Use it when you want something a little bit more luxurious, a little bit more...
AHHHHH!!!
It's $50!
Hey guys, it's Mi-Anne, and this is Beauty With Mi.
My bathroom is disgusting!
Well, it was until I finally stopped complaining and did something about it.
My good friend and co-worker, Lindsey Stanberry, just penned a book.
It's called Money Diaries.
It is the physical culmination of our column by the same name that catalogs the real-life
expenses of women all over the world.
I always thought that changing my bathroom and making it more palatable
would be a really massive expense.
But, after reading Lindsey's book, which isn't all about beauty but does have some self-care
elements to it, I decided to figure out some ways that I could make my bathroom a little
bit more pleasant without spending thousands and thousands of dollars renovating it.
I used to walk into my bathroom and want to immediately leave it.
I hated its awful green walls.
I hated the dingy bathtub.
I hated the lack of organization.
So, I decided that I was going to figure out different ways to get my bathroom to look
like a spa and feel like a spa for $25, $100, and $750.
Before we get into it, though, please make sure you are subscribed down below,
and check the description bar for more info on Money Diaries.
First off is how to turn your bathroom into a spa for under $25.
At the bare minimum, a bathroom should be a place where you can get clean, do your business...
And also relax!
You don't really need to shell out for hundreds of dollar's worth of lotions
and aromatherapy oils.
You can if you want and we'll get to that later, but...
You can do things that are very affordable that will still make you feel like you're
having this luxurious experience.
The first thing that I did was make a DIY salt scrub, and this was so affordable, and
you can make tons of it.
I just bought some grape seed oil, and a little bit of pink Himalayan salt.
Mix equal parts of salt and the grape seed oil, and then lather up in the shower,
scrub, scrub, scrub away, and you have nice, smooth skin.
I love grape seed oil because it's a very lightweight oil, so it absorbs relatively
quickly, and after you scrub your body, you can hop out and you don't have to put moisturizer
on because you already have the oil on your skin.
I saved you time, too!
After the body scrub, I decided to make a really affordable DIY mask.
So, really all you need for this is some Bentonite clay.
I used some from a brand called Aztec Secret, and you can just mix it with pretty much anything.
You can make just a very simple clay mask with just the clay and water, put that on
your face and let it absorb oil, dirt, debris, that sort of thing.
But, you can also give it a little bit more horsepower but adding something like honey
for hydration, tea tree oil for cleansing, or yogurt for the lactic acid exfoliation.
Now, although DIY body scrubs and masks can definitely make you feel pampered, I wanted
to do a little something to make the space feel better.
So, I went to the store and I got a $4 bunch of eucalyptus.
Grabbed some hemp string and some scissors, and tied my eucalyptus
to the base of my shower head.
It doesn't just make your bathroom look infinitely more beautiful, but it also smells amazing
when the hot water is on.
It kind of releases the steam, and the essential oils kind of come out,
and you smell like you're in a spa.
If you close your eyes maybe you're not in your bathroom.
But then you open your eyes and you are.
For the grand total for all of that was $24.38.
Next up, here are some things you can do to turn your bathroom into a spa for under $100.
This is a section for those of you who want to do a little bit more, you want to buy a
few more luxurious things, but you don't want to go too far.
In my case, this immediately brought me to candles.
I just discovered this new candle brand called Otherland, and they make stunning candles.
I have the scent, it's called, Stone Fruit.
And it smells like...
Stone fruits.
It smells good, it smells sweet.
And they retail for $36, which is...
Kind of a lot to spend– it's not the most you could spend on a candle.
So, they retail for $36, they look beautiful on a bathroom shelf or on your bathtub, so...
I recommend.
Next up, this is something that you can do to kind of feel like you're in a spa, but
you aren't in a spa, and you didn't spend like $150 for a treatment.
Last year, I went and got a facial from aesthetician Renée Rouleau, and toward the tail end of
the treatment she used these little frozen toner bits to shrink my pores
and also soothe my skin.
This is something really fun and actually a real treat to do at home.
I used Renée's Energy Boosting toner, which is a great toner.
It has ginseng in it.
It's very soothing.
It doesn't make my skin feel tight or dry.
I poured a little bit of this into ice cube trays, stuck it in the freezer, held tight
for a few hours while it froze...
Then, I popped those suckers out, glided it on my skin after cleansing to soothe and tighten
and all that good stuff.
This is kind of a fun little treat you can do for yourself at home.
After my face was cleansed and toned, I like to whip out this jade Gua Sha tool.
I learned this facial massage technique from an acupuncturist named Sandra Lanshin.
She actually did acupuncture on me.
And I really like it because it doesn't just feel really good and it's very relaxing, it
stimulates lymphatic drainage and circulation, but it's also a really nice and easy way to
apply your facial oil.
Obviously, you can swap out different items to keep costs low.
You can obviously splurge a little more if you want something a little bit more luxurious,
but these are just a few tips.
My total for this round was $98.50.
Now here's the big expense, these are the things that I did for my bathroom to kind
of turn it into a bit more of a spa-like environment for under $750.
I love a good oil, scrub, whatever...
But it didn't really change the fact that my walls were still green, my bathroom was
still kind of dingy.
And I just wanted to do things to overall just brighten it up.
The first thing I did was remove the horrible green walls in my bathroom and paint it white.
I was so, so shocked at what a huge difference
a few layers of paint and a couple of hours could make.
Instantly brightened up the room.
And it cost me like, $60 for all the supplies.
