6 Ways To Use Wine Corks

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6 Ways To Use Wine Corks

Do you love to have a glass of wine at the end of a long day? Most of us do, but do you ever think about saving the cork? Wine corks actually have some pretty great, practical uses and it doesn’t take long to collect them. Once you start collecting corks you can use them in the kitchen, in DIY projects and even around the office! Check out the list below for 6 ways to use wine corks:

1. Spout: If you need a spout for a fast pouring bottle, try using a wine cork! Simply, cut a small slit out of your cork leaving just enough room for liquid to come out. Fit the cork the bottle and you’ll have full control on how much your pouring at once!
2. Card Holder: If you want to make a cute and easy card holder, try this quick DIY project.  Simply choose your favorite wine cork and slice it halfway through. For more stability you can shave off a little on the bottom as well. Now you have a business card or place card holder to use in the office or at dinner!
3. Doors & Furniture: Slice wine corks and attach them to the feet of your furniture to avoid scratching your wood floors when moving items around.
4. Cupboard Slam: To avoid the dreaded slam of cupboard doors, use wine corks! Similar to above, slice your corks into small rounds and attach them to the inside of your cupboard door. This will prevent them from slamming and won’t cost you anything to create.
5. Garden Mulch: For easy DIY garden mulch use old wine corks and your food processor! Simply grind up the corks with your processor and spread the corks around your garden beds. This will help the beds retain moisture and grow strong!
6. Vase Filler:  If you are looking for ways to decorate with wine corks, try using them as vase fillers. Whether you are using them in the bottom of a cut flower arrangement for height or using them to fill decorational jars up, they look so great and it won’t cost a thing!

5 Foods That Will Keep Skin Clear

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5 Foods That Will Keep Skin Clear

Skin can sometimes get neglected as it’s easy to forget that your face needs love just like the rest of your body. It can also be a hard task trying to keep up with skin and beauty routines on a regular basis.  So what’s the best way to keep your skin clear without sacrificing too much time? Well, one great way is to eat foods that will nourish skin making it feel better than ever before. Check out the 5 foods below that will keep your skin clear:

1. Dark Berries: Berries are well known for being packed with antioxidants and amazing health properties. So try to add these sweet snacks in to your diet as often as possible. Stick to darker berries such as blackberries, blueberries and even strawberries for the best results!
2. Tomatoes: Tomatoes are a great add in to any diet because of how healthy and fresh they can be. But did you know they also come packed with Vitamin C? This will help keep your skin from sagging and it will keep it nice and clear.
3. Tofu: Tofu isn’t for everyone, but if you can work it into your diet your skin will thank you! Tofu is packed with protein and calcium, both of which are great for your keeping your skin healthy and assisting with the healing of existing skin conditions.
4. Kale: By now you might have heard why kale is placed in the super food category. It is full of vitamins, minerals, protein, calcium and much, much more. Even a small amount of kale on a regular basis can make all the difference when it comes to skin quality and look.
5. Water: I guess this one isn’t really a “food” but it will keep your skin clear. Here’s an easy tip that will keep you drinking water all day long…I find that if I don’t have a bottle of water (I use a Victoria’s Secret one I got for free awhile back) filled up and right next to me, I almost forget to drink any water unless I’m eating. So, just fill a bottle and keep it next to you…every time you look at it just take a sip. I sip my water all day long and before I know it, I’ve refilled it about 6 or 7 times!

6 Ways To Use Frozen Bananas

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6 Ways To Use Frozen Bananas

When bananas start to get overripe, usually the first thought is to toss them out! However, overripe bananas make a great ingredient when frozen! You can make almost any kind of DIY frozen treat with them and you’ll still be getting a big serving of fruit in whatever you choose to create! Check out the list below for 6 ways to use frozen bananas:

