The Ancient Secret For Long, Beautiful Hair

PLUS: The perfect utensil for people with stiff hands, a tip for sending special texts on special occasions, and more. PLUS: The perfect utensil for people with stiff hands, a tip for sending special texts on special occasions, and more. March 22, 2022 [View Online]( Good morning! They say that sooner or later, everything old is new again, and the old idea I’m sharing in Today’s Good Thing is very old indeed. I’ll tell you about a thousand-year-old DIY for smoother, stronger hair that still works like a charm today, and show you how to make and use it at home. And in a new Tech Tip Tuesday, you’ll learn how to spice up your celebratory texts on special occasions (or, if your family is anything like mine, to make ordinary conversations a little less ordinary!) Jillee TODAY'S GOOD THING The Ancient Secret For Long, Beautiful Hair [Photos of rice water for hair.]( Wish your hair were smoother, stronger, or longer? Give this centuries-old DIY a try. Around 1,000 years ago, court ladies in Japan had famously glossy, floor-length hair, and rice water played an important part in their hair care regimen. Rice water contains starches, vitamins, and antioxidants that nourish and strengthen hair, helping to reduce friction, increase elasticity, and prevent breakage. You can reap the same benefits today by making rice water at home and using it on your hair. Many proponents of rice water say they’ve enjoyed fewer tangles, smoother hair with less frizziness and breakage, and shinier, stronger hair. And apparently, allowing your rice water to ferment can make it even more beneficial. Fermentation changes the pH of rice water so that it's closer to the natural pH of your hair, which may help prevent frizziness and scalp conditions like dandruff. But perhaps the best thing about rice water is how easy it is to make and use. Just soak 1/2 cup of rinsed rice in 2 cups of water for 15-30 minutes, then strain the rice out, cover the container loosely, and let it ferment on your counter for 4-5 hours. Keep your fermented rice water in a sealed container in your fridge for up to a week. To learn about 3 different ways you can use fermented rice water in your hair care routine, just follow the link below! [The Ancient Secret For Long, Beautiful Hair ➜]( Related • [Here Are The Best Ingredients For Aging Hair]( • [The 2 Easy DIY Treatments You Need To Fight Thinning Hair]( ⚡️QUICK TIPS⚡️ • These 11 spots are easy to overlook when cleaning, which is why they often have the highest concentrations of germs. [Read more ➜]( • If your weighted blanket needs a good cleaning, you’ll find everything you need to know about washing it safely here. [Read more ➜]( • With just a couple of simple supplies, you can make these easy DIY dryer bags for naturally fresh-smelling laundry. [Read more ➜]( TECH TIP TUESDAY Send Special Texts For Special Occasions [A GIF showing various screen effect options in the Messages app on iPhone.]( Have a loved one celebrating a birthday or occasion? Use bubble effects to make your text extra special. We have an ongoing group text message (or, as the kids call it, a “group chat”) with our kids and their spouses. Whenever one of us has good news or is celebrating something, we have a habit of bombarding the group chat with messages that bounce, release confetti, trigger laser effects, and more. These special effects are a feature of the iPhone Messages app, and there are two different types: bubble effects and screen effects. Bubble effects only apply to the “bubble” your message is contained in—you can make it drop onto the screen emphatically, grow larger to make it seem like you're shouting, and more. Screen effects display an animation across the screen of everyone who receives your message. Your text could trigger the release of several colorful balloons, cause confetti to rain down from the top of the screen, or even start a fireworks display. To send a text with a bubble or screen effect, open the Messages app and the conversation you want to send the text to. Type your message, then press and hold the send button to bring up the effects menu. Tap the gray dots to preview the bubble effects, or tap the Screen tab and swipe left to preview the screen effects. When you’ve decided which effect you want to use, just tap the blue send button again. It’s a fun way to add some excitement to your text messages, special occasion or not! (Unfortunately, there doesn’t appear to be an equivalent feature for Android users just yet.) COOKING This Versatile Utensil Is Perfect For Aching Hands [Photos of Jillee using a Danish dough whisk.]