My Lips Don't Lie... Or Was That Hips?

Alright lovely ladies, here is recipe number ONE for skin care products!  Lip Balm!  I've tried many different recipes over the last 15 years, and being unsatisfied with many of them I ended up making my own, and that's what I've been selling for the last 10 years.  So if you've tried my lip balm and liked it, this is the recipe!  I like my lip balm smooth and creamy, not too oily or waxy which most recipes are (in my opinion.)  I feel most recipes add too much wax which in turn makes the lip balm more stiff, and when you rub it on your lips less actually comes off.  I think lip balm should glide onto your lips easily without much effort, or without having to repeatedly rub the lip balm across your lips just to get enough off.
However, if you like a stiffer lip balm, you can always just throw in a little extra bees wax and firm this recipe up a bit.

There is 3 parts to any truly wonderful lip balm or salve.

1. Wax.  If you love bees wax, that is of course the go to wax for balms and salves.  But if you have an allergy, or some other reason you need to avoid bees wax you can use other waxes like soy wax, or candelilla wax.

2.  Butter.  For a lip balm or salve to be rich and creamy and not "thin" feeling, it needs some type of butter added to it.  My favorite is shea butter, but you can also add mango butter, cocoa butter, or hemp seed butter.  Don't use the thinner butters, which aren't actually true butters at all but dried plant juices mixed in coconut oil.  They are great to use, but don't have the creaminess of a true butter (since they are actually powders in coconut oil.)  These "untrue" butters include: aloe butter, blueberry butter, cranberry butter, lemon butter and others.

3. Oil.  This probably goes without saying, but you have to have good oils to make a good lip balm.  My lip balms have changed over the years as I get bored with one oil and try another, in fact sometimes they change from week to week!  Some great rich oils to use alone, or as a mix are: extra virgin olive oil, sweet almond oil, avocado oil, castor oil (in small amounts), and jojoba oil.  Oils that are thinner and in my opinion don't produce a soothing enough lip balm are: coconut oil, grapeseed oil, sesame oil, and apricot seed oil.  Now there is nothing wrong with using these oils, they are just thinner and don't have the richness and body that I love in a lip balm.


Recipe:

4 oz oil
1 oz bees wax
1/2 oz butter
Essential oils to taste  (peppermint, spearmint, or lavender are good choices for dry lips.  You can also use citrus oils, but be careful if you are outdoors a lot as they can cause sun sensitivity.)

This is my basic recipe.  You can mix and match oils, most of the lip balms I sell at the store use olive oils as the only oil. (just so you know if you want them to be just like mine)


Step 1: Melt your bees wax over low heat.  I usually make batches with a pound or two of bees wax at a time, it is more important when making a large quantity to watch your heat.  But when making a small batch, put the bees wax in the bottom of a stainless pan, and turn the heat to medium low.  You can gently "slosh" the pan around to stir it a little as it is melting, but don't use a spoon as most of your wax will just attach to the spoon if you do.  Why do you melt your wax first?  Because if you add it to your oils and then try to melt it, you have to bring up your oils to a much higher temperature than is ideal.  You want to preserve the integrity of your natural oils by using as low of a heat as possible.  So melt your waxes first, and add the oils to them later.

Step 2: Add the butter.  Next add your butter in and melt it completely.
One frustration that many people have with using butter in a lip balm is that it may become "grainy" after some time.  So when you rub on your lip balm a few months later it feels like there are crystals in it.  The trick to getting around this is to melt your butters at a low temperature for a longer time.  Butters melt very fast, and it is easy to think you are done as soon as the last chuck melts away, but patience really pays off here in making a wonderful creamy lip balm that will stay that way.  Trust me, it took A LOT of grainy lip balm over the years for me to finally figure out something that works every time.  In this step we aren't heating it for long, we will cover that in the next step.  For now just put the butter in the pot, wait for it to disappear, then move to step 3.

Step 3: Just as soon as the last piece of butter melts into the pool of bees wax, add your oils.  It can be one oil, or a mixture of several.  When you add the cold oils, you may notice the bees wax butter mixture starts to freeze up again.  This is very normal.  Just mix your oils in with a spoon (this should be the frist time you have stirred the mixture with a spoon.) and give it a few more minutes on medium low heat to melt back down.  The reason we did not melt the shea butter for a longer amount of time in the last step is because just the bees wax and butter would burn.  If heated over a longer period of time, even at low heat, bees wax turns very dark and strong and while it isn't "bad" it can overpower your lip balm both from it's strong smell and taste.  You have to wait till you add the oils so that there is a buffer between the wax and the heat.
Now comes the waiting part.  There are two methods I have found work great for un-grainy lip balm.

The Frist Method:  Once your pan has melted down to a silky pan of oil again, with no chunks of butter or bees wax, turn your pan all the way down to the lowest heat possible. (you could even turn your burner off for 5 min and then back on for 5 a couple times.)  You don't want to be cooking the lip balm, just keeping it warm enough it stays liquid.   Keep your lip balm at this low heat, stirring every so often for about half an hour.  After half an hour, you are ready to pour your lip balm into tubes or tins.

The Second Method:  Let your lip balm cool completely till is is a solid in the pan.  Then some time after it is cool, heat it up again till it is completely melted.  Repeat this process 4 - 6 times.
I know this method sounds like more work, but for me, I get super busy doing other things and have burnt the lip balm I left on the stove before.  So for me, it's easier just to remember to melt it now and then over the course of a couple days.  And usually I am making it down at the store.  So it can just cool and be re melted between customers.  Personally I think this method works the best for eliminating the grainy butter, but the first method can be effective too.  The reason butters may become grainy is the  tiny fat crystals it contains.  They need to be broken down by continuous, or repetitive heating for the butter to remain creamy.

