Misadventures in Domesticity

Ok, don't lynch me for saying it, but I hate the Spring. I know that EVERYONE loves Spring, especially when you live up north and have suffered through a long cold winter, but not me. It may honestly be my least favorite season. Don't get me wrong, I don't like winter, either. Spring, though. really gets my dander up.

There is seriously a Tard, the grumpy cat, for every occasion!

Here are the top 3 reasons I hate this coming season:

1. SPRING FORWARD:

Daylight Savings Time Sucks! Benjamin Franklin was a brilliant man, but if I could go back in time and meet him I would stomp on his gouty foot! I am not a morning person under the best of conditions and when you take an hour away from me, watch out.
In the Fall when we gain an hour I end up being something somewhat resembling a human in the morning for a few days. Then my body adjusts and I am return to my usual Snorebeast McGrouchyPants. You take an hour AWAY in the Spring and I resemble some kind of fire breathing demon from hell for the next few weeks. No one is safe.
Sure, it is still light in the evening. That is nice. Really. BUT now it is dark when my alarm goes off in the morning. Not cool, people.
And as if it isn't bad enough, this year I have learned that my 10 year old takes after me in this way. She might even be SCARIER than me in the mornings now. While my 8 year old has always made a habit of being up before dawn and is still all chipper and adorable in the morning, her sister and I can barely form the grunting noises we use to communicate in the morning. It has been a hell on earth around here for the last week.

2. SPRING CLEANING:

Growing up in Oklahoma I knew of the concept of Spring cleaning. My mother would open up the house and let the fresh air in and do a good cleaning, of course. I never really understood the importance of this concept, though, until I moved to New England. After being shut ins for months on end the house becomes quit a mess.

For my Southern friends, let me explain. There are no "nice" days in the Winter up here. We can't really get the kids out of the house to play all Winter. Also, for us working moms, we come home after dark all winter. I know some people who will still do all their chores, but for me, cooking dinner and maybe doing a load of laundry is the most you get out of me on a Winter work day. As far as I am concerned darkness = relaxing.

Since we are shut in anyway we do most of the cleaning on the weekends. Even then, though, I find that in the winter I do just what is needed to get by: laundry, dishes, sinks and toilets, and an occasional vacuum. On top of all this we have tons of rain and snow tracking in mud, sand, salt, and all number of other things into the house that even the most OCD housekeeper has trouble staying on top of.

There are also all number of boots, coats, scarfs, hats, gloves, snow pant, long underwear, mittens, ear muffs, and dozens of other winter items I never had true need for in my childhood, all cluttering up the front closet/mudroom/entry/floor...whatever you use. When Spring arrives you have decisions to make. Save this years clothes and hope they still fit next year or give them away? Pack away now or wait a few more months JUST IN CASE. (No matter what you decide there is ALWAYS one more cold front or snow storm after you pack it all away in the basement.)

So here it is Spring. You can through open the windows and get some fresh air. AND slave away for at least 2 full weekends, or more, getting your house livable again.

3. NATURE HATES ME AND I RETURN THE SENTIMENT:

Man-Size? Do they come in Snorebeast-Size? Sold.

I am allergic to nature. This is not an exaggeration. When I went in for my allergy skin test (after years of getting 4-5 sinus infections a year and being completely unable to breath every Spring) the arm where where did the pollen test immediate swelled up and began to burn. It felt red hot and man, did my biceps looks good! The nurse kind of panicked and I spent an hour slathered in Cortizone cream with an ice pack on my arm before they let me go home.

I also am allergic to things like dust, dust mites, cats (I have 3), dogs, and AIR. So all year long I take Zyrtec. And then about this time every year that just doesn't do the trick. I have to add a nasal spray and sometimes add a special decongestant. I also use a saline nasal cleansing kit to keep my sinus passages somewhat clear. (This is like a neti pot, but it has a bottle that you can squeeze for more water pressure to get through all the gunk.) And even then I usually have a sore throat for a few months, a clogged head and end up with at least one sinus infection every Spring.

So, there you go. My life for the next few months will be a little bit miserable. And just when it starts to get fun...the humidity will start. Did I mention that I hate the Summer?

Six weeks ago I blogged about how unfair it is to still have acne at my age. I talked a little about this amazing thing called the Oil Cleansing Method. If you are, like me, still trying to cope with oily skin and pimples then the concept of washing with oil sounds very counter-intuitive. I honestly thought it had to be a bunch of crap, but after seeing it pinned over and over on Pinterest I decided it was worth a shot. And guess what......

CHICKEN BUTT!!!

No, sorry, in out house we just can't let a "Guess What?" go by without that answer. Actually... I am totally hooked on oil cleansing now.

First of all I want to tell you that I researched this method on many sites and I felt the best post on this was on the Crunchy Betty website (linked above). I will do my best to do it justice here but I urge you to take a look at that page as well to get even more information. This is something you ultimately formulate for yourself so the more you know, the better.

The way I see it there are 2 major problems with all over the counter skin cleansers, even the most expensive. (And you should know I have worked for 3 major skin care companies in the past and know a lot about this.)

