Post #12: Homemade Neosporin

Last Sunday, I was stopping by my neighbor's house when her little wiener dog ran out the door. In fear that it was going to run to the street, I stuck my hand down to stop him/ pet him. Well this was a mistake. Being the over-protective little dog he is, he attempted to bite my hand. Luckily he just grazed my palm leaving a little slice, I didn't think much of it until later that night after working outside it had become red, hurting, and filled with puss. 

In fear that it would continue to get infected I went ahead and opened it up and drained it, sorry if that's too much information. After doing so I cleaned with alcohol and put on some of my homemade Neosporin on it. 

To my surprise the next morning the redness had all but vanished and the skin was nearly completely healed over.  It was amazing!

This mixture is something every one needs to have in their arsenal. The essential oils in the recipe are great anti-biotics, anti-virals, anti-fungals, and anti-inflammatories. Even coconut oil has anti-viral properties. It can be used on cuts, scrapes, burns, and even diaper rashes. 

Ingredients: 1/2 cup coconut oil, 1/2 cup almond oil, 1- 1oz bar of beeswax, 30 drops melaleuca, 20 lavender, and 20 frankincense. 

To make melt the first three ingredients slowly and let cool before adding your essential oils. This recipe filled one half-pint mason jar and a small travel size bottle.

Photo by: Carolyn Elbert

Post #11: Bug Spray

Summer's on it's way and we all know what that means.. bugs! Our lovely little insect friends who love to suck our blood and leave ugly red bites. Luckily essential oils hold a solution. 


In a 4oz spray bottle I mixed together 12 drops purification eo, 8 drops peppermint eo, 6 drops lavender (mosquitos HATE lavender), and 4 drops thieves eo with 1/2 ounce witch hazel (gives it sticking power), and filtered water. Put the spray top on and mix together. 


It's still a little early for bugs to be out, but I'm certain from all the testimonies I've read from other essential oil enthusiasts that this combination will do the trick.

According to Claire from the a little CLAIREification blog "I did a little research and found loads of ways to make my own Homemade Bug Spray and they pretty much all contain the same base ingredients above – witch hazel and water –  as well as a combination of essential oils(she used peppermint, lavender, and thieves), so I whipped some up right away and it was so easy. I wanted to try it for a week to be sure it worked and I am thrilled to report it works like a charm! I am so happy and also can’t believe I didn’t do this before.  No harmful chemicals and less money in the long run too.  You can also use your own favorite combination of essential oils which is great."

There's quite a few essential oils mosquitos don't like. They include rosemary, cinnamon, citronella, clove, bergamot, geranium, lavender, eucalyptus, cedar wood, peppermint, lemongrass, basil, and thyme. You can pick your favorites and make your own natural bug spray! Just be sure to mix before every use. 

Post #10: Orange & Honey Body Wash

This is something I'm really excited about. I finally made my honey and orange body wash I've been talking about for a while now. I think one of the reasons I was so apt to trying essential oils is because I was never really happy with my face wash, body wash, whatever it was I was always switching from one product to another. Now after having made my own products and finding out how easy and how much I love them, I'll never be switching to anything other than my all-natural homemade concoctions. The great thing is there are endless possibilities on what you can do. Not to mention all the chemicals you're saving your body from in the long run. Now, I know I'm not all the way there yet but I'm working on it.


But any who, back to this weeks creation- honey and orange body wash. It's made out of 2/3 cup castile soap, 1/4 cup honey, 2 teaspoons jojoba oil, 1 teaspoon vitamin E oil, 2 teaspoons vegetable glycerin, and 50 drops of orange essential oil.



To make you simply measure it all out and pour it into your jar, put the lid on, and shake just enough to mix in your oils. 

I just finished this gem and am tempted to take my second shower of the day to test it out. :) 

Post #9: Face Wash and Toner

My face routine is pretty simple. Face wash, toner, and lotion. All three are easy to make and I can’t stress how much better natural ingredients are for your skin. This face wash and toner consist of four oils that come in your starter kit- Lavender, Peppermint, Frankincense and Purification EO.

For the face wash you need ¼ teaspoon almond oil, ¼ teaspoon vitamin E oil, 1/3 cup castile soap, 10 drops Frankincense, 6 drops Purification, 5 drops Lavender, 5 drops Peppermint, and 2/3 cup distilled water. Use your choice of a glass foaming pump container and combine all the oils. Swirl around to ensure it’s mixed and add the distilled water to the container. Ta-da! You’re done with that one.

The facial toner is just 6 drops each of Frankincense, Lavender, and Peppermint, ¼ cup Apple Cider Vinegar, and ¾ cup distilled water. Same process then store in a glass container.

I can’t wait to use these products and see what results they have in store!

