Tag: DIY

Categories
Healthy Home recipe

DIY: Mouth Rinse

Patchouli is part of the mint family and pairs well with Peppermint for a simple, effective mouth rinse.

Mouthwash is a handy tool for disinfecting the mouth and freshening the breath, but it has some downsides as well. A DIY Mouth Rinse recipe is a perfect alternative for the many people who avoid mouthwashes due to alcohol. The majority of the commercial brands contain alcohol in it. On the other hand, some people avoid it due to artificial colors, fluoride, and other additives.

Still, there are some people who just want a more cost effective and natural way to use your oils to support your oral health in a safe and cost effective way. We enjoy this DIY Mouth Rinse Recipe so much I wanted to share this with you.

Benefits of the ingredients

Baking Soda

Many teeth-whitening products and toothpastes include baking soda because it has the ability to remove minor stains from the teeth. Baking soda is made up of a chemical compound that acts as an abrasive that can help to remove teeth stains, helping your smile look whiter. When using baking soda for teeth-whitening purposes, be aware that too much baking soda can damage tooth enamel—the coating that protects your teeth.

Salt

Oil and water don’t mix well and in addition to the salt adding a little flavor the minerals in the salt water will help to evenly distributed the essential oil throughout the mouth rinse as well as extend the shelf life by minimizing bacterial growth… not that it will be sitting very long! (you may even want to make a larger batch)

Peppermint

Peppermint is commonly used in oral health products for mint flavoring, and to help freshen breath. On its own, Peppermint essential oil can be used to freshen breath, and makes the perfect addition to a homemade mouth rinse.

Patchouli

A member of the mint family, Patchouli is a fitting companion for Peppermint oil and baking soda in this DIY Mouth Rinse recipe, as it is used in many scented products for its distinct aroma. It also has freshening and deodorizing properties as well.

DIY Mouth Rinse Recipe

Ingredients
½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt (either ionized or pink Himalayan)

½ teaspoon xylitol (optional sweetener)

10 drops minerals (optional)

1/2 cup water

2 drops Peppermint oil

1 drop Patchouli oil

Instructions

  1. Combine baking soda, salt, xylitol (if used) and water in a larger 2 cup glass measuring cup.
  2. Add essential oils and mineral drops (if used) and stir with a stainless straw metal spoon to mix well.
  3. Pour mixture into a small bottle with a stopper. I like this 125ml glass topper bottle from amazon or you can clean and sterilize another small necked bottle with a cap.
  4. Swish mixture around in mouth for one minute before spitting into the sink.

Additional oils recommended to support Oral health and an effective DIY Mouth Rinse would include —

Jennie Knourek

Herbalist, Phyto/Aromatherapist & Wellness Advocate. Trained Massage Therapist

WA#2923893

Owner/Admin of OpenRoadEssentials.com and Crunchy Biker Clubhouse and Healthy Happy Strong Tribe on Facebook

Join my FREE Online Class to Learn More about Essential Oils

Categories
General Wellness Skin Support Women

Homemade Lotion Recipes:

Recipe # 1: A Non-Greasy Moisturizer

Ingredients

  • 1 cup strong-brewed herbal tea or aloe vera gel (I used aloe vera gel)
  • ½ cup grated beeswax
  • 1 tsp cocoa butter or shea butter
  • ½ cup sweet almond, grapeseed, or jojoba oil
  • 1 tsp Vitamin E oil
  • 15 drops essential oil (where to find 100% pure essential oils) added after cooling and before final blending

Instructions

  1. In a medium-sized bowl combine aloe vera gel/tea, essential oils, and Vitamin E oil. Set aside for later, allowing it to come to room temp. (Sometimes it even helps to set this in a warm water bath to bring it closer to the temperature of the oil/wax mixture you’ll be adding it to. This helps it emulsify.)
  2. Add grated beeswax, butter and oil to a glass measuring cup. Place measuring cup in a small pot of water and bring water to a gentle boil. Heat, stirring occasionally until beeswax is completely melted then carefully remove measuring cup from the pot.  (I prefer this double boiler application to the microwave so the it gets hot enough, but not too hot. This will help reduce the cooling time)
  3. Pour beeswax/oil mixture into a blender and allow to cool. (Move on to step 4 when it has cooled down but is still soft.)
  4. Once cooled, turn the blender on LOW. Remove top of the blender and pour aloe vera mixture in a SLOW, continuous stream.
  5. Stop blender as often as needed to run a spatula around sides to incorporate ingredients. If some liquid is pooling at the top, stop frequently to push it around with a spatula. (This step may take as long as 10-15 minutes, and patience is key!) Continue blending until desired consistency is reached. (I use and highly recommend a Vitamix blender.)
  6. Transfer moisturizer to clean jars and refrigerate any portion that will not be used up within a few weeks.