1. Skin care costs a fortune. And the worst part is that when things don't work you just buy something else so you end up with half empty bottles of $20 face wash that goes unused.

2. Most of the ingredients in these are crap. There are fragrance, dyes and preservatives in even the most "all natural" or "organic" skin care lines. And this can cause more damage than we are really aware.

So, why use oil? It seems logical if you have dry skin, but I don't. I have been extremely oil since my early teens and usually even pass up moisturizer. Well, the thing about oil is that there are so many kinds and they have so many beneficial properties, including helping with acne and controlling excess oil.

HOW TO DO IT:

It doesn't take much oil to do this. Just take a few drops and coat your skin, even around eyes, thoroughly, but not too heavily. If your mixture is on the thick side it helps to have the face slightly damp already. Take a wash cloth (this is also a great way to add a little exfoliation) and get it wet with water as hot as you can stand. The hotter is the better, but don't burn yourself. Put the hot cloth over your face. I read that 30 seconds to a minute is recommended. I am too impatient for this and found that 15 seconds is enough. Then begin wiping the oil off.

Do this only at the end of the day to get the dirt and makeup off. In the morning just wash with hot water alone. You will find you have less oil in the morning anyway and you don't want to over dry your skin with too much cleansing.

Rather than put the cloth over your whole face I do the cheeks and chin, then forehead and eyes, then nose. It works better for me and helps me get all the oil off. When you are removing the oil be sure to get under the jawline and in the corners of your eyes and bridge of your nose well. At first I thought I had it all off there, but started breaking out in those areas. The eyebrows are an important area to focus on too.

On days I don't wear makeup or don't even leave the house I will sometimes just use hot water only at night too. Or if I feel a little dirty but not too bad I use witch hazel and then rinse with hot water.

WHAT OILS TO USE:

The main type of oil you need for this is Castor oil. This is actually a very cleansing oil. In fact, it is so cleansing you MUST add other oils or it can be too DRYING. Castor oil can break down all the dirt, oil and makeup you encounter all day (including mascara) and make it just wipe right off. It is also anti-bacterial. It's actually pretty amazing.

Next you add the other oils depending on what your personal needs are. Here are some of the oils you can use and their properties:

Avocado (dry /aging skin)
Apricot Kernel (dry, aging, and normal skin)
Coconut Oil (dry/aging skin)
Grape seed (all skin types, especially oily)
Jojoba (all skin types, great for acne-prone skin)
Lavender Oil *(all skin types, especially acne prone/anti-fungal, anti-biotic)
Olive (all skin types)
Sunflower Seed (all skin types)
Sweet almond (all skin types, especially oily)
Tea Tree Oil* (all skin types, especially acne prone/anti-fungal, anti-biotic)
Vitamin E Oil (dry, aging, and normal skin)
*read farther down about essential oils

There are a lot of other oils you can use, but they are more rare and/or pricey so you can research more if you want to get into that. Also, be care to buy organic, cold pressed oil. These are the best for your skin and you can depend on getting what you pay for without any additives.

HOW TO MIX IT UP:

As you decide how to formulate your oil the following rule of thumb helps (but is not a strict rule):

For Oily skin use 2/3 Castor oil for your mix

For Normal skin do about half Castor oil

For Dry skin do about 1/3 Castor oil

You will have to play around with this so make a small batch to begin.

ESSENTIAL OILS:

Lavender and Tea Tree oils are amazing for your skin, but beware. They are extremely potent and many people are very sensitive to them. I cannot use lavender oil because I am allergic to the plant. It makes my nose run when I use it near my face. Either of these oils can be over drying, as well. Neither should be used directly on skin and should always be used with a carrier oil. To test them on your skin mix with a little olive oil and dab on to see how you react. Be very careful around the eyes as well. If you use a lot of either oil in your mixture you might want to make a small batch with no essential oils in it for around your eyes.

I can use tea tree directly on blemishes from time to time because I am not sensitive at all to it. The mixture I am currently using is very strong in tea tree oil and probably too strong for most people. I can even use it around my eyes, but I do not recommend this.

When I started this I used the following recipe:

3 parts Castor oil, 1 part jojoba oil, 1 part sweet almond oil, 1 part olive oil, 5 drops tea tree oil

I found that this was not quite cleansing enough. It took the makeup off like you wouldn't believe. Even water proof mascara wiped right off. I felt like I was still too oily, though.

Four weeks ago I reformulated to this:

6 parts Castor oil, 2 parts jojoba oil, 2 parts sweet almond oil, 1 part olive oil, 25 drops of tea tree oil

This has more Castor oil and less olive oil in the mix. The extra tea tree does a great job on my skin as well. I now have so much less oil. I still get break outs, but I am seeing a huge difference in my skin. This added with a natural mask I am using (another blog post to come) are making my skin much clearer and softer. I also use an a natural acne spot treatment and this Miracle Oil on blemishes. On the occasion I get a dry spot I will put the Miracle Oil all over my face. It is not too heavy and is truly amazing. It also helps cuts and burns.

My last post about this (link at the beginning of this entry) showed the state of my skin. I was shocked to review this post today and see the difference.

Before: