I need YOUR support!

Baking, baking & more baking!! This is why I have not posted in a while!!  Well that, and a two year old...oh, and my older two being home for their last vacation (like spring break as we would refer to it), and then just another long break for holidays out here in Panama!  One word.  BUSY!!  But a good busy, so I am not going to complain!   Part of why I have been so busy, is because I have been running a fundraiser for my growing business here in Panama.  You can read the full story below, and if you feel led to support me with a donation, that would be amazing!  I am really trying to expand my home bakery business, and also keep up at a better pace with my growing demand!  If you have quick minute check it out.  The video isn't even a full 3 minutes!!  Thank you in advance for your support!                                                          

Finding your perfect hair color

Yes, I am posting about hair color.  After all, I was a hairstylist before I turned baker, and fashion and beauty will always be near & dear to my heart!  With that being said, here is a fantastic "recipe" or some guidelines to follow when wanting to change your hair color & I have provided a great chart below to help with knowing your tones from black to dark brown to red to light blonde.  You always want to be specific with your hairstylist.

First off,  my biggest tip for all of you beauties its to make sure you choose a color that is going to enhance your complexion.   Now, this may mean going with a color slightly different from one that you truly desire. You might want to go that deep coffee brown but if it is going to wash you out, what's the point?  You don't want to go dark just to say you have dark hair, but look tired and washed out all the time.  The tone of your hair color can really alter your appearance for better or worse.  

When choosing a hair color, the trick is to complement your skin tone in order to minimize flaws and bring out the best in your complexion.   Picking the wrong shade can be a disaster for your overall appearance. It can make you look tired, sickly or unnaturally ruddy. On the other hand, when you  pick a color that does compliment your skin tone, you look absolutely radiant.  The first step is to determine if your skin tone is cool or warm. 

In general...

Cool: You will generally see a cool skin tone if your hair is naturally bluish-black, dark brown, medium ash or golden blonde.  You skin will be either Pale with pink or no undertones; Medium, holds pink, golden or no cheek color; Very Dark Brown (some Latinas or African Americans); or True Olive (Asian). A tip: "cool blues" do well with blue-red hair shades, such as burgundy, ruby, garnet, cherry or Bordeaux.


Warm: You will mostly likely have a warm skin tone if your natural hair color is red, reddish or golden brown, deep brown, strawberry blonde or natural golden blonde. Your skin will be Pale, with peach or gold undertones; Brown, with pink, butterscotch, copper, caramel or golden undertones (some Latinas or African Americans); or Freckled. "Warm yellows" do best with copper, cinnamon, ginger, russet and strawberry shades of red hair color..



Quick tip: Another way to figure out if you have a warm or a cool skin tone is to look at the veins in your arm. If they look blue, chances are you are a cool; if they have more of a greenish tint, you're probably a warm.

General tips for warm/yellow/golden skin tones
*Try deep, rich base colors like dark golden brown, chestnut, mahogany or auburn
*Highlight with red, cinnamon or copper

                                                   


General tips for cool/blue-red skin tones
*Try intense shades of brown, red or blonde for a base color
*Highlight with wheat, honey, taupe or ash shades that contrast base

         

General tips for red, ruddy skin tones:
*Avoid bright red tones, and don't over-bleach
*Cool ruddiness with beige, honey brown, golden or light coffee color

One more little tip...when you look good, you feel good.   Blessings!

Foamy Stain Remover

So, it's been a good two months and then some since I have been on here.  All I can say is that I have been doing A LOT of baking with a very BUSY two year old on my hands!!  I've ran across so many things that I have wanted to share, and I am really going to make an effort to post those fabulous things more...seriously.

With that out of the way, I now have to share a great product for stain removal, and it's something that almost all of us have in the house.

YEP,  Shaving Cream...who would of  thought??  Being that this product consists of mostly soap, a whipped soap, it really helps to lift a fresh stain off of your clothes. Moisten the spot with the stain, work some shaving cream into/onto the affected area and then rinse with cool water or use a clean wet cloth to rub it out.  If it doesn't lift it all, the shaving cream will at least help the stain from setting in until you can apply a stronger remover.

