colds and coughs.


Hope this helps soothe those sore throats and stuffed noses! I have yet to be let down by this super root and try to incorporate ginger into my cooking whenever I can. Do you have a home remedy that you'd like to share?