You can make every day a spa day

Stress from work, family, the male species, and other daily stressors often has me wishing I was being pampered at the spa. I've decided that my new personal mantra will be "Every day is spa day". Clearly people don't have the time or money to go to the spa every day... that's the world I want to live in. But there are some products out there that can make you feel like you're bringing the spa home. These items can also make great gifts for hard-to-buy friends and family. Everyone deserves a little pampering around the hoildays.

First on the list of spa must-haves is a salt or a sugar body scrub. Fresh's Brown Sugar Body Polish, or Bliss Blood Orange and White Pepper scrub ($36)gently slough away dead skin cells, and provide moisture with various essential oils. With most of these scrubs you don't even need to moisturize after, but it can't hurt to do it anyway! These scrubs are great for your skin in winter months, while the fragrance is both decadent and relaxing.

Another go-to item for making your own at home spa is a good foot cream. After your bath or shower where you've exfoliated your feet, slather them with a rich cream and put them in a pair of socks for the night. Burt's Bees "Mama Bee" leg and foot creme ($8) contains natural ingredients like peppermint oil so you can feel it working.

For all-out pampering, a great product for the lips is Laura Geller's "Lip Strip" cooling sugar scrub ($19). Think of this as a lip-version of the scrub that you used on your body. It uses the same concept of sloughing off the dead skin cells and replacing them with moisturizing oils. It not only smells good, but it tastes good on your lips. (Something that you would NOT be able to say about the body scrub. That is not to be ingested people.)

Now that your body is exfoliated and moisturized from head to toe, don't forget to calm your brain! Candles with healing scents found in nature, such as peppermint and eucalyptus, can be found just about anywhere. I personally love the cucumber-aloe and the eucalyptus-mint scented candles that I bought from my local Target. You can go one step further and purchase Origin's Peace of Mind On the Spot Relief ($10) . This little bottle of aromatherapy excellence can work wonders. Just dab a spot on your temples or on other pressure points on the body and feel the stress melt away.

So put on a little soothing music, light those candles, and relax. You'll look good, smell good, and feel good too.