And it’s autumn. It’s chilly and dry. I can feel winter right around the corner, even through these last lingering days of sunshine.
During these ‘transition’ seasons of spring and fall, I think more about self care. Especially this time of year, when I know the stress and busyness of the winter holidays is right around the corner, along with shorter, darker days, cold temperatures and lots of cold and flu germs.
So rather than stumbling into winter unprepared, this year I decided to spend a little time easing myself into the colder weather. Here are five of my favorite tips.
5 Simple Self-Care Tips for Autumn
Continue reading 5 simple self-care tips for autumn
Sloe berries are one of those wild fruits which every British person can identify, and which no American has ever heard of.
“Oh, are you sure they’re not blueberries?” was my mom’s comment when she saw them.
There’s no mistaking sloes for blueberries once you taste them. Sloes are the most astringent thing I’ve ever tasted. One nibble and your mouth goes dry. Ick.
Even so, sloes make the most delicious liqueur when mixed with gin. And it’s So Easy to make. OK, I know I say that a lot, but infused alcohols are super duper simple. Just add the sloes and sugar to gin, and leave them to soak for a few months. That’s it! You CAN do this. And even if you’re not a gin fan yourself, what about bottles of homemade sloe gin for gifts? There’s Christmas sorted.
Continue reading How to Make Sloe Gin
“Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn.” -Elizabeth Lawrence
Last week my parents came to visit us in London. It was also my birthday. I haven’t spent a birthday with my parents in, oh, 10 years or so … so it was wonderful.
We managed to escape London for a couple of days to walk around the English countryside.
And wow, it’s autumn.
Sometimes I feel so disconnected living in the city, working in an office, commuting in the train. Beyond noticing if I need an umbrella that day or not, I have no idea what is happening outside.
Last week reminded me how important it is to get outside everyday and reconnect with the world, if only for a few minutes!
How do you find the time to reconnect with nature? Do you feel different on days you’re inside or outside? How do you stay balanced?
Are you curious about making home remedies but a little nervous about actually using one? Here’s a simple home remedy for children’s coughs & colds. All you need is an onion, and granulated sugar. Et voila! Overnight it turns into onion cough syrup.
I learned about this remedy in my herbal medicine class. It’s a classic children’s remedy for coughs which has been used for generations…but which I can’t find much about in books or on the internet!
Whenever I meet an older person I always ask them “What did your mother do when you were sick? What kind of foods did she make?” Unfortunately, more often than not, nothing comes to mind. Soon after learning about this cough syrup recipe, we mentioned it to my grandmother. Suddenly, you could see a memory flooding back. She had clear memories of her own mother making and using this syrup on her when she was a child.
Brilliant moments of vintage wisdom like this always make me think of how many wonderful remedies, skills & tips that we’ve lost as a society. Some remedies which would still be really effective (and inexpensive, healthy, simple to make and easy on the environment.)
Reminders like this just strengthen my resolve to learn (and teach!) as much as I can about good food, home remedies and making stuff ourselves!!
Continue reading Onion cough syrup
I don’t know about you, but I get so tired of hearing about the latest ‘miracle’ diet, or debating whether or not my daily cup of coffee is bad for me.
Aren’t we all trying to simplify our lives? There is just so much information thrown at us everyday, it’s overwhelming. Sharing a meal with friends should be a fun, relaxing experience.
Unfortunately, we’re a bit overloaded by the amount of diet information out there too: Calories! Fat! Protein! No carbs!
Honestly I just can’t deal with it.
I love food. I love to cook. I love to share food with friends and try foods when I travel. For me, it’s one of the essential pleasures of life.
As a teenager, I was extremely strict about my food intake (thank you, 16 years of dance lessons and a body-image obsessed group of friends.) At low points, I was miserable. I remember standing in the university cafeteria and actually crying one day because I felt guilty about eating any of the food options.
Boy, have I changed.
Now I’m all about the pleasure of buying, cooking & eating, with a focus on how different foods make me feel, instead of following the dietary fad of the moment.
With that in mind, I’m going to share with you 3 simple, time-tested rules for how to improve your diet. I think Grandma would approve.
Have you heard about the Oil Cleansing Method?
It’s practically an internet cult.
The idea is that you wash your face with … wait for it … OIL! Yes, oil. When I first heard about the Oil Cleansing Method (or OCM, for short), I thought it was crazy. That it would never, ever work for my oily, problematic skin.
I’m always up for a homemade beauty experiment, so I gave it a try. And it’s actually really good. Really good! The theory is that like dissolves like, so if you want to dissolve oil from your face, use oil. And not just any oil, but the classic Castor Oil which as deep cleansing properties. Then you steam it off with a hot washcloth. It leaves your skin with a lovely rosy glow and deeply cleaned.