1. Banana Pops: If you want to make an easy portable treat, try making banana pops! Slice the bananas to your preferred size and place on a skewer. You can dip the banana in chocolate or any other coating you prefer and lay them out on a lined tray to freeze! Once frozen, they will be ready to enjoy!
2. DIY Ice Cream: Ice cream couldn’t be easier to make when it comes to frozen bananas. Simply, throw your bananas in a food processor for 30-60 seconds. Once the bananas start to break down, add in items such as chocolate, peanut butter or even nuts! Run the processor for another 45 seconds or until mix is creamy and smooth.
3. Milkshake: Frozen bananas are one of the best ingredients for a healthier milkshake! It will give your shake a creamy texture, the bananas will replace the need for ice and your smoothie will be guilt free by leaving out the sugary ice cream add in!
4. Banana Bites: For an easy, fast dessert try making a batch of banana bites. Cut your bananas into slices and lay them out on parchment paper. Once laid out, cover them in chocolate and freeze for a few hours. Once frozen, you will have a yummy handheld dessert that your guests will love!
5. Baking Bananas: If you can’t use your overripe bananas right away, freeze them for later use! Frozen bananas don’t take long to defrost and are perfect for baking as they have a great texture after being frozen. If you need to defrost them quickly, pop them in the microwave for a few seconds at a time and they will be ready to use in no time.
6. Smoothies: If you find yourself strapped for time in the morning, a smoothie can be a great idea for a fast breakfast! Pop some chopped bananas, strawberries and any other fruit you prefer in a small Ziploc bag and freeze. When you are ready to blend your smoothie, all you have to do is pour in your frozen bag of fruit and a liquid of your choice into the blender.

4 Camping Hacks To Make Camping Easy!

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4 Camping Hacks To Make Camping Easy!

Summer is officially upon us which can only mean one thing: camping! Camping is an adventure loved by many families and friends and in some places has become a yearly tradition. However, that doesn’t always mean camping is easy. You are usually up against bugs, weather and other outdoor elements that can really put a damper on things! Luckily, there are a few key hacks that will help you have the best camping trip! Check out the list below for 4 camping hacks to make camping easier:

1. DIY Lantern: If you are short a lantern around the campsite, try this trick using a milk jug! Grab a milk jug and a head lamp (or light with a strap) and attach the lamp around the jug so it illuminates the inside. This will provide a good amount of light for the campsite and any late night walking adventures.
2. Fire: If you are looking for a fast way to make fire, look no farther than the kitchen! Grab a small bag or handful of Doritos and place them in the center of your fire pit. These yummy chips make for great fire starter for any campfire!
3. Pre Packed Pancakes: Preparing pancake mix ahead of time will save you mess and time when your ready to make breakfast. Before you leave home, make your pancake mix as normal and pour the batter into a large Ziploc bag. Making sure it has a tight seal, freeze the bag of pancake mix. Once you are ready to leave for camping, throw the frozen mix in the cooler to keep drinks cold and when it defrosts cut the corner of the bag and you’ll have ready to pour pancakes.
4. Comfort: If you are looking for a little extra comfort on your camping trip, try this easy hack. Bring along a few inter-lockable soft play mat tiles or yoga mats and lay them on the floor of your tent. This makes for a much more comfortable camping experience and will keep some extra heat in the tent.

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Ever wonder what to do with this amazingly popular stuff?! Coconut Oil that is…it is an amazing product that you can use for a LOT more than just cooking. It’s also extremely good for you so be sure to try and get in as much as you can. 😉 You can pick some up here on Amazon too!

Check out the ideas below:

#1 – Shaving Cream: If you are one of the Robertsons (of Duck Dynasty fame) who somehow got their hands on this list, you can ignore this step entirely (as we all know those beards aren’t coming off anytime soon). However, if you don’t own a successful duck call business, this part might serve you pretty well since the rest of us all need to shave once in a while. Coconut oil can serve as a pretty fine substitute for shaving cream when you’re getting ready to go to work in the morning. Also, if you rubbed the electric razor a little too hard on your skin, coconut oil can also serve as a fine after shave lotion.

#2 – Leather Cleaner and Protector: Alright, Dad’s going through a mid-life crisis. He’s gone out and bought a Harley, got his hair all spiked up and, most horrifying of all, he’s bought a tacky leather jacket. Now, as much as you love him and respect his choice of lifestyle, you are more than a little angry he has no knowledge about caring for that new jacket of his. Thankfully, he also bought several tubs of coconut oil in his lifestyle changing haste, and these tubs will now (unfortunately) save your dad’s  new jacket, as coconut oil serves as a fine leather treating substance.

#3 – Oil For Wood Bowls and Boards: If one doesn’t maintain their woodware properly, the consequences can be rather irritating. Some pretty serious stains can settle in, and smells can linger a lot (I’m not joking; you can be eating a nice salad and you have a chance of catching a whiff of that fish from last week). Coconut oil can serve as a great way to get these tough stains and smells out of your favorite wood bowl and off your usual cutting board. Just use it as you would any other wood treating oil; a fine, thorough rub into the wood and your woodware is fresh once again.

