Most home chefs don’t aspire to create a five-star meal; they just want to get a flavorful and healthy dinner on the table at the end of each day. Of course, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot we can learn from professional restaurant chefs about preparing food.
The training that professional chefs get from their time in culinary school and the years they spend in restaurant kitchens could actually have practical application for the Saturday-morning pancake flippers and those just throwing something together quickly after work.
Don’t miss out on these 12 cooking hacks shared by expert culinary artists. They just may change your taste buds for good.
1. This sweet idea will add more flavor to your food.
Health-conscious cooks will love this tip, but cutting back on processed sugar isn’t the only benefit to getting creative with sweeteners. The truth is, [linkbuilder id=”6715″ text=”alternative sweeteners”] can add new and unexpected flavors to your food, and we’re not just talking about desserts.
“Try maple syrup instead of sugar for a delicious, rich, nutty flavor that pairs well with savory foods like sweet potatoes, squash, and apples,” executive chef Ryan Kikkert of Roanoke Restaurant in Chicago advised.
[Maple syrup is] excellent in vinaigrettes, pancake batter, or for making sweet compound butters for fresh breads and pastries.
In addition to maple syrup, Kikkert suggested agave nectar, which is both sweet and tart and is amazing with fruits, yogurt, and even in chili. Honey has floral notes and a malty taste and is perfect for baking, making granola, or throwing in a sauce for chicken or pork.
2. Never accidentally crack a hard-boiled egg again.
When an egg cracks as it’s dropped into boiling water, it ruins the egg altogether. Avoiding this annoying occurrence is simple with this hack from executive chef Matthew Wilde of Joy District in Chicago’s River North neighborhood. Tory Deorian
“Rather than dropping the eggs in the water one by one or by the handful, use a towel as a lowering device,” he explained. “Place all of your eggs on a thin towel, grab the corners of the towel, and lower it into the boiling water. This will help to prevent cracking when eggs hit the bottom of the pan, and it also helps to increase efficiency.”
3. Avoid a visit from the fire department.
Leaping flames may be exciting if you’re visiting your favorite hibachi restaurant, but a fire is something no cook wants to face in their own home. There is one step many home cooks skip that puts them at risk for burning their food, according to Birnbaum.
Soak your skewers! Home cooks always forget this crucial step. Soak your skewers overnight so they don’t catch fire on the grill.
4. Holy guacamole, that was easy.
If you’re one of the avocado obsessed, you’re going to love Chef Wigglesworth’s hack for simplifying your guacamole prep, especially since a recent epidemic of avocado-related injuries has become a source of national concern.
“People often have a hard or messy time cutting the avocado and scooping it out of the skin,” he said.
A trick for expediting that process is to use a metal wire cooling rack, one that has a crosshatch pattern.
“Cut the avocado in half and remove the seed, keeping the skin on for now,” Wigglesworth continued. “Place the metal cooling rack over [a] bowl…place the avocado halves on the top, flesh side down…apply a little pressure, pushing the avocado against the cooling rack.”
Voila! Perfectly cut avocado without the trip to the emergency room.
5. Shake it up, baby.
Peeling garlic can be a time-consuming task that leaves many home chefs reaching for garlic salt instead of putting in the time to mince up the real deal. With this shortcut from Chef Wilde, garlic peeling doesn’t need to be a hassle. Tory Deorian
“The easiest way to peel garlic is to put the garlic in a sealed container and shake,” he said. “You can also press on it with your palm or the back of a kitchen knife.”
Check out how it’s done in the video below, plus some helpful tips to peeling onions and hard boiled eggs too!
7. Streamline food preparation.
Coming home from work to a home-cooked meal is one of the most comforting practices of a busy week, but cooking from scratch each night simply isn’t realistic for most working parents. Of course, that doesn’t mean you’re destined to eat microwave dinners Monday through Friday. With enough planning, home-cooked meals can be simplified. When you cook on your days off work, double or triple your favorite recipes.
“Make big batches and freeze small batches,” encouraged Birnbaum.
Big batches of marinara, pesto, Bolognese, etc… Pack them into small, tight-fitting Tupperware and thaw as needed.
8. There’s a simple trick for fresher meat.
A lot can be said for the flavor of never-frozen meat that you’ve sourced from a butcher in your own hometown. Keeping meat fresh can be a hassle for busy working parents, but there is one little-known hack that keeps meat from spoiling before you have time to use it in your home-cooked meal. Tory Deorian
Instead of wrapping meat directly in plastic, Wilde instructs home cooks to wrap it well in paper towels and then cover it in plastic. This eliminates excess blood, which actually spoils much faster than the meat itself.
9. Stop spending so much on fresh herbs.
Confession time: When recipes call for fresh—instead of dried—herbs, I find it seriously tempting just to stick with what’s in the spice rack. Fresh herbs are pricey, and they’re packaged in large quantities, more than can generally be used before they go bad.
The solution to this dilemma is simpler than it may seem. Todd Birnbaum, owner and menu creator at the New York restaurant Clancey, believes growing your own herbs is an opportunity home chefs shouldn’t pass up. iStock
“It’s easy to do and they pay for themselves,” he said. “Stores package herbs in a way that you generally only need 20 percent. When you grow them, you can snip as needed.”
10. Enjoy the luxury of homemade pizza without all the work.
There is no doubt about it; made-from-scratch pizza puts frozen options to shame. Of course, making pizza dough at home requires a lot of time and effort. Home chefs shouldn’t let this keep them from treating their family or guests to really great pizza from time to time.
“Buy pizza dough from your favorite pizzeria,” suggest Birnbaum. “Grill some pizzas, wrap hot dogs in it, or let the kids make their own pizzas!”
11. The fluffiest scrambled eggs are within your reach.
Scrambled eggs are a staple for breakfast lovers and a healthy enough option to became a part of the daily menu. Most home cooks, however, are adding an unnecessary step to the process, and it’s robbing their eggs of their fluff.
“People add cream, milk, butter, or some kind of dairy to the eggs before cooking. It will result in a creamy texture, sure, but it will not be as fluffy as it could be,” explained Dustin Wigglesworth, a sous chef at the Candy Apple Café in Jacksonville, Florida. “The extra proteins in the dairy actually weigh down the egg, making it denser.” Tory Deorian
Instead of adding dairy, Wigglesworth suggests pulling out your blender to add extra air to your eggs. Crack them straight into the blender, turn it on for 15 seconds, and you’ll notice your eggs appear to multiply. Follow this by cooking them as normal—slowly, over low heat.
12. Here’s an eggselent approach to your next egg salad.
Don’t put your cooling rack away just yet; it just might make your egg salad prep easier than ever before. According to Wigglesworth, the exact approach described above can also be used for preparing an egg salad.
Just hard boil the eggs, peel them, and push the whole egg through the wire rack.
13. Speaking of hard-boiled eggs…
Let’s all be honest: Chopping hard-boiled eggs is hardly the biggest inconvenience when you’re making egg salad. Peeling eggs is a headache. Simplifying and cutting back on the mess requires an understanding of how to cook perfect hard-boiled eggs. iStock
Fill a pan with cool water and add your eggs right away along with a heaping teaspoon of baking soda. Cover with a lid and bring the water to a boil. As soon as it reaches a rolling boil, turn it off and set a timer for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, get an [linkbuilder id=”6714″ text=”ice bath”] ready. As soon as your timer goes off, halt the cooking of the eggs by transferring them to the ice bath right away. This recipe yields perfectly cooked, easily peeled eggs every single time.
There you have it: the best of the best cooking hacks straight from the people who know their way around a kitchen. Whether you’re planning a family get-together or simply preparing your next meal, these little nuggets of advice should prove to be invaluable.
Your heart races. You get sweatier. You keep swallowing, and it’s hard to focus on the words you’re stringing together to form a sentence because your head is buzzing with a concoction of feel-good chemicals.
Those initial waves of attraction can knock you off your feet. More often than not, the first powerful feelings you experience for someone you’re attracted to seem inexplicable and maybe even nonsensical.
Why do we latch on to some people the way we do and not others? Is it just some ineffable, spiritual connection?
The truth is, attraction isn’t random. Science can explain a lot of why we feel what we feel for a person who catches our eye.
As it turns out, even when he isn’t aware of it, a man often gets romantically involved with a woman he sees has certain qualities that are biologically coded to mean “healthy” and, by extension, “fertile.”
He may think he is simply on the hunt for his next date, but thanks to evolution, he is also subconsciously looking for a partner for his role in the survival of the human race.
This innate drive to recreate can explain these eight things men are hardwired to look for in a potential lover.
1. It’s in her hips.
Biology is often to blame for why we do many of the things we do. Check out the video below to find out why most men look at body shape when searching for a significant other.
One 2017 study found a correlation between the number of children a woman had and her waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). The study looked at nearly 1,000 women from seven non-industrial societies in Sub-Saharan Africa, Western Siberia, South America, and South Asia; of this group, the women who had borne more children had higher WHRs on average.
These findings suggested that this preference for a lower WHR—the sweet spot seems to be around 0.7—may be because it is a biological indicator that a woman has not borne many (if any) children, meaning she’s got, in theory, the best of her baby-making days ahead of her.
So, contrary to the popular notion that low WHR equals high fertility, and that this quality alone is what’s prized by dudes on a subconscious level, it seems to be that low WHR indicates a limited number of previous pregnancies. The study’s authors offer a number of explanations for why this would be appealing, including that men aren’t typically thrilled about parenting another man’s kid: “from an evolutionary point of view, a male investing in another man’s children is synonymous to a man supporting his opponent’s reproductive success.”
Heartwarming, really.
2. It’s all about symmetry.
Although you probably learned all about it in art class or geometry, men’s biology seems to be fixated on symmetry. Symmetry is the idea that—when divided in half—each side of an object, person, or image mirrors the other.
Of course, men aren’t simply attracted to any symmetry they see. (Unless they’re one of those 19th-century male nature writers who was aroused by plants.) We are all specifically wired to look for this characteristic in other human beings and use it as a subconscious tool for rating attractiveness, according to the journal Symmetry.
