Healthy Home Tips and Tricks

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I was recently on a Facebook post where there were inquiries about healthy home products and where to find them. We all know that there 10,000 chemicals out there. Most people want an easy way to avoid them. Unfortunately, "natural" products can come with a hefty price tag and a limited number of suppliers. So here are a few DIY recipes for things I use in my home

Cleaning Vinegar: Easy to find in most places like walmart , target, home depot, and most grocery stores. I pour out about a third of it and fill it with citrus peels. Any kind of citrus peels. Let sit for at least 6 weeks or longer. The result is a viscus fluid which should be strained and stored in a cool dark place. I mix equal parts vinegar and water, a squirt of soap (I like myers and bronners it doesn't matter what you use) with a few drops of antimicrobial essential oils like;

  • tea tree

  • oregano

  • rosemary

  • thyme

  • mint

  • lavender

You can use any oils or combination of oils you want. I have also tried this using the overabundance of basil and thyme I grew this year instead of citrus peels and it turned out awesome. This recipe is great for general cleaning and dusting. Its awesome if you have hard water for keeping deposits down. The citrus helps to cut through oil, and works great for things that require a good soak.

Scouring Powder: If you are like me you need a scouring powder for your tough jobs. But you can't put comet on your dishes lol.

  • 1 Cup baking Soda

  • 1 Cup Borax

  • 1 Cup Salt

That's it. If you want to make a soft paste you can use around the house mix:

  • 1/4 cup of borax

  • 1/4 cup of salt

  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice

  • 1 teaspoon liquid soap

  • a few drops of your favorite essential oils.

Try to use it all in one sitting. Because of the lemon juice, store in the fridge and use within 3 days. Again I don't measure anything I just kind of eyeball it based on what it is I plan on cleaning. Remember that baking soda and an acid (like lemon juice or vinegar) cancel each other out.

Ultimately, our society has gone a little germ crazy. Yes its important to be clean. However, remember on/in the human body there are about 30 trillion human cells...and about 39 trillion bacterial cells. Yet most of the time we stay fairly healthy and free of disease. Vinegar, peroxide, ammonia, baking soda, soap, salt, borax and bleach  (I'm not giving up my cap full of bleach I don't care what it does) have been used by humans for cleaning for hundreds of years. By the way PLEASE DO NOT MIX ALL OF THE ABOVE in one container.

Natural body care:

Ok so I will eventually do a whole blog on natural body care but here are a couple of quickies.

Toothpaste: I discovered the amazing effects of homemade toothpaste last year when I cracked a tooth. While waiting on a dental appointment a dear friend of mine, who is also an acupuncturist, suggested that I try her homemade toothpaste. I was completely skeptical. After all what could this stuff do in comparison to being able to needle myself whenever I get uncomfortable. It blew me away. It completely took away the residual pain, reduced the inflammation, and tasted really good. You can google away and you will find many recipes. Now if you have ever seen me cook you know that I don't measure anything, so take this as a general guide.

  • 4 Tablespoons Bentonite Clay.

  • 3 Tablespoons Calcium Powder.

  • 1 Tablespoon Baking Soda (optional)

  • 2 Tablespoons Powdered Mint Leaf (optional)

  • 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon Powder ((optional)

  • 1 Tablespoon Stevia Powder or to taste (optional)

  • 1 Tablespoon clove Powder (optional)

  • 1 Tablespoon Turmeric Powder (optional)

  • 1/4 cup coconut oil

  • Essential oils that you like such as;

    • peppermint

    • clove

    • sweet orange

    • oregano

    • spearmint

blend the ingredients together to form a paste. If you want a looser paste add more coconut oil and or a few spoonfuls of olive oil. Play around with the ingredients and see if you come up your own bit of mouth heaven

Facemask: So my first DIY face mask ever was warm honey and ground up oatmeal. I still love this one because its so simple.

  • 1 1/2 Tablespoon of honey

  • 1/2 Tablespoon ground oats

I warm the honey and oats together in a small pan or ramekin slather all over and rub gently in circles. Leave on for about 10 minutes. Wash away with warm water.

Body Butter: I have no idea why folks think it is so hard to make body butter and lotion. I got tired of the high price of good butters. Man they worked soooooo good but frankly store bought lotion was cheaper. One day I noticed that my favorite stuff in the world listed its ingredients. I figured if I could make it through 2 semesters of physics, I could figure out how to mix a few ingredients into a passable mixture that I could spread on my body to stay moisturized in the brutal Baltimore climate. Turns out it was really easy. The secret is the ratio 2:1. You need about 2 oz of liquid oil for every 1 oz of butter. Cocoa Butter is about 3:1. It matters how thick or thin you like your body butter. IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT BUTTERS OR OILS YOU USE. Here is a base recipe:

  • 8 oz of butter (pick one or any combination)

    • shea

    • mango

    • cocoa butter

    • lanolin

    • kokum

    • coconut oil

      • melt all of these ingredients slowly in a glass container. Then add liquid oils

  • 16-20 oz of oil (or combinations of oils) you want

    • olive

    • almond

    • avocado

    • jojoba

    • sesame

    • sunflower

    • argan

    • vitamin E

    • sea buckthorn

    • hemp

  • 1 teaspoon vegetable glycerin

  • a few drops of essential oils that you like.

Once I have a good mix I let it cool and resolidify. You might have to stir it periodically. I keep the batch in the fridge and spoon out what I need to have on hand for a week or 2 into a separate container. I will usually wait and add essential oils to the portion I scoop out. this way I have the freedom to be scent free or pick a scent that I find therapeutic at the time of use. I will sometimes toss in aloe vera gel and rose water to make a lighter lotion.

If you have any tips or if there are some you would like to see, feel free to let me know.

Adia Marble