DIY ALL The Things

What do you do on a random Saturday when you have essential oils and time on your hands?  You DIY.  One of the things that using essential oils has taught me is that I’m much more aware of what I’m putting on my skin or have in my house.  I’m a far cry from being chemical-free completely, but we are slowly but surely replacing things we use everyday with healthier alternatives.  Sometimes my experiments go completely awry, but on this particular day they turned out pretty darn good.

So, what did I make?  Eric had been asking me for awhile now to make him some drawing salve.  He’d even gone so far as to send me several recipes for it on Pinterest.  I admit I’d looked at the recipes but somehow had it in my head that it was some sort of charcoal face mask kind of thing.  NOPE.  When Eric got a splinter in his finger that was impossible to get out with tweezers, I quickly learned why it is such a great idea to have a drawing salve on hand.  Drawing salves are good for drawing out splinters, infection, and even venom (seriously though, you might want to go to a doctor for that one).  This city girl had never encountered such a thing though.

The recipe I used for the drawing salve came from The Nerdy Farmwife.  She has printable labels you can use for your salve that are darling.  Her recipe called for:

• 6 Tablespoons infused olive oil (I just used EVOO)
• 2 Tablespoons castor oil
• 2 teaspoons beeswax
• 3 teaspoons activated charcoal
• 3 teaspoons clay
• Young Living essential oils: 30 drops Lavender, 15 drops Tea Tree (how to order)

Combine olive oil and castor oil in a double boiler.  Heat over a medium-low burner until the beeswax is melted.  Remove from heat and stir in essential oils, charcoal, and clay.  Then immediately pour into a glass container to cool.  I used 4oz. jelly jars.  I’m glad that we now have this on hand with our first aid supplies and as you can see it was super easy to make too.

Next up, I mixed up a body/shower wash.  Eric has been loving the exfoliating facial cleanser I made for him and wanted to give a body wash a try instead of the bar of soap he’d been using that he’s not all that fond of.

This was another recipe found on Pinterest, courtesy of DIY Natural and it calls for:

• 2/3 cup liquid castile soap
• 1/4 cup raw honey
• 2 teaspoons oil – I used jojoba which is great for your skin
• 1 teaspoon vitamin E oil
• 50-60 drops Young Living essential oils – I used Frankincense and Cedarwood (how to order).  Cedarwood is fantastic to support healthy skin and Frankincense is good for e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g (I also didn’t want to go too floral-y since this was primarily for Eric)

Combine all ingredients in a bottle with a squirt top and shake before using.  Easy peasy.  And you would expect something with honey in it to be kind of sticky, but it’s not.  In fact, honey helps your skin retain moisture and elasticity without drying it out.  Sign. Me. Up.

And lastly, while I was playing mad scientist in the kitchen I decided I’d make a rollerball recipe I’d seen almost a year ago and had slowly been collecting the oils to make it (how to order).

This roller is for emotional support.  And frankly, I needed it.  After a friend made one and raved about it I knew I had to make one stat.  Especially since I’d finally ordered SARA.  Following the recipe in the photo above, I added all to a glass rollerball then filled it the rest of the way with a carrier oil (I used coconut oil).

So, a little bit about the essential oils in this roller and why they are so good:

• Joy – a blend of Ylang Ylang, Geranium, Jasmine, Palmarosa, and Rose along with Bergamot, Lemon, and Tangerine essential oils, Joy is just as its name suggests – emotionally balancing and uplifting
• Orange – any of the citrus oils are uplifting and orange is great for creating peace, harmony, and creativity
• Bergamot – for confidence and calming
• SARA – a blend of Geranium, Ylang Ylang, Rose, Blue Tansy, and other oils that is designed as a soothing scent to be used during difficult or emotional times
• Release – a blend of Ylang Ylang, Geranium, Sandalwood, Grapefruit, Tangerine, Spearmint, Lemon, Ocotea, Jasmine, Rose, and Blue Tansy it facilitates the ability to let go of anger and frustration

This blend truly smells amazing and it definitely provided me with some much-needed calm and emotional support.

Let me know if you try any of these recipes!