There are a few different theories about why this is the case. Some researchers think symmetry is believed to be an indication of overall health.
There are others who believe that because symmetrical images are easier to process visually, our brain is wired to show preference for this characteristic.
3. Let your hair down.
If you have ever suspected that men prefer women with longer hair, you were totally onto something.
The way a woman wears her hair does influence how the opposite sex sees her, according to a 2004 study in the journal Human Nature. This survey found that women with longer hair were rated by male participants as appearing healthier and more attractive.
Admittedly, hairstyle seems to have a very small influence on the attractiveness of women. In fact, if a woman was already viewed as attractive, her hair length didn’t really influence how men viewed her in a study by the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology.
It was women who were rated as plain who were deemed more attractive when shown with long hair.
4. Throw on some red lipstick.
Women have long painted their lips red or added blush to their cheeks to make themselves more appealing to men, but it wasn’t until 2008 that we started to see some published research on the effects of wearing red on human attraction.
As it turns out, showing a preference for the color red is a behavior exhibited in males throughout the animal kingdom, specifically primates. Homo sapiens, at least according to the findings in this landmark study, were simply following suit, being the animals that they are. (Looks like that charming “you and me baby ain’t nothing but mammals” song that your parents didn’t want you to listen to in middle school was onto something.)
This attraction to the color red appears to be linked to the female cycle, according to the journal Personality and Social Psychology. Researchers observed that female monkeys actually reddened while ovulating and their mates responded to that change.
Additionally, the same attraction was observed when men were presented with pictures of women wearing red lipstick or a red shirt.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Follow-up research using larger samples has challenged these findings—which honestly makes sense, because when something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Although it would be wonderful to be able to secure your future with a dreamy guy by throwing on a red dress before you “accidentally” run into him at the library again, this factor alone is unlikely to stir his feelings.
Several more recent studies, like this one published in the journal Social Psychology, closely replicated the 2008 experiment and found that “the red effect” wasn’t actually a thing. Sorry, ladies in red.
5. The Way You Smell
As bizarre as this may sound, men may be attracted to you because of the way you smell. Even though a lot of people know that pheromones are a hormone with a very specific scent, the science behind the attraction isn’t common knowledge.
Research has found that a woman’s cycle directly influences the pheromones she emits. Depending on where you are in your cycle, men may find you more attractive simply because of the smell of the pheromones you are giving off.
6. Bright and Healthy Eyes
When you ask any man what he finds attractive about a woman, it is almost expected for him to comment on her eyes.
There is a real reason we place so much emphasis on the eyes of people we’re attracted to, and it isn’t because the eyes are the window to the soul.
Men are more attracted to women with clear, bright eyes, according toThe Harvard Brain. It isn’t necessarily about color, either. It is the overall brightness of the entire eye that matters. This is believed to be all about evolution since bright eyes are viewed as healthier, whereas dull or dry eyes are associated with aging.
7. Those Luscious Lips
As silly as it may sound, all those teenagers posting duckface selfies on social media might be onto something, since fuller lips are seen as an attractive trait on women.
We already know the color of a woman’s lips matters, but that isn’t the only thing that men are looking for in the mouths of a potential love interest.
One Manchester University study found that after meeting a new woman, men spend about half of the interaction looking at their lips. And when it came to the attractiveness of the women they met, men rated women with fuller lips as more attractive.
The science behind this attraction follows the theme we have been seeing so far—men are attracted to the appearance of health, and full lips are viewed as a physical characteristic of a healthy woman.
8. You sound good to me.
It isn’t all about the way you look. A man’s ears also play a role in determining just how attracted he is to a woman. Just like with males, females’ voices change as they age.
As their estrogen levels decrease, their tone lowers and deepens. Men are more attracted to women with a higher tone to their voice, according to Smithsonian Magazine. This preference is all about youth, because younger women tend to have higher-pitched voices, and the perception is that a younger woman is healthier (and likely more fertile, with a lower waist-to-hip ratio and fewer pregnancies under her belt).
Of course, men aren’t exclusively dumb animals. Don’t be too quick to assume that any of these physical traits will usher you into eternal romantic bliss or lock you into a life of miserable singledom.
The way you look, smell, and sound are just a few pieces of the puzzle. The rest of a relationship is just about a couple of bumbling human spirits trying to make sense of this strange world together.
Intelligence is independent of socioeconomic status, race, and gender. Albert Einstein. Henrietta Swan Leavitt. Mozart—the world’s greatest minds have come from all walks of life. But studies have shown that intelligent people do share certain [linkbuilder id=”6521″ text=”personality traits”]. If you’ve always thought you were smarter than the average bear, you might find yourself identifying with some of these 10 characteristics.
1. Intelligent people stay up late.
Do you stay up all night or rise and shine with the sun? Some studies show that more intelligent children grow up to be nocturnal as adults.
There’s a neat bit of science behind this theory. Almost every living organism is governed by circadian rhythm, the internal clock that sets sleep/wake cycles. Humans, however, can actually alter their individual clock, which is why some people stay up late and others rise early.
Until fairly recently, humans tended to sleep as soon as the sun set and rise again with the light. The theory is that more intelligent individuals evolved to actually manipulate their sleep cycles, thus adapting more successfully to modern life.
2. Birth order has an impact on intelligence.
Are you the oldest sibling in your family? If so, you might just be the smartest one too. Older siblings may be more intelligent because they receive more mental stimulation during critical stages of development.
If you weren’t lucky enough to be born first in your family, though, don’t despair. Research also shows that while older siblings may be more intelligent, younger siblings are actually more likely to be successful in life.
3. Cat people are smarter.
Dogs may be man’s most loyal companions, but research claims that cat lovers may be more intelligent. Carroll University conducted a study that measured personality traits, including intelligence among self-described cat lovers and dog lovers. The study found that dog lovers’ social skills are more advanced, but cat lovers scored higher on intelligence markers.
Owning a cat is probably not the sole reason for increased intelligence but a hallmark of your underlying personality. Dog owners tend to be extroverted and seek companionship.
Cat owners, on the other hand, are usually more introverted, which gives them ample time to focus on reading, thinking, and accumulating information.
4. People with a high IQ are messy and disorganized.
Mom always told you to clean your room, but if your space looks like a Category 4 hurricane just swept through, it may be indicative of high IQ. According to a study from the University of Minnesota, a messy space spurs creative thought.
In the study, participants who were placed in a tidy space made traditionally “good” choices, like choosing an apple over chocolate.
But when asked to come up with new uses for ping pong balls, the messy-room participants overwhelming came up with creative and novel ideas.
The study suggests that tidy people make safer choices, but notoriously messy people (like Albert Einstein, for instance) tend to have creative thoughts that lead to innovation.
5. Breast-fed babies grow up to be more intelligent adults.
Breast milk is the original superfood. In the first months of life, it contains all the key nutrients babies need to thrive. However, synthetic formula also contains many nutrients and is a great alternative to breast milk. So what makes breast-fed babies smarter?
According to Betty Vohr, a professor at Brown University, “The benefit is likely due to long-chain fatty acids found in breast milk.” Long-chain fatty acids, like DHA, aid infants in association and memory development, which may help them develop a higher IQ.
If you bottle feed, there’s no need to worry. Just make sure your formula includes DHA, and your little one will probably be at the top of their class in a few years.
6. More intelligent people engage in one-sided conversation.
Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock Holmes often carries on a conversation with himself, talking almost as fast as he solves cases. Sherlock, a brilliant (but fictional) detective, may be onto something. Studies show that talking to yourself could be a sign of advanced intelligence.
Problem-solving out loud can help organize thoughts and actions. In addition, talking to yourself can help you focus and complete specific tasks faster. So the next time you get shushed in the library for muttering to yourself, let the librarian know you’re just trying to improve your brainpower!
7. Curiosity leads to higher intelligence.
There are three markers that determine a person’s ability to mentally manage complexity.
Intelligence quotient (IQ) is traditionally thought of as the most important indicator of intelligence and is difficult to improve significantly as you age.
The other two indicators, emotional quotient (EQ) and curiosity quotient (CQ), however, can be improved over time and may play a much larger role in the ability to improve cognitive function.
In particular, individuals with a higher CQ are more accepting of the unknown, preferring to ask questions and form their own hypotheses. Individuals who cultivate a higher CQ tend to have a higher intellectual investment over time, leading to increased intelligence.
8. Playing an instrument makes you smarter.
Now might be the time to call up your kindergarten teacher and thank them for making you learn “Hot Cross Buns” on the recorder. Studies show that children who play an instrument “develop ‘neurophysiological distinction’ between certain sounds that can aid in literacy, which can translate into improved academic results for kids.”
Some scientists disagree, instead positing that children who take music lessons “tend to have better-educated, higher-earning parents, and to do more extra-curricular activities than other children their age.”
Whether or not playing an instrument actually improves brain function, all scientists can agree that encouraging children to participate in arts programs is never a bad thing. Kids who interact with the arts tend to have a broader worldview, which also increases intelligence.
9. A sense of humor indicates intelligence.
If you’ve ever seen the classic comedy Dumb and Dumber, you might disagree with the theory that a sense of humor indicates above-average intelligence. In one study, students were asked to come up with captions for New Yorker cartoons. The captions that students found funniest were overwhelmingly written by those who performed higher on IQ tests.
People who are considered to have a high IQ don’t find just anything humorous, however. According toReader’s Digest, people who appreciate dark jokes are more intelligent. One reason for this is that it takes a greater mental capacity to process a dark or complicated joke as opposed to the simplicity of a knock-knock joke.
10. Intelligent people are more humble.
Everyone knows one person at work who brags about being the best when their performance is really mediocre on a good day.
The Dunning-Kruger Effect explains how this happens.
Basically, the Dunning-Kruger Effect is a cognitive bias whereby incompetent people (like that coworker) can’t recognize their own incompetence, and what’s more, they tend to believe the opposite about themselves.