I know most lip balm recipes only take a few minutes to make, but adding a little time on to melt the butters correctly will improve your lip balm experience a lot and be well worth your while!  And you can make a larger batch so you only have to do this once or twice a year!


After your oil is all melted correctly you are ready to add essential oils.  How much oil you add is very much about preference.  I suggest adding a few drops, stirring, and then dipping your finger in a bit of the mixture on a spoon and rubbing it on your lips.  Then taste it a little.  For the mint oils, I like to add enough so that when I try a little of the warm lip balm on my lips it just has a slight tingle, then I know it will be nice and minty refreshing when it is cool.  You can also dip the end of a spoon in the mixture and set it in the refrigerator for a minute to cool and try that on your lips.  This will give you a better idea of what the mixture will be like when it is cool.   It will probably take more essential oil than you think.  A few drops is not going to be enough.  Even if it smells strong when it is warm (which it will) you will probably not be able to smell or taste it at all when it is cool.  So test, taste, and remember that it needs to be stronger than you like when it is warm because when it cools it will seem "weaker."


Now all you have to do is put them in the containers of your choosing, a tube, or jar, or tin.  You want to pour lip balm at as cool of a temperature as you can without it setting up.  If you pour it when it is hot, it will be thinner, and much harder to get into small tubes, and also it will shrink a lot.  So you will fill your tubes up to the top, and then when it cools they will be caved in up to a half of an inch on a very small tube.  So you want to let your oils cool a bit before you try to pour them.  No worries, if the mixture cools too much you can always re-heat it.
 To pour lip balm into tubes, I recommend using a small metal bowl of some sort (very small) or a metal measuring cup (like a 1/3  or 1/2 cup).  Add some melted lip balm mixture to your metal cup, then slowly pour it into the containers you have.  The reason for this is first: it is much easier to hold onto a small cup than try to pour your lip balm from a large pan.  And second: if it is metal, and the lip balm starts to solidify in the cup while you are pouring (which it always does) you can just set that metal measuring cup right onto a hot burner for a few seconds and it is ready to go again!
You can do the same thing with plastic, only put it in the microwave to re melt.  But it is easy to over heat in the microwave, so I prefer metal and the stove.  Just set the measuring cup on the stove burner for a few seconds and the lip balm that has solidified around the edges that makes it hard to pour will melt right off again.


Now that your containers are all full, just let them cool, label them (or not) and you are ready to go with your very own lip balm!

Top 7

Alright, so as promised, here are my 7 favorite essential oils, and some of the reasons why!  I've listed them from most favorite to least, although of course they are all my favorites, so it's kind of hard to rank them down to least favorite!  This is in no way meant to be a list of all or even most of the things these oils can be used for, or are said to do.  Rather, this is just what I love most about them, and what I personally use them for most often.  If you want a more in-depth look at essential oils and properties there are several books I can recommend that will fill you in on many more details, uses, cautions etc.

#1.  Clove
Clove made it to the top of the list because it is my favorite go to oil.  Cloves are native to the Maluku islands, and are primarily harvested in Indonesia, India, Madagascar, Zanzibar, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. They have a numbing effect on the mouth tissue, and other tissue also for that matter.  The compound eugenol, found in cloves is responsible for much of the numbing effects that clove oil has.  You may not know what the dentist numbs your gums or the inside of your cheek before injecting you with anesthetic is made from clove oil.  Almost every dentist uses clove oil in some form because there is no arguing with it's safe amazing numbing abilities.  That can't be said about many natural products, because the medical community scoffs at most of them!  That being said, cloves numbing action can come in very handy, from sore gums or tooth pain, to teething babies,  painful ear infections, or infected and painful ingrown nails, painful scrapes, down to back pain.  Ear infections are my favorite thing to use clove oil for, as there seems to be nothing that can kick that horrible pain that can keep you awake when you have a nasty ear infection!  A few drops of clove oil mixed in some olive oil is a sure way to ease the pain in babies and adults alike.  Of couse being the mixer I am I always throw in a few other oils just for good measure!

#2.  Peppermint
I have suffered with migraines for as long as I can remember.  At age 5 I had them quite regularly, and would often spend the afternoon laying on my bedroom floor with my head under a blanket because the light hurt my eyes, and the aura I would get would make me really dizzy and so nauseous I couldn't move without getting sick.  My dad had them regularly, and my Grandma too, so it was always chalked up to being in my genes.   Any of you who suffer with migraines know the intense pain, and crippling side effects that come along with migraines.  I am not claiming that peppermint will cure your migraines.  I still have them.  I still take meds for them.  But that being said, peppermint helps me a lot.  I've read a lot of stuff about how people use peppermint for their migraines.  Some say they dab oils on their temples, some say they put it on the back of their neck, some say they inhale it etc.  For me, the only thing that has worked has been an agressive approach.  I take between 1 and 3 ml of essential oil and squirt it onto the top of my head, where it runs town my head towards my back.  Then I get in the shower, turn the water as hot as I can stand it, put just enough water on my head to suds, then put shampoo on my head, rub it all around, and let it stand for a couple minutes.  Then I rinse it off with as hot of water as is comfortable, not using too much water or trying to get it all out, just enough to get my head all hot again.  Then I let it sit again.  After a few more minutes I rinse and get out, or just let the hot water run and breathe in the peppermint steam for a while.
NOW... don't go home and try this right away.  If you haven't used peppermint much and don't know how your skin handles it, start slower.  Put 3 or 4 drops on your head and do this.  Then if there is no discomfort work your way up to more peppermint oil.
The reason this helps so much is because you are getting the peppermint all over your scalp, which you usually wouldn't be able to do without having a really oily head.  Also, the heat from the water opens up the pores in your head and allows it to stimulate blood flow to your brain.  And the steam vaporizes the peppermint oil and lets you breathe it in as well, which helps ease sinus pain and tension that comes along with migraines too, and the cooling effect peppermint has it soothing as well.
And I don't use the "it helps" term lightly.  I take some very heavy duty medications for my migraines, and not always, but quite often it either helps enough I can just take tylenol and be ok, or, even though I still have to take my meds, it reduces the other effects I usually get from migraines, like nausea, sensitivity to light, and dizziness.  Imitrex, is one of the most prescribed migraine medicines right now, and it works my opening the capillaries in your head and allowing more blood flow, this easing the symptoms of a migraine.  Peppermint works similarly.
I also use the exact same "shower technique" when I have a head cold, it sure does help the misery!
Also, I use a variation of this "technique" for Hudsen when is is stuffy.  I just don't apply the oil to his body, I just drip the oil on the walls or floor of the shower, let really hot water run over it for a minute to get the bathroom nice and steamy, then adjust the water to a more comfortable temp and sit in the bottom of the shower and let the steam help clear out his sinuses.

