Cuticle Softening Oil

If you live anywhere with harsh, dry weather, you may find your cuticles and the skin around your nails dry, peeling, cracking and splitting.  This is especially true in the winter or even in the summer if you tend to garden and have your hands in the dirt a lot.  I have blended a few oils together to come up with a cuticle softening oil which really seems to be working to keep the skin all the way around my nails nice and supple.

Ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp jajoba oil
8 drops tea tree essential oil
8 drops lavender essential oil

Directions:

Place in a glass bottle with a dropper.  Shake well before each use.  I can usually moisturize all of my fingers with about 5 drops of this oil.  A little bit goes a long ways!  I try to use it each night just before bed for maximum benefit.  It even worked on my daughter's persistent hangnails.  What a great little oil to help keep hands looking and feeling nice.

I hope that this cuticle softening oil will help heal your skin just as well as it did ours!

10 Terrific Uses for Tea Tree Oil

Tea tree oil or Melaleuca alternifolia is an essential oil derived from a plant native to Australia.  Tea tree oil has some pretty amazing properties, such as: antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, astringent and disinfectant.  Because of its many wonderful properties it is one of the most used essential oils in my medicine cabinet.  Please click on the links in red for recipes using tea tree oil.

Here are ten terrific uses of tea tree oil:

1.  Antiseptic:  use slightly diluted on a cotton ball with witch hazel to cleanse cuts and scrapes.

2.  Treat acne:  use a small drop on break outs to help clear skin up faster.  Some people find it irritating so it can be diluted with witch hazel.

3.  Treat dandruff:  add 25 drops of tea tree oil to your average sized shampoo bottle and shake well.  Tea tree oil will eliminate dandruff and dry scalp.

4.  Deodorant:  use tea tree oil in Homemade Deodorant because it is known to eliminate the bacteria that cause odor.  

5.  Relieve insect bites:  put a small drop directly on bites for itch relief.  Or mix with coconut oil for a double dose of itch relief. 

6.  Soothe sunburns:  use in combination with witch hazel, vinegar or aloe vera gel to ease the sting of sunburn.

7.  Hand Sanitizer:  use in combination with a few other essential oil for an effective Hand Sanitizing Spray.

8.  Heal toenail fungus:  use 1-2 drops of undiluted tea tree oil on toenails twice per day to treat fungus.

9.  Treat many skin conditions:  use tea tree oil that has been slightly diluted with witch hazel or a carrier oil like olive oil to treat psoriasis, ringworm, athlete's foot, cold sores and more.

10.  Control mold:  use a solution of 1/4 cup water and 25 drops tea tree oil and spray on shower walls to prevent mold from growing.  (This was extremely impressive to me as even bleach couldn't take care of the problem!)

I love and use several essential oils and tea tree oil is among my favorites.  If you are thinking about trying essential oils, this is where I would suggest starting.  Tea tree oil has so many fabulous uses! 

Natural, Healthy, Tea Tree Oil!

10 Wonderful Uses for Coconut Oil

Virgin Coconut Oil has hundreds of fabulous uses and should definitely be something that you keep on hand in your home all the time.  I actually have an enormous jar in my kitchen for cooking and a smaller jar in my bathroom cabinet for beauty needs.  I will share my top 10 favorite uses of coconut oil along with some recipes links (in red) for a few of my favorite health and beauty products that use coconut oil.

1.  Cooking:  especially at high heat, like frying chicken.

2.  Baking:  use in place of hydrogenated vegetable oils.

3.  Lotion:  just rub a small amount into dry skin for soft smoothness.

4.  Lip balm:  it can be used alone or check out this Soothing Lip Balm recipe.

5.  Deodorant:  coconut oil is the base of this Homemade Deodorant.

6.  Sugar Scrub:  coconut oil is the base of this skin smoothing Sugar Scrub.

7.  Natural Vapor Rub:  coconut oil and essential oils comprise this natural cough soothing Vapor Rub.

8.  Bug Bite Relief:  rub a little bit onto mosquito and other insect bites for itch relief (my eight year old insists that nothing works better!)

9.  Deep Conditioner:  work into washed hair and allow to absorb for at least a half an hour.  Wash and condition as usual.

10.  Anti-Frizz "Product":  rub a tiny amount of coconut oil into hands and then smooth into hair for excellent frizz control.

These are only a very few uses to get you started if you haven't used coconut oil before.  I hope you will try it and find the many amazing benefits of this natural wonder!

Natural, Healthy, Coconut Oil!

A Few Simple Food Changes

Here are a few quick changes you can make to improve you diet without too much stress or hassle. You might be surprised on some of them, but trust me I have done my homework.