On the flip side, people who are highly skilled and considered to be more intelligent rarely brag about their accomplishments and are more likely to doubt their abilities.
The visible effects of aging are different for everyone, which is super unfair, if you ask us. [pullquote align=”center”]Aging affects us on a genetic level.[/pullquote]
But rather than lament early crow’s feet or thinning hair, we decided to ask doctors what aging really is—what causes declining health over time—in the hopes of learning how we can slow down the unpleasant bits of growing older while enjoying the wisdom and greater clarity that often show up around the same time as your first gray hairs.
What we found out suggests that our lifestyles need to seriously change if we plan to keep a youthful look well into our golden years.
So if you want to get carded at the gas station for the rest of your life, watch out for these things, which have all been associated with wear and tear on our bodies themselves:
1. Your Contemporary Job
The [linkbuilder id=”4574″ text=”sedentary lifestyle”] is literally killing us. Studies suggest that women who spend at least six hours a day in a chair are 34 percent more likely to die early, and their cancer risk increases by 10 percent. The risk of early death for similarly sedentary men is 17 percent. [pullquote align=”center”]One study even indicated that standing up every 30 minutes throughout the day can have similar health benefits as quitting smoking.[/pullquote]
Either way, the picture is bleak.
And the problem goes deeper than a simple lack of exercise, says Heather Hamilton, MD, a family medicine physician at Memorial Hermann Convenient Care Center in Houston.
“This is not just about getting regular exercise, but also pertains to prolonged periods of sitting,” Hamilton tells HealthyWay. “Recent studies show that sitting too long can lead to higher mortality and early death. One study even indicated that standing up every 30 minutes throughout the day can have similar health benefits as quitting smoking.”
https://twitter.com/psitsjess_/status/991059492065501189
Maybe you’ve heard that “sitting is the new smoking.” That’s pretty much what this study says, just with a lot more data and hard-to-read scientific lingo. There’s no shortage of studies showing how important it is to get off of our heinies every once in awhile.
But it’s not that simple. So many of our jobs require us to sit at computers for eight hours a day. What can we do to mitigate the damage our careers are dealing to our bodies?
Reporting by the Washington Post that included interviews with doctors, researchers, and biomechanists offers a few solutions. Sit on an exercise ball at work, they say. When you’re watching TV, get up and walk around every time there’s a commercial.
Whatever you do, make sure you get up and move every half hour, as Hamilton mentions. If you have one of those seat-warming jobs, do whatever you can to get out of the chair, she recommends.
Everything about my body feels better since transitioning to a standing desk. I definitely recommend them!!
“This is applicable to many people with sedentary jobs,” Hamilton says. “People can simply stand and move at [their] work station, walk down the hall, or take a bathroom break.”
These are small things, but they add up over a lifetime—which may be considerably longer if you follow these suggestions.
2. Skipping the Cheese
Vitamin D is crucial for preventing inflammation-related disorders that come with age. For more on those disorders, and for some ways to stock up on the vitamin (including eating cheese), watch our video below:
3. Laser-Focusing on Cardio
It’s hard enough to get to the gym in the first place. Once you’re there, it can be tempting to zone out on the bikes or the treadmill. Although cardio is great, there are real risks related to a lack of strength training.
“The aging process is associated with changes in muscle mass and strength with decline of muscle strength after the 30th year,” write Karsten Keller and Martin Engelhardt in the journal Muscles, Ligaments and Tendons.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bf1h3gVg-oL/?hl=en&taken-by=halleberry
While your muscles are wasting away, your metabolism slows down. This combination of factors can lead to unhealthy weight gain, which carries its own list of horrors. The point is, arm day may be more important than you think. Don’t neglect the weights.
4. Trying to Wring Even More Hours Out of the Day
We have a very sad fact to share. Brace yourself: Coffee cannot replace sleep.
We know, we know. We’re grieving too.
The truth is that doctors are serious when they tell you to get between seven and nine hours of sleep a night, every night, at least between the ages of 18 and 64. Less than that could affect your productivity and, worse, encourage your arteries to harden. [pullquote align=”center”]The importance of sleep cannot be stressed enough.[/pullquote]
An article in the Harvard Business Review written by Harvard Medical School professor Charles Czeisler warns us that people who sleep less than five hours a night for five years in a row are three times more likely to develop hardened arteries.
“The importance of sleep cannot be stressed enough,” says Hamilton. “Sleep allows your body to process nutrients taken in during the day and allows your mind to process events of the day.” iStock.com/kbeis
There isn’t really a problem that insufficient sleep doesn’t make worse.
“Memory loss and mood disorders such as anxiety and depression have also been linked to sleep deprivation,” Hamilton says.
Even worse, skimping on your Zs can wreak havoc on your genes themselves, leading to DNA damage that raises your risk of cancer. We don’t know how to get more hours in the week either, but it’s clear that skipping sleep is not the way to do it.
5. Hating Your Job
If you want to live a long, happy life, free from the damaging effects of growing inflammation, you need to follow your passion. That’s not just a feel-good platitude; it’s medical science.
A systematic literature review published in the journal Occupational & Environmental Medicine found that “job satisfaction level is an important factor influencing the health of workers.”
Hating your job can even spark or exacerbate mental health issues, explains Hamilton.
“Mood disorders such as depression or anxiety can be linked to job dissatisfaction,” she says. “There is an intricate interplay between health and job satisfaction in which both affect each other. When dealing with mental health, it is important to assess outlook on work as well as work-life balance.”
This all makes perfect sense when you think about it. When you hate your job, you spend every day stressed out and angry. According to the American Psychological Association, chronic stress makes existing health problems worse. It encourages the formation of bad habits, such as smoking and overeating. It can even increase your risk of cardiovascular disease.
https://twitter.com/spellshaney/status/991652312065064960
According to the latest report from the Pew Research Center, a discouraging 15 percent of working adults say they are “somewhat” or “very dissatisfied” with their jobs. But it’s important to remember that many of us do have other options. No matter how restricted you may feel, there’s always another job (or career!) out there, and remaining stuck in an unpleasant environment can actually speed up the aging process.
Tying It All Together
Okay, so what have we learned? Sleep enough, get off your behind, find a job you like, and work out. But no one of these things alone is enough to stop the the hands of the clock entirely.
To hold off the visible signs of aging as long as possible, you need to adopt a holistic approach to health, says Ellie Cobb, PhD, a psychologist who focuses on a the mind-body connection in wellness.
Aging affects us on a genetic level, Cobb tells HealthyWay, citing research by Elizabeth Blackburn and Elissa Epel that suggests the telomeres at the ends of our chromosomes actually shorten as we age. And these shorter telomeres that cause the negative health effects of aging. That’s because when these DNA caps reach a certain reduced length, the cells that contain them stop replicating. They die.
“The positive news is that scientific research also shows that we can change our telomere length by what situations we experience in life and how we chose to react to those experiences,” Cobb tells us.
So, like, how?
“Some positive ways to reduce inflammation (and therefore reduce negative aging effects) are [to] aim to get regular sufficient sleep, adopt a consistent meditation practice, be conscious of eating healthy fats and vegetables like avocados and leafy greens instead of refined sugars, exercise moderately, and find joy and thankfulness in the little things in life,” Cobb says.
So that’s it! Mindfulness is like calisthenics for your telomeres. We’ll see you and your lanky telomeres on the dance floor in many, many decades.
There’s a difference between wanting to look your best and wanting to take literally hours to look your best. You shouldn’t have to spend all day trying to perfect your eyeliner. So take a look at these tips, meant for you ladies who want to look great, but save time and effort doing it.
Fix Too Dark Foundation
You know that feeling when you’re caught between two foundations? They’re the same brand, and maybe, to the naked eye, they’re even the same color. There’s a slight difference between the way each blends on your skin, though, with one looking a bit more subtle than the other. Style Craze
You take it home and put it on, only to realize that, alas, it’s still too dark. Don’t panic, you don’t have to go around looking like you have a less-than-perfect spray tan. If you just combine a little moisturizer with your foundation, that can actually make it a bit lighter!
Three is the Magic Number
With contouring, there’s a ton of tips and tricks out there for how to make sure your face is perfectly on point. If you’re in a rush though, just trace from above your brow, to underneath your eye, and along your jawline, in the shape of the number three. The Pool
Line Using Your Curler
Your curler doesn’t have to be used just for your lashes. Try using your eyeliner to draw a line along the part that will crimp the top of your lashes. This way, the liner will transfer from the curler to your eyelid. Life Hack
Cards for All
You’ve probably heard that you can use business or ID cards to help with evening your eyeshadow distribution or even to help ensure a straight line with your liner. Did you know that you can also use it for mascara? Place the card behind your lashes and swipe up against it so the excess mascara lands on the card, not your lids. Bloggerissa
Glitter Cover-Ups
If your bottom cuticle is ruining the aesthetic of your manicure, you can cover it up with some glitter polish. Ombre is still in, so Cosmopolitan suggests going for that sort of vibe. The same is true when your tips might be flaking away, just add some glitter and make it look like you were aiming for a revamped French all along.
Warm Up Your Mascara
Mascara works better when it’s warmed up, and a quick way to do this is to let it rest in your bra for a bit before you go ahead and use it, because, you know, body heat. Business Insider
Tee vs. Towel
Towel-drying your hair might seem like a time saver, but really, it’s a time drainer. Use a t-shirt instead for significantly better absorption.
Match Foundation to Your Tan
If a darker foundation is exactly what you were looking for, because you’ve spent all month lying in the sun, just mix it with some bronzing powder. Makeup By Krystle
Eyeshadow Works for Hair Too
Are you showing more of your scalp and not enough of your lustrous locks? Don’t worry, take some eye shadow that matches the color of your hair and brush it along your part to create the perfect illusion.
Band-Aids Can Help Your Nails Too
If you have some of those classic Band-Aids laying around with the tiny holes in them, try putting them over your already dry nails, and paint over the holes for a polka-dot look.
White Goes Pop
Did you know that white eyeliner can be used for more than just making your eyes look bigger or helping them to pop a bit? (That works by putting it on your waterline, for the record.)