Isn't it amazing to think that there are many things in our homes that are multipurpose?  Yet,  many of us don't even realize it...I know I don't!!

                                                        To a fabulous day, all!  

                                              May you be blessed, 
                                           

                                                            

DIY Natural Face Masks.

                                                                Tighten & Tone

This is a great ingredient for you skin to help tighten up those pores a little more.  You can use it as a toner or as a mask.  If you want to use it as a daily toner (or less if you want) then you will use 1 tablespoon ACV with 2 cups waters.  Use it as a rinse after cleansing your face.  For a mask, you'll use 1/4 cup vinegar with a 1/4 cup water and apply to your face and let it dry.  Rinse your face about 5 mins after drying.

                                                                  Extra Moisture

To leave your skin feeling softer and smoother mash up a whole medium banana, and combine it with a 1/4 cup plain yogurt and 2 tablespoons honey.  Apply and let it set for 10-20 minutes and then rinse off with med. temp. water.

                                                                       Exfoliate

For a super easy exfoliating facial simply squeeze the juice from one large lemon and mix it with a 1/4 cup olive oil.  Your skin will also get some moisture from this mask.

Rejuvenate

Give yourself a nice cold, rejuvenating facial by mixing 1/4 cup of powdered milk with cold water to form a paste.  Mix the water in until it becomes only pasty because you'll want it to be more pasty than runny. Apply to your skin, allow to dry and rinse after 10-15 minutes.

While our outer beauty often shines through our inner beauty, it is definitely a confidence when we feel like our skin is 'glowing', and these are just a couple of ways to help with that...or at least make ya feel like that!  Enjoy!


                                                                 Stay Joyful~  
 

*For an extra facial mask recipe using oatmeal, visit my FB page https://www.facebook.com/MamaCs1 to check it out!

Check Me OUT!!

Me and three other Virtuous women, that is!  These 3 women are on a weekly show called the 

The Discipling Women: Damage Control.

I felt so blessed to be a guest on their weekly show because these women are all women of faith who share their encouragement, testimonies, and insight with the word of God.  I hope any of you who watch, this show that I am featured in, and begin to to tune in to their weekly show (I have a link for you to do so at the bottom) will be touched  by the Holy Spirit.

Enjoy!

To watch past shows and tune in weekly every Thursday at 1:00 pm EST go here and check out these fun, faithful and real women!

http://www.christiandiscipleshipministries.com/the-discipling-women/damage-control/april-2014/gods-pruning-it-hurts-so-good.html

                                                           

                                                              Have a blessed weekend y'all
                                                                            ~Mama C's

Natural Hair Care Recipe.

So, my sister recently shared with me that she had switched over to a natural hair care regimen using baking soda & apple cider vinegar.   I know, this sounds a little, different (for lack of a better word) and even drying to me, but after sticking to it for over a month she has been pleasantly surprised with the results.  She has found that her hair is holding more shine, has been less frizzy and even a little fuller with some new growth showing around the hair line.  Being that my daughter and I are due for our refill with shampoo and conditioner, I have decided to take the plunge and try this out.   I decided to do my own research, and share it with y'all.

Using the Baking Soda as your Shampoo:

You're going to mix about 4 to 5 spoonfuls of baking soda in a squeeze bottle ( around 400 ml) with warm water.  Shake well until it seems evenly mixed and apply through out  your scalp, and as close to your scalp as possible.  The baking soda can be drying on your hair so stay right at your scalp.  Let it sit for a hot minute and rinse well.  As you rinse the baking soda it will clean the rest of your hair as it makes it's way down the hair shaft and off your hair. 

   Apple Cider Vinegar as your conditioner:

Your going to need a spray bottle for this part and you'll mix about 1 part of the ACV to 4 parts water. Squeeze out extra water from your rinse and begin to spray away, covering your hair well.  Rub the ACV in through out your ends and let it sit for a moment.  Rinse really well.