I also switched out the tungsten lightbulb in favor of an energy-saving LED one
in a daylight setting.
And this was also like, as soon as I turned that light on, we were all just like, "Whoaaaa!"
It was so like, gross and yellow before, and now it's so bright and open.
It makes it so much easier to put on makeup in the bathroom.
I don't know why I didn't do it sooner.
But, I didn't stop there.
I have been eyeing rugs from a brand called Cold Picnic for years and years and years,
but I never really bit the bullet in terms of buying one.
I purchased two mats, the more abstract one, it's called, "Sleeping Giant," and then their
most popular bath mat, it's called, "The Torso."
Not only is the brand Brooklyn-based, but the textiles are absolutely beautiful, and
they're also washable.
I'm obviously only keeping one of these in my bathroom, so let me know in the comments
down below which one you think would work better in the space.
To deal with all the clutter on all the surfaces of my bathroom, I went to TJ Maxx and got
a bunch of little baskets on sale.
I have a lot of beauty products, and I had so many of them stashed
on my bathtub and on shelves.
I decided to put them all in a few baskets.
It made it look so much more organized.
So, I used to have my cleaning products just like, on the floor, around the sink,
which was really, very unattractive.
So, I got a nice little basket as well and put it on the floor, put all my cleaning products
in there, and I'm telling you...
It might be the thing that give me the most joy when I walk into the bathroom like, I
thought it would be the paint, but actually just not seeing like, random toilet cleaner
on the sink and in a nice basket makes me very, very happy.
When I was brainstorming for this video, I started to think about some things that spas
always have in their waiting rooms and in their bathrooms to make it look
really nice and relaxing, and I landed on...
Greenery.
Now, I don't have any windows in my bathroom, so having little succulents or hanging plants
in the bathroom was kind of not an option.
If you have a window, you should get real plants, but I couldn't.
I got a few fake plants and put them on shelves and on different areas of the bathroom just
to make it look a little bit more natural and warm and inviting.
So, I've been looking to switch out my shower head for something a little bit more water-efficient.
The average flow rate for like, a typical shower head is about 2.1 gallons per minute.
I wanted something lower than that.
So, I found this really awesome shower head called the Raindrops shower head.
It costs $120, and it has a filter on it.
And the filter should be replaced every 6 months, and it costs about $53.
So, the filter filters out bacteria, algae, chlorine, and other trace minerals, and according
to the brand, it can help improve the texture of your skin and your hair, and keep your
color fresher longer.
I've only been using it for about a week, so it's too soon to tell whether or not it's
really improving my hair.
Although, I used it last night and I'm really in to the way my hair looks right now.
But, I'll definitely update you guys in another video.
If you guys are interested in that, please let me know down below.
While in the shower, I think it's sometimes fun to indulge in a fancy shower oil.
This one from Diptyque is my favorite.
This fella is $50, which is expensive for what is essentially a glorified body wash,
but... It is absolutely beautiful.
I don't think you should use it everyday.
I think you should use it on the days that you really want to pamper yourself.
When you want a kind of body wash/hydrating product/aroma therapy product in one.
It leaves my skin feeling super good – a couple pumps cleans your entire body.
After your shower, you can still kind of smell the product like, lingering on your skin.
I know this because I had a crew member confirm.
The next product seems a little gimmicky, but trust me, it works.
The Aquis hair towel!
It is a hair towel that dries your hair faster and causes less friction on the hair.
So I personally, with color-treated hair try not to heat-style it.
I never blow dry my hair.
But, it's annoying when I shower before I go to bed
and my hair's not dry when I go to bed!
So, I've been using this.
It works.
It dries your hair so much faster.
My hair feels so much softer since I've been using it.
So, before hopping out of the shower, I like to use a moisturizer or a body oil to hydrate.
And this one, it's the Pure Radiance body oil from True Botanicals.
It is expensive, it's $48, but it is the best body oil I've ever used.
It is ridiculously lightweight.
It absorbs in seconds.
It smells amazing.
It truly smells like a spa.
I used to kind of think that a robe was like, an extra unnecessary thing to have because
you could just put your pajamas on, but I did get a robe, and it is really nice.
I got a really affordable one for $15.
It's just black.
It feels really soft.
It has this extra little tie places, so it doesn't come out
all the time when you're wearing it.
I'm a robe person now.
Last but not least, if you want something a little bit more powerful than the Gua Sha
tool, I suggest getting a facial treatment like this one.
This is the NuFace Trinity treatment.
It costs $325, but you can get the mini version for $199, and I'm not going to lie to you
guys, that's very expensive!
However, microcurrent technology is great for improving the tone, the contouring, and
the overall like, texture of your skin.
This is an at-home version, so it is less powerful than what an aesthetician would use
on your skin at a spa, but it is something that you can use multiple times a week.
If it's something that you want to splurge for, go for it.
But if not, obviously there are a lot of other things in this video that you can get as well.
So, that is it!
Everything that I've done in my bathroom over the past month, pretty much,
for under $25, $100, and $750.
I cannot tell you how thrilled I am with the new space.
Walking into my bathroom isn't a debilitating experience anymore.
Now, there's a beautiful white wall, a beautiful daylight bulb,
nice-smelling things around me.
My cat started sleeping in the bathroom!
At the very least, it's kitty-approved.
But, please let me know down below if there's anything that you've done to your bathroom
to make it feel a little bit more zen.
I would love to do more things.
And also, let me know while you're at it what you'd like to see on Beauty With Mi next.
See you next time!
Bye!
Thanks so much for watching, guys!
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Bye!