Make Your Own Beauty Products

When making your own bath products, you know exactly what's in it. These make great gifts.

Homemade Hair Conditioner

Recipe Ingredients:

Apple Cider Vinegar
Fresh Herbs: lavender, rosemary, basil, sage
Citrus Peels: lemon peel, orange peel

Directions:

• Take a sterile jar of any size and fill half way with your favorite assorted herbs and citrus peels, make sure they are pesticide free.
• Next fill the jar to the top with apple cider vinegar.
• Seal, store in a cool, dark place and shake daily for three weeks. Strain & refrigerate the infused vinegar.
• Take 2 TBS of the herbal vinegar and put into a 12 to 16 ounce spray bottle. Top with water.

Spray as much as you need on your hair after shampooing (first wash off the shampoo, shake spray bottle before using), massage into scalp, rinse off. No application of commercial hair conditioner is needed.

This recipe not only helps condition and nourish your hair, it also helps remove much of the buildup from commercial shampoos and conditioners.

*Note: Some herbal combination may affect light colored hair (blondes, grays) or dyed hair color. You should be ok since it’s such a small amount of herbal vinegar that is well diluted in water, but just a heads up to test a small patch of hair first.

Homemade Lavender Water

2 cups water (distilled)
3 TBS vodka
15 drops Lavender essential oil

Directions:

• Mix the essential oil and vodka together then add water. Seal in a jar or bottle, keep in a dark place for 2 weeks before using.

Bath Jelly

Ingredients:

3/4 cup water
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup liquid soap (unscented–use shower gel, hand soap or bubble bath)
*Essential oil (choose your favorite–a few drops)

Directions:

• Bring water to a boil, remove from heat then slowly stir in and dissolve the gelatin. Slowly add liquid soap and stir to mix. Add essential oil, stir well.
• Pour liquid into a clean clear jar or container, seal and refrigerate overnight.

Once the mix gels, it’s ready to use. Just add a spoonful under running water in the bath for a bubbling treat (a tablespoon or two will do).

*If you wish, you can skip the essential oil and use liquid soaps that have a fragrance.

Notes: Use within a few weeks. Keep refrigerated and airtight to avoid mold.

Peppermint Milk Bath Recipe

1 cup powdered milk
1/2 cup cornstarch
2 cups hot water
1/2 teaspoon peppermint oil

Herbal Milk Bath Recipe

1 cup powdered milk
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 TBS dried herbs of choice
2 cups hot water

Almond Honey Milk Bath

1 TBS Almond Oil
1/4 cup honey (*omit honey if mixing ahead, add when using)
1 cup powdered milk
2 cups hot water

Lavender Milk Bath

1 cup powdered milk
1/8 cup dried lavender
2 cups hot water

Brown Sugar Scrub

1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/4 cup of almond oil
1/4 cup of liquid Ivory hand soap
1/4 tsp of vanilla

Lemon Sugar Scrub

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup olive oil
1 TBS lemon zest (grated)

Lavender & Rosewood Scrub

1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup almond oil
1/2 tsp vitamin E
6 drops rosewood essential oil
4 drops lavender essential oil

Coffee & Brown Sugar Scrub

1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
3 TBS fresh coffee grounds
5 tsp almond oil
5 tsp jojoba oil
2 tsp honey
1 tsp vitamin E
1 tsp vanilla

Tea Sugar Scrub

2 cups white sugar
1 cup honey
2 TBS tea
5 drops vanilla

Yogurt Sugar Scrub

3 TBS baby oil
1 TBS yogurt
1 TBS white sugar

Directions:

• Mix ingredients and use as a body scrub/exfoliator.

Pneumonia

The information posted in this entry is to supplement treatment your doctor has prescribed. If you suspect you may have pneumonia, call your doctor. He or she may prescribe antibiotics that can aid in your healing.

