When Life Gives you Lemons.....

Clean your house, concoct some beauty treatments, and make the most of this piece of fruit that, at only 20p (40 cents) in supermarkets, is a versatile fruit indeed!

For cleaning your house:

* cut a lemon in half and use it to scrub the inside of your bathtub! You can use both the inside and the outside of the lemon and it removes soap scum with ease and leaves a fresh scent, too. (in aromatherapy circles it is known that a lemon scent promotes happy feelings!)

* cut a lemon in half, place both halves in a bowl of water in your microwave and cook for 30 seconds. The steam generated from this process makes it easy to remove food and dirt when you wipe a damp cloth over the area. Plus again, you get a nice scent!

For beauty treatments: (courtesy of Canadian Living)

* Nail brightener: get your nails looking healthy and fade the yellowing caused by dark polishes with this mild buff 'n' bleach treatment

Recipe:
Juice of one half lemon
Baking soda

Squeeze juice of half a lemon into a bowl
Add enough baking soda to create a runny consistency (plus keep a little extra)
Dip nails into the paste. (Option: sit outside in the sun to enhance the action of the lemon.)
Let sit for five minutes, then add more baking soda to the mixture in the bowl to create a thick, crumbly paste. Rub gently into nail surface. Rinse thoroughly and follow-up with a hand lotion, rubbing it into nails and cuticles and pushing back cuticles with a cuticle tool if desired.

* Heavy-duty body scrub
Slough dead skin cells off your alligator zones: heels, soles, elbows and knees. Salt and lemon exfoliate naturally; honey has antiseptic and moisturizing qualities.

Recipe:
One handful kosher salt
Honey
Juice of one-half lemon

Mix ingredients to a pastelike consistency in a bowl, adjusting quantities to attain desired texture, then apply to your trouble spots with gentle circular motions.
Rinse thoroughly with warm water.
Moisturize afterwards.
Warning: Don't use this on broken or recently shaved skin.

This fruit also makes a lovely marinade for chicken when you add a crushed clove of garlic to it, and is delicious with a couple of dollops of honey in hot water when you're feeling under the weather.