#3.  Lavender
I love this oil because it is safe for use undiluted, although once you become more familiar with oils you will find many of them can be used undiluted in different situations, but often caution must be used.  Lavender is great for pain, bug bites, insect repellant, and healing irritated skin.  I use it in all my diaper rash creams, muscle rubs, etc.  If an area in too sensitive to use clove on to help numb or deal with pain, lavender is your next best bet.  While I feel that claims for lavender oil have been greatly exaggerated, and claims for clove oil greatly under-exaggerated, I do still feel there is a wonderful place for lavender oil in any medicine cabinet.  It is gentle enough to use on tener skin, like in babies and children, and gentle enough to place directly on most cuts, scrapes, and boo boos.  Like I discussed in my previous blog post "Outrageous Claims Are A Turn Off", while I do think that essential oils have antibacterial, and anti-viral properties, what delights me the most is the immediate results that you can see.  And with lavender oil dropping a drop or two on a cut, sting or boo boo and watching a child's tears fade away as it soothes the pain is wonderful to see.  For adults, who don't mind a minute or two of burning before relief sets in, I'd highly recommend using clove oil for painful cuts or scrapes, because while it is a bit more harsh, the numbing effects are much stronger than lavender.  It's the next best thing to being able to have lidocaine on hand whenever you want!  But lavender possesses many of the same properties, just in a milder form.


#4.  Tea Tree
I like tea tree oil for the usual things you would expect and a few things you might not.  It is of course great for skin irritations and boo boos.  It is great for acne and oily skin.  But I also love it for its deodorizing properties.  Tea tree and orange are my two favorite oils for getting bad smells out of laundry.  Including diaper, spit up, cat pee, and nasty work clothes from men.

#5.  Ginger
This is an oil I rarely use by itself, but mixed with other oils made it popular enough to put it in my top 7.  Because ginger simulates circulation so well, it is beneficial in dealing with quite a few aliments.  The one I use if for most often is pain, or healing.  If I have back pain, it is usually because something is not right, and needs my body to heal it.  So, increasing circulation is always helpful in allowing the body to do it's own healing.  It is also the same for wounds.  Increasing circulation helps them heal. Also it is great for stomach issues, stimulating the digestive tract etc.

#6.  Sandalwood
Everyone should have one oil that just makes them happy.  At least that is my opinion, and sandalwood is just that for me.  I love the woody, earthy nature, and the sweet undertones it has.  That being said, Sandalwood is also excellent for skin ailments, and helps heal and soothe itching and inflammation from psoriasis, eczema and other types of dermatitis.  For this reason, I love sandalwood for sunburns, diaper rashes, eczema, and other annoying itchy skin problems me and my loved ones have had.  It is a very gentle oil, that is great to use on baby's bottoms when they are all raw and burned.  Always mix it with a carrier oil when applying it to babies though.  Sandalwood is an expensive oil, but you can purchase it mixed with a carrier oil already and it is quite reasonably priced then.  And for most applications you are diluting it anyway, so using it already in a carrier oil works just fine!

#7.  Chamomile
This is one of my favorite baby oils.  It is so soothing for irritated skin and so gentle on fragile little bodies.  Using it for diaper rashes, a few drops in bath water to soothe tender skin, or just to calm a fussy baby down.  I have given hudsen most forms of chamomile at one time or the other.  I regularly made him a "tummy tea" as I called it that had chamomile in it, put it in baths when he had a bad diaper rash, and now I give him drops before bed time and they calm him down so well it is nothing short of amazing.  Even traditionally minded medical doctors often recommend chamomile for its soothing and sedative properties.  It's primary action is that it calms nerves, and this is great for young and old alike.


So there are my top seven essential oils, and why I love and use them the most.
Hope it has been helpful and maybe you have learned something along the way!

Outrageous Claims Are A Turn Off!

I am going to kind of go against the main stream of natural health and skin care with this blog post, but this is just my honest opinons and experiences, so I hope you will read and post your comments because I am very interested to hear your thoughts on this topic!