While at home, the following can help relieve your symptoms and help you feel better more quickly:

• Stay hydrated--drink plenty of fluids.
• Get plenty of rest, but make sure to get up out of bed and sit in your favorite chair as often as possible.
• If possible, do not suppress the cough. Coughing is your body's way of getting rid of the infection. Reasons to suppress the cough would be because you are not able to breathe, not able to rest, or coughing is causing vomiting. Ask your doctor what is appropriate for you.
• Use aromatic oils containing oregano, thyme, or rosewood. In studies, these have killed the S. pneumoniae virus. It is not know if the oils are effective in humans, but aroma therapy couldn't hurt and may help you relax.
• Use garlic. It can help lower one's fever, if present. One could even apply garlic paste to the patient's chest (and ward vampires off at the same time).
• For pain relief, rub turpentine oil around the patient's ribs and wrap them with warm cotton wool.
  
• Consume sesame seeds. Put 15 grams of seeds in 1 cup (250 ml) of water water. Add 1 tbsp of linseed, a pinch of table salt, and a teaspoon of honey in the mixture. and mix well. Swallow down this mixture everyday. It will aid in removing phlegm from the bronchial tubes.
• Drink your veggies. Mix 3/4-cup of spinach juice with 1.5 cups of carrot juice daily.
  
• Practice breathing exercises; a.k.a. "chest therapy":
  
  • Use a incentive spirometer. Your doctor can give you one of these or you may be able to find one at your pharmacy. Using this regularly can help improve breathing and loosen sputum.
  • Practice rhythmic breathing and coughing every four hours:
    
    • Before starting the breathing exercise, the tap lightly on your chest to loosen mucus within the lung. If possible, have someone tap on your back.
      
    • Inhales rhythmically and deeply three or four times.
    • Coughs as deeply as possible with the goal of producing sputum.

Below, find some of the items mentioned above (like the incentive spirometer). Click on the arrow at the bottom of the carousel to move through the products:

Make Your Own Pet Food

I found these recipes from Make-Stuff. The advantage of making your own pet food at home is that you know exactly what your dog or cat is eating and it may be more cost effective.

"Animals, because they are color blind, choose their foods by smell. Most dogs like gamey flavors best, as well as liver, fat, garlic, horsemeat, lamb, beef, cheese and fish. Cats enjoy chicken, liver, fish, turkey, lamb, and yeast, and prefer fresh to aged flavors. Remember that cats are fussy eaters and it is not wise to continually feed them their favorite foods. Soon they will refuse to eat anything else; it is your job to see your cat has a balanced diet. Animals do not need salt added to their diet as the natural salt in the food is enough for them. Dogs may eat any vegetable they want, but cats should not have any starchy veggies, like peas and corn. Some dogs and cats even enjoy fruits! Onions are potentially harmful to dogs. It's a good idea to always add a grain, such as Kibble, wheat germ, cooked oatmeal or whole wheat bread to meat dinners. For dogs use 75% carbohydrate foods (grains and vegetables) to 25% meat; for cats use half carbohydrate foods to half meat. You will find, once you begin making your own pet foods, that it is really relatively simple and you will save some money as well. remember that all pet foods should be served at room temperature; don't serve food cold from the refrigerator nor hot from the stove. Incidentally, you should know that cats should be fed three times a day, while an adult dog needs only one meal a day. Here are some pet recipes you can make at home:

SAUTEED LIVER Heat 1 teaspoon corn oil in a pan. Add 1/4 pound beef liver and fry on both sides until cooked but not dry inside. Add 1/2 cup water to the pan and mix it up with all the brown bits. For dogs, cut the liver into pieces and serve; for cats, grind the liver in a blender, using the pan juices.

CHICKEN SOUP Combine 1 chicken liver, 1 giblet, 1 chicken heart, 1 chicken neck, 2 cups water and 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley. Cover and simmer until the giblet is tender. Chop all the meat for dogs removing bones and mix with kibble; for cats, you may want to grind the meat in the blender.

