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 I have a quick and easy post for you today: DIY laundry powder. Making your own laundry powder is so simple. It takes 5 minutes! 

WHY DO I WANT TO MAKE MY OWN LAUNDRY POWDER?

I’m so glad you asked! Here are my top 3 reasons!

1. It’s easy
2. It’s frugal
3. It’s non-toxic

We already mentioned easy so we’ll move on to the frugal part. You’ll save quite a bit of money making your own versus buying detergent at the store and you only need to use two tablespoons per load. It’s literally pennies on the dollar! 

Conventional laundry products are full of chemical fragrances. They contain chemicals to get the dirt out of your clothes, and more chemicals to keep the dirt from sticking back onto your clothes in the rinse cycle. That’s just the tip of the iceberg and don’t even get me started on Dreft for babies. What a load of marketing that product is! Oy!
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Here’s what you need:

• Bowl
• Cheese grater
• Container with lid (I use an old, clean coconut oil tub for large batches)
• Borax
• Washing Soda
• Natural bar soap (I use this brand)
• Natural “Oxy Clean” (optional – I like this brand)
• Essential Oils (optional – this brand is my current favorite)

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Instructions:

1. Grate soap.
2. Place all powders and soap into a large bowl or container and mix well.
3. Add essential oils if using.
4. To Use: Add 2 TBS of laundry powder per load of laundry.

Have fun and enjoy!

Do you make laundry powder? Is your recipe similar?

Are you looking for a beautiful, functional, aromatic, easy-to-make gift for someone who is difficult to buy for? These citrus-rose bath salts are all those things and so much more! They are so simple to make yet a complete luxury experience! Sounds like a pretty good sales pitch!
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Baths are very therapeutic and health-promoting. They help pull toxins out of your body and send nutrients like magnesium (which most people are deficient in), herbs or essential oils into your pores. This is great for boosting the immune system, calming frazzled nerves and healing through aromatherapy. Make sure you have a shower filter to take the chlorine out of your water or you’ll be sending *that* straight to your organs. You can find good filters and water softeners here: http://watersoftenerguide.com

If you’ve got 5 minutes you can make this.

All you need are these ingredients that can easily be sourced online at Mountain Rose Herbs, Amazon and some local stores. Click on each ingredient link for purchasing suggestions.
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• Course or fine sea salt
• Epsom salts or magnesium flakes
• Rose petals (dried)
• Orange peel (dried)
• Citrus essential oil (like orange, grapefruit or tangerine…I use this brand)
• Rose essential oil (totally optional, it will smell awesome without it…I use this brand)

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Instructions:

1. Blend all ingredients together in a large bowl.
2. Spoon into decorative, airtight jars.

To Use

• Place a scoop (approx. 1/4 cup) in your bath water.
• Enjoy a nice, warm bath and take some you time!
• Don't allow rose petals and orange peels to go down the drain.

Stretch marks are no fun! 

For the belly butter I purchase all my essential oils here except for the neroli. That I get here. 

Click Here and head on over to Mama Natural to get the recipe for Blossoming Belly Baby Butter for Pregnant and Postpartum Mamas!

DIY personal care products can seem like a daunting undertaking, but they are fairly simple. It’s really just like cooking! What I do is take a base recipe and while using the same proportions, change butters, oils and scents to my custom preferences. 
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Since learning how to make my own body butters a few years ago, I’ve been experimenting with my favorite essential oil scents. So far, my favorites are chocolate-mint, orange, rose, and this heavenly vanilla scent with just a hint of mint.

Not much at all! I use a glass measuring bowl in a medium-sized pot as my double boiler, a bamboo skewer, measuring cups, and a KitchenAid or hand mixer. 
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Hibiscus tea has long been used to help regulate blood pressure and paired with other synergistic herbs is a wonderful, refreshing beverage. There’s just something about drinking flowers that just lifts your spirits and makes you smile!

My favorite way to drink hibiscus herbal tea is iced. It’s perfect for a hot, summer day! I love adding it to my water kefir and kombucha second ferments for a lovely, tangy flavor. It’s yummy hot as well but really works best as an iced tea.

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The Herbs & Their Benefits

The herbs used in this blend are chosen for a reason. They all contribute added benefits to the tea.

