I hate parting with well-made pieces of furniture that I’ve had for years. So it should be no surprise that years ago, I decided to take the old armoire from my first apartment that held my TV and repurpose it as my “linen closet” in my larger bathroom. I removed the gliders and shelf for the TV and kept everything else. It fit perfectly, but the lack of shelves meant that towels and sheets got stacked precariously high.

One chilly Saturday morning, I got it in my head that I wanted to have scones for breakfast with tea. However, I really didn’t feel like walking down to the corner café, and paying $5 for a scone the size of my head. (The fact the whole endeavor would require a level of dressing, coat-wearing and shoe-finding that I had no interest in performing didn’t help either). So I did what I usually do. I hopped on the web until I found a recipe that matched the ingredients in my fridge. After a bit of futzing, I altered something I found and came up with this. Enjoy!

I’m excited about my new shampoo reggie because it’s saves money, product, water and detangling time! Of course it’s sulfate, paraben, mineral oil and cone-free. I was inspired by Naptural85 on YouTube and this video and adjusted it to work for me. I still haven’t tried the hair washing clay she’s using, but I’m itching to, (no pun intended) because it’s all natural!

My New Poo Method

I have a love/hate relationship with my two cats. They are fun and affectionate and really don’t care what I look like, or how off-key I sing or if my socks match, as long as I feed them. (I have a couple of friends like that too). But their hair gets everywhere, and although I have hardwood floors, it can be a real pain to keep the furniture clean.

I was telling my cousin that I was looking for a new deep conditioner and she mentioned that she used olive oil to condition her hair and scalp.

Well duh.

I always have olive oil in the bathroom, whether I’m using it as a body oil or on my face for my Oil Cleansing Method I’ve used other oils in my hair, I don’t know why it never occurred to me to use olive oil as a pre-poo. A “pre-poo” is a hair conditioning method that you do before you wash your hair. In other words, you deep condition before cleaning your hair instead of after. I started

One of my New Year’s Resolutions (like half the country) is to shed a few pounds. But another New Year’s Resolution is to stick to a budget! A third New Year’s resolution is to keep things simple. That’s means I’m not going to pay for a gym membership that I will barely use, I will take exercise seriously, but I’m not spending half the day doing it. What I have been doing lately is a combo of

I was in a hurry the other morning and lamented the fact that I really wanted a smoothie for breakfast. I also hadn’t gotten much sleep and I really needed some coffee, and then this happened…

I kept passing this stuff whenever I was at Target, because I remember the old Shea Moisture brand, (remember the ones in the white bottles with the red and green lettering?) and they were chock full of icky ingredients. Then one day someone asked me had I tried their reformulated shampoo and I got curious. I’d already tried their Deep Treatment Masque, and I really like it. So I thought I’d check the shampoo out for you guys. Here’s my review:

I’ve had several people ask me where I get some of the knitwear that I’ve posed in on the site, and to be honest, I can’t usually find exactly what I want, so I end up making it a lot of the time. I knit and crochet and I find them both to be extremely therapeutic and calming. I learned to knit from my grandmother and to (properly) crochet from my aunt. I mostly make accessories, because I don’t really have the attention span for a sweater, (sorry Nana). So here’s the first in a series of patterns I’ll be posting this season. Enjoy!

Big Chunky Knitted Cowl Pattern by Savvy Brown

Skill Level: Easy

Wool: Brown Sheep Lamb’s Pride Bulky
(or any super chunky wool you want to try)

Don’t let the holidays make you crazy, broke or gain 30 pounds. That’s just putting more pressure on those New Year’s Resolutions you never keep. Here’s 12 ways to stay sane this holiday season with out breaking the bank, (or your cousin’s arm).

1. Shop online – There’s absolutely no reason to stand online for hours on end and fight the holiday crowds anymore. Not when just about everything we own can be ordered online. So save yourself the headache and cybershop this season. You easily find coupons for kinds of items at sites like Retail Me Not, Coupon Cabin, Current Codes, DealCatcher
2. Regift – Got a gift from someone already that doesn’t suit you but would be perfect for a co-worker? Regift! The only time this is not a good idea, when the original giver is present when you make the exchange.
3. Gift Cards – Have and uncle that needs everything but wants nothing? Yep. Time for a gift car. Some of the most generic to choose from are at Amazon. Check out Savvy Amazon Gift Cardsfor simple, last-minute gift giving.