In an attempt to get us organized {and comfortable} out at the farm this summer, I made up a few essential oil sprays to keep on hand. An After Sun Spray to soothe skin, Face Refresher toner, and Natural Bug Spray. They have been really lovely to have out there, especially the After Sun spray and Face Refresher. Those two spritzed on a cotton pad, are sooo soothing to the face at the end of a day spent in the hot sun & wind.
Oh yes, just when you thought you had added essential oils into all aspects of your life, you discover diffusers for your car! I started seeing these around more & more in the fall, and ordered a couple for Christmas gifts {and slipped one into my own stocking}. Even if you don’t have a diffuser in your home, these are a simple & fairly inexpensive way to incorporate essential oils into daily life.
Ok, let’s face it. Lavender and Peppermint were my “gateway” essential oils. They were the two initial oils that got me hooked on trying more {and more}. And one of the many ways I used Lavender & Peppermint was for tension relief. Over the months, I’ve discovered a few more essential oils that work great for releasing different types of tension!
In my quest to use more natural products, I switched to a face serum a couple years ago. It felt great on, provided the moisturizing I needed in our dry climate, and smelled amazing. Until the oils went rancid, that is. I generally got through about 3/4 or 2/3 of a bottle before the oils went bad, even using it daily. Although I thoroughly enjoy supporting local, I decided to try my hand at making my own face serum, so I could make very small batches & hopefully waste less in the long run.
Creative time for me can mean a lot of different things. It can be time spent doing product photos, making Love Catchers & Dreamcatchers for the shop, colouring in one of my many adult colouring books, or craft time with Sam. No matter what I’m doing with my creative time, it’s a part of my sanity-saving self care. Honestly, creative care is something we really value & encourage in our little family for each other. Which is why I decided it could use a complimentary oil diffuser recipe.
It’s kind of incredible how much of a “scent” person I have become. In some ways, I always have been. I’ve collected many scent memories from my childhood {my Grandma Rosie’s perfume, my mother’s hand cream, the Avon moisturizer we put on after sunburns each summer} and whenever I went on a big trip across the world, I purchased a new perfume to wear {just so that I would build a scent association}. Scents have the power to transport us back in time, make the here & now melt away, even if just for a few seconds.
When I first started this oils journey, just over a year ago, I was mainly interested in using my diffuser. Slowly I started getting into topical applications for various remedies, in particular hormone balancing & sore muscles. A little citrus oils in my cooking. Then it was roll-ons and all sorts of DIY bath & beauty items. And now… I’ve dived into the world of veggie capsules for ingestion..
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If you start down the path of enjoying essential oils {which I highly recommend}, you will find yourself with little empty oils bottles around the house. At first it’s just one or two because you’re new to oils and don’t go through any of them too quickly. A year later, you realize that you might need to do something with that bottle stash. That was my experience, anyway. Turns out cleaning your bottles is pretty straightforward. It’s also pretty helpful when you get into making all sorts of roll-on remedies for yourself & friends, and saves you from having to buy new bottles.
Sometimes I diffuse certain essential oils because I want to enjoy a particular smell in the house. Other times I diffuse oils to serve a particular purpose. Much of the diffuser time at the beginning of January was spent on Thieves and Purification Oils, to help clear the house of all the icky germs that had taken up residence (hello, stomach flu & sneezy colds).
But one day, I realized I needed to get back to diffusing oils for self care (not just germ care). This is the recipe I came up with to help calm my mama anger & impatience and increase overall optimism. Let’s face it, we can get dragged down listening the the news reports, grow weary trying to see the good side to things, and then our patience gets tested over & over by those little ones who are trying to feel out boundaries. So ya, self care love in the diffuser is helpful to have going.
*That adorable essential oils pouch is from fellow maker Lesley of The Ellebee Tree. It’s perfect for packing some of your favourite oils for travel, weekends away or if you’re a hardcore oils mama, goes into your purse daily.
I was gifted a lovely & deliciously useful salt & sugar set infused with essential oils. It’s one of those things, at first glance, you’re not sure how you’ll use it, but I quickly changed that attitude into “what won’t I use them in?!” Turns out they are simple to make, and really handy to have sitting on the kitchen counter to shake in here & there.
Let’s just jump into it:
Zest your lime & set aside {don’t let your now naked lime go to waste; slice it up & add to your water, or juice it & put it towards a margarita}. Mix together sea salt & lime essential oil, breaking up clumps. Add lime zest. Mix well. Put into whichever container is most convenient. Mine came in spice shakers, which work awesome.
Zest your orange & set aside. Mix together sugar & orange essential oil. Add orange zest. Spread mixture onto baking sheet to air dry. Scoop into container, breaking up clumps as needed.
Now here’s the best part… you can do a whole variety of citrus infused salts & sugars using citrus zests & essential oils! The other amazing thing, is the number of ways to use these. I’ve sort of lost track of how many thing’s I’ve added them to. The salt gets added to random cooking, from veggies to chicken {lime salt & cooked beans is super tasty}. The sugar gets added to things like plain greek yogurt & homemade applesauce. I keep ours handy on the kitchen counter, so whenever I’m at a loss or just plain too tired to decided on flavours or seasonings, I grab one of these. They make a great hostess gift too!