Archives for posts with tag: Essential oils

Peppermint Jojoba Lip Balm

December 5, 2016 //
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Sometimes when I am feeling a little overwhelmed I stop what I am doing and make some kind of apothecary product. It is Monday and I am already at that point this week. If I am being honest, it is just carrying over from last week (I have/had pneumonia) and the weekend. I am on the verge of turning in my first draft of my research paper and well, that is just stressful.

So, when I am feeling like why am I even studying herbal medicine….I definitely cannot do this….no way…I am not smart enough…graduate school with two kids, a home, a husband, volunteering, etc is way too much….how will I get everything done….I should NOT register for next semester….I stop, and I make something. It brings me back to why I am doing this. I am doing this because I love to make products and use herbal teas to treat illness. I am doing this because I want that knowledge behind creating things.

Today I whipped up some lip balm! It has been Jackson approved. My children love chapstick and lip balm. Both boys. Alex wouldn’t try it because it was in a tin and not a tube and he is 2 and 2 year olds are detail oriented. “It doesn’t look like lip balm because it is not in a tube, therefore, it is definitely not lip balm and that is a hard pass, I want some cheese.” That is basically how it went down.

Without further adieu, here is the recipe. Also, family/friends, if you would like a tin for the holidays, please let me know!

Peppermint Jojoba Lip Balm

  • 1 Tablespoon beeswax pellets
  • 1 Tablespoon refined shea butter
  • `1/2 Tablespoon Jojoba oil
  • 6 drops peppermint essential oil

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Using a double boiler, heat the beeswax, shea butter, and jojoba oil until melted. I used a whisk to whip them together once the pellets were completely melted. Use can also use an electric mixer if you want. I couldn’t find mine.

Add the peppermint oil, and continue to whisk. If it starts to harden, you can put it back over the boiling water as you whisk it. You may need to use an oven mitt if the metal is hot.

Then pour the mixture into small tins or lip balm tubes.

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Still warm, so it is a bit translucent

These are 1oz tins. You can double, triple, etc the recipe to make larger batches. This made almost two full tins. For larger batches, the electric whisk may be a better option. I think the hand whisk worked well with this small batch. Peppermint can be overwhelming as an oil. It is powerful! I erred on the side of caution with it. You can play with the drops, one or two more if you want it stronger, one less if you want even more subtlety.

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Cooled and ready to use!

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Categories apothecary, Aromatherapy, Healthy Living

DIY Kids Sleep Sachet

October 28, 2016 //
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My five year old is sick. Again. Such is life during cold and flu season for us. He has asthma, and subsequently he is very susceptible to all sorts of respiratory viruses. I have been begging him to nap all day. Five year olds do NOT like to nap. Especially my five year old. I decided to look for something to make to help him. I was browsing one of my favorite essential oil sites, and was inspired by them. Eden’s Garden. They have a line specifically designed for tiny humans. I may have bought every single oil in their line (so thankful for that this afternoon) They have a recipe for a sleepy time sachet. Using their sleepy time oil. I altered it a little bit, because I had different materials available.

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DIY Kids Sleep Sachet

Amount of rice/lavender will vary based on the size of you sachet. I happen to have a stock of muslin sachets in my herbs cabinet. For instructions on how to sew your own, you can refer to Eden’s Garden.

1 muslin sachet/bag

Handful of rice. I used brown rice, because that is what we have

Scoop of dried lavender

10-15 drops of Eden’s Garden Sleepy Time essential oil

Combine all of the ingredients in a zip baggie. Shake and mix well. Shake shake shake!

Pour the contents into the muslin bag. You can use a funnel if desired. I did not, I just kind of created a funnel with the zip bag.

Tied the muslin bag several times. I did 3 ties. Also, if you have smaller children who like to be adventurous coughcoughalexcoughcough you could sew this bag at the top as well.

This took  me a whopping 5 minutes to whip up. Most of my time was spent taking the photos. If you’re not photographing for your blog post, then the time should be even less! I did not heat this in the microwave, the scent was strong enough for me after I got it tied up. But Eden’s Garden does note you can warm it as well as warming it if the scent seems to be fading. It is reusable in the sense that you can also add more oil to it as the scent fades. Reusable and lovely smelling? Count me in!

He is not asleep in that photo. He was just looking down, but anything to help him relax. I am hopeful at some point he will doze off, even for a little while. If not, this will at least promote relaxation in general and his body can calm down. I will transfer this to his bed tonight for actual sleepy time.

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Categories Aromatherapy, Uncategorized

Vanilla Sugar Coffee Scrub

October 3, 2016 //
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You may not know, but I am back in school. Grad school to be exact. I am pursuing my Masters in Herbal Medicine. This may or may not have been a wise decision on my part at this moment in my life. It is already so hectic and I am 3 weeks in. Today I was feeling sluggish. I couldn’t sleep last night. I am not sure why, and my usual tricks didn’t really work. These nights happen I suppose. I have a very sick 5 year old. We made a trip to the doctor for the FOURTH time in two weeks. Long story short, it is one of those days, you know?

I felt inspired to do something just for me. I wanted to take a break from reading, cleaning, and caring for tiny humans. I was inspired by my third cup of coffee and my herbal med reading. There are not many things you will find me willingly use sugar for. This is the exception!

I whipped up a rather delicious smelling hand/body coffee sugar scrub. The measurements do not have to be precise. You can play with it a little. I ended up adding an additional scoop of sugar.

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Coffee sugar scrub

 

Vanilla Sugar Coffee Scrub

  • 1/2 cup coffee grounds
  • 1 cup sugar + 1 extra scoop
  • 1/4 c fractioned coconut oil. If you do not have fractioned, you will have to warm your coconut oil to help liquify it
  • 1tsp, approx, vanilla extract
  • 2 drops cinnamon leaf essential oil (be mindful that cinnamon essential oil is a very powerful aromatic, so less is more)

Combine all in a bowl and mix well. If you feel it is too liquidy then you can add more sugar or coffee grounds. Play with the texture until you get what you will find enjoyable. Store in an airtight jar or container. I chose my mason jar because 1. I LOVE mason jars and 2. I have a bunch laying around.

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Categories Aromatherapy