The Dirty Housewife Holiday Gift Guide

As the Holidays are fast approaching, I wanted to give my readers and customers the gift of making shopping a little easier this year. I have put together this Holiday Gift Guide to show you all of the wonderful products and gift sets that will make any person on your list happy. I hope I will inspire some Holiday cheer...

Holiday Gift Guide

The Dirty Housewife is offering many Gift Sets this year. These are fun to give to one special person, or break the products up to give to many. There is something in each that everyone will love!



The Mermaid Collection Gift Set is packed full of gifts for ocean lovers. A salt bar shaped like a mermaid, Mermaid Hair products for that super sexy beachy look, A seaweed & sea salt full body detox, an Ayurvedic black ocean mud and kelp mask, and Cape Cod oceanic perfume!


You can also Make Your Own Gift Set .


In this set you will receive:
Your choice of one bar soap
Your choice of one roll on perfume oil
Your choice of one lip balm
Your choice of one 8 oz. bath salts


The Ultimate Gift Set is wonderful for moms or yourself. It is formulated with maturing skin, 30's and up. Aging is a serious privilege but it does not mean we have to look it.





This set includes:
1 "Gaaaa Im Gettin Old botox bar soap 2.5 oz
1 Clarify Mask 2 oz.
1 Callidora Facial Toner 4 oz.
1 Gaaa Im Getting Old Face Cream 1 oz.

A complete skin care regimen for 30's and over skin.

And I am sure everyone is up for a Menage a Trois Gift Set



This set includes 3 All Natural, handmade lotions. Many scents to choose from



Let's not forget about Stocking Stuffers!





You will have your choice of 4 roll on perfume oils in this set

If you are looking for Seasonal Products, here are some great

Great Gift Ideas

Santas Baby Perfume



Dazzle Santa with an essence he is sure to love! Santa's Baby perfume is perfect for the Holiday season with notes of cool Iced Lemon, Frozen Acord, Menthol, Woodland Moss, Spearmint, Wet Snow and a hint of twigs, berries, and warm vanilla.

Comes packaged for gift giving.

Dazzling Winter Ruby Soap



This soap screams Red! Bursting with juicy ruby red grapefruits, red currants, and jewel toned pomegranates. Sweet,sour, and juicy!
ruby red with a slight glitter of silver & gold


Sugar Plum Body Polish



Sugar Plum is sweet sweet sugary holiday berries,plums,lemon drops,and a lot of Holiday cheer!

Roasted Chestnuts Candle Did you know that only 9% of Americans actually 'roast chestnuts' ?



Winter Peach Bath Salts can be like a warm hug on a cold wintry night!



Winter peach is made with Dead Sea Salts and Jasmine Flowers. Winter Peach is warm and fuzzy with satisfying notes of fresh peach slices,sandalwood, oakmoss, juniper, and a hint of wood

The Lake House soy candle is perfect for the woodsy lover and fragrant like a Lake House. Balsam, fir, evergreen, cedar, berries and a hint of the forest. Perfectly Delightful..for the upcoming Autumn/ Winter Season and all year round!



The Dirty Housewife even has a gift for the picky one on your list! The Soap of The Month Club is a full year membership that will let your loved one try a new soap each month. Along with samples and a special soap for their Birthday Month, you can make them feel special all year. This steal also comes with FREE shipping! I also have 3 and 6 month memberships available too.



Gift Certificates are also available in any denomination and can be delivered virtually or by snail mail.



Please remember that all orders must be placed on or before December 15th for arrival by Dec. 24th. I am also available for custom orders, party favors, questions, and holiday cookie tasting :)
I hope everyone has the best Holiday yet and enjoys their family and friends this season!
Love,

www.thedirtyhousewife.net

Cooking with Garden Herbs

Don't know what to do with all those yummy garden herbs you have planted? Or curious about the grocery store packages? Herbs are the very best way to flavor your food, not only naturally but aromatically. In cooking, these are called the 'aromatics'. It is also one of the easiest ways, almost fool proof once you master which herb compliments what.
Those little grocery store packages are great, but are not as fresh and your garden. It is also best to fertilize organically as well as pest control if needed. I always try to use the freshest possible herbs in my recipes, however dried works best in some recipes.

I wanted to start this series off with something basic and simple yet incredibly flavored.
You will find I am at times a basic cook using basic ingredients, but that is the beauty of the herbs making them even more powerful while they do all the work. You can also adjust these recipes to serve the number of people you are cooking for.

