DIY Skin Soothing Body Butter

I've talked a lot on here about how I suffer from dry and itchy skin on my body.  Lately my itchiness has been really bad as I've been experiencing a lot of hives and skin irritations.  To help with this I really wanted something to put on my body that was all natural and full of skin soothing ingredients.  I put together this body butter using ingredients that are known to calm and heal dry, itchy, and irritated skin.  This has been such a help for me so of course I wanted to share it with all of you!

The best part is that it can be used as an everyday body butter too, not just when your skin needs to be soothed.  My Mom has been using this a ton and is loving how soft and smooth her skin is looking.  With the transition into warmer weather happening, now is the time to really take care of your skin and keep it moisturized since you'll be showing more of it when it gets hot out and this body butter is perfect to help with that!

Ingredients:

-1/2 cup shea butter

-2/3 cup coconut oil

-2 tbsp. colloidal oatmeal

-2 tbsp. olive oil

-2 tbsp. aloe

-1 tbsp. witch hazel

-12 drops lavender essential oil

Instructions:

-In a microwave safe bowl, microwave shea butter and coconut oil for one minute and mix.

-Continue to microwave the mixture in fifteen second intervals, stopping to mix between each interval, until completely melted.

-Add colloidal oatmeal, a little at a time, to the shea butter/coconut oil mixture and mix until completely dissolved.

-Put the mixture in the freezer for ten to fifteen minutes, you want it to be solid, but not completely hard.

-After removing it from the freezer remove it from the bowl and place in electric mixer, mix lightly. (You can also use an electric hand mixer.)

-Add olive oil, aloe, witch hazel, and lavender oil.

-Mix on high for two minutes.

-Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix on high for one more minute.

-Store in an airtight container.

Makes about 16 ounces of body butter.

Have you ever tried making body butter before?

                    

Today I'm linking up with Style Sessions, Confident Twosday, Style With a Smile, and Turning Heads.

Athleisure in Hong Kong

Jacket: Gap (from last year, similar here)  |  T-shirt: Halogen  |  Leggings: J.Crew  |  Shoes: Adidas  |  Sunnies: Fendi (old, similar here)

I wore this outfit when I went to see the Big Buddha on Lantau in Hong Kong.  This simple athleisure look was perfect for all of the walking around this adventure required.  I was so proud of myself this day because I managed to climb the almost three hundred steps required to get up to the Big Buddha!  I'd be lying if I said I didn't need a lot of breaks, but I still did it, which is all that matters to me.  If you're headed on an adventure like this anytime soon this look is great inspiration for what to wear and what to pack.

The Big Buddha was such an amazing experience and I have so many pictures from my trip there!  I'll be sharing another post soon with all of those and more details on my time there so keep an eye out for that.  What was your last great travel adventure?

                    

Today I'm linking up with Friday Favorites, Fab Favorites, and Friday Favorites.

My Princeton, NJ Guide

Last Wednesday was my Mom's 60th Birthday and I wanted to do something to surprise her to celebrate, so I booked a quick little getaway to Princeton, NJ for Wednesday and Thursday.  My Mom and I are both big fans of Princeton and had done a girls weekend there a few years ago that was so much fun I wanted to recreate it for her birthday.  I was able to really surprise my Mom and we had such a good trip!   Below I am talking all about what we did and breaking down my guide to a Princeton Getaway.

WHERE TO STAY

Airbnb - Princeton Lavender Farm || This is where we stayed during our recent visit and it was perfection.  It's a brand new loft on a gorgeous lavender farm just outside of downtown Princeton.  Every part of the loft has been renovated and put together to ensure the utmost comfort for the guest.  Everything from the comfortable bed to the views are wonderful.  It's a clean, cozy, and quiet oasis with friendly and personable owners.  I really loved how you're so close to downtown Princeton and the University, but you're out on this expansive farm, which is such a different setting. I would highly recommend staying here if you're going to be in or around Princeton!  I'm already trying to make plans to stay here again when the lavender will be in bloom!