So the truth is, I love natural health care not for what it can prevent, or heal, but how it can help you get through the bumps, bruises, pain, and sickness that are bound to pop up from time to time.  Now I know it seems most people into natural health care promote it as a preventative miracle to the flu, infections, disease, etc.  And don't get me wrong, I am a HUGE proponent of health food, vitamins, herbs, essential oils, etc.  But for me, how can you REALLY know if you were getting a cold, and you took something and it "knocked it" (a term I hear a lot in the natural world) or if you just had a little scratchy throat and then would have felt better the next day without your magic potion?  Do I think natural remides help your body fight off illness?  Absolutely.  But I get tired of all the claims.  "Oh I was about to get sick and then I took this and then I didn't get sick at all!  It's so amazing!"  Well, how do you know you were about to get sick?  Or, "I got sick and this helped fight it off or I would have had the cold a lot longer!" Again, my cynical self repeats..."how do you know?  Maybe this cold was only going to last a week anyway!  Or how about "this oil prevented me getting stretch marks!"  Really?  How do you know you were going to have any in the first place!  And like I said, I do believe natural things can help, I just have a problem when people are trying to get others interested in products with these claims, cause it is kind of a turn off to me because there is no way to prove if it is true or not, it is all in the person's mind.  And I know it is a turn off to others too.  They hear what they consider outrageous claims, and it makes them doubt there is any validity to using a natural product at all, cause it is so obvious that some of the claims are full of air.  But show me something that will help my congested head from the cold NOW... that's something I'd be interested in!  Or show me something that will help the stretch marks I already have....that would be awesome!  Now don't get me wrong, I do think prevention is the best medicine, I just get tired of the unprovable claims flying around.  I want to see it actually do something, or help heal something that is already wrong, THEN I might believe it can help me prevent something.

So... all that being said, I want to share a few things about essential oils today, using them, and what I love about them.
FIRST: I want to have a word of warning here.  With the rising popularity in using essential oils, but unfortunately (in my opinion) not the necessary education being given to those using essential oils, there is this hype that goes around with essential oils that turns a lot of people off and frankly can be harmful.  For example, an essential oil with antibacterial properties may or may not have enough of those properties when diluted in water, oil, or whatever else to kill bacteria in your home, on a cut, or anywhere else.  Just because you find a recipe in a book, online, or wherever for an "antibacterial salve" or "great natural cleaning product", does not mean it actually does that.  Straight oils are very powerful, and I am not arguing with that, but unless someone has analyzed the cleaning formula, or antibacterial salve recipe to see if it actually kills most germs IN THAT FORM, it really doesn't matter if there are tons of studies on the oils in it that show they can kill germs, when the form changes so can the properties.... so be a little cautious.  Also there are so many super charged viruses, and germs from these days from all the antibacterial lotion use, and antibiotic use that even a very potent oil may be powerless.  And that is just one example of things to look out for.  Just because a single oil has a certain property, that does not mean diluted it still will be strong enough to do what you were told, or hoping it would.  But because no one is testing most of the recipes stuff like this gets promoted and people assume it works like they want it to.  That being said I do think diluted oils can work wonderfully.  But be careful if you are using them to kill bacteria and other germs if the formula you are using has not been tested in a lab.  You could wind up with salmonella, or some other illness if you are placing your confidence in something that is not actually sanitizing your home.  It can just give you a false sense of confidence that can be dangerous.  Another example would be treating an ear infection, and not taking your kid to the doctor when you should because "this blend of oils will kill everything I'm sure it will work."  I'm not saying it won't, but please don't hurt yourself, your family or kids because you were told an oil would do something.  And I know that may seem extreme to some of you, but I know people who have done exactly that.  Refused to get medical care because they were sure something else was "healing" them but it just took time.  But the truth was it wasn't working at all... and there were very sad consequences.  And my life is forever changed because of those choices.  So be reasonable please!

So, that word of caution being said, here is why I love essential oils and why I use them.  Not for the "mental uplifting" or "clarity" or even really the health benefits although they may well do those all things.  75% of the time I use essential oils it is for immediate relief from pain or discomfort.  And the reason this excites me so much is because you don't have to speculate if it is helping or not over months of use, you know right away if it worked or not!
So here are some of my favorite uses for essential oils.  Bug bites, sunburns, sore throats, blisters, tooth pain, ear aches, injuries, stomach pain, and back pain.  And of course I use them for other things, but those are the most common.  And this is where it gets exciting to me.  Because what really makes me happy is when something natural can help with things that I know are GOING to happen.  Cause we all know bad things happen.  We are going to get hurt, going to get the flu, going to have a teething baby, etc. etc. etc.  So when that happens having something that actually helps the discomfort is AMAZING!  Especially with babies and kids, cause so many medicines are not safe to use at that age, so options are limited!   And yes, the fact is clove oil has antiviral, antibacterial properties.  But I don't know if it kills an ear infection or not.  Hudsen and my little sis both have had multiple ear infections and have only each been on antibiotics once, so I tend to believe it does help kill the infection, but the truth is I can't prove that.  But what I do know is it stoppes a screaming baby in their tracks, and by doing so stops a frantic mommy in her tracks too!   I don't know if my mixture of tummy oils heals something in the digestive tract or "restores the mucose lining to the stomach", but I do know it soothes colicky babies like a charm.  Almost instantly.  Not after months of use.  Just a few drops and most of the time within minutes they are much clamer.  You don't need to use it every day.  I use my oils mostly as a first aid kit.  Yes, I use oils almost every day, but the part that excites me and I talk about is the first aid type stuff, cause I see instant results, and that is something I can feel good about sharing with others.

My reason for writing this blog is for those of you that have been turned off to essential oils, or herbs or other natural products because of all the hype that surrounds them.  So from me, an avid natural remedy lover to you... I am truly sorry for all the outrageous claims that are supposed to make you "believe" but often wind up doing the exact opposite.
Perhaps you could come to love essential oils and herbs like I have.  Maybe you could love grabbing a bottle of lavender because it works better for bug bites than a lotion from the drugstore.  Maybe you could love clove because it will numb things like none other, and that is really handy sometimes!  Maybe you could love essential oils not because of the outrageous health benefits, or amazing healing stories, or because they will "keep you well", but because they make your life easier by helping deal with the bumps and pains that we all have to live with.

