DIY Air Freshener and Pillow Spray

Even if you don't use essential oils for their healing properties, I think one thing we can all agree on is that they smell amazing! In my quest to reduce the toxins in my house, I decided my next project would be air freshener and a pillow mist. I'm not going to write a paragraph boring you explaining why air fresheners are terrible for you, so here is this image I found and it sums it up pretty well.

Here's what you'll need

• Vodka- I use the cheapest kind for this
• Glass bottles that spray- glass is the best to store your oils in!
• I used the small blue for a pillow mist
• I wanted a larger bottle for my air freshener so I bought a cheap plastic cleaning bottle from walmart for the spritzer, and used a recycled glass bottle from my drinking water. 
• Essential oils- head on over to my page to find out how to save 24% off retail
• Tap water

Air Freshener

For this I chose citrus oils because they are energizing and up-lifting. I combined 5 drops of each oil (grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, lime, and orange) with 1.5 cups of water, and a half of cup of vodka. 

Pillow Spray

I diffuse lavender it on nights my mind is racing and I'm have trouble sleeping. For my pillow spray I decided to add just the lavender. Since this bottle was a lot smaller I took, 1/2 cup water, 8-10 drops of lavender, and about 2 table spoons of vodka.

My favorite brand of Essential Oils

This diagram explains exactly why I only use young living essential oils! If they're not safe to consume, its because they're full of additives that isn't safe for your body either! Read more up on them here. If you have any questions, shoot me an email!

DIY foaming face wash

What you will need

• 1 cup filtered water
• 1/4 cup liquid castile soap, I used Dr. Bronner's
• 5 teaspoons jojoba oil, or another carrier oil of your choice 
• 2 tablespoons raw honey
• 10 drops lemon essential oil
• 10 drops of grapefruit essential oil

Instructions

Add all of the ingredient in the order listed. Mixing after adding each one. I used and old face wash bottle and since I had so much left over, I just stored it in a mason jar and will refill as needed. One- two pumps at morning and at night is all you need. I follow it with my daily moisturizer. 

You can adjust the essential oils to meet your skin needs. I will be adding myrrh once my order comes in :) I suggest when using citrus oils, be careful when going into direct sunlight. These oils can cause your skin to burn more easily.

DIY Dish Soap

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups boiling water
• 1/4 cup finely grated castile bar soap 
• 1 tablespoon washing soda
• 1/4 cup liquid castile soap
• 10-30 drops of Young Living essential oils (optional; I use 10 drops orange, 10 drops of lemon, 15 drops of thieves )
• Old dish wash container

Instructions

Add grated castile soap to boiling water and stir until dissolved. 

1. Add washing soda and stir.
2. Add liquid castile soap and stir.
3. Let mixture cool before adding essential oils.
4. Transfer to recycled soap dispenser and use as you would your store purchased dish soap. 
5. Notes
6. Mixture will thicken as it continues to sit. If mixture is too thin add more washing soda next time, this will depend on the thickness of it. If mixture is too thick add some warm water and it should loosen it up.

DIY Dishwashing Detergent Pods

In my hunt for homemade laundry detergent I came across this recipe for homemade dishwashing detergent. All of the recipes I could find used lemon juice concentrate, but to ensure the all natural ingredients I replaced lemon juice with lemon essential oil. You can save money by purchasing a starting kit which includes a home diffuser (valued at $98.68) and 11 essential oils (including lemon and thieves which is used in this recipe)! Click here if you're interested.

Here's what you'll need

• Borax- 1 cup
• Washing soda- 1 cup
• Epsom salt- 1/2 cup
• Water- 1/2 cup
• Lemon essential oil- 20 drops
• Thieves essential oil- 10 drops
• Ice cup trays- 3
• Air tight container to store pods in- I used old drink glass that tea came in

Mix borax, washing soda, and epsom salt in a large bowl. Add water to measuring cup and add essentials oils. Next add water/oil to dry ingredients. Once you mix well, add mixture to ice cup trays and let sit over night. Once they have the chance to harden pop out of the tray and store in air tight container.

Use one pod per wash. I also add white vinegar as a rinse agent.

Carpet Powder easy as 1-2-3

The next DIY project I wanted to tackle was carpet powder. You might wonder why I would take the time to make my own when I could just buy it at the dollar store... but did you know the common ingredients found in carpet cleaner are perchloroethylene and naphthalene? The fumes given off by these ingredients can cause cancer or damage your liver.

If you're anything like myself your dog is considered part of the family. If you don't decide to make the switch for yourself, think about the potential damage it could cause your fur babies.

With just 3 simple ingredients you could make your very own carpet cleaner... and if you made your own detergent then you should already have these ingredients available.

What you will need

• Baking soda- 2 cups
• Borax- 2 tablespoons
• Young Living Essential oils 40-50 drops (I used orange- a natural flee repellent, lemon- adds a refreshing smell, thieves- helps eliminate mold and is used for it's antibacterial properties)
• Recycled Parmesan cheese container

Instructions

Combine baking soda and borax in large bowl; add essential oils to dry mixture (it will cause the powder to clump, just use a fork to break those up); pour into cheese container; apply to carpet and let sit 15-20 mins before vacuuming.

Fabric Softener w/2 simple ingredients

After making homemade laundry detergent I came across this recipe for fabric softener. I don't think I've ever used a fabric softener before, unless it was already included in my store bought detergent but the recipe was so easy (and it aloud me to use my oils..yes!!) I decided to give it a try.

Here's what you'll need

• epsom salt- 2 cups
• Young Living essential oils- pick your own scents, I used lime and lavender. Purification would be awesome too!
• Jar w/ an air tight lid

Instructions

Take two cups of epsom salt and place into a large bowl. Add 40 drops of essential oil (I used 20 lavender and 20 of lime). The oil will cause the salt to form clumps but I just  take a fork and break them up. Pour into container and you're done! You could just add this to your laundry detergent but I keep it separate and add 2 tablespoons per load.

Laundry Detergent

As part of my New Years Resolution I decided I wanted to not only watch the foods I consume but also eliminate the toxins in my cleaning and beauty products. In my effort to do so, I decided to start with some easy.. Laundry Detergent. I searched the internet and almost all recipes included three common ingredients; borax, washing soda, and fels-naptha soap.

For this recipe you will need

• 1 box of Borax- 4 lbs 12 oz
• 1 box of Washing Soda- 3 lbs 7 oz
• 1 box of Baking Soda- 4 lbs
• 3 bars of Soap- I used Fels Naptha
• Container for storing

Instructions

Finely grate Fels Naptha. Combine all ingredients together and store in container of your choice. Use 1/4 cup of detergent per load.

I also add a tablespoon of homemade fabric softener.



Journey to Healthy Living

Hello my names Lauren and I invite you to join me on my journey of healthy living. For the past couple of years I have been aware of the harmful additives that companies add to foods but I didn't think twice about the harmful chemicals in our household cleaning products and beauty supplies. I was introduced to young living essential oils a couple months ago by my wonderful friend Laura, and I was immediately hooked. After a bad experience with prescription medicine I swore I wouldn't try any of that crap again. Name a problem/symptom and there's an oil for that! After getting hooked on essential oils the more and more I read up on them, the more I decided I needed to change not only some of my eating habits but everything I came into contact with.

Three months ago, my boy friend and I moved out on our own and I now had the choice of the products I used for my home. I decided to start this blog as a way to share the recipes and my ideas with you to try out for yourself.