Green DIY Herbal Cleaning Products (Giveaway from Mountain Rose Herbs)

http://mountainroseblog.com/recipes-2011-giveaway-3/

Happy New Year all! Mountain Rose Herbs asks an important question: What's YOUR herbal New Year Resolution??

Mine is definitely to make more herbal products and properly document my progress on this blog! I'd have to say, my best products right now are my Sore Muscle Rub, Insect Repellent and Lip Balm (recipe from MRH!) but I'd like to expand my product circle. I'm thinking lotions and creams which seems like a challenge (mixing oil and water - oh my!).

An easy way to get you started on making more herbal goodies - without having a small apothecary in your house like me - is to check out how to use and make your own green cleaning products. Check out Mountain Rose Herbs link http://mountainroseblog.com/recipes-2011-giveaway-3/ for a chance to win all the products you need to make your own cleaning supplies.

Just a few recipes to get you interested (courtesy of Mountain Rose Herbs)

Super Surface Spray• 16 oz. spray bottle
• 14 oz. – 1:1 solution of distilled white vinegar and water
• 7 drops of tea tree essential oil• 7 drops of lavender essential oil• 7 drops of lemon essential oil

Use this aromatic and disinfecting solution for cleaning kitchen counters, cabinets, refrigerator shelves, blinds, painted wood surfaces, painted walls, molding, fan blades, and more.

Herby Soft Scrub 
• 12 oz glass jar with lid
• 1/2 cup baking soda
• 1/2 cup castille soap
• 15 drops of antimicrobial essential oils like rosemary and sage

Mix well until you have a nice consistency like cake frosting. If you have leftovers, add 1 tsp vegetable glycerin to keep the blend nice and moist.

Antibacterial Soap Spray 
• 16 oz spray bottle
• 14 oz. water or rosemary hydrosol
• 3 tbsp castille soap• 15 drops of tea tree essential oil• 15 drops of oregano essential oil

Use this cleaning spray to disinfect your bathroom surfaces. You can use the Super Surface Spray to rinse away any residue left behind by the castille soap.

Refreshing Linen Spray
• 16 oz. spray bottle
• 3 oz. unflavored vodka
• 12 drops lavender, ylang ylang, peppermint, orange or your favorite smelling essential oil
• 12 oz. organic hydrosol of your choice

Spray to refresh your mattress, pillows, bed linens, couches, and fabric covered chairs, or spritz clean winter blankets before storing for the year. Also makes a wonderful ironing spray!

If you make any of these, leave a post and let me know how it turned out! Wishing you a green & clean New Year :)

Herbal Giveaway from Mountain Rose Herbs

http://mountainroseblog.com/recipes-year-giveaway/

Have you made any recipes from the Antique Remedies Blog? Make your own herbal goodness? Mountain Rose Herbs is where I get a lot of my ingredients. They not only have excellent products and great diversity but they have a well written blog with a lot of recipes and ideas. 


Mountain Rose Herbs is having a great herbal giveaway. Check out the link above and sign up. If you won this great prize package you'd be on your way to making some fabulous products. 

Here’s what the lucky winner will receive…

4oz Mango Butter, CWC

4oz Organic Cocoa Butter

16oz Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil

16oz Organic Sunflower Oil

32oz Organic Virgin Coconut Oil

16oz Organic Avocado Oil

1lb Beeswax Pastilles

2oz Vitamin E Oil 

1/2oz Organic Lime Peel Essential Oil

1/2oz Organic Mandarin Essential Oil

1/2oz Organic Nutmeg Essential Oil

1/2oz Organic Peppermint Essential Oil

20 x Clear Lip Balm Tubes

6 x 1/2oz Tins 

If you win, make sure you leave a comment here and let me know what you plan on making! And when you're signing up to win - let them know Antique Remedies sent you :)

And I know I haven't written a post in a long time (sorry!) but as 2011 comes to an end, I'm thinking about New Year's resolutions and one of them will be that I write more posts (and make more products)! 

Sunburn Home Remedy

The Sun - He's not trying to burn you, or is he?

Thanks to my parents and my heritage, I'm blessed with pale skin. Even though I got teased for in as a child in grade school, and once in college (can you believe it?), I've always fully embraced my paleness and take necessary precautions to keep it healthy. I've never been to tanning salons and I don't lay out to tan in the sun (though I love me some Vitamin D and sometimes just sit in the sun to feel it on my face). I pick moisturizers with sunscreen in them and make sure I have some with me on long car trips so I don't get a classy window-arm burn. I even invested in a white button up shirt that has UVA UVB protections in it. Even with all that protection - I still get sunburned! And no one likes a sunburn. They can be just pesky pink burns that go away fast or really severe burns that can leave scars or precancerous moles. Regardless of the kind of burn, they need to be treated.

Aloe is the most common sunburn home remedy. Many people have aloe plants in their homes but if they don't, you can easily buy a tub of it at the store. There is also a product called Solarcaine that people love because it has lidocaine in which makes your skin feel all tingly and cool. I must admit I used to use this all the time, growing up, when I used to go to the city pool everyday during the summer. For a German-Irish girl, I worked up quite the tan - for a 12 year old. But when I look at it these days, I see it has plenty of un-pronounceable ingredients and dyes. So what is a sunburn home remedy that can not only soothe the sunburn but also give it that tingly and calming effect?

Ingredients:
Aloe
Vitamin E oil
Lavender essential oil
Peppermint essential oil

I can't for the life of me find where I got this recipe from! I know I didn't make it up on my own. I thought it was from my absolute favorite home remedy/herb book - but it's not. I will continue searching for it but for now, I promise that when I write recipes down in my notebook I will always notate where the recipe came from! Seeing as how it is the season where women wear sundresses and tank tops and men forget hats and generally forget sunscreen altogether (*I admit to this glaring generalization of men and I apologize to any avid sunscreen users who are male!) -  I can't keep this recipe or product to myself any more.

Get yourself a spray bottle (a smaller 'mister' would be better - see link for example). Fill it about 3/4 of the way full with aloe vera gel (make sure it's pure). Then add just a bit of vitamin e oil. I have a bottle of vitamin e oil with a dropper. I put about two droppers in but if it's easier for you, you can use vitamin e capsules that you can get at any drugstore. Put a hole in it and squeeze out the good part! I'd use about 3 or 4 capsules. Then add your oils. Peppermint is what's going to make your skin feel cool and tingly but it's very strong. Make sure to avoid getting the sunburn remedy in your eyes (ouch!).

Peppermint makes it feel tingly, lavender soothes the sunburn and the aloe treats it. I took this to Florida with me on my vacation and thank goodness I did! My nose is always the first to get burnt, no matter what. And my poor mom burned her legs in a very funky pattern (which we had to laugh at). Lucky for her, I brought this homemade remedy along.