I’ve been wanting to share this one with you for weeks ’cause I love it. I’ve got a basic Mr. Coffee coffee maker – no bells and whistles at all, not even an auto shut-off. I do the vinegar and water cleaning thing on a regular basis and I try and clean the filter basket grooves with a cloth but I noticed when I took the basket out that there were coffee grounds in the section that holds the filter basket. I tried cleaning them out with a damp paper towel and was getting nowhere. I also noticed there seemed to be coffee residue in the water reservoir and tried cleaning that with a damp paper towel too. None of this was satisfactory.
I wracked my brain for some easy way to clean these parts and Eureka! I got my silicone pastry brush out and it did the job like a champ. That soft brush gets into every nook and crevice. Because it is silicone it cleans up easily with no coffee stains or residue on the brush. I’m betting I can find other uses for that brush – nooks and crannies, watch out!
Now for some bathroom/beauty hints.
I haven’t been spending much time on myself lately – what with my husband’s care demanding 110% of my attention. Last night I noticed my face was looking dull and I thought “Oh way past time for a pore cleansing mask” Thing about face masks is that you need to leave them on for 10-15 minutes and I get bored waiting for them to dry. This morning I realized the shower needed to be cleaned – Voilà – apply the face mask and then while it’s drying, clean the shower. Two chores done at the same time.
What you’ll need for this is: Freeman’s Face Masks. They have a mask for just about every skin care need you can think of. But here is the best part – $14.95 for 4 tubes of different face masks? Yes, please. I’ve been using Freeman products for decades and I like the results. Will someone try to sell you some fancy-schmancy skin care products that cost a mortgage payment or two? Of course. Are they any better than Freeman’s – NO. You can get Freeman’s just about everywhere – Amazon, Target, your local drug store or supermarket.
Once I applied the facemask I got started on the shower. First I sprayed Scrubbing Bubbles and then, if you have a tile shower you most definitely need an Oxo tile and tub scrubber – trust me , you do. Once the Scrubbing Bubbles did it’s job then came the Bon Ami to get that grout clean (I’ve been a little lax these past weeks). I’ve written about Bon Ami before it’s the best for cleaning everything (except glass). It’s not always easy find but Target has it.
Also – just because we are talking about beauty regimens – I’ve always taken particular care of my skin – my body as well as my face. At 76 I have barely a wrinkle and my skin – body and face, is as soft as the proverbial baby’s bottom. So much so that when I was in the hospital 2 years ago and blood was being taken every 4 hours one of the phlebotomists remarked “Your skin is so soft, I can feel how soft even through my gloves!” Why? Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize. Even as a teenager with oily olive skin I moisturized. What do I use? For the past 20 years or so – Curél. I use the Ultra Healing formulation on my face and body (tho they do have a sensitive skin face care line). Again, available everywhere for a pittance of the fancy-schmancy. Before Curél I used a product called Soft Sense – drugstore brand and price – beautiful skin.
And then there is that face lift. Need one, want one? Here’s a tip – get your eyebrows professionally shaped and then maintain the shape yourself with a good tweezer. I had my brows done for the first time when I was in my early 50’s and I was shocked and delighted to see the difference. My eyes, my whole face looked more open and bright and younger.
It just occurred to me that I have touted some these products before. I have no idea if any of you tried them. But I am living proof they work.
Here are links to the web sites for these products. Check them out and then shop for them at your favorite retailers.
Freeman Beauty Products
Oxo If you don’t know Oxo products, the link will take you to their web site and you can get all “gimme, gimme” over their nifty products for cleaning and organizing your life as well as kitchen and home gadgets of every kind. I LOVE Oxo products. You can buy from their web site, Amazon, Target – all the usual suspects. Prices vary.
Bon Ami
Curel
The Oxymoron 