bath and body

I went to Jo-Ann’s the other day and while I was in line for a check out, I came across this lovely (and very strategically placed) magazine called Willow and Sage that features so many wonderful recipes for homemade bath and body stuff. I’ve never seen the magazine before but when I flipped through the pages and saw glossy photos of body scrubs and handmade perfumes, along with many other homemade beauty items, I knew I had to take it home.

Immediately upon arriving home, I made these Rose Ice Facial Treatment. The recipe is rather simple — you just freeze the mixture of water, rosewater and rose petals in an ice cube tray. The recipe called for 1/8 cup rosewater, 1/8 cup filtered water, and a handful of rose pedals.

The measurements listed in the magazine just weren’t enough liquid to fill even half the ice tray mold … so I mixed 1/2 cup each of water and rosewater together instead and filled the tray, and sprinkled liberal amount of rose petals. I’m glad I had all the ingredients on hand but you can get them at Bramble Berry!

I rub the ice cube directly onto my face and neck after I come out of the shower. I do this every other day and I skip my regular toner altogether on the days I do this. I love it — it smells wonderful and give my skin an extra firmness … and it cost me next to nothing!

My friend D recently introduced me to this lovely café in Pasadena called Lincoln. We had an early lunch there after ~~running a lap~~ briskly walking and conversing around Rose Bowl one morning.

I thought about taking photos of the chic industrial restaurant interior, the colorful array of candies and pastries that fill the cafe, as well as breakfast and lunch served beautifully on simple, white ceramic plates and bowls with edible flower or two on top, but I couldn’t because my two-and-a-half-year-old daughter took hostage of my iPhone to watch cartoon during the meal (Mom of the Year here, I know). Instead, please do read Jonathan Gold’s Los Angeles Times article detailing all the delicious dishes it serves up!

So, why talk about the restaurant when I have no photos or stories to share, you may ask? Well, it’s because I found something perfect for my soap-making adventure there! How random, I know!

Next door to the café is an auxillary gift shop, where patrons can find hand-selected, Anthropologie-esque items such as books, candles, ceramics, etc. While browsing the shop, I came across a stack of wooden crates available for sale for $8 each. I picked one up and knew immediately that it would be perfect to complete my soap drying rack.

I’ve used shoe rack to dry the handmade soaps but I had to get rid of it once my daughter was able to crawl. I could not longer have anything on the floor where she can easily reach. I recently purchased three-tiered oven rack but couldn’t find anything that would fit. Then came these Loncoln-logo-branded creates! Yipee! I purchased two but went back two days later to pick up four more. The search for the perfect drying rack is finally over and I couldn’t be happier!

I’m currently drying Olive Oil soap with dried spearmint leaves on the top rack, and another Olive Oil soap scented with Eucalyptus and Lavender Essential Oils on the bottom.