It can also help to make your lips look a bit fuller, which we all know is a big concern amongst today’s women. Just put some light liner—you can probably stick to pencil liner for this—in the center of that pout you’ve got, and it will create the illusion that there’s more to your lips. YouTube
Bonus: swiping some white liner on your eyes (either the entire lid or just where you line it) can help any shadows or other liners you use to really make an impression.
Low on Sleep? Stock up on Highlighter
Apply your highlighter to the right places (the center of your forehead, the top of your nose, and the apples of your cheeks) so that you can look ready to go, no matter how little sleep you got the night before. Salon Guru India
Hide Split-Ends
If you’re saving your money, and not ready to get another cut just yet, but you can’t help but cringe at your split-ends, hair oil might be your answer, according to Cosmopolitan. It can hide your split-ends from the judgmental eyes of others. YouTube
Master the Smokey Eye
Was there ever a time when the smoky eye was not regarded as the ultimate makeup look? Well, probably not since the 21st century got underway at least. Funnily enough though, there are still so many of us who have trouble perfecting this signature look.
That stops here! Just take “an eye crayon … and draw on a couple of criss-cross lines over the outer corner of your eyes.” Blend it with a brush meant for eyeshadow, and you’re done.
fFix Mascara
Is your mascara less than fabulous right now? Well, just take some contact solution, put a few drops in your mascara bottle, and mix it. Live and Learn
Highlight Differently
You don’t have to always use a typical makeup highlighter. Instead, you can go natural, and use an oil, like jojoba, according to Cali of DePasquale The Spa. Just put it on the same spots where you would your traditional highlighter and you should be all set. Gossip Katta
Make Your Hair Smell Great
Is the perfume you spray on your body just not cutting it? Well if you want to stand out, then maybe add a little something extra to your hair.
You can just take a brush, spray some perfume on there, and the sweet scent will transfer onto your locks. Be sure that you don’t spray it right onto your hair though, because “the alcohol in the formula can dry [it] out.” Lionesse
Easy Clean
Rather than choosing not to clean off all your makeup because you’re feeling exhausted or lazy after it’s been one of those days, just keep some makeup-removing wipes next to your bed.
Dry Shampoo Reliance
If you have a full schedule and even a shower is too much to squeeze in for the day, you your appearance doesn’t have to reflect your exhaustion. YouTub
Just use some dry shampoo; it’s an incredibly quick way to make your hair look presentable, at least until you have time to give your hair a really thorough scrub.
Cope with Less than Perfect Bangs
Do you spend half your time loving your bangs and the other half of the time wanting to chop them off? Well if they’re being incredibly stubborn, refusing to work for you, and you’re not in the mood to deal with the annoyance, there is a solution. YouTube
You can use them to your advantage by “[working] them into a style, like a headband braid or a boho twist.” It’s easier to achieve some sense of flair this way too, rather than just settling for putting some bobby pins in to keep them out of your face.
Double Up on Shower Caps
Did you know that if your hair is prone to frizzing in humid conditions, showering with two shower caps could actually help keep the effects of the humidity at bay? Fastco Design
Ice Water
Before your next D.I.Y. manicure, set out some ice water. If you’re in a rush (or you’re just really impatient when it comes to waiting for your nails to dry, because you have things that need to get done), you’ll only need to let the polish dry for a couple of minutes. Then just place your fingers in the water and it will help to “harden your polish the rest of the way.” Back Roads Beauty
Turn Glossy Polish Matte
Have you ever wondered if there was a way that you could change your glossy, clear polish to matte? Well there is a way. All it takes is the addition of some corn starch. If you add it to your clear polish, the result should be closer to matte.
Parenting can be really hard sometimes, especially when your baby won’t sleep for longer than 15 minutes. This is because the baby has to adapt to its new sleeping conditions out of the womb before it will feel comfortable sleeping in a crib, meaning lots of sleepless nights for the baby and for you parents.
Swaddling a baby has been the typical solution to this problem. Swaddles mimic the womb-like protection that a baby is used to by wrapping the baby tightly so that they have limited movement, as they did in the womb.
iStock
However, there’s a problem with swaddles: Babies don’t like being constrained. They like to be able to move while still having that perimeter of space like they did in the womb. This leads to the baby breaking out of the swaddle, waking themselves up, and possibly scratching their face, which is understandable. Would you like to sleep with your arms and legs strapped to your body?
Sleeping Baby’s Zipadee-Zip is the new solution.
“The star-shaped pointed sleeves and starfish design” provides the safe, enclosed environment that the womb—or a traditional swaddle—gives while still allowing the baby to move around freely and comfortably.
It’s the perfect wearable blanket and stimulates a more sound sleep compared to that of a swaddle because of its slight resistance in the wing-span. It also looks so cute on your baby, so what more could you ask for?
Why is this necessary?
Babies like to have boundaries because of the “Moro” reflex. Because of this reflex, babies feel like they’re falling when they have too much space around them, like when you dream you’re falling and jolt awake. They can’t feel the edges of their space like they did in the womb, and it startles them, leading to frequent sleep interruptions.
This reflex is triggered when the baby stretches its arms and feels the wide open space, leading to endless cries and causing a sleepless night for all parties involved.
The Zipadee-Zip lets the baby roll and move their arms and legs safely. It aids in the “womb to swaddle” transition as well as in many other uses, so basically it’s a lifesaver for you tired moms.
Still not convinced?
Besides creating the enclosed sensation of the womb and allowing a full range of movement, the garment has many other beneficial uses for parents and babies.
The Zipadee-Zip keeps the baby’s hands warm through the night, and it teaches the baby to self-soothe to fall back sleep. This helps the baby know it doesn’t need to be held to fall back asleep, giving you parents more peace of mind when putting your baby down.
It’s also a time-saver in many ways. The simple zipper is way easier than taking the time to swaddle a baby. The Zipadee-Zip can also be easily removed when it’s time for a diaper change, and it’s a much easier alternative to pajamas when traveling. It also keeps your baby safe from germs that could get on the baby’s hands, meaning less sick babies!
Even better, the use doesn’t have to stop when the baby grows into a toddler. The Zipadee-Zip carries multiple sizes, so you’re covered from 3-6 months, 6-12 months, 12-24 months, and above.
Of course, that’s not all; its design can even help keep older babies from climbing out of their crib. It can also always be used as a snug blanket or as socks and mittens on a cold day for your babies. Seriously—what can’t this product do?
With all of these uses, you’d think the functionality means sacrificing the fashion. But with over 10 different patterns, you can choose a cute design for your baby’s new best friend. The designs are categorized as “boy,” “girl,” and “neutral.” Pictured below are a few of or our favorite designs; we can’t decide which one we like the most!
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Where did the idea come from?
Parents Stephanie and Brett Parker were having a hard time getting their daughter to sleep through the night, like most parents with young kids. She would wake up every 15 minutes because she was uncomfortable in her new open environment, causing a nightmare for the new parents.
Desperate and exhausted, Stephanie broke out her sewing machine and created the first ever Zipadee-Zip. Their daughter slept for a shocking 12 hours straight the first time she wore the Zipadee-Zip, meaning Stephanie and Brett also slept for 12 hours straight.
The Texas couple realized they could help other parents and kids actually get some sleep if they shared the genius idea, so they launched their online business, Sleeping Baby.
How has the business grown?
Stephanie and Brett utilized the ever-growing online community of moms to sell their product initially. They saw their business growing every day, and they knew they needed more support if they wanted to keep that growth flourishing, financially and professionally.
The Parkers went on the reality show Shark Tank, which allows entrepreneurs to present a business deal to five “shark” investors, who can choose to invest.
The Parkers explained how their business has grown and the amazing community they’ve created between moms, but they wanted the advice and investment of a shark to continue to grow their at-home business. They received three offers from the Sharks and ultimately decided to take Daymond John’s offer.
John has experience in the retail industry and knew he could grow the Sleeping Baby business while maintaining the personal connection between moms that the Parkers cherished.
Sleeping Baby
During negotiations after the show, however, the Parkers and John came to some unavoidable disagreements. They backed away from the deal, grateful for the mentorship of John, and have since grown their business fully on their own (heck yeah strong parents). Now, they’ve grown to have more lines, more sizes, and more styles than ever!
Zipadee-Zip’s Impact
Sleeping Baby’s motto is “Inspiring Dreams One Night at a Time.” They want to provide a night of sleep to parents and babies across the world with the incomparable Zipadee-Zip while spreading inspiration to work on your dreams—like Stephanie’s dream of being able to afford to be a stay-at-home mom.
The Zipadee-Zip will provide the ultimate happy and healthy transition for your baby, and you’ll never have to worry about getting a full night’s sleep again. You’re also buying from an awesome, genuine family, who care about others. What else could you ask for?
If you still don’t believe us, there are tons of testimonials from moms who have succesfully used a Zippadee-Zip to make their baby get a better sleep. Here are some from Sleeping Baby, but there are also tons of videos showing how they used the product to make a daily routine easier.
Sleeping Baby
The product and the company have been featured on Good Morning America, Forbes magazine, Parents, and Entrepreneur. With all of the real moms’ support, offers from most of the Sharks, features on a multitude of blogs and sites, and the positivity in the parent community, we think buying this product is a must.
You have to have been underground for the past two decades if you haven’t heard the term feng shui being thrown around. Just in case you think it may be a new type of fried pork meal, let us clarify! iStock
Feng shui, which literally translates to “wind and water” is the ancient art of placement.
The Chinese believe that the goal of one’s life is to enhance the flow of chi (spiritual energy) and create balanced and harmonious environments that promote health, increase wealth, and bring happiness. iStock
One of the ways this can be achieved is through the proper placement of items, including furniture, in your house.
The art has become so widely accepted and en vogue that if a decorator doesn’t use it—or at least isn’t slightly familiar with it—it could be grounds for termination. iStock
An entire house can be designed according to feng shui principles, but since rest is the foundation of a healthy life and the bedroom is the oasis of the home, experts agree that it’s the most important area to start with. In the bedroom, the way that furniture is positioned in the bedroom affects your health by affecting the flow of energy.
