Kim Schmidt Photography LLC | Northern Virgina Family Photographer

I had an epiphany at the beginning of the year about our current pillow situation in the bedroom! We were sleeping on pillows that were easily 10+ years old which is extremely gross! I never even thought to wash them. With many hours of research, vacillating all the options, I decided to go with two different pillows. Anthony will sleep on his stomach most of the night, while over time I’ve switched how I sleep (I used to be a religious side sleeper but now I catch myself only being able to fall asleep on my stomach). With all of these things in mind, I took to the internet for help on the best organic pillows out there. If our heads are on a pillow for 7+ hours a night, I don’t want it to be chemical-laden. I’m willing to invest more money but that also made the decision long + excruciating as I wanted to make sure the pillows would be perfect!

In the above photo, Anthony’s Organic Medium Firmness Cotton Pillow from Gaiam (they no longer carry it!) is on bottom, while my Organic Buckwool Pillow w/Zipper is on top. I ended up with the 16×19 size, and had to pull about half the buckwheat hulls out for it work best for me. We’ve been sleeping on these pillows for close to 2 weeks now and I am shocked how much better we sleep at night now!

Interested in knowing why I chose what I did? As I mentioned above, I did a lot of research on what types of pillows are best for the ways we sleep. Originally I purchased Anthony an organic cotton pillow from a company in CA and I got the wrong size. But not only that, it was super flat. I sent that back and purchased the cotton one from Gaiam. Anthony wants weight in his pillow but not a super soft or firm one either. The medium is the best alternative! I really wanted him to try the buckwool pillow but also knowing my husband well enough, he wouldn’t like the sound of the hulls moving about. Sure enough, the minute he saw mine, he said he was glad I didn’t get that for him!

Why the buckwool pillow? Ancient cultures have been using buckwheat to fill their pillows for centuries, so why not keep the tradition going, right?!?! The hulls move about in the pillow, conforming to the head, allowing maximum support and comfort for the head, neck, and spine. The combination of buckwheat and wool allows for air to circulate and keep your body cool. I also love that the hulls may be removed and easily cleaned by running them under cool water and air drying. That’s it!!! There are regular buckwheat pillows on the market, but from many reviews I’ve read, having only hulls could be loud. I’ve found that the wool addition keeps the pillow/hulls stable and not loud at all (this is coming from an individual that has heighten sound and smell senses!!).

More details on what the pillow is made of direct from the White Lotus website, “Our buckwool pillows are handmade with half the pillow filled with organic buckwheat hulls and the other half filled with New Zealand Virgin Lambswool..and is encased in 100% organic cotton.” I got my pillow made with zippers and it was the best decision. It came stuffed with hulls (which I’m happy about) but I did have to remove an entire gallon sized Ziploc bag of hulls for it to feel right! They aren’t going to waste as I have plans on making a smaller pillow of just hulls for traveling!

While I was researching pillows, I thought it would be time for a new duvet too, since we received our current one as a wedding gift in 2005! Once again, I knew I wanted organic and thought wool would be the best option. As of late, I’ve been waking up in the mornings drenched in sweat, even though it’s cool enough in our house (add in the freezing temps outside, keeping our heat around 67, + a fan going at night!). I think it had to do with our down duvet. I decided on an Organic Wool Comforter from Gaiam, as they were having a sale at the time! It’s heavy enough that it doesn’t move much at night, which is a true blessing for Anthony since I can be a cover-hog, + I haven’t been waking up sweaty!

If you are thinking of going green in the bedroom, I’d highly recommend doing lots of research on the best options for you and your family. Though if you are in the NJ area, I’d highly recommend checking out White Lotus, as they are based in Highland Park! Had I known that from the beginning, I would have driven up to their showroom!

If you are on Pinterest, you’ve probably seen how to make your own “just about anything”, from deodorant to laundry detergent and more. One of the hot topics that I’ve come across on many occasions is the dry shampoo debate. Since I work out 5 days a week (and most of those days I teach multiple classes), I wanted to give insight on how I use homemade dry shampoo to prolong a nice blow out and protect my hair from damage.

• First up, the most important part is to take the time blow out your hair after a shower. This is key in lasting days without actually shampooing/conditioning the hair in the shower.
• Secondly, when you do workout, pull all of your hair away from your face and neck. Use the popular elastic hair ties (as seen below) – they will not tug at your hair or create creases like the Goody’s brand at the store.

• Third, when I get home from class, I brush my hair out and let it air dry. Most of the times this is all I do (since most of my classes are in the evenings), but when I teach a morning class I’ll let it dry and then add the dry shampoo.
• The dry shampoo (for brunettes) is simple: you need 5 teaspoons of cocoa powder and 2 teaspoons of cornstarch. Add to a jar, shake and you are ready to go! At one time, I was just adding the shampoo to my hands and then massaging it into my scalp. While that worked, it went everywhere! Then after some research, I discovered that many people use a makeup brush to apply it. This has revolutionized my dry shampooing days!!
• I dip the brush into the jar, tap the sides to remove excess, add to my head, allow the shampoo to sit for 5-8 minutes (usually this is the time I brush my teeth and begin applying makeup!), then really work it into the scalp like you would normal shampoo. It’s really that easy and you know exactly what you are putting on your head.

• Once the shampoo has been worked, I use a large tooth comb to make sure there aren’t any big clumps that I missed. The other comb pictured below is a teasing comb. This is essential – go out now and buy one. I finish my hair off with the teasing at the roots to give volume where it was lost after working out and sleeping. I don’t use hairspray, and rarely feel like my hair needs it to give it volume.

  

Here is my workout schedule along with when I normally wash my hair.

Monday: 1 Adult Zumba in the morning + 1 Zumba Kids in the evening
Tuesday: 3 Zumba Kids back to back in the evening
Wednesday: 1 Zumba Kids + 1 Adult Zumba in the evening
Thursday: 1 Adult Zumba in the evening
Friday: 1 Zumba Kids in the evening

I try to wash my hair on Sundays, which sets me up for a week of washing every other day or so. If I wash on Sunday, then I’ll wash on Tuesday and Friday. If I don’t wash on Sunday, then I’ll wash after my Monday morning Zumba, Wednesday and Saturday.

If you are looking for different and unique ways to style your hair, check out A Lover’s Anthology’s 30 Days of Hair.