Helpful hints: nipple cream, sheep hair, and keeping your shorts on

Sometimes, through trial and error, you learn things that are rather useful, and you think other people might benefit from this knowledge. So here you go:

1. Chapped lips and dry cuticles: If you get really dry lips and cuticles in winter, let me tell you what is kind of fantastic: Medela nipple cream.

It's thick and really stays on, but isn't sticky. It wouldn't have occurred to be if I hadn't had some on hand, and if you're a guy you might feel odd buying it, but it is great.

If you're allergic to lanolin, then obviously this is a bad idea. But otherwise, totally recommend.

2. While I'm on the subject of sheep: If you hand-wash your wool sweaters, which I do because dry cleaning is spendy and chemically and sheep get wet so why not, putting conditioner in your rinse water makes them nice and soft.

(And I was recently told that you can actually wash anything that says Dry Clean unless it says Dry Clean Only. I am, however, rather cavalier about washing things. And I feel like sometimes they just slap a dry cleaning label on because it's easier than making sure their dye is totally fast or their construction will hold.)

ANYway.

Wool is protein like hair. I mean, it is hair, right? Or fur? What's the difference? Is it fur for animals and hair for humans?

In any case, it is protein, and like silk - and in fact, you should do this for your silk as well, which I learned when dyeing fabric - after you treat it with something alkaline, like soap, you want to use something acidic to bring it back to balance. Vinegar does this, as does conditioner.

I'm not science-y, so I may not have my explanation quite right, but I do know that vinegar and conditioner will both soften your silk. I haven't tried vinegar on my wool or my hair, although apparently it functions as a conditioner as well.

(Side bar: I would like to try using baking soda for hair washing and vinegar for conditioner, but I am afraid to fuck up my color. Has anyone with highlights tried this? Ever since I listened to the salesperson in Victoria's Secret about temporary black hair dye that turned out to not be temporary on blonde hair, I've been cautious about experimenting.)

In other words: this helpful hint might be too convoluted to follow and thus not so helpful. But if it isn't, and you're still with me, I recommend hand-washing and conditioning your wool and silk.

3. Working out in your underwear: I've been doing these daily workout videos, sweating like all hell, and going through a ton of sports bras and shorts. So I thought about it and realized that I'm working out at home, so why wear shorts? I need a sports bra, but why not just work out in my underwear?

I'll tell you why. Because unless you have significantly sturdier undies than I do, or a firmer butt, or a high tolerance for jiggle, doing jumping jacks, burpees and such in one's underwear is not all that pleasant.

Final word: Underwear dance parties? Absolutely. Underwear workouts? Not recommended.