CSA

Since moving to Ellensburg this past week, I joined a CSA. CSA stands for community supported agriculture. I paid some hundred dollars or so to a farm inorder for them to get me a weekly supply of fresh organic vegitables from now till the end of August. It averaged out to 12 dollars a week. I got my first box today. It came with some onions, green onions, butter leaf lettuce, kale, radishes, broccolini, romaine lettuce, and cilantro. Im not quite sure the price difference between getting it at a grocery store compared to getting it from the CSA but it feels good to know im supporting local agriculture. Also, dont disregard CSA's just because you dont live near farm land. Many CSA's have drop off locations in near-by towns.

DIY Toothpaste

The other morning I found a recipe for some homemade toothpaste so I decided to give it a try.. The taste is not so good but I figure you probably get used to it.
Ingredients:
Baking soda
Hydrogen peroxide
Mint extract (or cinnamon or whatever you choose)
The ratio is 3 parts baking soda:1part hydrogen peroxide:as much extract as wanted.
It turned out to a really good consistency for me and then I just put it in a jar and use my tooth brush to scoop a little out. I'm the only one using it for me so this isn't 'gross' but if you were to share it with other people in the house you could always put it in a squeezable tube!

DIY Scarf

My mom came home from a pampered womans day at her church the other day and showed me this nifty way to use an old tee shit. We tried it first with one of my dad's shirts and it ended up being too big. We did it again with a much smaller old t-shirt of mine.

All you need:

An old T-shirt

Scissors

First your going to cut the t-shirt about 8-10 inches from the bottom.

Then you cut small strips in the shirt just over 1/2 an inch wide starting from the cut side, and cutting towards the hem.

After youve made all the cuts, your going to pull on each strip so that it curls into itself.

And Voila, a new scarf! We did it with a plain old red scarf but we were thinking a bright multi colored shirt would look really pretty.

DIY Deodorant

Lauren and I also decided to get crazy and make a homemade deodorant today.. We'll see how well it works!
The Ingrediants:
Baking Soda 1/2c... Had at home
Cornstarch  1/2c.... Had at home
 Coconut Oil  5 tbl... $9.99 and I only used half the jar when making double this recipe.

 You could also add some essential oil to make it smell pretty, I just didn't have any at home.

Melt the Coconut oil so that it is liquified and then add the cornstarch and baking soda. The consistency wasn't as thick as we had wanted so we just kept adding equal parts corn starch and baking soda till we got the consistency just right... or so we thought. The next morning it had solidified.  

I decided to melt it back down and then stick it inside a tupperwear container that I had lined with wax paper. Then when it hardened again I took it out. It looks like a bar of soap and works perfect. I wrapped some crinkled newspaper around mine so that it wouldn't get all over my hands while I was putting it on. :P 

DIY Face Wash

Today Lauren and I found a homemade face wash recipe and decided to give it a try!
The Ingredients:
Castor Oil
Olive Oil (or Sunflower Oil)
Tea Tree Oil (optional)
Total cost: $5.00 Since I already had Tea Tree oil and Olive oil laying around at home all I had to buy was the Castor oil, which only cost $5.00!

Oily Skin: 2 or 3 parts castor oil to 1 part olive oil
Normal Skin:1 part castor oil to 1 part olive oil
Dry Skin: 1 part castor oil to 2 or 3 parts olive oil

Lauren and I decided to do the oily skin combination. we mixed the oils together then just added a couple drops of tea tree oil that helps with acne. The castor oil acts as a make up remover and dirt remover while the olive oil keeps a balanced pH and helps keep the natural oils of the skin.
  We were worried about it leaving our skin feeling really oily but it actually feels really healthy and not oily.
To Use:
Rub face wash on face for about one minute.
Take a HOT wash cloth and lay it on your face for about 1 min or until it cools to room temp.
We microwaved our washcloths since the tap water didn't get as hot as we wanted.
Next wipe the oil off the face with the wash cloth and enjoy your baby butt soft skin!(:
 

 We also bought Witch Hazel to use as a toner after we used the face wash.

Livin' the broke life.

Well, I guess this is my first blog post! -with Yas! Finally figured out how to make a blog! So a little about myself: I am starting my first quarter at CWU this summer as a junior! I'm majoring in nutrition and minoring in exercise science. This blog is basically a mixture of DIY's, Recipes, Work-outs, and my attempt at gardening. I hope you can laugh at all my mistakes just as I will as I learn to live on my own! :D

 Living the broke life...

BAGAR!