Purple Potatoes with Rosemary

1-2 pounds of purple potatoes (if these are not available in your area, red ones can be a delicious substitute.
3 sprigs of fresh Rosemary leaf (stem included) chopped fine
1 tablespoon dried parsley
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (dare i say EVOO? ) lol

cut potatoes into small quarters and place in a large bowl with evoo, herbs and salt and pepper to taste (fresh cracked black or pink peppercorns work best)
Mix well

You can make large aluminum foil packets from a roll or buy the already made ones. Divide into even portions in the foil and roll seal the packet. I like to fold the corners to prevent leaking.
Bake at 450 degrees for 50 min. or grill for 1 hour.

Rosemary Lore: aids mental clarity and stimulates the central nervous system

Parsley Lore: aids in digestion, freshens breath, diuretic and blood purifier, and stimulates appetite and metabolism

Culinary Uses: Teas, Soups, Stews, Sauces, Salads, Pastas, Vinegars, Dressings, Meats and Fish






Caprese Salad

A main staple in my house, this salad is so simple yet earthy and elegant at the same time. I like to also mix entire salad with cooked pasta noodles on occasion and served chilled.
Traditionally, this salad is served with fresh basil leaves on the top of the salad, but I like the mozzarella to absorb the balsamic and oil.

This recipe is for one serving, but may be increased by doubling and so on

Fresh Basil works best in this recipe and can be grown in the kitchen as well as garden. here is my kitchen basil- i seriously have 2 plants in the garden in between my tomatoes for flavor and this one in my kitchen to have on hand. Have you ever seen such a large basil plant?? I'm so proud :)




1 large tomato
however many slices you get in your tomato is how many basil leaves you will need
evoo
garlic powder (optional)
balsamic vinegar ( i like lots of vinegar so this amount is to your taste)
fine ground sea salt and cracked black pepper
fresh mozzarella cheese

Mozzarella should be as fresh as possible and usually comes in a ball packed with juices. It should be soft and slightly salty with great texture. Do not skimp on your cheese-no processed stuff here!

Slice tomatoes and place flat on a plate and layer with 1-2 basil leaves depending on how big they are.
Top with 1/4-1/2 thick cheese slice.
Sprinkle spices and balsamic and a splash of oil.

I told you it was easy!

Basil Lore:

Properties: Antispasmodic, antidepressant, antiseptic, stimulant, tonic, febrifuge, diaphoretic, nervine, antibacterial, expectorant, appetizer, carminative, galactagogue and stomachic

Magickal Properties: Love, Exorcism, Wealth, Flying, Protection, Visionary, Fertility, Funeral, Consecration, Immortality and Purification

Culinary Uses: Teas, Soups, Stews, Sauces, Salads, Pastas, Vinegar?s, Dressings, Meats and Fish

Redefining your skin with Grape seed Oil

Did you know that Grape seed oil is a by product of wine making? It is the oil pressed from the Vitis vinifera grapes. It can be used in a wide variety of cooking but is perfect as a preferred cosmetic ingredient for skin that is stressed and in need of repair and rejuvenation. It contains exceptional regenerative and restructering qualities as well as the strong ability to retain moisture. Grape seed oil is a very light oil and actually contains the lower percentage of oil but packs a strong punch and leaves a rich emollient on the surface.
The oil contains palmitic, palmitoleic, stearic, oleic, linoleic, as well as alpha linolenic, icosanoic, icosenoic and docosanoic fatty acids. Linoleic acid is very important for the health of the skin as well as cell membranes. It is light and and finely textured. It also contains proanthocyanidins which are serious antioxidants that help to fight free radicals and sun damage with it's high restructering properties. This oil is also highly noted for repair around the eyes.
I absolutely love this oil, it goes on light and non-sticky and has cleared up my winter skin issues! I am now making body/bath/massage oils with a base of Grape seed as well as others like hemp, rice bran, coconut, and olive. They are a wonderful addition to your skin care routine and make a great alternative to lotions or can be used with them for added moisture. Like I always say, Our skin is at it's finest when we properly nourish it. My Organic oils contain no fillers and actually nourish your skin. Our skin is our largest organ and everything we put on it is absorbed, you can use them with confidence. The essential oils are high quality and very potent and the fragrances are always phthalate free! Try it all over or just problem areas and especially great for the feet!

You can also find these oils in my new Butter Whip soaps!