The correct placement can make one feel more calm and tranquil, more positive, and generally in more in control. iStock
Start by taking a look around your room. The top mistake people make in arranging their bedroom is not leaving equal room on both sides of the bed. This is one of the most vital elements in designing this room.
Is your bed pushed up against the wall? Is there more room on one side than the other? Does the room feel a little off kilter when you step back and study it? iStock
The uneven placement of items to the sides of the bed doesn’t allow for the equal flow of chi throughout the room and can result in relationship issues, and physical and mental health issues, as well.
When designing the room, make sure there’s equal space on both sides of the bed but also be sure that there’s a grounding energy there as well. Two nightstands do the trick with some added lamps (both the same) for soft lighting. iStock
This balance will be keep your energy centered and will also maintain equality in your relationship. If you have a choice, experts recommend the use of round tables instead of square ones. The points on the square of the tables may cut off the chi energy that will be directed toward you.
Feeling rejuvenated by the thought of revitalizing your life through your bedroom? Read on about the other things you can do to boost your mojo!
Don’t align your bed with doors.
Doors are a big deal in the art of feng shui and are symbolic of so many things. As a rule of thumb it’s important to keep the bed positioned as far from any door as possible.
It’s also important that the bed not be in alignment with any door (bedroom, bathroom, or closet), or too much chi will flow toward the bed. iStock
Even if it’s misaligned, a door should be visible at all times—this allows you to energetically and literally see and feel who and what opportunities are approaching. Additionally, a direct line of vision to the door is believed to start your day with a sense of control.
Avoid accumulating clutter.
Too much clutter means that chi can’t circulate in your bedroom which can cause intimacy and health issues. Be sure that the area surrounding your bed is clean and free of debris. iStock
Extra books can be a particularly overwhelming source of clutter. Too many books lying around can disturb the peace in your bedroom by making the room look and feel like it’s a place of work. A few books are fine, but more than that should be placed in a different area of the house. One book in particular that would be good to have on hand to help with avoiding clutter accumulation in your space is The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing.
Take the television out of the bedroom.
Televisions are considered an unhealthy addition to most bedrooms; they not only create unhealthy magnetic fields which disrupt sleep, they also keep you distracted and keep the bedroom from being a place of relaxation. iStock
This holds true for desks as well. If you can’t move either, experts suggest that you cover them with a scarf or sheet when they’re not in use.
Keep plants and flowers outside of your room.
Yang is the very active principle of the universe that’s characterized as male and is associated with heaven, heat, and light. Plants are thought to possess a lot of it—making them inappropriate for a bedroom. iStock
Their high energy and internal activity can rob you of the peaceful rest that is needed so it’s recommended to keep all plants and flowers out of the room. If you must keep them in your bedroom, try to keep them out of line of vision when you’re in bed.
Have a supportive wall behind your head.
At nighttime, your body needs good backing, protection, and support to rest and repair from the day’s work and stress. Feng shui advises the use of headboards that are solid and made of wood. A good upholstered one is helpful because you get the best of both worlds: gentle and supportive. iStock
Experts caution that it’s not advisable to position your bed under a window. Doing so may gradual rob you of your personal energy, as the window offers neither support nor protection.
Get a supportive mattress.
The quality of the mattress that you choose is super important in feng shui because the better you rest at night, the better prepared you are for your day. Pick your mattress wisely and be sure that it provides firm support, hopefully, support similar to these mattresses below.
Never, ever buy a used mattress. Not only is that potentially highly unsanitary, it’s believed that energy is accumulated from previous owners and you have no idea what kind of energy it may be.
Avoid beds and mattresses that fold into walls, as they are typically uncomfortable and not healthy for your body. iStock
Make sure the bed is high enough.
The height of your mattress is important because it allows for smooth energy flow under the bed so be sure that your bed is high enough off of the ground for it to circulate. iStock
Platform beds or ones with storage under the mattress are considered bad feng shui choices as there is no space under the bed for chi to flow which can result in a myriad of problems. Try these bed lifters to improve the height of your bed.
Avoid mirrors.
Feng shui experts caution that mirrors in a bedroom can cause disturbed sleep and may invite space for infidelity. Mirrors are also considered too energetic for such a restful space.
If mirrors are necessary, experts suggest that you put them behind closet doors, or drape fabric over them when they’re not in use.
Don’t put your bed under a beam.
As a general rule of thumb it’s suggested to not position your bed directly under a beam as it may create feelings of pressure that can disrupt sleep and harm your health. iStock
If you must do so, cover the beam with fabric or hang two bamboo flutes from the beam with the mouthpieces pointing downward.
Skip water fountains and fish tanks.
Remove all items that contain water or that picture water from your bedroom. This may include aquariums, water fountains, and pictures of lakes or rivers. iStock
Feng shui warns that these are considered negative items and may invite possible financial loss or robbery.
Looking great can be a tough and tedious job! It can take hours to pick out the right tools and learn how to use them properly. Makeup artists take tons of classes and work to gain years of experience to perfect their trade. You can learn how to be your own makeup pro—in less time—by learning some tricks of the trade.
Does your face often end up looking like a 2-year-old was your makeup artist? Are you tired of spending your entire paycheck on beauty products that don’t work? Try these easy makeup hacks—and go from frustrated to fancy!
Check your makeup in different lighting.
Nothing looks worse than uneven makeup. Since makeup looks different in different lighting, be sure to check it in the car, in the bathroom, and outside.
If you don’t have time to run outside with your handheld mirror, of course, you could try this remarkably affordable lighted mirror. Its warm LED lighting mimics daylight and seven-times magnification will help you apply your makeup like a pro.
Get the smoky eye effect without all the work.
Dark eyes look great but achieving the look, flawlessly, is a challenge. Try this hack next time you’re going out. The South Beach Blog
Choose your favorite eyeliner, and draw a hashtag (or number sign) at an angle on the outer corner of your lid. Then smudge and blend it in with your other eyeshadow.
Use a white base coat instead of clear.
In order to make your nail polish color stand out a little more, use white polish instead of clear. Polly Polish
It brightens the color and still protects your nail from discoloration.
Get off glitter polish with ease.
Instead of using base coat, swipe a coat of white glue (like Elmer’s) on your nails. Next time you want to remove your glitter polish, you won’t need polish remover—it peels right off!
Sweep mascara toward your nose, not upwards.
Most women make the mistake of applying mascara in an upward fashion. iStock
If you want thicker looking lashes and eyes that pop, angle your brush inward, not upward.
Use white eyeliner all over your lid to make eyeshadow stand out.
The color white helps colors on eyes pop, like it does on nails. Fashion Lady
Apply white eyeliner all over your lid, then apply your eyeshadow on top of it.
Turn a regular pencil eyeliner into gel liner.
Want soft, smooth lines? Beth Bender Beauty
Place the tip of your eyeliner over a match or other flame for a second, wait 15 seconds for it to cool, then gently apply it.
Use t-shirts instead of towels to dry your hair.
If your hair seems to always be frizzy and look untamed—no matter how much product you try to weigh it down with—you might want to try drying it a different way! Just Curly
Instead of using a towel to mop your hair up, wrap it in a soft, cotton t-shirt. It’ll keep your curls smooth and under control.
Even better, pick up a few of these ultra-wicking microfiber turban wraps. They pull moisture out of your hair for a frizz-free ‘do, and they free you to finish getting ready instead of laboring with the blow dryer. This pack of two even throws in a detangler comb for the final step.
Keep the mascara brush you love.
Love the mascara brush that you have, but don’t love the actual mascara? You can keep it! Just clean it with soap and warm water, then let it dry thoroughly. Make Beauty Simple
It’ll be ready to use again with other tubes of mascara.
Apply glue to your fake lashes a better way.
Applying glue to your fake eyelashes can be somewhat of a nightmare, leaving you with glue everywhere and your lashes sticking to everything. Priceza
Try placing the glue on the edge of a bobby pin and use it to apply the glue quickly and easily to lashes.
Set lipstick with powder.
There’s no need to buy drying, “24-hour” lipsticks in order to try to get your lipstick to stay. Try it the old-fashioned way! A Beautiful Mess
Apply your lipstick, then place a tissue over your lips. Dust translucent powder over the tissue on your lips and you’re ready to go!
Get the perfect pout.
Does your pout end up looking more pathetic than perfect? You can make it flawless with this easy tip.
Choose a lip liner in the same color as your lipstick and line your entire lips, ending in an “x” at the top. Fill in your lips with lipstick for the perfect shaped pout.
Make your foundation even smoother.
Do you find that your concealer ends up looking cakey and unnatural? Place a little on the back of your hand and mix it with a little of your favorite moisturizer. It’ll go on smoothly!
Keep your lipstick off your teeth.
Every woman hates lipstick on her teeth! Next time you’re heading out, clean off excess lipstick by putting your finger in your mouth, closing your lips around your finger, and gently pulling it out. The excess will get on your finger, not your teeth.
Conceal those under-eye circles perfectly.
Most women place concealer in dots, directly under the eye. This brightens up that small area but ends up making the rest of your face look “flat.” Cosmopolitan
Try applying it in a triangle shape starting the widest part at the base of your bottom eyelashes, then extending the tip to the bottom of your cheeks. This will hide redness, even out your skin tone, and brighten your whole face.
Use a spoon or credit card to get perfect wings.
Having trouble getting the perfect wing on your eye? Place the base of the spoon at an angle, against your eye and make a “cat eye” stroke. StyleCraze
Then press the rounded part of the spoon against your eyelid and wing your eyeliner stroke against the edge.
Use a spoon to keep mascara off of your face.
Have trouble keeping mascara off of your face when you apply it to your bottom lashes? Use a spoon to help! Hold the rounded part below and against your lower lids, and apply it. The excess will go on the spoon, not your lashes.
Curl your lashes with a heated eyelash curler.