1.  Get rid of margarine and vegetable oils.  Replace them with butter, coconut oil and extra virgin olive oil.

Why?  Because of the process used to make margarine and vegetable oils, known as hydrogenation, they tend to be higher in trans fats than other oils which can raise your bad cholesterol and lower your good cholesterol. Olive oil is monounsaturated fatty acids.  Which according to the Mayo Clinic are considered a healthy dietary fat.  Coconut oil is also free of trans fats and is great for use when cooking with high heat (fried chicken for example).  Butter does not have trans fat, but does have saturated fat, so it should be used sparingly.  Oils in general should not be used in excess, but choosing healthier oils is a good option.

 2. Say goodbye to iceberg lettuce. Replace it with green leaf or romaine lettuce.

Why?  Vitamin A.  Iceberg lettuce has 7% DV of Vitamin A, green leaf has 53% and romaine has a whopping 81%.  We usually eat salads to be healthy, right?  Then we should probably use a lettuce that actually has some vitamins in it!

3. Ditch the bleached white flour and white rice.  Replace them with whole wheat flour and brown rice.

Why?  Bleached flour goes through a chlorination process to make it whiter.  Wait...What?  Yep, bleached means bleached.  I don't know why this didn't dawn on me until just a few years ago, but when it did I decided never to buy bleached flour again.  Unbleached all purpose flour is barely any less white than bleached flour!  I really only use unbleached all purpose flour for pie crust.  Normally, I choose whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour.  Whole wheat contains the 100% of the whole kernel of wheat, making it a whole grain.

Brown rice is also a whole grain and can easily replace white rice.  To me it has a slightly nuttier flavor and is definitely hardier.  It also takes a lot longer to cook, so take that into consideration when preparing a meal with brown rice.
 
A few health benefits of whole grains include: possible reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, weight loss/descreased fat, and reduced risk of stroke.  These are just a few of the many, many benefits.  The nuttier flavor and courser texture take a bit of getting used to, but are completely worth it in my mind.

4.  Buy local when you can.  To include:  meat, eggs, produce and honey.  It helps the local economy and these products are often fresher and more nutritious.

5.  Grow your own garden and preserve your produce for the winter months. You know exactly what is on (or is not on) your veggies and gardening is amazingly gratifying.

6.  Make your own homemade food from scratch whenever you can.  It's easier than you think!
Here are some links of common prepacked foods that you can easily make from scratch.
Hot Cocoa and Whipped Cream
Granola Bars
Taco Seasoning
Salsa
Fresh Baked Bread
Delicious Whole Wheat Brownies


A few final thoughts on food.  If your great grandmother would not recognize it as food, you probably shouldn't eat it.  And if you are reading through the ingredients on prepackaged, processed food and you don't recognize an ingredient as food, you probably shouldn't consume it!

I hope that I have encouraged you to try these simple changes for increased health and well-being!

Delicious Whole Wheat Brownies

I have a confession.  I don't like brownies.  Before you decide to hate me, let me explain.  I don't like brownies from a box.  I LOVE brownies from scratch.  I have tried a lot of recipes and found one that I like.  And then of course I changed it and now I love it.  I really like baking with whole wheat pastry flour instead of all purpose flour.  My only exception is pie crust (but that's for another day).  So here is my recipe for whole wheat brownies.  

Delicious Whole Wheat Brownies

Ingredients
1 cup melted butter
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips and/or white chocolate chips

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish.

Mix the melted butter, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each.

In a separate bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Stir well to make sure it is completely mixed.  Gradually mix the flour mixture into the sugar and butter mixture until well blended. Add in the chocolate chips. Evenly spread the batter into the baking dish.

Bake in preheated oven until an inserted toothpick comes out clean (this is tricky because the chips can make the brownies look underdone), 40 to 45 minutes. Remove and cool before cutting.

These are good warm, but they are even better after they have cooled and the chips have had a chance to harden.

I hope you enjoy these delicious whole wheat brownies as much as my family does!

Fabric Softener and Dryer Sheet Alternatives

I promised this week would be all about laundry!  If you haven't read about how to make your own DIY liquid laundry detergent, check out the post here: DIY Liquid Laundry Detergent

Today we will delve into some alternatives to fabric softener and dryer sheets!

Commercial fabric softeners and dryer sheets leave clothes soft, scented and static free.  They also leave behind a chemical residue that can irritate sensitive skin and cause headaches among other things.