So this is what I will be focusing more on in my blogs.  Not all the properties of each oil, and what they are supposed to do, there are lots of books written on those subjects.  But what I use them for, what I have found actually works, my recipes for ear oil, bug bites, etc.  So if you are skeptical, please keep reading my blog posts.  And if you want to just try one oil and see what all the fuss is about, come into the store and talk to me.  I promise I won't tell you why oils will cure all your problems.  Cause heaven knows I have lots of issues I haven't even cured in myself!  But having something help me through is so valuable to me!
My next blog will be about my favorite 7 oils, so be sure to check that one out if you are interested!

Sugar And Spice

Sugar Scrub Recipe! 

So, as promised, here is the first of several blog posts with recipes and ideas for your own homemade skin care!
For this one, as you might have guessed from the title, it's all about sugar scrubs!  Sugar scrubs have become quite popular, partly because of exposure from some big name retail stores, but also because they contain as few as two ingredients which most people already have in their kitchen.  Also, because sugar easily dissolves in water, this makes it ideal for sensitive skin that may need exfoliation, but might find other scrubs too harsh.  The sugar crystals have the wonderful ability to exfoliate while dissolving too fast to over exfoliate and become harsh.  Sharing a recipe for sugar scrub is a bit less than exciting, since you can go online and find many recipes that will deliver wonderful results and leave your skin smooth and moisturized.  So for this post what I would like to do is share a basic recipe, and then share several tips for different types of scrubs from all my trial and error batches over the years.

Basic Sugar Scrub

2 to 4 parts sugar
1 part oil
essential oil or fragrance oil as needed for scent
Mix the ingredients in a bowl, and place them into jars or containers to use or give away!


Now for the tweaking!
The first thing you need to decide is how much "scrubbiness" do you want from your sugar scrub?  Is this for tough skin, like the bottom of your feet, or calloused hands that are used to working in the garden every day or is it for sensitive hand, your face, or your legs?  If you want a courser grit, go with white sugar.  If you want a smoother more gentle scrub, go with brown.  The crystals in brown sugar are finer, and much more gentle on sensitive skin.  (also the molasses in brown sugar is great for your skin too!)

Second, how much oil to scrub ratio do you like?  If you love the scrubs where the oil rises to the top and the scrub falls to the bottom, start with 2 parts sugar to 1 part oil.  If you don't like the hassle of mixing, and want your scrub to stay more on the mixed side of things, start with 4 parts sugar to 1 part oil.  The great thing about sugar scrubs is you can always add more oil or more sugar to your batch as you go.

Now for the type of oil you use.  If you have really dry skin, and want a thicker oil that won't rinse of easily, try using one or a mixture of several oils such as sweet almond oil, olive oil, avocado oil, oil castor oil.  If you REALLY want your oils thick and creamy you can throw in some butters too.  You can melt the butters in whatever oils you decide to use for your scrub.  Butters like shea butter, cocoa butter, and almond butter are great choices.  But if you are looking for a lighter scrub that will leave your skin soft and moisturized but not oily or sticky (like for a facial scrub or any scrub for oily skin) try using oils like grape seed, apricot seed, or jojoba.
Also, here is another trick if you are trying to make a "lighter" scrub.  Mix some fine sea salt in with your sugar.  The salt helps cut through the oil when you are rinsing.  Also, if you are making the scrub for your face or other acne prone areas, the sea salt helps kill bacteria and prevent or clear up existing acne.  Usually the main complaint that comes with sugar scrub is that it is too oily to use on your face, or just in general for oily skin.  Sea salt can help solve this problem.  Also you can get the "real salt" or other sea salt brands that contain lots of minerals which are great for your skin too!  Start with 1/8 a part of salt to each 1 part of sugar.  For example: if you are using 2 cups of sugar use 1/4 cup fine sea salt.   If you are using a light oil, and still think the scrub is too oily you can add a bit more sea salt to the mixture.   Don't use regular table salt, the grains are too large and can scratch sensitive skin.  Another great benefit of salt is it helps preserve your scrub.  Sugar scrubs can mold if left for too long, and adding some sea salt to the mix will help ward off any unwanted bacteria that you might have on your hands and accidentally add to the jar when using your scrub.  Also you can add some baking soda in to help cut the oil, and kill unwanted bacteria on the skin.  And it's fine texture can add some depth to a sugar scrub as well.

Now for the fragrance.   This depends on your taste, and where the scrub is going to be used.  There is no exact science here, just add essential oils till it has reached the fragrance you like.  But do remember, always make your scrub smell stronger than you think it should.  It is nice to have a little fragrance left on your skin after you use a scrub, and most of it will be rinsed off, so it needs to be stronger than you think it should be so that some of that yummy goodness will be left on your skin once you are done using it.  As far as which oils to use, that depends on what the scrub is for.  If it is for your feet, peppermint is always a great choice, but if you are using it on your face, peppermint can really wreak some havoc on the eyes, so sticking with a lighter oil like lavender or ylang ylang is a better choice.  Or you can use your favorite fragrance oil if you don't want to go with essential oils, but always use a little less if the scrub is designed for the face, those fragrance oils can be a bit unforgiving if you get them in your eyes.  Or, if you prefer to not use fragrance oils, you can add spices, like cinnamon or ginger to give it a light pleasant fragrance.  You can also add some honey for a nice fragrance and also great healing properties that are wonderful for every skin type.

And here is one final little twist.  If you like a thicker scrub that does not separate, try adding some clay to it.  Kaolin clay, Rhassoul clay, or any other cosmetic clays make a great thickener and help keep the oil from separating.  It stabilizes the oil, and adds minerals to the scrub that are great for all skin types.  Also, if you are making a facial scrub you can have an added mud mask in the same product.  Simply use the scrub on your face as you usually would, but then instead of rinsing it off when the sugar has dissolved, let it sit on your face until it dries and let your skin soak up all the great minerals from the clay.  I would recommend only using this as a mud mask too if you have put some sea salt in your mask.  Otherwise letting the sugar sit on your face might cause an acne breakout if you are prone to breakouts.

