A 20,000 Dollar Facelift For FREE? This Really Works!

Leave it up to Jack Lalanne to make us all young again. It amazes me that this man has better muscle structure, (in his face) at 90 something, than most ladies in their 40's.

Don't laugh too hard at the retro videos this stuff is awesome and now I am pooped!!

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Sweet Torture Otherwise Known As.... Sugaring

I once had a friend from the Middle East. My first experience with waxing was watching her mother wax herself with a gum-like honey thing in her kitchen. She would lick this solid amber looking brick and then heat it and stretch it gradually over the burner on her stove. When the wax was the right consistency she put it on her thigh and ripped the hair out.

I asked her how I could get one of those little bricks of wax and she gave me one. I felt so cool because I knew she had probably brought it back in her suitcase from Syria. It was like some kind of foreign treasure to me. I was so excited at what I thought was this NEW depilation innovation. I went home and had no clue what to do and was afraid of burning my hand. I threw it in the garbage and that was that.

So fast forward 20 years:

I've been researching home wax or sugaring recipes for hair removal and have found some interesting stuff. Sugaring was invented by the Egyptians and they have a very specific recipe called Halawa (this means SWEET in Egypt) that has been cooked up and used since biblical times.

What would Jesus have waxed?

The ancient "queens of the Nile" such as Nefertiti and Cleopatra used such preparations pre-wedding. Egyptian culture today still says women must wax off all of their body hair and stay waxed if they are wed. We waxers know these things.

I decided to provide a recipe for the Halawa with instructions. Keep in mind that the wax is hot and to make sure it is the right temperature and consistency before making contact with your skin.

This is a very old, very famous Egyptian recipe for wax that is completely natural and extremely effective. It is basically caramel, right before it reaches the crystallizing stage (so it also tastes great). It is relatively simple to make, but take care to observe the caramelizing of the sugar, because the window for the wax to be just right before burning is very small. Do not be frustrated if you burn a batch; even experienced makers do this all the time. The best thing to do is to watch is continuously once the color changes to golden brown. You can eat it or you can use it as Hair Removal.

The recipe:

Ingredients for Halawa Sweet, AKA Sweet, Egyptian Sugar Wax, or Hair Removal

1. Two cups of water
2. Three cups of sugar or three cups of honey
3. Two teaspoons of lemon juice

Procedure

1. Place all ingredients in saucepan. Bring to boil.
2. When its color changes to golden brown, lower the heat and continue to simmer.
3. Keep a careful watch on the color. Once it starts to change to brown, turn off the heat.
4. Allow to cool a little, then pour small quantities onto heavy duty plastic, of the cereal bag type. Plastic that is not heavy duty will melt. It is not a good idea to use a plate, as you will need to peel it off something pliable after it cools.
5. When it becomes cool enough to handle, pull a piece off the plastic and pull and stretch it. This will immediately cause it to change color, from a clear golden brown to an opaque gold. It should be easy to stretch and pull. If it is too hard, you have left it on the heat for too long and must make a new batch. If it is too liquid, it has not been heated enough and must be heated once more, or a new batch made.

It is now ready for use! Don't forget to spread the wax against the direction of hair growth and rip it in the direction the hair grows.

The trick is in knowing when to turn the heat off, and may take a few batches until mastered. One test is to take a drop on a spoon and hold it between your thumb and finger (cool it under water first!). It should stretch between them. If its too liquid to stretch, continue to heat, and if it stretches but is brittle, discard and repeat, reducing the time you leave it on the heat.

An easier, although more expensive, alternative is to use just three cups of honey and a few drops of lemon. Simmer for a few minutes until the color changes then continue from step 4.

So do we eat it or rip out our pubic hair with it? I know I know... the decisions difficult, but we can agree that the bikini wax has less calories.

Please leave your results in the comments section. I would love to hear how this worked out for you. Also I have included a great you tube video that shows it being used so you can understand the technique.

Enjoy!

Hence You Must Mask Ye Faire Maiden...

How wretched you must look if you don't mask your face at least 3 times weekly, your body once weekly. We have come such a long way and modern concoctions are rather effortless.

Why? Because its how we treat the skin to the stuff it can't absorb. Just because your skin doesn't swallow up clay or seaweed it does not mean we shouldn't use it.

Who speaks such blasphemy?

In Shakespearean and Renaissance plays and readings, the frequent reference to "fair" actually means "distinctly shining". Egg glaze and poppy oil were just some of the things used to treat the skin and insure courtship.

Women also used to wear protective armor-like mask's around the square. This was done after chemical peels were left on the skin for 7 days. These peels would wound the face for a week or so and the mask served to protect it from the sun and to keep the skin "faire". Upon the 7th day the face would first be steamed with honey. Removal was complete by gently rubbing milk soaked breadcrumbs on the face. It wasn't rare for a woman of 50 to look 25.