• Hibiscus is rich in cancer-fighting antioxidants and vitamin C. It may help calm hot flashes, it’s anti-inflammatory, great for the skin, boosts immunity, helps balance fluids in the body, and boosts metabolism. It’s also good for cholesterol and as I mentioned, blood pressure. 
• Rose Hips are chock full of flavor, vitamin C and antioxidants. They are great for constipation and also for the kidneys. 
• Peppermint is a catalyst herb that enhances the healing properties of all the other herbs. It’s also wonderful for digestion and can even help alleviate allergies. It can help ease nausea and headache pain. It’s anti-viral and anti-bacterial. It helps clear the respiratory tract when sick. 
• Lemongrass has healthy flavonoids and vitamins and minerals including iron, magnesium and potassium.
• Orange Peel obviously has vitamin C, antioxidants and flavonoids. They are great for digestion, indigestion and respiration. 
• Lemon Verbena smells so good growing in the garden! It’s wonderful for the nervous system and for emotional health. It’s uplifting and can help relieve stress. It’s also really great for digestion with is beneficial for overall health. 
• Wild Cherry Bark is one of my favorite herbs for respiratory and cardiovascular health. It helps reduces inflammation,  and is antispasmodic.

Like many of my herbal tea recipes, I use parts as the measurement of choice. A part is whatever you want it to be: a teaspoon, a tablespoon, a cup, etc. Links to where to find the herbs to make this tea are clickable in the recipe itself and additional links are provided below. 

Instructions:

1. Blend all the herbs together in large bowl.
2. Transfer to an airtight container.
   
   To Brew
3. Use 1-2 tsp of dried herbs per 1 cup of water.
4. Steep for 15 minutes or to desired strength.
5. Serve hot or cold, sweetened with raw honey or stevia.

Anyone wanting to add a little zip and zest to their day or who wants an overall healthy tea, hibiscus herbal tea is the one!


Be nourished. Be happy.

Enjoy!

​All of these herbs are also available at Mountain Rose Herbs or the Bulk Herb Store.

Making soap can be very intimidating. The powers that be will have everyone believing that lye is this big, bad scary substance to live in fear of.

The truth is, yes lye is caustic in it’s original form. Once it goes through it’s saponification process and turn oils into soap, it’s no longer caustic. 

Once you start making soap, you will be addicted and never want to stop! I am serious! There is something so amazingly pioneer-ish about making your own soap. Like Little House on the Prairie! 

I’ve been experimenting with a few recipes and really like this herbal soap recipe from Shalom Mama. I made an amazing holiday spice soap from it for Christmas gifts that everyone loved! 

I was asked by a friend recently to make favors for a baby shower that were egg shaped. I didn’t want to do an herbal infused soap but I did want to use herbs as a decorative part of the soap. 

I chose calendula to go with the earthy, patchouli, lavender and cedarwood essential oils that I used to add scent. You could use cornflowers, roses, lavender petals or any other colorful herb or flower. I found egg molds here.
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I turned to Shalom Mama’s tutorial once again but added and took away things as needed to suit what I was looking for. Please visit the herbal soap recipe to see what equipment you will need and for detailed pictures if you are a beginner soapmaker.

Method:
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1. If you are using large soap molds, line them with parchment or butcher paper. If using small molds you don’t need to line them. 
2. Weigh each of the oils either in a bowl or in a pot, taring the scale after each addition. Or if using a bowl, pour the oils one by one into a pot after measuring. Warm on the stove on low. 
3. Alternatively, heat the oils in a crock pot on low.
4. While heating the oils, put on a pair of gloves, a mask and eye goggles and add the lye to the water. I like to take my bowl of lye and water outside and place it in a bowl of ice water (or in the snow in the winter) to the fumes are not in my house. ALWAYS pour the lye into the water and not the other way around!
5. While the lye is cooling down to 110 degrees, get the temp of the oils up to 110 degrees. 
6. Pour the lye into the oils and blend using an immersion blender until it reaches trace. Trace is a thickening of the soap mixture so that when you run the blender over the top of the mixture, it makes ridges in it. Think of pudding consistency. 
7. Add in your essential oils and pour into molds. If using dried herbs, put them in the mold prior to adding soap. 
8. Place soap molds in a box with a lid for 48 hours. 
9. Unmold carefully and allow to sit for 3 weeks to harden. They can be used earlier, they just won’t be as hardened.
10. Clean all of your equipment thoroughly with hot water.