Give your eyelashes even more va-va-voom by heating your eyelash curler before you use it. Use your hairdryer to heat it for a couple of seconds, let it cool…then curl. The heat will set the curl.
Create your own lip gloss out of broken eyeshadow.
Shattered eye shadow? Don’t throw it out! Make your own one-of-a-kind lip color in just a few easy steps.
Plump your lashes with face powder.
Plump lashes are in, baby! But most mascaras don’t do the job nearly as well as you’d like. Kathryn Wirsing/Elle
Try dusting a little translucent powder on your lashes in between mascara coats. Just be sure to use a little at a time so that it doesn’t get in your eyes.
Fix French manicures with a rubber band.
French manicures are beautiful and clean, problem is—they last about a day before you need to head back to the salon. Save time and money by doing your own touch-ups! Paper Raindrops
Place a rubber band at the base of the nail color tip and paint the tip. The rubber band ensures a perfect, flawless line.
Use dry shampoo at night.
As handy as dry shampoo is, it can leave your hair looking clumpy and feeling icky. Try spraying your hair before you go to bed. As you move around it’ll evenly distribute and you’ll wake up with clean and voluminous hair.
Use leave-in conditioner right after you shower.
Do leave in conditioners often leave your hair feeling weighed down? Can’t go without it? Try this hack! iStock
Apply the conditioner as soon as you get out of the shower when your hair is sopping wet, then use that t-shirt we mentioned to dry your hair. The shirt will evenly distribute the conditioner and also mop up any extra.
If you took our advice and picked up those microfiber turban wraps, by the way, you could use that instead to save even more time.
Mix leave-in conditioner with gel for soft, supple hair.
Hate that crunchy, sticky feel of gel on your hair but still need the control and moisture? In your hand, mix your favorite leave-in conditioner with gel—it’ll leave your hair feeling soft and manageable.
Hair removal is annoying. It’s tedious, painful, and unnecessary—we’d do just fine if we kept our body hair intact.
Still, if you’re a woman, there’s a good chance that hair removal is an essential part of your routine, despite the fact that it’s clearly unnatural. Evolution gave us hair, right? Why do we immediately want to get rid of it? And what explains the rising and falling trends of women’s body hair throughout the centuries?
Well, there’s no simple answer, but the history of hair removal is pretty fascinating. For starters…
Hair removal has been around for a long time—probably longer than you’d expect.
We don’t know why people started removing their hair, although we can hazard a few guesses. Hair can hold in freezing water and parasites, and it’s a major disadvantage in a fight. The (wonderfully titled) Encyclopedia of Hair notes that beards were particularly dangerous in battle, so naturally, men began looking for alternatives.
Archaeologists have discovered cave paintings that show prehistoric people shaving, although they didn’t exactly have Gillette Mach 3 technology; they used clamshells, shark teeth, sharpened volcanic glass, and simple flint knives to accomplish the task.
Humans have been shaving since at least 6000 B.C., although razors didn’t really catch on until the Bronze Age (around 3000 B.C.). That’s when humans started using razors made of—wait for it—bronze.
Different cultures had markedly different expectations for body hair.
Ancient Egyptians would shave their entire bodies, according toHistory Undressed. The reason? Well, the desert is hot (shocker, we know), and Egyptians saw body hair as “uncivilized.” While they’d leave their eyebrows in place, upper-class people would get rid of just about everything else.
They had basic depilatory creams made with quicklime, although in a pinch, they could also grind the hair down with pumice stones (ouch). Meanwhile, in certain Middle Eastern countries, a bride’s attendants removed all of her hair the night before the wedding, except for her eyebrows and the hair on her head.
In ancient Greece, people generally left the hair on their heads intact, but sometimes cut the hair on their bodies and faces. Not only was “manscaping” common, it was frequently referenced in Greek art, including the Aristophanes play Thesmophoriazusae, which contains a humorous (though very crude) scene about the practice.
We know from Greek art that complete hair removal was more common for women than men, and men who went completely hairless were seen as effeminate.
Ancient Romans also valued hairless women, according to the poetry of Ovid, who wrote these remarkably romantic lines: How near I was to warning you, no rankness of the wild goat under your armpits, no legs bristling with harsh hair!
We’re swooning. In any case, other ancient Roman art depicts women with hairless bodies (while Roman artists didn’t really shy away from showing body hair on men), so we know that hair removal was somewhat gendered by this point.
So, what did people use to remove their hair at this point? They’d sometimes singe it off—try not to think about how ancient Rome must have smelled—or pluck out the hairs one at a time with seashells or other implements. Shaving was common, but not exactly comfortable, since sharp blades were expensive.
Modern hair removal practices might have Darwin to blame.
Yes, that Darwin. According to author Rebecca Herzig’s Plucked: A History of Hair Removal, Charles Darwin’s Descent of Man inspired a scientific obsession with “racial differences,” including differences in hair growth. (Nevermind the fact that, from a genetic standpoint, race doesn’t exist in humans.)
The idea quickly spread, and the public latched onto the idea that body hair could show the genetic superiority—or inferiority—of a person.
As Herzig writes, 19th-century scientists thought that thick hair was “linked to criminal violence … and exceptional ‘animal vigor.'” Suddenly, hairlessness was en vogue for Western women.
That’s about the time that advertisers got involved.
Fashion and advertising spread shaving.
Despite the Darwinian influence, leg and underarm hair wasn’t much of a concern for women in the early 1900s.
“Clothes were so concealing that it was rare to see bare legs or underarms, so removing hair there wasn’t an issue,” Phil Edwards writes for Vox. “Before the 1910s, depilatories for those areas were used primarily by actresses or dancers, or for surgery.”
But in 1915, Harper’s Bazaar began running ads for underarm hairlessness among women wearing the popular fashions of the time, like Greek- and Roman-style sleeveless dresses, and presumably, it was ads like these that got into people’s heads as the fashions changed (which is somewhat ironic, given the history of hair removal in ancient Greece).
As dresses began to shrink, women began discovering more unseemly hair. Advertisements played on insecurities, and in 1915, Gillette introduced the Milady Decollete, “the first razor designed and marketed specifically for women, and was billed in the extensive national advertising campaign as the ‘safest and most sanitary method of acquiring a smooth underarm,'” per author Russell B. Adams Jr.
We should note that not everyone agrees with the idea that shortening skirts caused body hair trends to change. “It is not clear when women began shaving their legs,” The Economistinsists. “One idea, almost certainly wrong, is that the fashion began in the 1920s when western women’s skirts became shorter.”
The magazine stops short of providing an alternate explanation, however, so we’ll suggest one: Throughout the early 20th century, spending power increased, and many American women spent their extra money on magazines like Ladies Home Journal and Harper’s Bazaar. Advertisers quickly zeroed in on this captive audience, and beauty product manufacturers encouraged women to think of their body hair as undesirable.
Razor manufacturer Schick notes that World War II may have accelerated the trend. “During World War II there was a shortage of silk stockings causing many women to shave their legs and to use leg makeup to give the appearance of stockings,” the company’s website claims.
While that makes for an interesting story, we couldn’t find many credible sources to back up Schick’s claims that the nylon shortage popularized women shaving their legs. We did find images of women painting on nylons during the second World War. It’s possible that nylon shortages compelled some women to shave, however, so we’ll give Schick the benefit of the doubt.
In any case, women were dying to be hairless—literally.
For whatever reason, in the early 20th century, body hair was suddenly undesirable, and women had no shortage of options for hair removal. Unfortunately, many of those options were dangerous.
As Nadine Ajaka wrote for The Atlantic:
In the 1920s and ’30s, women used pumice stones or sandpaper to depilate, which caused irritation and scabbing. Some tried modified shoemaker’s waxes. Thousands were killed or permanently disabled by Koremlu, a cream made from the rat poison thallium acetate. It was successful in eliminating hair, and also in causing muscular atrophy, blindness, limb damage, and death.
By 1931, researchers had identified thallium—the active ingredient in Koremlu and some other depilatory creams—as a dangerous substance.
“A warning should be broadcast in regard to the dangers of the use of depilatories containing thallium,” Thomas P. Waring in a case study from 1931.
But that wasn’t the only hazardous hair removal technology, nor was it the most troubling. In the 1920s, beauticians began offering X-ray hair removal, which, while effective, was exceedingly dangerous.
Unfortunately, the priority of hair removal was firmly in place. “Around the same time, X-ray hair removal emerged as another treatment option,” Ajaka writes. “Women would sit for three or four minutes in front of the invisible rays of a boxed X-ray machine, and the radiation would do its work.”
“Women would sit for three or four minutes in front of the invisible rays of a boxed X-ray machine, and the radiation would do its work,” Ajaka writes.
An enterprising doctor named Albert C. Geyser quickly founded the Tricho Institute, which leased X-ray machines to beauticians after they’d completed a two-week training course. Advertisements for the Tricho System claimed that the “harmless” X-rays helped patients free themselves from “futile, dangerous and injurious means of removing disfiguring superfluous hair.”
That was, of course, untrue. Thousands of women ended up severely injured or disfigured by the devices, and x-ray hair removal was eventually outlawed.
Women had to wait decades for a more practical—and less dangerous—alternative. In 1998, a group at Massachusetts General Hospital published an article describing laser hair removal. It quickly caught on, as did a related technology called intense pulsed light (IPL) hair removal (which technically doesn’t involve a laser).
Today, these technologies make up a $508 million market. That’s peanuts compared to the shaving industry, though, which brings in about $1 billion per year from American women alone.
In recent years, we’ve seen a feminist pushback against hair removal.
Who can forget the dyed armpit hair trend of 2015?
In that tongue-in-cheek movement, women like Destiny Moreno purposefully drew attention to their neon-colored armpits. It seemed to really bother people on social media—and that was the point. Ruth Fremson/The New York Times
“Nobody questions when a guy wearing a tank top does a selfie that shows his armpit hair,” Moreno toldThe New York Times. “But if I happen to show my armpit hair in a selfie, it’s like, ‘Whoa, feminist witch asking for attention.'”