Anyway, if you want to learn more about OCM, check out Crunchy Betty’s post on the Oil Cleansing Method.
My major problem with OCM is that I travel – a lot. And oil is really messy. Even in a tightly closed bottle and inside a ziploc bag, I seem to get oil everywhere.
Around the same, time I started noticing advertisements for expensive & upscale ’hot cloth cleansers’. It seemed like pretty much the same idea – massage a cream cleanser into your face, then steam off with a hot washcloth. All for $30 per bottle.
I knew I could come up with a better solution.
Continue reading Hot Cloth Cleanser (or the portable Oil Cleansing Method)
Remember my Beauty Detox? I gave up shampoo. Here is the article I wrote in frustration, and then I finally figured out how to go shampoo free! It works so well, I’m still doing it today!
I tried making a homemade sports drink… with vinegar. Actually it tasted a lot better than I expected!
Women’s magazines never change. Here are some pictures from 1930s French Marie Claire about the things men hate.
I ended up with a big package of dates. Here’s how to make Cranberry Date Chutney.
And finally, I made my first Elderberry Cordial. This stuff is SO tasty. If you can find elderberries, make some this weekend! You’ll thank yourself this winter.
This tip is so simple but makes your homemade yogurt even more amazing.
First of all, I think it’s amazing to make yogurt. Or maybe I’m just a science geek. But I can’t get over the transformation of warming milk, stirring in a tablespoon of yogurt starter, letting it sit overnight – et voila! Yogurt. If you haven’t made yogurt before, go do that now!
I’ve been making my own yogurt for over a year now. But it always turns out really thin. Which hasn’t bothered me too much if I eat if over homemade granola or with some fruit compote. But it’s not always the picture-perfect yogurt you might serve to company. (Does anyone serve yogurt to company? Well, I will now that I can make thick, creamy Greek yogurt!)
Continue reading Homemade Greek Yogurt
A little simplification would be the first step toward rational living, I think.
-Eleanor Roosevelt
Feeling overwhelmed? I know the feeling. Today I am feeling overwhelmed by digital information. I LOVE the internet. Love it. I subscribe to over 50 blogs. I sign up for email newsletters. I save tons of links as bookmarks. I email myself links to articles.
It’s a great concept - rather than saving paper clippings, I save digital copies of information about fun projects. Things I’d like to do someday. Recipes I’d like to try. Travel destinations to visit.
But when do I go back and look at these saved links?
Honestly? Hardly ever.
Because there’s always MORE, newer, fresher, more exciting information to consume.
I’ve just started taking this Unraveling course which I’m really excited about. So this morning I decided to bookmark the page to make it easier to refer to during the course. I clicked “bookmark” and suddenly realized that I have about 200 bookmarks in my web browser! It seemed impossible that I would ever find this bookmark again. And really, isn’t that the point of a bookmark? To make it easy to find websites?
I felt a sense of dread. Of being buried under this pile of information that I had no hope of getting through. But wasn’t there good stuff in there?! What if I miss out on The Next Big Idea because I didn’t read this one amazing article?
Then I took a deep breath and…
Deleted every single bookmark.
Every one. Gone.
Continue reading 6 ways to simplify digital information
Ooooh a tincture. Stay with me here – don’t freak out and click away.
Yes, I know tincture sounds like a scary word. It seems to come from the same medical era as bloodletting and leeches. But trust me on this one. Echinacea tincture just might change your life this winter.
So since you’re freaking out, let’s talk about the benefits right up front. WHY would you want to do this project?
Because echinacea is traditionally used as a cold and flu herb, and through stimulating the immune system, it decreases the chance of coming down with a cold.
It’s one of my favorite winter remedies along with elderberry cordial and hot honey, lemon & ginger.
I also love this project because it’s super easy AND saves you money. Here in the UK, you can buy a teensy bottle of echinacea tincture for about £10 (that’s about $15 US). Or you could make a massive amount of your own echinacea tincture for a fraction of the cost.
Plus, making a tincture just sounds so… vintage.
Continue reading How flowers and vodka can make a brilliant cold remedy
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Welcome! 
Hi, I'm Amanda, and I write about healthy and creative living by rediscovering vintage skills!
I focus on good food, handmade beauty products, kitchen remedies, and getting crafty & creative, all from my small kitchen in London.
First time visiting? Start here.
Don't forget that I'm just a regular person. I'm not a doctor, therapist, herbalist, aromatherapist, chef, expert or professional practitioner of anything I discuss here on Vintage Savoir Faire. I'm just really interested in vintage tips, detoxing my beauty routine and traditional remedies. So if you're unsure about anything, check with your doctor or a qualified professional before you try it! All the information on this site is provided on an as-is basis. Whew. Glad we cleared that up!
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