Post #8: Face Lotion Review

We’re going to rewind a little bit to my third post. About a month ago I made my day and night face lotions. At first I wasn’t really using them a whole lot because I didn’t like how they were on the greasier side. I already have kind of greasy skin to begin with. But after I finally ran out of my Mary Kay face lotion I had been milking for a while I was forced to return to my homemade lotion.

To my surprise I actually love it. After you get past the fact that it’s greasy on application it soaks in! At night this isn’t an issue. In the morning I just allow for a little bit more drying time before I put my make-up on. I’ve noticed my skin is brighter. I haven’t had a break out since I’ve been using it and it makes my face super soft.

                              

To keep the ball rolling in my next post I’m going to make my own face toner and face wash.

Post #7: Update

Hey friends! I wanted to take a second to get my thoughts and direction of my blog out there. So far on my essential oils journey I've made sheet spray, headache and sleep roll-ons, face cream, hand lotion, chapstick, dry shampoo, and body butter that I love. 


My end goal is to try and replace the products in my daily routine whether it's for the body or home with all natural alternatives. To continue going green I've been thinking of things I would like to make; such as face toner, face wash, body wash, body scrub, deodorant, laundry soap. Anything you can think of that you use on a daily basis. One of my main reasons for this post is to hear any thoughts and suggestions you might have! Whether it's on what to make or if you have any questions please leave a comment. I would love to hear from you!


A little personal update on my life- I just turned 20 and am pretty excited not to be a teenager anymore. Living on my own is going great. I recently adopted a kitten. Her name is Evie. Not only did I add a member to the family but my mom just adopted a puppy too. Lots of snuggles have been going on the past couple weeks, but I'm definitely not complaining!

Post #6: Lavender and Peppermint Body Butter

Shea butter, coconut oil, tapioca flour, jojoba oil, and essential oils are the natural ingredients that made up the perfect gift. My grandma's birthday was last weekend and I thought what better than to try another one of my lotion recipes I've been saving up. The last lotion I made purely out of coconut oil does the trick but it doesn't have that nice whipped texture and is pretty oily when first applied. 

This new lotion was easy to make. I softened 1 cup of shea butter in the microwave then added 1 cup coconut oil, 1/3 cup tapioca flour (to make the lotion less oily), and 1/2 a tablespoon of jojoba oil. Next I mixed it with a hand mixer until it was light and fluffy. Lastly I added 40 drops lavender and 20 drops peppermint and mixed briefly. 

This recipe made more than enough lotion. I filled these three jars and still had enough to fill a mason jar full.

My lavender and peppermint lotion was a big hit. It turned out the perfect texture. My mom and grandma both like how smoothly it goes on and it leaves your skin super soft. Since I've made it, it's been my daily all over body butter. My skin has never felt this great and it helps keep my eczema at bay.  

Post #5: DIY Lip Balm

Great news! The dry shampoo I made last week works perfectly. It applies easily with a make-up brush and doesn't leave blotches like when you try to use baby powder. Or possibly it's because the color matched amazing. It gave my hair a bright fresh color. The dry shampoo has a nice light scent and made my hair feel a million times fresher than when you use a dry shampoo from the store. Not to mention the difference in the number of ingredients. It's almost scary how many things you can't pronounce on the back of the store bought bottle. 


This week I'm happy to say I've successfully replaced another essential beauty product. I'm a constant user of my peppermint EOS. You can always find one in my purse, book bag, or beside my bed. Not to mention the cute little container. It just happened that I was at the end of mine and after a little research I found a wonderful recipe for Homemade Peppermint Lip Balm EOS refills. 

You simply melt 2 Tablespoons shredded Beeswax (you can buy beeswax pellets if you don't want to shred it), 4 Tablespoons of Coconut Oil and 1/2 Teaspoon of Vitamin E Oil in a double boiler. Once melted, add 10 drops Peppermint Essential Oils and stir. 

Pour mixture into the round part of the EOS container, I recommend submerging the container in a pot of boiling water to remove any germs and remaining chapstick before using. Fill to the top edge of the top container. It's totally okay if it overflows a bit! 

Keeping the container face down screw the bottom on and place in the refrigerator for a few hours. Take the container out of the refrigerator and unscrew. Remove any excess lip balm with a warm wash cloth. 

I have to say I like my homemade peppermint EOS even better than the original! It's soft and tastes delicious... not to mention it's totally safe. The coconut oil makes your lips super soft and you can also use it to moisturize chapped skin while the Peppermint Oil works to remove redness!

It's so easy to make your own all natural beauty products. I love the video below by Aja Dang. She explains it all perfectly and uses the same process. I wouldn't even mind trying her recipe!