In 2016, a survey showed that about 77 percent of women between the ages of 16 and 24 remove the hair from their underarms. That’s down from 95 percent in 2013.
Love it or hate it, female body hair is coming back.
Beauty ideals change constantly, and we may see hair removal norms shift over the next decade to a more body-positive place. In any case, we’ve at least come a long way from the days of thallium depilatories—even if we’re not quite living in the hairy utopia of our dreams.
Every parent of an infant has had that moment where they look at the baby’s snacks and wonder, “What does this taste like?” That’s when they take a quick nibble and learn that…well, it’s not too bad, actually. iStock
Babies, after all, are just extremely young and tiny humans, and products that work for humans tend to work for all humans. Granted, your kid’s food might not be especially tasty, but most baby products have a variety of practical uses—some of which are pretty surprising. iStock
The next time you go shopping for your baby, pick up two of everything. You’re going to want to get in on this stuff. We assembled a list of baby products that can be life-changing pickups for adults; if you’re only using this stuff for its intended purpose, you’re missing out.
1. Boudreaux’s Butt Paste isn’t just for butts.
This stuff is a goldmine of DIY hacks. It’s full of zinc oxide, which is a great remedy for irritated skin. That’s why it’s one of the best diaper rash ointments on the market; it offers instant relief without parabens, talc, and other harsh ingredients. Alex Zivatar
This stuff is pretty magical, and it’s just as useful on adult skin—don’t let the silly name scare you off. Try a small amount of paste on your next horrible mosquito bite or dab it on your sunburn for a bit of immediate relief. Remember, a little goes a long ways.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Boudreauxs-Ointment-Original-Paraben-Preservative/dp/B0009RF8G0/”]Get a 16-ounce jar of Boudreaux’s Butt Paste on Amazon for $9.49[/link-button]
By the way, if you’re using this product regularly, you really need to pick up the brush applicator. Made from BPA-free silicone, it lets you keep your hands clean while evenly applying Boudreaux’s Butt Paste (or the ointment of your choice) to your baby. It’s easy to clean, and if you’ve ever had diaper rash ointment stuck under your nails, you’ll certainly appreciate the appeal. Amazon
Alternately, you could just use a silicone spatula, but you’ll never be able to use it for cooking again. Trust us, the brush is worth your $10.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Boudreauxs-Brush-Diaper-Applicator-Silicone/dp/B07CJQWSHB/”]Get Boudreaux’s Butt Brush on Amazon for $9.49[/link-button]
2. Baby shampoo is a super-gentle cleanser.
High-quality baby shampoo is hypoallergenic, dermatologist tested, and free from parabens and other potentially harsh ingredients. That means it’s ideal for people with sensitive skin, and it’s useful on skin that you wouldn’t want to expose to soaps and harsher cleansers. iStock
The possibilities are pretty limitless; if you’re prone to eyelid irritation, for instance, you can use a drop of the stuff on a washcloth to scrub those lids in the shower. Goodbye, mascara.
Even if you don’t need baby shampoo yourself, it’s helpful stuff to have around. It’s the ideal cleanser for dog and cat baths (assuming you can get your pet into the tub in the first place). It’s also excellent for cleaning your combs and makeup brushes when they start to get a little greasy. iStock.com/MartinPrescott
In short, baby shampoo is the ultimate soap. Why do we even bother with anything else?
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Johnsons-Baby-Shampoo-Ounce-Pack/dp/B00WEBX65O?th=1″]Get a 20-ounce bottle of Johnson’s Baby Tear Free Shampoo on Amazon for $6.65[/link-button]
3. Baby wipes seem tailor-made for makeup removal.
Many makeup removers are soaked with alcohol, which can dry out your skin, causing irritation and redness. Sure, they’re effective, but if you’re left with damaged skin, what’s the point? Alex Zivatar
Instead of using one of those products, reach for a nice, cool baby wipe to scrub away your makeup. Pack a few with you when you go out of town to use as a quick, hassle-free face wash.
Since they’re typically free from soaps and other harsh ingredients, baby wipes are also excellent for cleaning computer keyboards. They can even shine your shoes, although you’ll want to spot test on a small area before you throw out your other products.
Everyone should have these on hand—and manufacturers should really consider renaming them “everything wipes.” Amazon
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Amazon-Elements-Wipes-Sensitive-Flip-Top/dp/B00M4M2W1W/”]Get a box of 480 Amazon Elements sensitive baby wipes on Amazon for $11.99.[/link-button]
4. Diapers are a key ingredient in a super-effective ice pack.
As the video below demonstrates, you can use diapers for something way beyond their intended purpose. With some specific liquids and an absorbent diaper, you can create a reliable, reusable ice pack.
Sure, diapers are expensive in bulk, but when you can get them for about $0.15 per count, they’re much cheaper than commercial ice packs—and for new parents, they’re much more readily available.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Luvs-Leakguards-Disposable-Diapers-Newborn/dp/B01EKZO93O”]Get 252 Luvs Ultra Leakguards diapers on Amazon for $33.95.[/link-button]
5. Baby powder has all kinds of uses.
The purpose of baby powder is to prevent friction. Well, we could all use a little less friction in our lives, right?
Commercial baby powders make for a decent stand-in for dry shampoo or deodorant, and they can help prevent stinky feet by sucking up moisture. Bring your favorite baby powder to the beach, and you can use it to remove sand from your feet. Really, we’re just scratching the surface here. Watch the video to see a few of our favorite baby powder hacks:
While the link between modern talcum powder (which no longer contains asbestos) and ovarian cancer is unclear, you might want to find a talc-free baby powder just in case. There are plenty of them on the market, and talc-free formulas can be just as effective. Look for a product with corn starch or another natural talc alternative, and if possible, pick something with a light, natural fragrance.
Our pick is Burt’s Bees Dusting Powder (you’ll notice that they left “baby” out of the name, despite the fact that this is a baby skin care product—the good people at Burt’s Bees apparently realize that this stuff is great for adults, too). iStock.com/KAZITAFAHNIZEER
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Burts-Bees-Baby-Natural-Talc-Free/dp/B000UVX7KE”]Get three 7.5-ounce bottles of Burt’s Bees Baby 100% Natural Talc-Free Dusting Powder on Amazon for $20.50.[/link-button]
We should note that Burt’s Bees has a light fragrance. If you’re looking for a completely unscented option, check out Ora’s Amazing Herbal Baby Powder. It’s made with pure kaolin clay powder, tested to ensure that it’s lead-free, along with baking soda, arrowroot powder, and organic plantain leaf powder. Amazon
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Oras-Amazing-Herbal-Grain-Free-Gluten-Free/dp/B00FLGG1HO/”]Get Ora’s Amazing Herbal Baby Powder on Amazon for $13.27.[/link-button]
6. Pedialyte can help to quickly hydrate adults.
After a night of overindulgence, try sipping Pedialyte. It’s packed with electrolytes and it has less sugar than most sports drinks. Catherine Lo/Spoon University
It was designed to rehydrate sick children, but it can do the same thing for adults. Whether you’re fighting through a nasty flu or you simply need to rehydrate quickly after a long hike, this stuff works will do the trick. It doesn’t taste awful, either; just don’t expect the sugary sweetness of a sports drink, and you won’t be disappointed.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Pedialyte-Electrolyte-Powder-Variety-Hydration/dp/B01JO4KWAU”]Get 24 powder packs of Pedialyte on Amazon for $26.97.[/link-button]
Just add water to the powder packs and you’re good to go. It’s wonderful for preventing headaches, muscle cramps, and other common symptoms of dehydration.
Another option is Pedialyte Advanced Care, which is formulated for higher electrolyte loss. We’re not sure whether Pedialyte is recognizing that a sizable portion of their consumer base is made up of (ahem) dehydrated adults, but one glance at the Amazon reviews will show you that grown-ups seem to appreciate this new formulation. Amazon
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Pedialyte-AdvancedCare-Electrolyte-Electrolytes-Prebiotics/dp/B06XSZPNQ7/”]Get four one-liter bottles of Pedialyte Advanced Care on Amazon for $21.96.[/link-button]
7. People with sensitive skin should try switching to baby detergent.
Soaps for babies are super gentle, and the same is true about laundry detergent made for the pre-K set. iStock
Many adults with allergies or skin sensitivities find that baby detergents bother them less than typical adult detergents, which are packed with chemicals and fragrances. Ultimately, any detergent should work about the same—and if you’re dealing with especially tough stains, we’ve got tips to help you out.
Dreft is a liquid detergent specifically formulated for babies, and it’s the baby detergent most commonly recommended by pediatricians.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Pedialyte-AdvancedCare-Electrolyte-Electrolytes-Prebiotics/dp/B06XSZPNQ7/”]Get a 150-ounce bottle of Dreft Baby Laundry Detergent on Amazon for $35.99.[/link-button]
If you’re looking for a dry detergent, Nellie’s All-Natural Baby Powder Laundry Detergent is one highly reviewed option. It’s free from fragrance, phosphates, and other potentially harmful additives, and it contains an extra concentration of sodium percarbonate, an oxidizing agent, for extra stain-fighting power. Plus, it’s affordable; a single tin can clean up to 80 loads. Amazon
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Nellies-Natural-Detergent-Sensitive-Non-Toxic/dp/B01891M11C/”]Get Nelly’s All-Natural Baby Powder Laundry Detergent on Amazon for $18.00.[/link-button]
8. Baby sunscreen is powerful enough to work for adults, too.
No matter how old you are, SPF is SPF.
SPF—which stands for Sun Protection Factor, if you’re unaware—is a measure of how much time your skin would take to turn red while wearing the product, as opposed to how much time that would take when you’re not wearing the product. iStock
We’ve got a much more detailed look at sunscreen here, if you’re interested, but the bottom line is that SPF ratings aren’t age dependent. Try pilfering a little of your infant’s sunscreen the next time you head to the beach. As with many of the other products on this list, infant sunscreens are often formulated without harsh additives, so they’re ideal for sensitive skin.