And that's about all there is to it!  It is so simple, super easy, and best of all very inexpensive!

Are You In Or Out?

There are lots of questions surrounding the use of essential oils.  There have been many books written, seminars given, and classes taught on all the ins and outs, the benefits and the dangers of oils.  I don't want to go into depth right now about what all the oils are for, which are better for what etc.  But I do want to give a couple rules of thumbs that will make it easier when navigating the world of essential oils.  Now we all know rules are meant to be broken, and what I am going to say today is no exception.  There are always going to be oils that bend the rules, people that bend the rules, and situations that bend the rules.  But none the less I hope these will help you as you start out using oils.

The first rule of thumb I have is in answer to the question "In or out" regarding which essential oils can be used internally and which ones should be used only externally.  First, of course make sure you have a high quality oil, one that is not diluted in other oils, has  not been distilled with solvents, or has perfumes or chemicals added to enhance it.  Once you determine your oil is indeed safe, follow this rule of thumb: If I would eat it in real life, I can probably eat the oil.  So, if the oil is from a plant or fruit you would consume the oil is most likely safe to ingest.  A few examples of such oils would be: lemon, lime, tangerine, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, oregano, spearmint, peppermint etc.  Now, like I said there are exceptions, some oils that you wouldn't usually go chomping down on can be very effective when used internally.  But I usually suggest you wait until you have a broader knowledge of oils before you begin branching into those oils.  And a word of caution here, don't just ingest a essential oil because someone else says you can.  Weather it is in a class, a book, or suggested to you face to face, if it is not a plant you would usually think of ingesting, take a step back and do a little research.  With the internet and the availability of multiple opinions that it brings to our finger tips, there is rarely a situation where you can't at least get several points of views on any oil and it's uses.  And of course the internet is not the most reliable source, but if the common opinion is that an oil should not be consumed, probably better to be on the safe side.

The second rule of thumb I have is in answer to the question "straight or diluted?"  Which oils are safe to apply directly to your skin or take straight internally, and which oils must be diluted.  And my rule of thumb is always dilute, unless you are sure.  Better safe than sorry on this one.  Essential oils are extremely concentrated, and even what is absolutely fine on one person could burn another person's skin.  Be very careful about recommending another person use an oil straight just because you did and had no issues with it.
When taking oils internally, diluting is a good rule too, even if it is just a little water or milk.  Oils can burn the sensitive skin inside your mouth, so diluting them, or putting them in a capsule and swallowing them is always the safest.  There are some oils that typically don't have to be diluted, but depending on where you are applying them, could cause an issue.  For example, you might not put tea tree oil straight on your face around your eyes, but you could apply it straight to a cut or scrape on your knee.  In the same way a lot of  oils that usually should be diluted, can be applied straight to the bottom of your feet.  But if in doubt, always dilute.  A few drops of a carrier oil like sweet almond, or olive oil won't hurt a thing and will help insure any sensitive skin has a protective barrier.  As you get more comfortable using oils, and more aware of how your skin and the skin of those in your family responds to oils you may be able to start using many more oils straight on your skin, but take it slow.   Being a red head, you'd think that my skin would be very sensitive, but actually my skin is like a rock most of the time!  I apply oil straight that a lot of people wouldn't dream of using without a carrier oil, but even oils that I use all the time burn my husbands skin, so just be careful.   And some oils may surprise you.  You might think lemon and orange are every day fruits and think you can apply them straight to your skin as much as desired, but they create photosensitivity in your skin, and can cause sunburns if applied before going outside.  And there are many other oils with hidden "side effects" (if you want to call them that)  so, read up on individual oils and study their properties.  Try to read books published by authors writing about the actual properties of the plants and oils, not just what the essential oil companies put out.  Books written by those who have studied and used essential oils for years, and are devoted to ancient cultures and learning the properties of each individual herb and it's corresponding essential oils usually tend to offer a more balanced perspective on the actual properties of the herbs and oils than the information put out by essential oil companies.  Not that the information essential oil companies put out is not helpful, it can be very educational, but sometimes can lean only towards all of the wonderful benefits of the oils, and not also the accompanying dangers and potential hazards of each plant and oil.  Again, essential oils are extremely concentrated, so you need to know the pros and cons of each oils not just all the pros.

Knowing the potential dangers or "side effects" will not make you more afraid of using the oils, but will free you up to use them with confidence!

And YES, in case you are wondering, I will be writing soon about individual oils that I love and use all the time, why I think they are so fabulous, and I'll be giving you recipes for things I've created over the years that I can't imagine living without, such as ear drops that will stop an infant screams from the pain of an ear infection in it's tracks and a butt salve that had mom's swearing by it long before I had my little one.  But I feel like I would be remiss if I didn't lay a bit of foundation work for essential oils first.  Educated users are always the safest and the best!  But the fun stuff is coming soon and all my blog posts won't just bee about the mundane details!
If you've found my blog posts interesting or helpful and are looking forward to what is coming next I always appreciate your comments, or likes and shares on Facebook!

Visit me on Facebook at:  https://www.facebook.com/realessentialoilseducation

Essential Oils: What To Look For

I've had a lot of questions recently about essential oils, prices, which oils I use, what oils I have tried, why I use what I do, and what oils I will be selling and or recommend.
I've been using and studying essential oils for over 15 Years now, and have tried many MANY different brands.  If you look in my cupboard you will see probably close to 100 different oils, different, brands, and strengths that I use, or have tried.  Some I love, and some I would NEVER reccomend to anyone!  Some I use and recommend for skin care, others I use and recommend for internal use, and sometimes those two overlap.  If you are using them for fragrance, aromatherapy etc. one grade or company might be perfect, but if you are ingesting them or using them for their medicinal qualities you might want a different strength, and/or go with organic oils.