This recipe makes enough soap for 5 egg soap molds plus one loaf pan. If you are just making soap loaves, it makes two standard sized loaves. 

Have fun! 

All the soapmaking ingredients like oils and herbs can be found at Mountain Rose Herbs.

​Herbs to Help Relieve Stress and Encourage Healthy Weight Loss

Many women overeat because they are stressed out or emotional about something going on in their lives. They find comfort in food and eat even when they are not really hungry. Usually their food choices are sugars and carbs which causes weight gain. This can lead to even more stress which leads to more emotional eating…it’s a vicious cycle!

How do we solve this problem?

1. 1. Stop yourself from eating while stressed or emotional, and cut out sugar from your diet. This can be difficult and will take a conscious effort. Do it on a gradient, a little at a time for as long as it takes. Unhealthy habits take time to correct and carb and sugar cravings are not easy to conquer.
2. 2. Make a list of healthy activities you can replace the stressed, emotional eating with. Instead of grabbing a bag of cookies, go for a walk. Call a friend and go to the park or to the lake. Something active to help relieve that stress without eating.
3. 3. Utilize herbs  or essential oils  to help reduce stress by balancing hormones and strengthening your adrenal glands.

This is where DIY Slim Assist Adaptogen Tea comes in!

Herbs can help nourish the body and bring harmony.  They can aid digestion and elimination, help balance hormones, relieve stressed organs, and gently detox the body. 

The herbs chosen for this particular blend are:

• Nettle – My number one herb for nourishing the body with bioavailable vitamins and minerals.
• Chickweed – A common, little weed that can do big things! Great for aiding weight loss, nourishing, and anti-inflammatory. 
• Dandelion Leaf – Another common weed that most people use weed killer on. Nourishing, bitter herb that aids digestion. Great for detoxing the liver. 
• Ashwagandha Root – An Ayurvedic, adaptogenic herb which means it is very soothing to the nervous system. Helps calm the adrenals and relieve stress. 
• Shatavari Root – Another Ayurvedic, adaptogenic herb that relaxes the nervous system which can encouraging healing of stressed, hormone producing organs, like the adrenal glands. 
• Marshmallow Root – Soothing to the entire digestive tract, from the throat through elimination. 
• Slippery Elm Bark – As slippery as its name implies. Helps digestion and elimination, and also soothes.
• Sweet Cinnamon Chips – Adaptogenic in nature, and works as a catalyst between other herbs.
• Orange Peel – Another catalyst herbs that bring synergy to the blend as well as flavor and essential vitamins like C. 
• Fennel Seed – Wonderful digestive aid. Relieves gas and bloating, as well as stomach inflammation. 

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Instructions:
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1. Blend all of the herbs into a clean ball jar.
2. Cover with a lid and label.
3. To Brew: Place 1-2 tsp of dried herb blend into a cup of boiling water and allow to steep for up to 20 minutes.
4. It's best not to sweeten or sweeten just with stevia.
5. Drink 1-4 cups per day.

While this blend is gentle enough to drink daily, it’s best used as a 21-30 day detox type tea. Drink 1-4 cups daily while cutting back on sugar and refined carbs (like bread, muffins, cakes, etc.).

Don’t want to make it yourself? Buy it from my 90210 Organics Shop!

​Be nourished. Be Happy.
Enjoy!

My first post for this super fun series is an amazingly easy and heavenly scented DIY Winter Chai Sugar Scrub! Spoiler alert: If you’re on my Christmas list this year, this will be part of your gift! 

There’s something about a sugar scrub that draws me in. Maybe it’s because I didn’t eat sugar for over six months, or that it just makes my skin feel so amazing! Especially in the winter when skin gets very dry, sugar helps to buff off the dead skin cells and exfoliate. 

Using this chai-scented scrub makes taking a shower a spa-like experience. If you’re a mom like me, you know that just getting a shower can be a luxury sometimes. This way you can kick it up a notch! The exotic aroma puts me in mind of my favorite winter memories of spice cookies and yummy tea by the fire. Fun times! 