#4 – Lubricant: Ok, if you remember our dad from back at #2, he came home with a Harley-Davidson that’s seen better days. The thing squeaks so much, you’d think he brought rats home with him in that spikey hair of his. Now, the problem is, the police are finally getting on you about these claims of “noise pollution” coming from the garage down in the basement; so you have to clean the thing up because your father’s not here because he’s hanging out with bikers who are half his age. Well, forget the WD-40, as coconut oil serves an extremely effective lubricant, which is just what you need to keep things quiet while your father continues going through this James Dean-esque phase (DISCLAIMER: “Rebel Without A Cause” was a pretty good movie).

#5 – Impromptu Neosporin: Accidents happen a lot around the house in this day and age. Little Jimmy can scrape his knee playing on the play set in the backyard, Frank can give himself a little cut playing with the engine block of the family minivan, etc. Thankfully, coconut oil can keep those minor scrapes from developing into worse things, like infections. Just dab a little of it over any cut, scrape, or scratch and put a Band-Aid on top of that injury. An added bonus is that it smells a lot better than anything you could pick up at the drugstore on the corner.

#6 – Mouthwash: Just ask your children, Agent Cool Blue isn’t the tastiest thing in the world, and even you can attest about the taste of the Listerine on the counter. Now, what if you had something that generally didn’t taste terrible, what if you had something that might actually taste pretty GOOD while your swishing it around in your mouth, getting all the gunk and goo cleaned out? Coconut oil my friend; just toss it around in your mouth for a good 10-15 minutes in the morning to clean your mouth up a bit. When all is said and done, just rinse the leftovers out with water and spit.

#7 – Deodorant: (DISCLAIMER: I’m seriously starting to expect that anything in this world can be used as deodorant; I could honestly write an entire list of all the stuff I’ve seen that can be used as deodorant.) Now, here’s something really unique you’d never expect out of coconut oil; it can also be used as deodorant! Who would’ve thought, huh?! In all seriousness, though, coconut oil is an extremely effective tool that can keep your son’s pits sweet-smelling, and if used in conjunction with baking soda, it can be even more effective. Just massage it in and things will smell a lot less like a gym locker room on a bad Tuesday.

#8 – Moisturizer: While some of the moisturizers we buy at stores smell pretty good, some smell like someone just scooped up some sludge from a pit in Mexico. Some of us don’t want to pay the high prices for the expensive moisturizers. Luckily, most people like the smell of coconut, the mere scent of which invokes images of Hawaiian beaches and Caribbean shores. Thankfully for you, coconut oil is a nice, natural moisturizer that you can use on anything from dry elbows to chapped lips!

#9 – Energy Supplement: Energy drinks lift us up, but they eventually bring us down even lower than when we started. Sometimes a real pick me up is needed to get us through our busy lives. This is where our fine palm-tree-borne friend comes into play. Coconut oil has been proven to give men and women alike nice bursts of energy when things are getting pretty darn droopy-eyed. So, when that heart-attack inducing (It’s been proven by science, can’t argue with that) energy drink starts eyeing you from across the desk, remember to try and slip yourself a small bit of coconut oil and see how that works out (Hey, at least it probably won’t send you to the ER).

#10 – Athlete’s Foot Combatant: You know, with the amount of products that claim to keep Athlete’s Foot at bay, you’d wonder how all of those fancy foot cream companies aren’t out of business these days. Coconut oil also works well at keeping Athlete’s Foot away. A quick massage of the stuff on your foot and you’ll be good for a while.

How To Clean Toothbrushes Naturally

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How To Clean Toothbrushes Naturally

When you think of cleaning the bathroom, does sanitizing your toothbrushes rank high on the list? For most it doesn’t when it most likely should! Toothbrushes can pick up different bacteria’s that fly around the bathroom and can hang on to germs from a cold or flu, so why wouldn’t we want squeaky clean toothbrushes? Well there is an easy way to clean and sanitize our toothbrushes and it can be done before you finish cleaning the bathroom. Check out the instructions below for how to clean your toothbrush naturally:

Items Needed:

• Toothbrushes
• Vinegar
• Tall Cup

Instructions:

1. Fill your cup with vinegar, enough to completely cover the bristles. Add a small amount of warm water to dilute the mixture.
2. Rinse your toothbrushes with warm water making sure there is no debris within the bristles.
3. Place the toothbrush, bristle side down in the vinegar and let it soak for at least 10 minutes if not longer. The vinegar will sanitize the germs and bacteria that may be existing on the brush.
4. Once the brushes have soaked, rinse them several times under hot water to rinse out the vinegar.
5. Repeat this process when toothbrushes are halfway through their lifespan to keep germs out! For daily sanitizing, mix equal parts of baking soda with warm water and stir in mixture for 30 seconds or until clean.