( Its functionality is impressive, but those with hand pain have a whole different reason to love this whisk. As you may have seen me mention on my blog, I have a genetic condition called [Dupuytren’s contracture](. It causes hard knots of tissue to form in your hands, and the knots can make your pinky and ring fingers curl inward over time. It’s worse in my left hand—my left pinky is permanently bent at a right angle—but I have knots in my right hand too. It used to be more annoying than anything, but over the last few years I've developed stiffness and pain in my hands that comes and goes. On a bad day, it can be painful to hold things I have to grip tightly, which includes most of my wooden spoons and spatulas. But I do have one utensil that I can rely on to be painless to use—my [Danish dough whisk](. It has a thicker handle than most utensils do, and it really makes all the difference for stiff and aching hands. (And that’s on top of it being a highly useful tool—you can use it to mix doughs, batters, fillings, snack mixes, [and more](.) Here's what others who struggle with hand pain have said about it: • "I ordered the Danish dough whisk because severe arthritis has made it difficult for me to tightly grasp things. It looked easy to hold and use, and it is! I use it for everything that needs mixing." - B.H. • "I have very weak hands and wrists due to carpal tunnel and arthritis. I haven't made anything that requires kneading for years! When I got this whisk, on the same day I saw a really easy bread recipe, so I tried both. BINGO! I can now make bread again!" - Jyll If you have pain or stiffness in your hands, take it from me—having a utensil you can use to mix pretty much anything without wanting to cry is such a blessing. [Check out Danish dough whisks here ➜]( JILLEE'S PICK A Little Princess With A Big Heart [The front cover of ]( The Secret Garden is my favorite childhood book, and it was the only one I'd read by Frances Hodgson Burnett until very recently. But I just finished [A Little Princess]( and found its message and happily-ever-after story both heartwarming and soul-nourishing. A Little Princess is the story of 7-year-old Sara Crewe, who is intelligent, kind, and resourceful. Her wealthy father spares no expense to fulfill her wishes—until circumstances force the princess to become a servant overnight. I love the way little Sara uses stories and fairy tales to keep herself and those around her thinking positively despite their difficult circumstances. And the cruel Ms. Minchin doesn't disappoint as the story’s villain—I really came to loathe her, as I think anyone would! This was one of my favorite passages from the book, not only because it captures Sara's inspiring attitude, but because it also summarizes the moral of the overall story so neatly: “If I am a princess in rags and tatters, I can be a princess inside. It would be easy to be a princess if I were dressed in cloth of gold, but it is a great deal more of a triumph to be one all the time when no one knows it.” [See A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett on Amazon ➜]( POLL OF THE WEEK Pleasurable Pastimes Q: What do you most like to do in your free time? (Click one of the options below to submit your response.) 1. [Read books]( 2. [Craft or make things]( 3. [Play games or do puzzles]( 4. [Spend time outdoors]( 5. [Cook or bake]( 6. [Something else]( Results from last week's poll: Heights came out on top as OGT readers' most terror-inducing phobia, but creepy crawlies weren't far behind! Over 2,300 of you weighed in on the question “Which do you find most frightening?” Here's how you responded: • 32.3% said “Heights” • 29.1% said “Creepy crawlies” • 19.4% said “Small spaces” • 11.2% said “Darkness” • 8% said “Needles” A FEW MORE THINGS... Top Tips: In March of 2021, the most popular blog posts on One Good Thing by Jillee were a list of the [17 best deals you can find at the dollar store](, this post with [6 tips for stopping spam phone calls](, and the explanation I wrote about the [orange and green dots that appear on iPhone screens](. Glorious Groundwater: It's World Water Day, a UN observance to raise awareness of the global water crisis and promote action to protect our most precious resource. The theme of this year's Water Day is focused on groundwater, which has always played a critical role in supporting human societies. In honor of World Water Day, find out about [11 little things you can do at home to save water](. 🤔 Wordle: [Solve today's 5-letter word](. What did you think of today's email? [Not good]( | [Just okay]( | [Loved it!]( 🏠[Visit the By Jillee Shop]( 🤗 [Join OGT Free]( Let's connect! 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