Living a DIY Life

Recently I've joined the fad of wearing scarves all day, even if it's not cold out.  I bought this scarf because I loved the pattern and the versatility in the pictures and description on amazon.  It was listed at $12.99 but was on sale for $3.99 so I figured I'd give it a try.  I don't have a really good full-length mirror so this was the best I could do. :) The scarf is super soft.  It felt like petting a rabbit.  There isn't a tag with what material it is made of, but another reviewer said they thought it was acrylic.  That would make sense for the price and the softness. According to the package, it is hand wash only. It has a fashionable tartan pattern of red, black, white, tan and green so it will match most anything.  Because of the weaving method, the scarf can be worn with either side out. The scarf is really large (the pic below is it handing on the back of my husband's recliner).  Because of it's size, it can b...

I've been using essential oils for almost 2 years now.  I make mixtures to help with health issues like congestion and headaches and I've recently gotten an oil diffuser that I use oils in, too.  I bought a small starter kit to begin with and I've been adding bigger bottles of the scents I love the most and/or use the most.  I love the smell of sandalwood.  I live in the woods and it reminds me of taking walks in the fall when I can smell the wood, the earth and smoke from fires in the distance.  I wanted to be able to bring that smell inside, too.   Majestic Pure's Sandalwood Oil can be considered on the expensive side at $19.99 for 1 fluid ounce.  Honestly, I'm such a cheapskate that if I hadn't gotten a deal on this bottle, I wouldn't have even considered it.  I checked out the brand on a blog I check out frequently for my essential oil needs and she said the money is well spent on the Majestic Pure brand. This oil smelled heavenly...

If you are anything like me and my co-workers, everyone has different kinds of phones and none of them seem to use the same kind of charger.  In my department, I'm the tech-gadget person.  My co-workers come to me when anything that has to do with technology because I always seem to have a solution for them.  This includes a charger for their phones or other devices when they forget theirs.  I currently has a dual charger - micro-usb and lightening, but I needed a charger that also did mini-usb as that is what my camera needed.  I found this charger and it has been a life-saver. I call it the Octopus (I know, I know, it only has 6 legs so it would be more of bug like a cockroach, but who wants to say "Let me get my cockroach out for you."!)  It has  1 USB A Cable (or as I call it, a standard USB), 2 Micro USB Cables like most Android devices us, 1 Mini Cable which is what my digital camera uses, 1 USB C Cable like Macbooks use and 1 8pin cab...

Since I've started going all-natural, shaving is one of the areas that I've been exploring.  When I have the time, I sugar my legs, but sometimes I'm too busy or tired to sugar.  On these days, I shave using a traditional razor and shave gel.  I hate using the aerosols because the aren't recyclable and they are full of crazy chemicals.  I saw this shave soap set and thought, why not?  It was a good chance to take. I have used Aya Naturals lotions before and loved it.  This soap set was no exception.  The soap smells like olive oil.  It suds up very easily and felt silky and luxurious on my skin.  My razor glided smoothly over my legs and helped me get a really close shave. The after shave lotion had a smooth consistency and a delicate scent.  I used it on my bikini area where I get razor burn frequently.  This lotion soothed the area and soaked in quickly.  It didn't feel greasy or oily and the scent...

I have suffered from insomnia for years.  It started when I was in college taking a full load and working 3 jobs to pay tuition.  I survived on naps and never really got  full nights sleep.  If I had known that a habit from 15 years ago would haunt me today, I would have rethought messing up my sleep habits so much.  I've tried Ambien and Lunesta but hated the hallucinations, nightmares and hungover feeling I got from them.  About 2 years ago, I started taking Valerian and melatonin together and it has helped me immensely.  I fall asleep easily and sleep like a rock.  Although the combination works, Valerian has a distinctive smell that can be very off-putting.  It smells like the nastiest, smelly feet you can think of and that smell sticks to anything it touches. I found Sleep EZ Now on amazon and was interested in the fact that it had several things known to help induce sleep all in one capsule.  Each capsule contains GABA ( ...

I am a teacher so I'm on my feet all day.  One of my favorite times of day is when I get to plop down on the couch and take my shoes off.  I bought this lotion on amazon because it says it was for foot care and was revitalizing.  For the list price of $16.99, this lotion better be amazing! This lotion smells amazing!  It has peppermint and olive oil so it smells really earthy.  The peppermint makes it very revitalizing.  When I used it, my feet felt really refreshed and tingly. A great selling point is that it is all natural.  I knew what all the ingredients were and felt comfortable using it.  I have sensitive skin and I have to be careful about what kind of chemicals I use on it.  This lotion was gentle and moisturizing. I gave this lotion 3 out 5 stars because although it was refreshing and smelled wonderful, I wouldn't pay almost $20 for a bottle of it.  (Just a note, the price has dropped to $...

I love Halloween!  So much so that I got married on Halloween in 2015.  I don't normally decorate my house because no one can see it but my husband and I, but I like to decorate my desk at work.  I saw this set and thought it was perfect.  On amazon, it is currently selling for $16.99 which is a good price or 3 sets of lights. The set includes a string of bats, ghosts and pumpkins.  Each string is 9 feet long. They are each battery powered and you must provide 3 AA batteries for each string.  I gave these 4 out of 5 stars because I would have preferred rechargable.  The shapes are colored plastic and an LED light at the top lights the shapes up.  The pumpkins and the bats are 2 inches across and the ghost is 2 inches tall. When lit up, it is still easy to tell what each shape is supposed to be. I received this product at a discount for my honest review.

I bought this magnetic monthly dry erase calendar on amazon to put on my fridge to help my husband and I to see important dates coming up.  I was using a paper calendar, but I wanted something a little more green and that didn't require the same yearly argument between my husband and I about the artwork on the calendar.  (He likes abstract metal band stuff and I prefer nature scenes.)  I got this at a discount for my honest review.  I am not required to review it positively or negatively. The calendar is white with a scalloped border and a large space to write at the top.  The whole back is a magnet so it sticks really well.  It arrives rolled up in a tube so it wanted to curl up.  On the package it said to lay it as flat as possible and to put it in the fridge and it would flatten out.  That seemed a bit weird to me, but I did it and it flattened out perfectly!   The calendar is 12 inches tall by 15 inches wide.  It ...

I bought these rechargeable batteries on Amazon for some battery operated lights I recently bought.  I got these at a discount for my honest opinion.  I am not being compensated for a positive or negative opinion.  ***Warning: These are not really AA rechargeable batteries.  They will burn out anything that requires AA batteries.*** I didn't realize when I bought these that they will not work in things that take normal AA batteries.  Typically, AA batteries are 1.5V.  These are labeled as AA but are 3.2V.  What this means for someone who doesn't understand voltage ratings (like me), when I put these batteries into my light strand, the power box started smoking.  I called my engineer brother and he said the batteries were producing 9.6 volts when my device needed 4.5 volts to operate.  That's over twice the amount of power necessary!   The description and title does say that they are for solar panel lights, tooth br...