Sunday 30 December 2018

Relaxing and soaking it all in

Christmas is over and a new year is soon born. Crazy how time flies. Me and Sam have tried to relax and enjoy the holidays as much as we can. It's been really nice to have some days off from work even if I do have the luxury to work from home nowdays.

Next year will mean a lot of changes for me and Sam. First, we have to fully decide where we want to live – Sweden or Australia – and we need to start the process of either him trying to get a permanent visa in Sweden or me getting a permanent visa in Australia. Then, I need to find a new job because I'll not be able to keep the job I have now in Sweden IF we choose to (and can) stay here. Sam will start to study part-time and work part-time within the food industry (so proud of him). So yes ... these are just some examples of what we need to think about next year.


But until then ... 
We have been doing a few adventures lately, we both bought bikes for each other as Christmas gifts so that resulted to a trip to the beach. I love my bike! So much freedom but it's a bit scary riding on the roads where the cars are, haha.





Oh and! Sam helped me yesterday to colour my hair with henna (the red one from Lush) and even though the process was a bit annoying (hehe) I absolutely LOVE the result.




Saturday 22 December 2018

Check out my Christmas blog


Do not forget that I also update my Christmas blog this time of the year – in Swedish. This year I have been struggling a bit with the Christmas spirit but I think I'm starting to feel that familiar feeling bubbling inside ... better late than never. 

Merry Christmas! 🎄♡

Friday 21 December 2018

Trying my best to get some Christmas spirit

Here is a new vlog of me trying to get into the Christmas spirit. 
SPOILER: It goes ... okay 😀
(In Swedish)

Tuesday 18 December 2018

Itchy scalp – Natural remedies & other tips

Not long after I moved to Australia my scalp started to itch ... a lot! I thought at first that I might not have been so good with washing off the schampoo so I started to be more thorough when washing my hair. But ... the problem did not go away.

I tried new products with less chemicals in them and also tried to pour olive oil and coconut oil all over my head. Did not work ... 

So after a lot of researching and asking around I finally tried one more thing ... apple cider vinegar. I mixed apple cider vinegar with water in a glass and took it with me when it was time to shower. I washed my hair with schampoo and then conditioned the lengths of my hair. While the conditioner were (hopefully) making my ends nice and smooth I poured the apple cider vinegar mix on my scalp the best I could. I waited for about 5-10 minutes and then I washed it off – I didn't wash my roots for too long though, just enough to wash off most of the apple cider vinegar. 

Then I dried my hair and waited ... and I noticed it did not itch as much. I repeated this shower ritual and after a week I could feel a huge difference. IT WORKED. 

 WHY DID MY SCALP ITCH SO MUCH? 

❥ pH levels not balanced?
❥ Too many bad chemicals?
❥ Is the water in Australia not filtered enough?
❥ Am I using too many products after my showers?
❥ Do I have an infection?
❥ Am I allergic to something?
❥ Is it my bed sheets?

Honestly, I can't say for sure what the reason were for my scalp itching as bad as it did but obviously the skin was dry. The apple cider vinegar has anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and anti-fungal properties. 

IMPORTANT: And from what I have read ... the best result will be with the apple cider vinegar that contains "mother", it's supposedly a pulp substance and that's where all the good vitamins and minerals are hidden.




 MY RECOMMENDATIONS 

Remember, I'm not an expert, but this worked for me so I thought I should share it. If you choose to try it on your scalp and hair, please do it at your own risk. I know I'm not inventing the wheel here, I'm sure many of these tips can be read on other pages, blogs and such – and now here on my blog as well.

❥ Please, try not to scratch.
❥ Drink a lot of water daily.
❥ Try another schampoo and preferably as natural and chemical free as possible. 
❥ Avoid too many products close to your scalp. 
❥ Avoid using a hat, wig or a scarf too much if you can. Let the scalp breath.
❥ Brush your hair so the natural oils can spread.
❥ Meditation. Stress and anxiety affects the body and can make your scalp itch.
❥ Make and use natural hair masks once a week.
❥ Try a scalp scrub made with salt, sugar and coconut oil.
❥ Do not wash your hair everyday.
❥ Finish your shower with pouring cold water over you hair, hot water can be damaging.
❥ Apple cider vinegar mixed with water over you scalp after using the schampoo.
Read about it somewhere, not tested it myself yet: Two-three tbsp of baking soda mixed with water makes a good paste to spread on your scalp. Leave it in for 5-10 minutes before you rinse your hair = a natural schampoo that helps balancing those pH levels.

Everything starts from within, make sure to eat healthy and less of the not so healthy stuff – with other words, try to avoid eating too much meat, fried food, candy ... and drinking drinks that have sugar and/or alkohol in it.

BUT ... If nothing of this works I recommend you to go and see an expert/doctor. It's not good having an itchy scalp for too long, it could be a sign that your body is lacking some important vitamin or mineral. Also ... it could lead to baldness/thinner hair.

Good luck!



Friday 7 December 2018

A Day In December


Yesterday was a beautiful day, me and Sam spent most of it at the Botanic garden in Melbourne. We had a picnic, talked and enjoyed the beauty around us. The park had not many visitor so it was a luxury to be there.

Today is the temperature 39°C(!!!) and very windy. Both me and Sam have been tired all day, not had that much energy to do anything yet. We did manage a short yoga class and meditation in our living room earlier. Maybe we'll have some more energy when it cools down – I hope. 

I have a hard time getting into the right Christmas spirit, my body thinks it's summer. I love Christmas, the best holiday of the year if you ask me. I even have a Christmas blog that I start to update in August/September every year. So ... this is a very weird time for me. Oh well ... I guess not the biggest problem in the world, haha. Hopefully I'll be more jolly soon hehe ... *hope*