Recipe # 2: Conditioning Lotion Recipe

Ingredients

  • ½ cup almond oil (or jojoba oil, or any other liquid oil)
  • ¼ cup coconut oil
  • ¼ cup beeswax
  • 1 tsp vitamin E oil (optional)
  • 2 TBSP shea butter (or cocoa butter, optional)
  • essential oils (the purest and most cost effective oils here)
  • vanilla extract 

Instructions

  • Combine the liquid oil, coconut oil, beeswax, and shea cocoa butter if using, in a double boiler or a glass bowl on top of a simmering pan of water.
  • Stir occasionally as the ingredients melt.
  • When all ingredients are completely melted, add the vitamin E oil if using and any essential oils or scents like vanilla.
  • Pour into a glass jar or tin for storage. Small mason jars work perfectly for this.

Notes

  • Use as you would regular lotion. This will not pump well in a lotion pump!
  • This lotion is ultra-moisturizing and more oily than water-based lotion option in Recipe #1, so you won’t need to use as much.
  • It also has a longer shelf life than some homemade lotion recipes since all ingredients are already shelf stable and no water is added.
  • Use within 6 months for best moisturizing benefits.

A little goes a long way! This lotion is incredibly nourishing and is also great for diaper rash on baby, for eczema, and for preventing stretch marks!

Author: Jennie Knourek – Open Road Essentials

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Categories
General Wellness Men Skin Support

DIY: Beard Balm

Remember our Beard oil post.  Pretty simple huh? Just combine carrier oils with desired essential oils shake and go!  Well beard balm is almost as easy but we are adding some bee wax to solidify the end result and contribute to some styling hold.

What’s beard balm and what’s it all about?
Beard balm is another beard care product that is perfect for both making your beard softer and styling it.

So, what do I choose? Beard oil or beard balm?

Keep in mind that this doesn’t mean that beard balm replaces beard oil but it’s more like a great addition to your beard care kit if you want to soften your mane and shape it while keeping it naturally soft.

Yes, naturally soft as opposed to using beard wax.

More specifically, beard wax is mainly used for styling and some waxes give a bit of unnatural hold -depending always on the actual product. Therefore, the beard balm falls right in between beard oil and beard wax both in terms of softening your beard and styling it.

But let’s talk about what beard balm consists of.

Most all natural beard balm recipes are made of four types of ingredients.

Beeswax
Butters
Carrier oils
Essential oils
If you remember from the beard oil recipes that we discussed in a previous article, a beard oil is a mix of carrier and essentials oil. Now, with the beard balm recipe, you need to add two more ingredients.

If you or the man in your life is the proud owner of a beard, you may already know that beard hair can be coarse, bushy, dry and tough to tame.

This beeswax-based balm helps maintain the luster of coarse facial hair, making beard grooming more manageable. Beard balm makes a wonderful gift and is also fabulous for unruly eyebrows and mustaches.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 Tbsp. beeswax
  • 4 Tbsp. apricot kernel oil
  • 2 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 2-3 drops cedarwood essential oil
  • 2-3 drops clary sage essential oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Melt beeswax in a double boiler, or in a small glass jar set inside a pot of warm water.
  2. Once wax has cooled, but is still liquid, stir in oils.
  3. Pour mixture into a jar or tin and cool completely.
  4. Rub balm onto hair at the roots and work through to ends with a comb.

Why would you want to make your own beard balm?
That’s a very good question…

I think that there are essentially four reasons why you would want to make your own beard balm recipe.

Save money
Most beard balms that are available on the market cost between $10 and $30 for 1oz to 4oz.

Making a beard balm at home will surely save you some money. But this was something you already thought about.

Let’s get to the calculations then and understand what I’m saying.

Say that you want to make the most basic beard balm recipe which requires only a few ingredients. For the sake of argument, we assume that these are beeswax, shea butter, argan oil, sweet almond oil and tea tree oil.

Another simple recipe could be the following:

1 tablespoon of beeswax
1.5 teaspoon of shea butter
1 teaspoon of sweet almond oil
1 teaspoon of argan oil
4 drops of tea tree oil
This beard balm recipe gives you approx. 3oz worth of product.

All these ingredients would cost you a total of around $35.38.

Have you thought how much beard balm can these ingredients make?

If you use the entire volume of all the ingredients, you can easily end up with 30oz of beard balm!

$35.38 for 30oz beard balm…

Cost of 30oz – DIY beard balm recipe Vs retail beard balm
, even if you buy the cheapest beard balm that is available on amazon, for 30oz worth of product you’ll end up paying a bit below than $195.00…!!!