Side Notes: Your hair might not feel as clean as with your normal shampoo and conditioner but once it is dry it will feel clean and "normal" so to speak, and soft.  Also, I am told to stick with it because you might feel like tossing it out the window after your first few times.  But if you can make it through a month, you'll be glad you switched...or not, and that's cool, you tried it.  Don't do this every day.  I would recommend no more than 3 times a week, so if you shampoo more, then substitute your regular shampoo for those other times.

If you are worried about the scent, yes it doesn't have a much of an attractive scent, then you can add a natural oil to it.  I have attached a chart below from a blog that I found this idea from.

How to Choose Essential Oils for Your Hair

Essential Oil	Effect
Chamomile	Lightens blonde hair & good for dry hair.
Lemon	Lightens blonde hair.  Lemon with heat (from the sun) can turn hair orange.
Peppermint	Stimulates growth & may irritate very sensitive scalps.
Rosemary	Adds shine & and great
	(for more info. visit here: http://andreajoy.hubpages.com/hub/Natural-Hair-Care-Baking-Soda-and-Apple-Cider-Vinegar)     Let me know if you try it, and I'll let you know my progress as well!     Blessings!                        ~Mama C's

Cake Pops for Easter.

                                                            Happy Easter!

"Esta receta es muy versátil y muy adictivo. Usted puede mezclar y combinar sabores del pastel y el icing, así como las coberturas de chocolate. Si usted quiere hacer algo diferente, las bolas de la torta se puede rodar en las nueces, confites, coco, etc, o doble sumergido en chocolate blanco y oscuro. Usted podría utilizar las barras de chocolate de la hornada de las tiendas ".

Usted necesita:

 *1 (3 onzas) de la barra de chocolate con sabor de recubrimiento confiteros.

 *un paquete de mezcla para pastel de chocolate

 *1 (16 onzas) Glaseado preparados de chocolate

Para Hacer:

1.Preparar la mezcla para pastel según las instrucciones del paquete usando cualquiera de los tamaños de recipientes recomendados. Permita que la torta se enfríe por lo menos 40 minutos, se desmoronan en caliente en un tazón grande, y revuelva en el glaseado hasta que estén bien mezclados. 

2.Derrita la Cobertura de chocolate en un recipiente de vidrio en el microondas o en un recipiente de metal sobre una cacerola de agua hirviendo, revolviendo ocasionalmente hasta que esté suave. 

3.Use un melón o cuchara pequeña para formar bolitas de la mezcla de pastel de chocolate. Bolas refrigere por lo menos una hora. 

4.Dip las bolas en el chocolate con un palillo o tenedor para sostenerlos. Colocar sobre papel encerado para ajustar.

Tengan una maravillosa y bendita Pascua!

"This recipe is very versatile and heavily addictive. You can mix and match cake and icing flavors as well as the chocolate coatings. If you want to do something different, the cake balls can be rolled in nuts, sprinkles, coconut, etc. or double dipped in white and dark chocolates. You would use the baking chocolate bars from the stores."

You need:

*1 (3 ounce) bar chocolate flavored confectioners coating

*1 package chocolate cake mix 

*1 (16 ounce) container prepared chocolate frosting

To Make:

1.Prepare the cake mix according to package directions using any of the recommended pan sizes. Allow cake to cool at least 40 minutes, crumble while warm into a large bowl, and stir in the frosting until well blended.

2.Melt chocolate coating in a glass bowl in the microwave, or in a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.

3.Use a melon baller or small scoop to form balls of the chocolate cake mixture. Refrigerate balls for at least one hour. 

4.Dip the balls in chocolate using a toothpick or fork to hold them. Place on waxed paper to set.

Have a wonderful and blessed Easter!

Home Sweet home.

There is something that just feels good when your house smells good, isn't there?   Sometimes it gives us that nostalgic feeling that reminds us of a holiday, or a happy time in our child hood.  And we all love when someone comes over and comments about how good our house smells.  It instills a sense of ownership pride. But really, over all, it just makes the home feel even more enjoyable when there is a sweet aroma in the air.  I get to have that almost daily due to all of the baking I do, and so I wanted to be able to share some easy and quick ways that you all can have the same thing...with out having to bake cookies and breads and cupcakes.
Enjoy!