In my previous blog, I mentioned that the US has practically NO standards for essential oils.  While companies have made up titles that sound grand, and they may brag their oils are superior because of the titles they have given themselves, these titles can sadly mean little to nothing.
As I mentioned before, looking for honesty in a company is really important to me, and a good place to start.  If a company leaves out information such as how they distill their oils, when they mix them with carrier oils, what region their oils are grown in etc. that can be a real red flag.

Many companies use solvents during the distillation process to speed the extraction time.  After the oils are distilled there are still traces of the solvent left that can be harmful when put on your skin or ingested.  It can also inhibit the good properties you were hoping to achieve by using the oils in the first place.  If a company is unwilling or unable to share with you their EXACT distillation process, or they mask their process by using words like "proprietary" or "patented" be wary.  They should be proud of the process they use and be willing to share it with customers.  Also, sometimes people smell the oils, and because they smell so wonderful they think that means the oil is good.  However, the best smelling oils come from the 3rd distillation.  First distillation oils most often have a bit of a dirty or earth smell along with the wonderful aroma.  This is from the good medicinal qualities that are more present in the first distillation.  Some oils just smell really nice, like peppermint.  But if your peppermint oil smells just like peppermint candy, it is most likely a lower quality oil.  I could go on and on about ways to determine the quality of the oils you have.  Many if not most essential oil companies are contaminating, diluting, and or cutting their oils with chemicals.  Because of the lack of regulation in the US they can get away with murder while still bragging their oils are pure.  That is why it is so important you buy from a company that can be honest about their plants, their method, their claims, etc.

So if you are just starting out with essential oils, I would recommend looking for a company that is upfront and honest.  Even if the oils they sell are on the lower price range, you can be confident you are at least getting a pure oil with no chemical additives or solvents.  What these oils may not have is the highest medicinal value possible.  To really be confident about the exact medicinal value of oils, they need to be grown in ideal conditions, they need to be certain varieties of the mother species, not just any variety, and they need to be tested for key components, every year in EVERY location.  So for the most potent, best oils, you will need to look further.  However, as long as you are getting a pure oil with no additives, you can notice many many benefits to your skin and your overall health.  I have had great success with "NOW" brand essential oils.  They are pure, honest about their distillation process, and when their oils are diluted, give you exact information on every bottle as to what the exact species of Lavender, or any other plant you are getting, and I have used their oils both internally and externally with great success.  They are also offering quite a few organic oils, so you can be assured that those standards in the us are being met.  Are they the BEST oils you can buy?  No.  Do they use the best plants in the best regions?  Probably Not.  But they do offer truly pure oils that have not been distilled with solvents, have not been cut with chemicals, at great prices, their openness and honesty is very reassuring, and they are great starter oils.

However, if you have been using essential oils for a while, or are really interested in the health benefits of essential oils and would like some more assurance of the medicinal values of the oils you are using let me make a suggestion.  Buy your oils from Europe.  I know that sounds crazy, but the lack of standards in the US is really a problem.  Even companies that brag about how superior their oils are have no one looking over their shoulder making sure their oils are actually what they say, or that the standards don't slip over time.  And lets face it, we know most large companies will claim anything to make more money if they know there is no accountability required.  I don't want to be cynical, but the truth is money talks.  If you don't want to mess with ordering oils from the UK, you can order from a company that follows the E.O.B.B.D standards.  (this is the standard used in Europe, and is quite strict) Europe is one of the countries that actually uses essential oils for medicinal purposes rather than the US which only recognizes them for perfume purposes.  So, because they actually use them widely for medicinal use, they actually have standards and testing that is regulated and enforced.   Like I said, I have had great success with other brands from here in the US, but if you are going for purity and medicinal properties I suggest you look for E.O.B.B.D standard.  The only company I am aware of in the US (there may be others this is just the only one I know about) that follows these standards is Be Young Essential Oils.  (not the same company as Young Living)  Their oils are much more expensive but the assurance and quality they offer is wonderful.  And it's not just a claim that they are "better" or "the best".  They give you information.  They tell you about the plant, where it is grown, if it is harvested wild or cultivated what it's active components are, etc.  And not just what the properties of the oil should be, but what actual testing shows.

I am not planning on carrying E.O.B.B.D oils in the store right now because I cater more towards skin care, and the benefits oils can bring to that, and in my experience the oil brands I use still do a fantastic job for skin care and the small health issues most consumers are dealing with, such as toothaches, upset stomach, back pain, digestion problems, and others.  That's not to say that if the demand is there I wouldn't consider carrying some higher end oils.  But for now, I am happy to just refer people to individual companies like Be Young and have you look there if you would like a few top quality oils to have in your medical kits.

But the wonderful world of essential oils is not limited to those with deep pockets that can afford the highest quality oils available.  I think you will find that even the reasonably priced truly pure oils can have huge impacts on your health!  I am very passionate about essential oils, and am so excited that they are growing in their use and popularity here in the US.  They are truly amazing.  I don't know how I would have survived raising a little sister, and now Hudsen without them.  Colic, Ear infections, and so many other things would have been so much more stressful without them.  Stopping a screaming infant with an ear infection would only take a few minutes when I would drop in a few drops of olive oils mixed with clove and lavender.  It numbs it so fast which has saved me from a lot of misery when dealing with ear infections myself.  Even using oils for teething, diaper rashes, boo boos etc. has been a life saver.  I frankly can't imagine life without them.

