Some DIY and Local Awesome

A bit of local awesome:

I was somewhat traumatized a handful of years ago, when I experienced my first spa-manicure. I won't bore you with the details, but it ended with a (probably) life long painful ugly mess of a non-growing cuticle. I swore I'd never do a mani (or pedi, not that I'd ever had one) at a spa, ever again... until today. 

For my most recent birthday, I was given a voucher for a mini-spa adventure which included a mani, pedi, facial and arm/hand massage. A girl can't say "no" to some pampering, especially not a girl who's on a mission to explore her hometown while creating herself. I'm glad that I was given the opportunity to get over my dis-taste for spas because this experience was a world away from my last. The owner, Emily, was a gem. She made me feel totally relaxed and at home. I will be back! She doesn't have a website, so I snapped a quick picture of her brochure:

Beautiful, relaxing view

A few fun cleaning tips, inspired by Pinterest:

1) Drain cleaner made from baking soda, white vinegar and boiling water. So simple and it worked like a charm! I used it in the bathtub drain which was definitely getting clogged up with a lot of hair, especially after giving a couple of felines a bath or two recently. It really couldn't have been much easier!

2) Jewelry cleaner made using dish soap, salt, baking soda, hot water and a piece of tin foil. Again, so simple and incredibly effective. I was shocked at how sparkly an old family ring came out - I've never seen the diamonds so sparkly! Be sure to read through the comments on the post as well, there are more helpful tips there.

So easy!

3) Microfiber couch cleaner using rubbing alcohol in a spray-bottle, a sponge and a bristly-brush. Our light-tan microfiber couch gets a lot of abuse (I really need a bib when I eat/drink anything) and has consequently seen much better days. We were honestly starting to consider tossing this one in the basement apartment and replacing it with something of another material. Well, I don't think that any of that will need to happen because the two small test-spots that I have used appear to be turning out gorgeously and I can't wait to get started on the rest! I will try to remember to post before and after photos when I do.

And that's about all that I have to report for the day. I plan to spend the next two days devouring my camera guides and hopefully starting on a photography project to get me practicing. Stay tuned!