WFMW: Oatmeal isn't just for eating

My First Works For Me Wednesday Post:
My skin has always been very sensitive and when I was younger, my mom would fix me a bath using those Aveeno oatmeal baths packets. They are great for all sorts of skin irritations such dry skin, bug bites, poison ivy, sunburns, etc. But they're expensive ($6.00 for only a few packets!) and since I never really planed on getting bug bites, I never had them on hand when I needed them. But it's just ground up oatmeal and really easy to make yourself.

Start with the oatmeal; instant, quick or slow cook will all work, just don't use flavored packets, that would be icky. I use quick oats because my favorite cookie recipe calls for that type and I have it on hand most of the time. Put it in a food processor or blender and grind it up. The finer you grind it, the better, both it terms of it working, and it the amount of mess you will have afterwards (the small bits go down the drain, the bigger bits have to be cleaned up). I have a little glass jar in my bathroom that hold it so I don't have to make it every time I need it. To use, just put 1/3 to 1/2 cup in the tub with the running water and stir. (And be careful because the tub gets slippery and I once heard about someone killing themselves by slipping in a tub, or maybe someone tried make it look like someone died that way, but really they were murdered, I don't remember... just be careful.)

You can also use the same ground up stuff to make a oatmeal face mask. Just mix a couple tablespoons of ground up oatmeal with a little bit of water till it makes a paste-like goo. I mixed in a little coconut oil into mine and it was delightful. The Quaker Oatmeal website has even more facial mix in ideas on their FAQ page (look under customizing your facial). And that's what works for me.