Now today's painless masks can do many things like moisturize, brighten, give you that "O glow"... whatever your heart desires.

Or maybe just a little mini detox from your latest hangover?

Gone are the days of quicksilver, lemon and turpentine peels. Wait what?

How To Eliminate Adult Acne- The Paleo Diet

If your dealing with adult acne there is one thing that you need to know; the cause. Believe me when I say its dietary.

I am not talking about eating to much chocolate or drinking too much coffee. I'm talking about sugar, grain and dairy. The bottom line is they are not fit for human consumption. If you don't believe me just read the Paleo Diet book and try the diet for 4 weeks. Every single zit will be gone. I guarantee it.

The root cause of acne is always misunderstood. Most think that because oil exists on the skin during this time that it's the cause. They try to treat the oil, always unsuccessfully by burning the skin with chemical peels or drying the skin with Peroxide. Neither works long term and the acne returns. The reason for this is that the physiology and PH of the skin have not changed. This is fundamentally internal and must be done with diet.

The root cause of acne is inflammation and inflammation is always caused by food allergens. So why are we always trying to treat the oil? Long ago scientists discovered that many times oil was present in acneic skin conditions. It was known that the oil that was clogging the follicle was of a thicker nature; hence the clogging. The mission then became to treat the oil as it appeared to be the cause. I think the oil is there to protect the skin from inflammation. In essence oil production can increase we are under stress, or generally not treating ourselves well.

So what came first the chicken or the egg? Or in this case the inflammation or the oil?

I'm going to stake my vote on inflammation which is the cause of all disease.

So what causes inflammation?

Stop eating that candy and just read the book already...

How To Bathe Part 2: Lavender Can Kill You

Back in the day, when I was still an amateur bather, I discovered aromatherapy. I would go to the herb store and buy those bottles of 100% pure essential oils. Some of them I could buy a little larger than others because they were used more frequently. I decided to buy a large bottle of Lavender. This bottle was 50 bucks.

So I get home and start to run the bath. I open the bottle and without looking dump half of the bottle into the bath. Normally these bottles come with a dropper in the top. So when you pour it you can count the drops. This bottle had no stopper because it was professional sized. I had no idea this was the case.

I am looking at the tub and thinking to to myself that I will take this bath since its now a $25 bath. I get in the tub. Ah relaxing!!! But wait is that a headache coming on?

After about 15 minutes I start to feel weird like I'm going to pass out in the tub. I can't keep my eyes open, I try to stay awake but feel sick in the process. I am now nauseous, and weakly trying to hold onto the side of the tub so I don't drown and then I taste it... lavender oil in my mouth?

How did I swallow it? I wonder if this is the problem.

I realize that I did not swallow it but that it was in every cell of my body and that's why I could actually taste it. In my aromatherapy training I was taught this but was a non-believer. Ancient lore says that garlic, when rubbed on the feet, can be detected on the breath within 20 minutes.

I dry off and lay in my bed, too weak to move. It took more than 10 hours to feel better and I had to brush my teeth once an hour, to eliminate the lavender taste which kept returning for days.

Obviously I am still very much alive...but I say don't try this at home.

How To Bathe Like The Japanese

You know you need a shower but don't feel like it. Fret no more because the ritual bath is making a comeback.

I have found that people no longer know how to bathe well myself included. What do I mean? Well going to the store to buy a body wash to dump in the tub for bubbles is not a bath. It lacks elegance and does not give the bather the true rejuvenation they need.

There are many ways to bathe well but for god sakes make some damn effort! You need to create a bathhouse-like environment.

The first thing you need to decide is what ails you. Is it sore muscles, tiredness, a sickness of some sort, anxiety, a rash, or are you just plain dirty?

So here is an example of a real bath. Just tonight I took a ritual bath... relaxation is the intention.

Because I have decided to quit my job and go forward with this website ...I'm totally tense. I also got sick this week and really needed to feel and smell good. I was sent a Japanese bathhouse kit from a company who specializes in the ritual bath. In the kit there are several steps that lead to bathhouse style bathing. First a clay wash that smells like Yuzu, then a scrub that has various seeds and rice grains in it smells like Lemongrass, next a mesh bag containing; cherry flowers, various barks, rice and seeds goes in the tub and filled with water. As per the instructions I routinely squeeze this pouch over me as I bathe like I'm being prepared for sainthood, then I pat myself dry get out of the tub, I apply lime oil to my skin, over that I apply a plum cream. Bliss I tell you.

You may be thinking this is insane but its not. You can focus your mind during this type of relaxation. You can achieve this better than any massage for a fraction of the cost.

I smell divine for 3 days.