My favorite winter beverage is chai. I have my own blend that I’ve shared with all of you through my shop and the recipe here. This is the blend that I use in this scrub. It’s super simple to make and very easy to find the ingredients. You can get them at Amazon, Frontier, or Mountain Rose Herbs. You can usually find them locally as well because they are common spices.
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Instructions:

1. Blend all ingredients together.
2. For a wetter scrub, use more oil. Use less for a drier scrub.
3. Spoon into an airtight jar.
4. Using a spoon or wooden scoop, use a small amount as a body scrub in the shower.
5. Rinse thoroughly.

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Just making this aromatic scrub will make everyone think you’ve been baking! If you use edible oils like coconut, you can add this scrub as a sweetener to your favorite winter beverage…not that I’m condoning sugar consumption… 🙂

If you’re looking for easy gifts this holiday season, the recipe can easily be doubled, or tripled, or more to meet your gift giving needs. This will be a hit with anyone you give it to for sure!

I remember when I first heard of hard lotion. “Lotion’s not hard. What is this stuff? It sounds ridiculous!” But then I tried it.
 
No mess, no goop and nothing your toddler can smear all over your bedroom wall. No one’s had that happen, right? All in a convenient little bar.  
 
These are perfect to throw in your purse or the diaper bag to whip out whenever you get that itchy, dry skin feeling. I also like keeping one by the sink next to my semi-handmade hand soap to moisturize my hands after I do the dishes or get some cleaning done. I hate using cleaning gloves, and I feel safe not doing so since I make my own cleaners, but it can make my hands dry.
 
Use a mold and these bars look so elegant and chic in a guest bathroom. You can even include it with some diy whipped body butter and this room and linen spray in a little basket left in the guest room. Perfect for welcoming any overnight guests. They’re really so simple to put together, but the results are impressive.  
 
I’ve recently discovered the world of essential oils (Sarah’s note: I get mine here) and they’re super useful, especially with homemade body care products. If you prefer to use herbs though, this is a great way to use an infused oil. Calendula is my go to herb for skin care since it’s great for a plethora of skin issues. I use it along with lavender and plantain to make a salve to help with diaper rashes and eczema.
 
Below are some herbs and essential oils you can use in your lotion bars. This is not an exhaustive list by any means, but it’s enough to get you started. Even though some of these are good for rashes and broken skin, I can’t recommend rubbing a hard lotion bar on broken skin as it will most likely irritate the area more.  

 Essential Oils For Skin 

• Tea Tree – good for acne, dermatitis, eczema, rashes, sunburn
• Lavender – useful for dry skin, itchy skin, stretch marks, wrinkles
• Frankincense – helps prevent scarring, wrinkles
• Geranium – useful for dry skin, diaper rash, wrinkles
• Helichrysum – reduces scarring, wrinkles
• Myrrh – good for chapped dry skin, stretch marks, wrinkles
• Roman chamomile– useful for dry skin
• Sandalwood – useful for dry skin, wrinkles

Herbs for Skin

• Calendula – useful for eczema, psoriasis, sunburns, burns, inflamed skin
• Plantain – useful for eczema, psoriasis, rashes, damaged skin
• Comfrey– useful for eczema, psoriasis, diaper rash, burns, and sores. 

​If you’re infusing the coconut oil with herbs, see how I do it here.
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Instructions:
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1. Add all ingredients, except for essential oils, into a double boiler (I use a glass bowl on top of a sauce pan).
2. Stir occasionally with a metal spoon until everything has melted.
3. Remove from the heat and add your essential oils. I like adding 10 drops per 1 oz.
4. Give this a quick stir and immediately pour into your molds. Let cool at room temperature until solid.
5. For easy removal put them in the freezer for about 10 minutes before popping them out. Don’t leave them in for long though otherwise they’ll split.

​​I like putting these into little organza gift bags to giveaway. These tins are a great way to store the bars as well, especially when toting them around in your purse.
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All of these herbs are also available at Mountain Rose Herbs or the Bulk Herb Store.
Resources:

Practical Herbalism
Modern Essentials
 

About Jamie:   
Jamie writes about diy projects, healthy recipes and natural living on her blog, How To Just About Anything. She attended Grace College for journalism and is currently enrolled in natural health courses. She runs her own bodycare business and is the development director for A’amarna Toothpaste. Come say hi on her Facebook page, follow her on Pinterest, or check out her blog!