Now, comparing it again with the Honest Amish beard balm in a 2oz can, the cost of making your own beard balm with beeswax -and put in a 2oz can, would a bit above $2.

Cost per oz – DIY beard balm recipe Vs retail beard balm
How does a homemade beard balm sound to you now?

 

Additional Recipes

Manly Recipe

2 tbsp Beeswax
3 tbsp Shea butter
3 tsp Jojoba oil
2 tsp Sunflower oil
3 drops tea tree oil
2 drops of Bergamot essential oil

O.R.E.O Woodland Balm

2 Tbsp beeswax, coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp shea butter
1 Tbsp cocoa butter
3 tsp jojoba oil
2 tsp rosehip oil
4 drops Siberian Fir
4-8 drops cedar essential oil
1 drop rosemary essential oil

Basic Beard balm recipe

2 tbsp of beeswax
4 tbsp of coconut oil
2 tbsp of shea butter
5 tbsp of almond oil
10 drops of your favorite essential oil

Spiky Frank balm recipe

1/4 cup shea butter
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 tablespoons sweet almond oil
2 tablespoons cacao butter
2 tablespoons beeswax pastilles
20 drops Spikenard
14 drops Frankincense
5 drops Clove

OREO balm recipe

Woodsy Yet Sweet
2 tbsp of beeswax
2 tbsp of jojoba oil
1 tbsp of shea butter
1 tbsp of rosehip oil
4-5 drops of vitamin E oil (optional)
8 drops of Siberian Fir essential oil
6 drops of Balance blend essential oil
4 drops of Frankincense essential oil
2 drops of Rosemary essential oil
2 drops of Bergamot essential oil

 

Categories
General Wellness Kids and Pets Men

D.I.Y. – Tasty Drops for Constipation

Let’s talk a little about the important difference between occasional bouts of constipation and chronic issues.

Constipation can occur for any number of reasons including stress, dehydration, poor diet, or holding it because you are too shy to use public facilities.  However, research suggest that chronic constipation may indicate a more serious issue such as an imbalance of gut flora, allergies, hypothyroidism or inadequate levels of minerals in your system.  (source, source, source)

How often during a  physical exam have we advised our physician of chronic constipation, only to be referred to a daily dose of Miralax instead of working to identify and address the root cause.  And those of you with little ones have heard the same thing as well.  As our Children are often effected with chronic constipation due to developing digestive systems.   This is one of the many reasons we are empowered to support our health first at home and why we seek a new practitioner willing to partner in our health.

So why Not Miralax?

Shockingly not so long ago, according to pediatrician Dr. Scott Cohen, Miralax is often prescribed to children for months and sometimes years.  “We literally give it like water,” he told the New York Times.

  1. Miralax is not even approved for children.
  2. Recommended for a maximum of seven days in adults.

Getting Things Moving with these Tasty Drops

There are natural and dietary way to encourage normal bowel function.  The use of Coconut Oil has become more and more popular in our current society and for good reason.  I have read that the medium chain triglycerides that make up coconut oil don’t cause a person to store the fat, and they have limited absorption in the small intestine so it tends to pass right through.  That is why this is a key ingredient in this recipe.

Just two-four servings of these taste drops and between 8-10 hours later, relief.  Keep the children at two drops and Adults can take four and possible more for the desired results.

Constipation Tasty Drops

INGREDIENTS

1 CUP – organic extra virgin coconut oil, melted

1/4 – 1/3 CUP – lemon juice (mix and taste as you go along)*

8-10 drops – doTERRA Lemon Essential Oil

2 Tbls – local honey, maple syrup, agave or coconut sugar

1/4 Tsp – pink Himalayan salt

  • Note:  You can also reduce the lemon juice and add pureed fruit.  Just be sure if the fruit is frozen that it is completely thawed and pureed before mixing it with the coconut oil.  You could also use a sugar free jam for added flavor and color.  Our second batch picture was a 1/4 cup of frozen blue berries and raspberries that were thawed and pureed prior to mixing with other ingredients.

EQUIPMENT

1-2 Silicon molds ( I use silicone small ice-cube trays)

Food Processor or Immersion blender

INSTRUCTIONS  (Very Simple)

To prevent separation prior to freezing, place the molds in the freezer while you are blending the ingredients.  (note: the white drops in the picture are the first batch I made with just the lemon juice and although my molds were chilled there was some separation of the drops and they weren’t completely solid in form)

Combine ingredients in a processor or handheld mixer and pour into the molds.

Everything has to be very well blended into the oil, so make sure as you are pouring that bit isn’t sugar or honey-heavy.

Place molds into the freezer for an hour.  Then you can store them in a mason jar in the fridge and enjoy as needed.

Other Things That May Help

Aloe Vera Juice

Slippery Elm Bark Powder

Squatty Potty