Tag Archives: diy

Protect Youself, Naturally!

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SUMMER

Welcome to Summer! How amazing is it to feel the sun & the breeze?!? UGH! LOVE! && then there are our little friends…..the mosquitos!!!! YUCK! I have been trying to convert my household to a totally natural environment. By this I mean, household cleaners, soaps, lotions….& some other fun things! I am on my way! Now that Summer is here, we have to get the bug spray out right?! Well…..I was not into that. Most bug sprays that are out on the market can be completely toxic! The most popular additive, DEET, seems to be the serious offender! Here is an article on some of the effects of some bug spray chemicals.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002763.htm

It’s kind of scary to think about putting these chemicals on your body or on your children!! I wanted to create a safe, non toxic version. The chemicals in traditional bug sprays ARE used to prevent the wide range of disease that mosquitos can carry. I have NOT confirmed that my bug spray recipe does.  I’ve been using my spray & it seems to be repelling just fine, (it also smells amazing!!). Here is the recipe for the bug spray I have been using, I hope you enjoy!

Non-toxic Bug Spray

This recipe makes about 16oz.

BUG SPRAY

8oz distilled water

8oz witch hazel

20 drops citronella essential oil

20 drops lavender essential oil

**You can play with other essential oils as well, my next batch I’ll use Tea Tree oil! The more oil you use the stronger your spray!

In a large glass mason jar, add all of your ingredients & shake vigorously! I then split up my spray into (2) 4oz bottles & (1) 8oz bottles. I store mine in glass bottles, that I got at an awesome price from: http://www.abundanthealth4u.com/ **I’ve heard that the oils can eat away at plastic, so I didn’t even take the risk! Shake up before using & use caution around your eyes! I hope you enjoy! ❤

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(HEHE!)

DIY Laundry Soap!

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Ok, so if you know me, you know I love “stuff”… Clothes, food, housewares, lotions, makeup, hair products, household cleaners, WHATEVER! & then if it’s on sale… oh em gee. STOP! More importantly, if I can make it myself?!?! YES!!!!!! Ugh, i love these moments, I just feel brilliant!! So anyway, back on track. I have been trying to make a lot of the things I like & need to use as opposed to buying them in a store at full price. (YUCK!) I’ll expand on this more as I make more products. For now, laundry soap it is!!! Phew, I’m excited!

Ok here it goes.. So, I know in my house, 2 people, probably 4-5 loads a week. That’s a lot!!!!! I can’t imagine a house with like 5 people! UGH, I can’t even think about it. I was using Gain for a long time. My favorite!! The smell is amazing, clothes nice & clean. $20ish for 150oz….not too bad. They say it lasts 96 loads. (Maybe if you have a boyfriend who doesn’t pour it into the washer from the bottle!!!!!!!!!!!) I’d say it lasts 3 months or so, at our pour rate! I was just over buying laundry detergent so often at a high price! So after searching for different recipes I started mixing!! It is a powder form, costs me $29 to make, smells amazing, more importantly WORKS AMAZING & …..hold your breath….lasts over a year!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Doug is a mason, which means DIRTY CLOTHES, if this can clean his clothes then we have a discovery people!) I can’t even take it. Hands down, best laundry soap ever, not to mention easy to make. You guys will definitely need to give this a go! (Not to mention, makes such a cute gift, put in a little mason jar, with a ribbon! Ugh, to die for!)

I purchased all of my ingredients at Walmart, sometimes ZOTE bar soap I have to get at Home Depot!

LAUNRY SOAP 2

(I’ve gotten the Zote finer before, I think I rushed this batch^^ Still works the same..)

Laundry Soap:

1 large box of Borax (about 4 lbs)

1 Box of Baking Soda Super Washing Soda (about 3 lbs)

2 Bars of ZOTE laundry soap (Yes, a BAR) They make pink or white, i prefer pink, the scent is better & of course it’s pink =)

1 Big box (4lbs) of regular baking soda or 2 (2lb) boxes

1 tub of Oxyclean (whichever kind) (3lbs) (SAVE THE SCOOP)

A small (ish..here i go again with the ish!) plastic tub to store the detergent in.

**Optional: 1 or 2 bottle of fabric softener crystals. Purex makes some nice scents. I always add this because it smells so good!!

Grate your bar soap. I used my food processor, and it actually didn’t ruin it…and it was actually easy to clean! After you have that grated, the rest is smooth sailing! Dump everything in your bucket & mix up!! (Really mix well!) I saved the scoop from the Oxyclean to use as a scoop when I do the laundry! 2 TBSP should do the trick, maybe 3 if you’ve got extra grime!! =) I’m 90% sure that this is safe for an HE washer!

**These ingredients cost about $29, you can actually cut it back to just Borax, Baking Soda Super Soda & Zote Soap if you want to limit the ingredients and/or chemicals! I stick to this full recipe because it makes a lot & smells delish! I will do my best to be more green in other ways =) Enjoy!

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DIY Solid Lotion Bars

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So, in my profession (hair stylist) & in the winter, my hands are SUPER dry…I’d use regular lotion & it just wasn’t doing the trick! Plus, it’s made up of all sorts of crazy ingredients. I just wanted something easy to take along with me, something ultra moisturizing & healing, safe for my fragile hands & ALL NATURAL, with no artificial fragrances. I also wanted something that I could make myself =) These are the savior to my dry, sensitive hands!!!

DIY Solid Lotion Bars: (do not confuse these with SOAP, this is lotion, in a SOLID BAR FORM)

1 part beeswax (i used white pellets, yellow will work though!)
1 part coconut oil
1 part sweet almond oil (or other carrier oil of your choice)
essential oil of your choice: 25-50 drops (vanilla, peppermint, lavender, orange, etc)
Tray/mold of your choice! (amazon has a million, or Michaels)

*1 part = 1 cup (in this case!) **Use shea or cocoa butter in your recipe as well if you want to get snazzy (about 1/2 cup would be plenty!)

lotion bars download10

Normally in recipes you see the use of a double boiler & such. I don’t know why, but I always feel like that is hard work! Here is what I did. Mix everything in a bowl… & microwave!!! I heated it in 1 min increments as not to overheat. Stir at each minute. When fully melted & combined (you have to move quickly) Pour into your mold, & carefully put flat in the refrigerator. Let harden at least overnight. Pop out of mold & start moisturizing! It seems to be greasy at first, but I had no problem with it absorbing. You have to rub it between your palms for a moment to heat up & then use away! Excellent for on the go, just make sure you get a little tin to carry it in, otherwise you may have some meltage issues! These make perfect gifts as well! Store extras in the refrigerator to prevent from melting. **Especially good for dry knees, elbows, hands & feet! =)

Happy Moisturizing!!! 🙂