Repurposing Coffee Grounds- 10 Amazing Ideas

I came across this fabulous post at The Earthy Mama on reusing coffee grounds.

If you are like me, I need my steaming cup or coffee (or 3) to start each and every day. I always compost my used grounds, but I absolutely love these ideas on how to repurpose them in useful ways!

Pest Repellant

If you have ants that are getting into your home, figure out where the point of entry is and sprinkle coffee grounds in that spot (I have also had great results with a mixture of borax + sugar for this).

Homemade Wood Stain

If you want to try a cheap, chemical-free way to stain your wood, check out the step-by-step here: http://groundtoground.org/2012/10/25/reusing-coffee-grounds-as-wood-stain/

Naturally Deodorizing Flower Vase

You can place dry or used coffee grounds in a jar or vase, fill with fresh cut flowers (wet grounds will look just like soil) and you will have a natural deodorizer (not to mention the fabulous smells from the flowers) for any room in your home.

Fridge Deodorizer

You can replace that old, used-up box of baking soda in your fridge with a mason jar of coffee grounds and you will get exactly the same amount of deodorizing power!

DIY Exfoliating Scrub

Slough off those dead skin cells anywhere on your body with coffee grounds and leave your skin glowing and happy. Not to mention the added benefit of the intoxicating smell of coffee while you do it. Recipe here.

Natural Fertilizer

Add 2 cups of used coffee grounds to 5 gallons of water and allow to steep overnight. You can then pour this over your garden or potted indoor plants as a liquid fertilizer.

Keep Cats Away

Spread you used coffee grounds around the base of your garden to keep your cat (or neighborhood cats) from digging.

Add Shine To Your Hair

Work your coffee grounds into clean wet hair and then rinse out to add shine to your hair and condition it naturally. 

Coffee And Cocoa Face Mask

Decrease any puffiness in your face and around the eye area while brightening your skin with this easy DIY mask idea. Get the recipe here.

Hide Furniture Scratches

If you have any dark furniture with small dings or scratches, you can try dabbing a cotton swab into steeped grounds and rubbing it on the mark. You may want to try on an inconspicuous spot first. 

Well, there you have it friends. Some super-nifty ways to reuse your coffee grounds.

And you get extra points if you use fair-trade coffee. ;)  If you`re curious about the importance of Fair Trade- check out my post about it here.

Blessings.

And The Winner Is....

All the names are entered.... 

The names are shaken up... 

And blindly the winner is chosen. 

And the winner is..... 

Sarah Berger!




Congratulations Sarah! I know that you will enjoy the beautiful pearl collar.



Thank you to all who entered and shared my blog. It means a lot to me.


And also thank you to THE EDIT for donating such an amazing vintage item.



Blessings.

Vintage Necklace Giveaway

I am SO very excited about this giveaway!

This amazingly sweet vintage pearl collar can be mailed out to the winner of my most recent giveaway.

This giveaway comes directly from a local shop- 

The Edit- 205 Ottawa St N, Hamilton

A curated selection of Hamilton's finest resale, new and vintage clothing.

The owner of the shop, Yentina, has an amazing blog that I follow religiously. She updates on some of the clothing and accessories that she has in her 'brick-and-mortar' store, or in her ETSY shop. You can also follow her on Facebook.

Here are my fave outfits from her most recent blog post: 

I just love her style. She has an amazing eye for fashion and putting pieces together with a mix of vintage and thrift store finds. Make sure to stop in and visit her at her store!

And here are my favourite items from her Etsy shop right now:

Seriously....amazing items, yes???

To be entered to win this beautiful vintage collar, simply share this post and you'll be entered into the draw! The winner will be drawn on Friday October 10th. If we aren't friends on facebook, let me know that you've shared in the comments section at the bottom of this post. :)

Peace friends, and good luck! :)

Repurposed Halloween Decor

Though this post is extremely similar to the post that I just did on Repurposed Fall Decor- there are some obvious differences.

My Fall Decor post focused more on autumn and harvest, as well as Thanksgiving decorations. This post is for those that like to step it up in a 'Scary' direction around Halloween.

This is for those that prefer Jack-o-Lanterns to Pumpkins.

For those that prefer Creepy to Pretty. Spooky, Scary, and Scream-y to boringly-perfect-fall-decorations.

For those readers I give you- Repurposed Halloween Decor:

These repurposed wine bottles are too cute. All you need is some paint and twine for the Jack-o-lantern, cheesecloth or scrap fabric and googly eyes for the Mummy, and paint and some eyes for Frankenstein.