Post #4: Natural Dry Shampoo

I have to admit I’m one of those girls who hates washing my hair. It’s so long and thick I can’t go anywhere for hours with out it being wet. That’s why this week I decided to create my own natural dry shampoo for those days you want to get by without a wash. Not to mention it’s healthy for your hair not to shampoo everyday!

My dry shampoo recipe contains 4 simple ingredients.

4 tablespoons arrowroot, tapioca, or non-gmo cornstarch (I used tapioca)

4 drops peppermint essential oil

4 drops lavender essential oil

For Brunettes

4 tablespoons cocoa

For Blondes

¾ teaspoon turmeric

For Red Heads

2 ¼ teaspoon paprika

To make I got my Pyrex bowl and making sure it was dry I mixed together my dry ingredients. I then added my oils drop by drop mixing well each time. 

After I was finished I transferred my dry shampoo into an airtight jar. I had a decent amount left over so when I was done I went and got a couple more jars.

Next week I’m excited to share my all natural alternative to my favorite lip balm along with a tutorial for using the homemade dry shampoo!

                                                               

Post #3: DIY Face Creams and Hand Lotion

This week I chose to focus on all-natural lotions made with… yep! You guessed it, essential oils. Previously starting out I made a sleep blend, headache blend, and sheet spray to dip my toes in the water.  These three things were simple to make and a great way to learn how to use your oils. I’ll go over my process when I discuss how to add the oils to your lotion.

 Ingredients:     

Sleep Blend (10ml roll-on bottle)

·      5 drops Frankincense essential oil

·      5 drops Lavender essential oils

·      4 drops Stress Away essential oils

·      Fill rest of bottle with Jojoba oil

The process I use when handling my oils is to first layout all the oils you’ll need in a row on a paper towel. Then I place a pipette next to each. After this you’re ready to start using your oils. Carefully I open one oil at a time; then you have to remove the plastic dropper on each before you can use your pipette to extract the oil. Once you’re done with one oil, place the plastic dropper back in the bottle, and replace the lid tightly.

            Headache Blend (10ml roll-on bottle)

·      2 drops Lavender essential oil

·      2 drops Frankincense essential oils

·      2 drops Panaway essential oil

·      2 drops Peppermint essential oil

·      Fill rest of bottle with Jojoba oil

Sheet Spray (3oz glass spray bottle)

·      10 drops Lavender essential oil

·      10 Ylang Ylang essential oil

·      Fill the rest of the bottle 3/4^th of the way up with distilled water

Feeling more comfortable using my oils I chose to start replacing some of my beauty and skincare products.  This week I made hand and face cream (day and night) with all natural ingredients. To make the face cream I chose to use:

•    ¼ shea butter and ¼ cup coconut oil they both are amazing moisturizers, skin protectors, and can help heal damaged skin. 

•   I bought my raw, organic and unrefined shea butter and coconut oil at our Natural Grocers here in town.

•                      

• 10 drops Frankincense essential oil for its anti-wrinkle effects. It’s also a good anti-inflammatory and antiseptic.

•    7 drops Lavender essential oil to help with acne troubles but also because like Frankincense it has anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties that can fight the bacteria that can cause acne and inflammation. 

• 1 tsp. Jojoba oil to help nourish the skin.

•      For the Night Creams I added 5 drops Lemon essential oil because it’s a natural alternative to restore a healthy glow to dull skin. Applied topically Lemon serves as an anti-oxidant, astringent, and detoxifier.

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To make my face creams I made my own double boiler by using a glass Pyrex measuring cup in a pan filled half way with water. In the double boiler I melted ¾ cup shea butter and ¾ cup coconut oil.

I tripled the recipe because I wanted to make myself a day and night cream and my mom a night cream. Raw shea butter and coconut oil come solid, once it all melts to an oil I removed it from the heat and let it cool for about 30 minutes.

Then I separated the oil into 1 cup for the night creams and ½ cup for the day cream. After doing so I dropped in and stirred my Frankincense, Lavender, Jojoba, and Lemon oil (lemon only for night creams) into the already melted shea butter and coconut oil.

After adding you oils you want to wait for you mixes to partially solidify. I put mine in the freezer for 20 minutes to speed up the process. Once it was partially solidified I took my hand mixer and whipped the lotions until they reached a butter like consistency.

                       

I then transferred the lotions to 4oz jars. Once I put my lotions into the jars I put rubbing alcohol on cotton balls and cleaned the outsides of the jars (they’ll be oily).

After my jars dried and were clean I took the labels I got from Hobby Lobby and wrote the name of the product on them.

My whipped lotion was super simple. All I had to do is take 4 tablespoons coconut oil and whip it with your hand mixer while it’s in its solid state until the texture is smooth. Then I added 6 drops Lavender and 6 drops Frankincense. Mix together one more time and that’s it!