Orange peels & Vanilla extract:

If you want your house to smell heavenly, boil some orange peels with a 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon on medium heat for about 10 minutes, and enjoy the sweet aroma of some southern hospitality.

Heat a little Vanilla up on your light bulbs:

Put a dab of vanilla extract on light bulbs when the lights are off. Once the lights are turned on, the bulb will heat up the extract and emit a yummy smell.  What a quick trick for when guests are coming over, huh?

Make your own Lemon Potpourri :

Fill water to about 1 inch below the rim in you pot, place it on the stove and simmer on low heat.  This has an awesome scent!

Recommended amounts:

• 1 – 2 sliced up lemons:
• 2 – 3 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 1 – 2 teaspoons vanilla

Coffee beans paired with a Vanilla candle:

Coffee lovers will love this one!  Simply place a vanilla scented candle in a secure (and safe) place in the middle of a good amount of coffee beans and enjoy the scent you'll get as the candle warms up the beans...simply delicious!

Look for more home recipes as I come across them and share!

                                              To a happy home...with a sweet scent!!

                                                               ~Mama C's

Madness of flavor.

Ofertas del Mes

We now offer peanut butter, oatmeal and chocolate chip...all in one!  They are sinfully good!!

Give yourself a little taste of heaven with our newest home-style cookie!

~Mama C's

Sweet Tea...a basic recipe.

Living in Panama means living in the heat, which is why in my house we are always sipping on something nice and cold.  From smoothies to lemonade to good ol' tang and as of now, some sweet tea.  

I know many of you have your own fabulous recipes but here is a nice quick basic one for those of you whom might not have ever made your own, Sweet Tea!

Need:
Pinch of baking soda
2 cups of boiling water
6 tea bags (you can do flavored tea bags if desired)
6 cups cool water
1 cup to 1/2 cups white sugar ( according to your desired sweetness)

To Make:
1. Sprinkle a pinch of baking soda into a 64-ounce, heat-proof, glass pitcher. Pour in boiling water, and add tea bags. Cover, and allow to steep for 15 minutes.

2.Remove tea bags, and discard; stir in sugar until dissolved. Pour in cool water, then refrigerate until cold.

Enjoy!

And the winner is....

Ofertas del Mes

Congrats to the winner of our give away, Victoria Rubí!!!

Thank you all who participated!!  As always, we are here to give great products to great people from a great company!

Blessings

~Mama C's

Participar Hoy!!

To participate in this beautiful gift, you just gotta share (share) this picture on your FaceBook page and your name will be entered automatically!


The tombola continuously until the day tomorrow (February 14), if you want to participate shares photo and write your name in the comment to register! 

To participate clic here:   https://www.facebook.com/MamaCs1

~ Blessings!

A la orden...Panama!

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A la orden...Panama!

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Happy Monday

Just wanted to wish you all a great kick off to the start of the week.  Remember to drink lots of water, get some exercise, be thankful, give, be joyful and....try some of Mama C's!  One of our hottest items is our Banana Bread and our Lemon Zest Bread (shown below).

 Bless~

ALC

Homemade Lemonade

I saw this recipe from a page I follow on FB (The Lulu & Leo Fund) and wanted to share it with all of you. Especially all of you here in HOT Panama!!

Enjoy some fresh homemade lemonade with us here at Mama C's. I know I will be making this!

Lulu's Famous Lemonade
2 1/4 cup sugar
2 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 9-12 lemons)
Cold water

In a medium saucepan, boil 2 1/4 cups water until boiling. Remove from heat, add sugar and stir until sugar is dissolved. Add the lemon juice and stir with a wooden spoon. Transfer to a large pitcher. Add enough cold water so that it equals the amount of lemon syrup (it should be half syrup, half water). Cover and refrigerate until cold. Serves 6-8.


 Disfrutan! -Mama C's