DIY Monday: Gift basket and pillows

 I'm standing as a bridesmaid (matron?) for a dear friend this fall, and I volunteered to make a gift basket for her penny table at the stag and doe, to raise money for her wedding. I had a blast doing it! Next time you need an inexpensive, fun and thoughtful gift for a loved one, consider something like this! I got the basket and containers at Value Village and luckily had most of the supplies on hand from other DIY adventures. I thought I had a picture of the final product with ribbons and all but I guess not, so use your imagination!

Contents: 
Coconut Milk Shampoo
Bath Salts
Chocolate Hand Scrub
Mint Apple Cider Vinegar Hair Rinse
Bath Soak
Bath Fizzies (Not in this picture)

Bath Fizzies

The bath fizzies can be found here. I had everything needed to make the fizzies but did buy a silicone "brownie bite" pan to make these so they would pop out easily without breaking. Plus, now I can make brownie bites ;). The pink ones are grapefruit scented and the green ones are mint.

Chocolate Hand Scrub

I've made this scrub for friends and family in the past and it is always a huge hit so it was a shoe-in for the basket. The recipe is here. I love how simple and yet effective it is.

Bath Soak
This is just a mix of safflower oil and coconut oil, to be poured into bath water for extra moisturizing.

 Reviving Bath Salts
 I loved the container for these with the cute little spoon. It was actually kind of hard to give away! This is very simple to make and I chose mint essential oil as the scent...The recipe is here.

 Homemade Coconut Milk Shampoo
Coconut milk, castile soap, vitamin E oil and essential oil...that easy! If I ever want a break from my baking soda/apple cider vinegar hair routine, I will definitely try this! Check it out here.

 Mint Apple Cider Vinegar Hair Rinse
 Apple cider vinegar makes for a great hair rinse in lieu of conditioner...I love it! This mint variation is lovely and a great way to use up a bunch of fresh mint. Check it out!

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 In other DIY happenings...I made pillow covers :) All I have is a portable sewing machine and it was still pretty easy. I used the tutorial here. (This is why I deny being any type of Martha Stewart, I copy everyone else lol). I got throw pillows at Value Village for 3.99 each since Michael's wanted 18$ for a pillow fill (yikes!).

 Icky pre-DIY pillow

Post-DIY Pretty Gray Pillow :)












Savings put me in a kissy mood!

Dear Zeppelin,

I have to admit, when you first came into my life I was a little disappointed. When I signed up to be a foster parent for the cat shelter I had visions of getting a new kitten every few weeks to cuddle with until it got a new home. Instead they gave us you, an adult feral tabby that had been to a "cat whisperer" to adapt to your new life and wouldn't move, paralyzed with fear, for the first few days. I quickly learned the error of my ways.

Even full of fear and distrustful, you couldn't say no to a good head scratching. If we ventured beyond your head however, we quickly got a slap telling us "Don't touch!". But within a few weeks you became the lovable, love-absorbing cat we know you as. Your purring earned you your name and always told me I was scratching just right...

A terrible accident took you from us far too soon but you will be with us forever and I am sorry.

Thank you for being a companion to Logan and for teaching Dill that cats are really the alpha dogs of the pack.

Rest in peace my grey-eyed handsome boy,

Me