Get it....'BOOS'??? Love it. You can easily make this decoration with paint, black raffia, and twinkle lights.

 Although this saved-from-the-trash water bottle is decorated more in a generic autumn way, I think it would be great with a ghost face, or a jack-o-lantern face on it.They used a decoupage glue to get the 'frosted' look, but you can use simple white craft glue. 

Believe it or not, I always see old ironing boards at thrift shops . I love that this old, rusty board was saved and made into a perfect Halloween decoration.

This recycled pop bottle makes a very spooky centerpiece. All you need is some styrofoam, scrap fabric, and a branch or two. 

These adorable Jack-o-lantern decorations were made from repurposed landscape edging. 

I seriously LOVE how creative people can get with their junk. It's amazing and inspiring.

Because what else do you do with old dolls that are destined for the landfill?? Make creepy Halloween decorations out of them, of course!! 

Also saved from a landfill- this broken umbrella. I think Halloween may be becoming my favourite season for rescuing garbage and making something spectacular and creative from it. 

Spray-paint an old chandelier black, add some twigs and candles and you have this amazing front-entrance decoration.

Another cute Halloween centerpiece idea. Spray paint used wine bottles to look like candy corn. Yummmm. 

I LOVE old shutters. I love them so much, in February I wrote a whole post on Repurposing Old Shutters. So naturally- I love this idea.

Well, there you have it readers. You can find these, as well as other Halloween ideas on Pinterest.

Happy decorating! As always, I encourage you to try to use things that would otherwise end up as trash. In my opinion- Halloween is THE holiday for repurposing. :)

You can also check out last year's post on Halloween DIY Ideas for more decorations for the season.

Blessings.

Hair Trends For Fall 2014

Like I stated in my last post, I am absolutely falling in love with fall. More and more as every year passes.

As a hairstylist, I was curious to find out what the trends were for hair this autumn. According to Harper's Bazaar, here are the new trends for hair this season:

The Off-Duty Ballerina

Thankfully- again for this season- top knots are left effortlessly undone. This is such an easy and stylishly-messy style that I know many of us are still in love with.

Braids And Twists

I have said many, many, MANY times how much I LOVE braids. So, how excited do you think I am that braids and twists are just as big for autumn?? Very. Very excited.

Center Stage

I know, I know, ALL of these models have perfect, oval faces. Yes- center parts suit oval faces best- at least that's what I believe. But, I also think that if you add a bit of texture- for example some softness, or wave to your hair- those of us who were not blessed with a perfect oval face, can now get away with rocking a center part, too.

The Mod Squad

These Jackie-O type updos, the beehive-like volume, the straighter-than-straight styles- these are undeniably retro. You can try your hand at these mod-styles to be on-trend this season.

Ponytails Rule

What girl out there doesn't love to rock a simple ponytail? Well, now you ladies are in luck- you are as stylish as can be this season. I especially love the one that is sectioned of to add some intricacy.

And now for my personal fave:

The New Wave

I LOVE these bohemian waves-turned-sleek styles. Similar to the waves of past seasons, this fall the waves are a bit smoother- they have a bit more polish to them. To me- this is even better. This means you can sleep on your hair for a couple of days, touch up a few pieces and brush them smooth. Love.

And here are the Hottest Fall Hair Colours for 2014:

According to Elle, these are the MUST HAVE colours of the season....

Flaxen Blonde-

For this season the icy and platinum blondes of the SPRING are going a bit darker. Adding honey and golds warms up these blondes and brings them into the autumn trend.  

Bronde-

Try scattering honey-blond highlights around the eyes,cheekbones and neckline for a naturally-highlighted-brunette effect.

Copper-

This perfectly-autumn-hue simply oozes FALL, yes? This tone is bolder than the strawberry and oranges that have been debuting the last few seasons, but yet still very natural-looking

 

Sombre-

The new 'subtle-ombre' is all about softening those harsh lines that were big with the ombre craze. This beautifully-natural hue is sure to be around for many seasons to come. 

Rich Chocolate-

Alright, I am not a fan of Kim Kardashian, by any means. But....this girl has great hair. This season's Rich Chocolate colour is a gorgeous mixture of chocolate and chestnut tones.Yummy.



















Thanks for stopping in and reading friends.




Hope this post has given you ladies some ideas for reinventing your hairstyle or colour.  We girls like to keep it fresh and interesting, don't we? 

Peace.