As I continue writing, I will be posting more information on individual oils, uses, recipes etc.  Using essential oils can seem a bit intimidating when you are first starting out, but you will be so pleasantly surprised how easy it can be and how many uses there are for them.  The lovely smell is the least wonderful thing about these oils, although it is a great added bonus!  If you have more questions about oils, or different brands please feel free to ask.  I don't want to take up time writing about each specific brand of oils I have tried and what was good or bad about them, but I am happy to answer specific questions if anyone has more.

Below is a link to another article that goes into more depth about the US standards for oils, you might find it very interesting.  And if you are looking into essential oils I would recommend you read it.  She goes a bit farther than I would about how awful essential oils in the US are, but keep in mind she is writing from a preparedness point of view, and talking about using these oils for your sole medical care in the event where there is no ability to receive outside medical care.  So you can understand how in that type of situation you would want the absolute best oils that contain the highest amounts of the medicinal compounds.  So while her view is a little more extreme than I think is necessary, it is good to have information as you get started on this road.  Or, if you have been using essential oils for a long time and aren't getting the effects you hoped from them, this might explain why.  Happy Reading!  And I hope you will lean to love oils like I do!

http://www.preparednesspro.com/what-you-need-to-know-about-essential-oils-part-2/

Where Do I Start?

So in this blog post I am going to offer my two cents on where to start if you want to begin making your own skin care products, or even if you just want to make something handmade for gifts for Christmas.

The absolute easiest possible is bath salts.  Simply combine one or more of these ingredients: Epsom Salts, Sea Salt, and or Baking Soda.  And then add some essential oils and fragrance oils, and bam you are done!  Get a cut jar, some neat tags, and you have a great relaxing soak for yourself, or a cute gift for the holidays.  If you want to start getting a little more fancy, you can add some vitamin E oil, or mix the essential oils you add for certain effects.  Here are a few ideas of essential oil combinations:

Relaxing Blend: Lavender, Rose, Ylang Ylang

Sore Muscles:  Peppermint, Lavender, Ginger, Juniper

Energizing:  Orange, Tangerine, Lemon, and Coriander


Finding mixtures of oils is easy enough to find on the internet too.  Just google what effect you want (i.e.. relaxing, soothing, etc.) and type in essential oil recipe and tons of sites will come up.


If you are not a huge bath salt fan, (which I am not, primarily because I don't have a bathtub in my house!) one of the second easiest things to start with is lip balm.  Making your own lip balm is easy, and best of all does not require precise ingredients.  What I mean by this is you can use a basic ratio, and tweak it to your personal likings.
There are four basic components to pretty much any lip balm recipe you will find:
Oil
Wax
Butter
Fragrance (essential oils)
Deciding what oils, what butters, what essential oils and what waxes to use is entirely up to you.  Different oils, butters and waxes will give your lip balm different textures, but a good rule of thumb is: put more oil if you like it to go on more like a gloss, more wax if you like a heavier coat on your lips or more butter if you want a creamier texture.
There are lots of recipes online that you can try, just remember what each ingredient does, and adjust the recipe to suit your exact taste.
As you get more experienced with your skin care ingredients, you can then adjust the type of oil, butter and wax you used based on the individual properties, thickness, and moisturizing qualities each type of ingredient possesses.  For example, for a light lip balm you might start with grape seed or apricot seed oil, both of which are very light.  For a thick heavier lip balm for very dry or cracked lips, you might use olive, wheat germ, and castor oil.

It's no secret that making your own bath salts and lip balms as well as other skin care products can save a lot of money, but with both lip balm and bath salts you can also not waste a lot of time.  Both of these projects go very fast, and it's so fun to be able to customize what you like, instead of just settling for what is on the shelf of your local health food store.

So... where to you find ingredients?  Well I can tell you where NOT to go, and that is your local health food store... at least usually.  I would be lying if I told you I NEVER bought ingredients from health food stores.  There have been several occasions where right in the middle of a batch of something I realized I was out of ONE ingredient, and went flying down to the health food store to get it, but usually I try to avoid this.  The ingredients like oils, butters, and waxes are usually in very small containers, and are meant to be used themselves, not intended for you to mix up into something else.  What I mean is the sweet almond oil that you will find at the health food store is usually meant to be used as massage oil, or just a moisturizing oil used alone.  And when used as massage oil, at $8 for 4 oz, that's not a bad price!  But when you are making a big batch of lip balm or salve and looking for 48 oz, that gets really expensive, really fast!  The oils are the same, there is no difference (other than brand) on many of the oils you can buy at a local health food store, or those you order wholesale, or purchase from a distributor that is catering to those making their own skin care products.  But the prices are usually much more reasonable.
As far as other places to find ingredients, there are so many good places online that I won't even try listing them here, and I am selling a wide selection of containers and ingredients down at Harebrained And Happy too!  Since I order in large quantities anyway and can offer better deals that many places offering small quantities it's been a section I've been wanting to have since I opened the store, but now It's a reality!  If you haven't stopped by and checked out this new section that is in progress I hope you will soon!
One thing I will say is this:  when first starting out, don't buy a gallon of oil, or pounds of butter.  Start small.  While buying in bulk will save you some money, you also don't know if you are going to like doing your own skin care, or if you are going to like the products that you create!  Buy what you need, make a batch, see how it goes.  Trust me, this is the voice of experience speaking here!  There will be plenty of time later for ordering cases of containers, or gallons of coconut oil.  Test the waters.  You may find it exhilarating, and in that case it was money well spent to order smaller quantities and find out you loved it!  Or you may find it exhausting and frustrating, and leaving you more on the harebrained side of things than the happy one, and if that is the case you will be happy that you don't have 5 gallons of coconut oil staring at you from the pantry laughing at your failure and reminding you of your over zealous illusions of changing the world with your skin care products!  So stick your toe in, don't try too many things at once.  Master one thing before you move on to the next.

So that's all for now.  Go forth and be bathed and balmed!