I prefer a natural option to both. While there are many choices out there, I certainly have my favorites.
For fabric softener, I just use 1/4 cup of distilled white vinegar.  Vinegar removes soap residue, softens and brightens clothing and linens.  Clothes never smell like vinegar after they are dry.  Personally, I can't smell it when they are fresh out of the washer.  So that should not be a deterrent in the use of vinegar as your softener.  I just pour the vinegar right into my washer's softener dispenser.  If your washer doesn't have a dispenser, you can put it in a downy ball which will dispense during the rinse cycle.

Instead of dryer sheets, I use 100% pure wool felted yarn dryer balls.  I purchased 2 skeins of 100% pure wool yarn and rolled them into six balls the size of small oranges.  I tucked the end of the yarn in and around several times using a yarn needle to be sure that that it was firmly secured.

The next step is to place the balls in an old sock, knot the sock at the top and wash with a load of clothes.  Remove the balls and dry.  At this point you can add a drop or two of essential oil for scent.  I left our unscented.

They are now ready to replace your dryer sheets.  For a large load of clothes I use all six balls.  Just toss them in the dryer with your load and they will help clothes come out soft, fluffy and static free!

Natural, Healthy, Chemical-Free Laundry!

DIY Liquid Laundry Detergent

This week is all about laundry.  Love it or hate it, it has to be done.  Unless of course you enjoy wearing stinky, dirty clothes.  I didn't think so.  Let's learn how to make some liquid laundry detergent...

About four years ago I stopped using the typical, chemical-laden brands that you find at the store and switched to a natural detergent.  Initially, it was to avoid unnecessary chemicals however, we soon discovered that our sensitive skin preferred the natural, chemical free brands. While the natural brand worked well, it was very expensive.  Unfortunately, my family generates a lot of laundry, especially in the winter with all of our layers.  I wanted to try to come up with a more economical solution.

I love trying to make my own products whenever possible, so why not laundry detergent?  I researched about a billion sites to see what the different ingredient options were and how to make a liquid detergent.  The one problem I kept coming back to was the sheer amount of detergent people were making, 5 gallons at a time.  It just seemed a little overwhelming to me, especially if the stuff didn't work.  

I decided to combine a couple of recipes.  One called for baking soda and not borax, one called for borax only.  I decided to go half and half with baking soda and borax.  Many recipes call for Zote or Fels-naptha bar soap.  I looked into both of those, and while cheaper, they both had a strong scent.  Instead, I chose Dr. Bonner's Baby Mild Pure Castile Soap, which is unscented and gentle for sensitive skin.  The final two ingredients are washing soda and lavender essential oil for scent.  The washing soda was tricky to find, I actually had to go to four stores!  But I have a box now and that should allow me to make at least 12 gallons of laundry detergent!


Here is the recipe {please note the description of what each ingredient does to the side}:

2 cups boiling water
1 cup grated pure castile bar soap (I like Dr. Bonner's baby mild) - cleans dirt and grease
1 cup washing soda - pulls out grease and oil, softens water
1/2 cup borax - deodorizes, whitens, disinfects
1/2 cup baking soda - deodorizes, softens water
1 additional gallon of water
Your favorite scent of essential oil - 20 drops more or less depending upon preference

Directions:

Grate 1 cup of soap. (For me 1 cup of grated soap was about 2/3 of the bar.)  Get your two cups of water boiling in a large enough pot to accommodate 1 1/2 gallons of liquid and then add grated soap.  It will kind of clump together until it completely melts.  I used a whisk to stir and that seemed to help with the smoothness.  After the soap melts, allow it to cool a bit and then add the washing soda, baking soda and borax.  Stir until well and completely mixed.  Add the final gallon of water and mix well again.  At this point I added 20 drops of lavender essential oil, because it is my favorite.  I think I could have added more, because now I can barely smell it when I am doing laundry.  I transferred my concoction from my huge pot, to a clean and empty vinegar jug.  It remained very liquidy until fully cool and then became more gel like.  If it becomes too thick you can always add a little more water and shake. I ended up probably adding four more cups of water because it became too thick.  I use about 1/4 of a cup for a large load of laundry.  

Imagine my delight upon removing that first load from the washer and finding the clothes clean and fresh smelling!  No more store bought laundry detergent for this girl!  It took less than 15 minutes to make this detergent and that was mainly for pictures!  So, this turned out to be a quick, easy and successful project!

Just for fun here is the break down of costs =

Washing Soda 1/12 of the $4.87 box = $.41

Baking Soda 1/108 of the $19.97 bag = $.18

Borax 1/32 of the $3.99 box = $.12

Castile Soap 2/3 of the $3.75 bar = $2.48

One gallon of liquid laundry soap = $3.19 WOW!!! 

I hope you will give making your own laundry detergent a try!  It's easy and very affordable!

If you have a recipe that you love, please share it in the comments below :)