For the most protection, pick the highest SPF level you can find and enjoy your day at the beach with peace of mind.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Babyganics-Mineral-Based-Baby-Sunscreen-Lotion/dp/B00HYV2F7E”]Get two 6-ounce bottles of Babyganics Mineral-Based SPF 50 Sunscreen on Amazon for $18.52.[/link-button]
9. Baby oil helps you remove mascara.
Waterproof mascara is awesome stuff; it doesn’t smudge, even when you’re exercising, and you can break into a blubbering mess during Won’t You Be My Neighbor? without rocking a total goth look. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come off easily—hey, that’s sort of the point. iStock
If you find yourself struggling to clean your mascara off of your eyelashes, reach for a bottle of baby oil. Why is this effective? Waterproof mascara is, well, waterproof, so trying to wash it off in the sink won’t do much. Fortunately, oil and water don’t mix, so oil can help to break down tough cosmetics. Just dip a cotton swab in baby oil and gently apply to your eyelashes with side-to-side swipes. Rinse and you’re done.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Johnson-Baby-Original-Ounce-Pack/dp/B00JF76E54/”]Get two 14-ounce bottles of Johnson & Johnson’s Original Baby Oil on Amazon for $12.98.[/link-button]
Johnson & Johnson’s oil is just mineral oil, formulated to absorb quickly into your baby’s skin without causing irritation. It’s hypoallergenic, and it’s frequently recommended by dermatologists. That means that it’s safe for your infant, and it’s also safe for your eyelids and other sensitive areas.
Baby oil is also useful for keeping your skin hydrated. If that’s the type of thing you’re after, we’d recommend something like Mountain Falls baby oil, which has added aloe vera and vitamin E. However, if you’re just looking to wash off mascara, stick with the simplest formula you can find. Amazon
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Mountain-Falls-Vitamin-Compare-Johnsons/dp/B0711Y7J79/”]Get a four-pack of 20-ounce bottles of Mountain Falls Baby Oil with Aloe Vera and Vitamin E on Amazon for $12.75.[/link-button]
10. Speaking of which, diaper cream is extraordinarily effective as a moisturizer.
You can spend $100 on a tub of super-fancy, age-defying face cream, or you can just reach for the nearest tube of diaper cream. It locks in moisture and helps your skin stay hydrated. iStock
Diaper cream is also good for dry skin wherever it shows up, and it can soothe the sting of razor burn.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Earth-Mama-Calendula-Moisturize-Sensitive/dp/B0021HR94K”]Get a 2-ounce tub of Earth Mama Angel Baby Bottom Balm on Amazon for $8.32.[/link-button]
11. Nursing cream is designed for nursing mothers, but it has other uses, too.
If you’ve nursed a baby, you know that nursing cream is one of the most wonderful substances ever invented. It gently hydrates while relieving soreness and chafing, keeping your skin soft and healthy. iStock
And while these ointments are designed for extremely sensitive skin (which might be an understatement), they’re also useful for dry skin anywhere else on your body. If you notice your skin cracking, try dabbing with a bit of high-quality nursing cream and enjoy the instant relief.
We especially like nursing cream for treating chapped lips. Other treatments seem to dry out our lips, so we’re constantly applying more and more to get the same effect; nursing cream, on the other hand, can soothe sensitive skin with a single application. We’re big fans of cocoa butter, so Palmer’s Nursing Butter is our favorite. Amazon
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Palmers-Cocoa-Butter-Nursing-Cream/dp/B000H8DVKG”]Get a 1.1-ounce bottle of Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Nursing Cream on Amazon for $6.50.[/link-button]
It’s a simple formula—pure petrolatum with cocoa butter and pro-vitamin B5—but sometimes, simplicity is a good thing.
While we’re on the subject, if you’re currently nursing, high-quality breast pads can make your life much easier. Lanisnoh nursing pads are our pick, since they’re comfortable, leak proof, and discreet. Amazon
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Lansinoh-Nursing-Pads-Disposable-Breast/dp/B003U3SWEA/?th=1&psc=1″]Get a 36-pack of Lansinoh nursing pads on Amazon for $5.99.[/link-button]
12. Gripe water has been keeping colicky babies comfortable for generations.
It can ease adults’ upset stomachs, too. The best brands use real ginger and fennel, two herbs that soothe belly pain without unpleasant gastronomical side effects.
Next time you get a little gassy or come down with some nausea, reach for your infant’s bottle of gripe water for quick relief. Alex Zivatar
Wellements’ formula is pediatrician recommended, and the vegan, USDA-certified organic ingredients provide some extra peace of mind. Just be sure to keep it refrigerated—those organic ingredients won’t stay fresh forever. The manufacturer recommends using the entire bottle or discarding it within four weeks of opening. Amazon
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Wellements-Organic-Gripe-Water-Tummy/dp/B000GCHOEW”]Get a 4-ounce bottle of Wellements Organic Gripe Water on Amazon for $8.49.[/link-button]
Another highly ranked gripe water is Mommy’s Bliss, which relieves discomfort from gas and colic with organic ginger and fennel. Again, it’s certified organic, and because it contains no artificial colors or flavors, it’s safe for sensitive stomachs. Adults may not find the formula too tasty, but it works—and really, that’s the important thing. Amazon
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Mommys-Bliss-Occasional-Discomfort-Fussiness/dp/B00E3Y0N5G/”]Get Mommy’s Bliss Gripe Water on Amazon for $19.96.[/link-button]
13. Baby shampoo doubles as a perfect detergent for delicate fabrics.
You can’t throw your cashmere sweater in the wash with everything else. Fragile, high-quality fabrics require a little babying, and in this case, we mean that literally.
Baby shampoo can gently wash your nicest clothes without fading colors, and it’s also effective for spot-treating stains. Simply add a small quantity to your laundry load; for best results, wash small loads with cold water.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Aveeno-Baby-Wash-Shampoo-Tear-Free/dp/B005CPGJTO”]Get two 8-ounce bottles of Aveeno Baby Wash & Shampoo for Hair & Body on Amazon for $9.48.[/link-button]
14. Baby oil also works well for polishing stainless steel.
Nothing looks classier than a kitchen full of stainless-steel appliances. Unfortunately, nothing collects grease and grime like this chic metal, either. iStock.com/iiievgeniy
The simple solution is to rinse down your stainless steel appliances with a bit of dish soap. Once you’ve got the gunk removed, it’s time to start polishing, and that’s where the baby oil comes in. It smells better than steel polish, it’s less abrasive, and it leaves your appliances sparkling.
Rub down steel surfaces with an oiled cloth to create a clean, bright shine. Use a circular motion to distribute the oil evenly, then sit back and admire your handiwork. This works on faucets too, by the way—if it’s made from steel, a bit of baby oil will leave it looking brand new. iStock.com/tommaso79
Since baby oil is basically just mineral oil, it’s also an effective polish for wooden surfaces. Wooden tables tend to collect water rings (regardless of how many times you tell your guests to use a coaster).
Polish a table with baby oil and those rings will disappear. The oil also forms a barrier against moisture, so it’ll make new water rings less likely to show up.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Burts-Bees-Natural-Nourishing-Packaging/dp/B006L1OA6M”]Get three 4-ounce bottles of Burt’s Bees Baby 100% Natural Baby Nourishing Oil on Amazon for $17.96.[/link-button]
15. Baby wipes can get rid of deodorant stains.
Oh, you thought we were done with baby wipes?
We’ve yet to meet a dark shirt that doesn’t show deodorant streaks. Deodorant is a tough thing to get out of your clothes, and unless you decide to forego your favorite deodorant entirely—and, by the way, we’ve got a full piece dedicated to natural deodorants that actually work—you’re going to have to deal with the occasional stain. iStock
The only surefire remedy: baby wipes. They gently draw out the stain without leaving behind any dull spots on dark clothes. Wipe down the white residue on your dark clothing with a baby wipe, then marvel at the results. This is seriously a game changer. We’d recommend choosing an unscented pack of baby wipes for this purpose since you don’t want any strange fragrances intermingling with the scent of your deodorant.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/bloom-Sensitive-Unscented-Hypoallergenic-80-Count/dp/B019YLCH06/”]Get bloom BABY Unscented Baby Wipes on Amazon for $7.99.[/link-button]
16. We’ve got one more use for those baby wipes, and it’s a weird one.
They’re remarkably effective for cleaning your pets. Stay with us, here.
There’s no way you’re coaxing your cat into the bathtub, and you can’t take her to the grooming place every time she gets a little dirty. Baby wipes are a great way to take care of a feline’s messy face (or, uh, any other messy areas) without infuriating them. Alex Zivatar
Baby wipes aren’t wet enough to irritate your cat, and you might even be able to convince them that you’re just petting them. Once again, we’d go with an unscented product, since cats are notoriously sensitive to fragrances. Read the ingredients; the simpler, the better.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/HUGGIES-Natural-Unscented-Sensitive-Water-Based/dp/B01BOGG5KM/”]Get a 648-count box of Huggies Natural Care unscented baby wipes on Amazon for $13.90.[/link-button]
17. While we’re discussing animals, we’ve got another strange tip.
If you’ve got a bird feeder, you know that it’s difficult to keep squirrels from driving off your avian friends. Sure, you can shoo the rodents away, but the second your back’s turned, they’ll climb up to the top of the birdfeeder and gorge themselves on birdseed. iStock.com/hmproudlove
Experienced parents usually have a few tubs of petroleum jelly sitting around. It’s great for preventing diaper rash and keeping skin soft and supple, but it’s also effective for preventing squirrels from climbing. Apply a thin layer to the outside of your bird feeder, and squirrels won’t be able to keep their grip.
It doesn’t hurt the squirrels, it won’t bother the birds, and it’ll save you some money on wasted birdseed. Plus, it’s nearly invisible after it’s applied, so you can enjoy your birdwatching in peace.
[link-button href=”https://www.amazon.com/Mountain-Falls-Petroleum-Protectant-Petrolatum/dp/B072PSTJY3/”]Get a four-pack of Mountain Falls Petroleum Jelly here on Amazon for $7.98.[/link-button]