Princeton Marriott at Forrestal || I stayed here during that weekend trip I took with my Mom to Princeton in 2014 and you can checkout more about that stay here.  It has standard Marriott hotel rooms, but I always love staying with them.  The setting is also really unique and almost park like which is cool!

WHERE TO EAT

Jammin' Crêpes || We went here for brunch on Thursday morning and oh my gosh it's SO good!  They have gluten free crêpes, which I was shocked to find, and they are absolutely delicious.  My Mom got a savory crêpe, which was huge and I got a gluten free "Classic Toasty Cinnamon" with whipped cream, which I cannot wait to eat again.  They have a pretty extensive menu for a crêpery and also make their own microbatch jams that you can purchase.  It's in the heart of Princeton and right across from the University; we went on a weekday morning and it was packed, but we were able to get a seat relatively quickly.  When you go just know that it's probably going to be busy if you're there at a peak time, but it's well worth waiting for.

Teresa Caffe || This is our go to spot in Princeton.  I love Italian food and they have gluten free pasta so it's always a win for me.  They're also really accommodating to food allergies/menu changes, which is super important when you have food allergies like I do.  My Mom tries something different every time we go, she got a salad that was a special that day and she's still raving about it!  It's almost always busy here and "must eat" in my opinion.

Jules Thin Crust || This is a local chain that actually started in Pennsylvania where I went to school.  Their pizza is always so good and they have a wide variety of options from the basics to really gourmet pies, there's really something for everyone.  Their gluten free crust is also amazing and doesn't taste different from non gluten free pizza.  We wanted a quick lunch before we headed home on Thursday and this was the perfect place to grab something we knew would be good!

Witherspoon Grill || It was our first time here, but we heard so many good things about it that we chose this for my Mom's big birthday dinner.  It's technically a steakhouse, but they're menu is pretty diverse and has a lot of options.  We actually both ended up getting fish (crab cakes for me and cod for my Mom) and were very happy with our choices - we are still talking about how good the meal was!  Our server and the hostess were also both incredibly nice and helpful, which was the best way to punctuate the experience!

Ruth's Chris || We went here on our trip a few years ago because we are big fans of Ruth's Chris.  While everything was good, I have to say that I've been to one of their Baltimore restaurants several times and I definitely prefer that location to this one.  When we ate there there were some minor issues, like with how the steak was cooked: we ordered it medium, and it came out way overcooked, then we mentioned it to the waitress and the new steak they brought out was practically raw, which was disappointing especially since they're known for their steaks.  While I love Ruth's Chris there are so many other restaurants and options in Princeton that I would recommend trying one of those over going here.

SWEET TREATS

Halo Pub || Despite its name this is not a traditional pub, but actually a coffee and ice cream shop!  It's such a cute little spot and their gourmet ice cream is locally made at Halo Farm in Lawrence, New Jersey.  We grabbed some ice cream after dinner from their very large selection and it was delicious!

Thomas Sweet Chocolate || This is a traditional chocolate shop in Palmer Square.  I always love to stop here to pick up some chocolate before I go home.  If you're looking for a little something sweet this is definitely the place to go!

ATTRACTIONS TO SEE

Shopping || Princeton has a great mix of nice chain stores (J.Crew, Urban Outfitters, Ann Taylor, Lululemon, etc.) and boutiques.  Everytime we go into town we love to walk around and shop because there are so many different places to see!  There's also an amazing knitting and needlepoint shop in town, Pins and Needles, that has a great selection so we always land up going in there!

Princeton University || I really enjoy walking around the campus to see the architecture and layout.  It's especially beautiful in the fall and spring!  There's also many different activities that go on on campus that are open to the public and an art museum I'm dying to check out.  There's so much beauty and history here that you really can't not visit the campus when you're so close.

As always I had an amazing time in Princeton and cannot wait to visit again!  Have you ever been before?

                    

Today I'm linking up with Midweek Inspo, Oh Hey Girl!, I Feel Pretty, and Trendy Wednesday.