VEAL STEW Combine 1/2 pound stewing veal, 1 cup canned tomatoes, 1 cup water, 1 chicken bouillon cube, parsley and a dash of garlic powder in a pot and simmer. When meat is tender, remove all the bones. For dogs, cut the meat in chunks, and mix stew with kibble or some other grain; for cats, grind the stew in blender, adding a tablespoon of wheat germ or 1/2 slice of whole wheat bread.

LIVER COOKIES Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine 1/2 cup dry milk and 1/2 cup wheat germ; drizzle 1 teaspoon honey on top. Add one 3 1/3 oz. jar of strained liver baby food or homemade blended liver and stir until everything is well mixed. Form the mixture into balls; place them on an oiled cookie sheet and flatten them with a fork. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Consistency should be fudgy. Store in a jar in the fridge; freeze if keeping more than a few days.

LAMB STEW Follow the recipe for Veal Stew, using chunks of lamb instead and leaving out the tomato if desired.

MACKEREL DINNER Heat 1 tsp. corn oil in a skillet and fry 1 small mackerel until it flakes apart easily. Remove and cool. Pour 1/2 cup hot water into the pan and scrape the brown bits into it. Remove the bones from the fish and mix with the juice. For dogs, serve in pieces with kibble; for cats, grind with the pan juices.

FISH COOKIES Follow the recipe for Liver Cookies but use instead 3 1/2 ounces of mashed and boned mackerel, either canned or freshly cooked.

BEEF COOKIES Following the recipe for Liver Cookies, using cooked beef puree instead.

DOG MORSELS 2 cups whole wheat flour 2 tsp. garlic powder 2 cups white flour 1 cup skim milk powder 2 eggs water 1/2 cup melted beef or pork drippings (or lard) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix ingredients together with enough water to make a stiff dough. Roll out and cut into Christmas shapes. Bake on cookie sheet until hard.

KITTY TREATS 1 1/2 cups rolled oats 1/4 cup vegetable oil 1/2 cup flour 1/2 cup tuna oil, chicken broth or beef bouillon Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix all ingredients into a dough. Dust hands with flour and form small, 1/2-inch-thick, round "biscuits". Set on greased cookie sheet. Bake 30 minutes (or until biscuits are slightly browned). Cool 30 minutes before serving.

BUDGIE BROWNIES 1 cup cornmeal 1 tsp. finely ground cuttlebone 1 cup hulled millet 2 tbsp. liquid honey 1/4 cup whole wheat flour 2 eggs 2 tbsp. raw wheat germ of coconut 4 egg yolks (for larger birds add 1/2 cup peanuts) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix well. Pat into a greased and floured baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes or until firm (if edges start to get too brown, cover with foil). Cool and cut into small squares.

The Common Cold

Catch a cold? Let it go faster by following these tips:

• Rest
• Drink a lot of fluids, stay well-hydrated
• Up your vitamin C: take 1-4 grams per day to help make your cold less severe and not last as long
• Echinacea: take 3-5 ml (milliliters) in juice or tincture form every 2 hours as soon as you feel the cold coming on
• Zinc lozenges: use lozenges that provide 13-25 mg of zinc gluconate, zinc gluconate-glycine, or zinc acetate every 2 hours to help stop the virus you have and lessen the amount of time you have the cold.
  

This is not a comprehensive list of everything you can do when you have a cold, but can help at least get you started. Click here for more information.

Neti Pots

I recently discovered the Neti Pot. I had seen them in the stores and thought they were a little frightening: You put that in your nose?! Why would you do that?

Prone to sinus headaches throughout the year, I found myself suffering from another horrid sinus headache that could not be relieved no matter how many meds I took, steaming facials I gave myself, or how much heat I applied to my face. I gave in and bought a neti pot.

This is how it works:

1. Fill the neti pot to the line indicated by the manufacturer with lukewarm distilled water or water that has been boiled and cooled down.
2. Add the packet of saline solution provided or mixture you have made yourself (see recipe below). Make sure the solution has dissolved in the water.
   
3. Tilt your head down and to one side and insert the spout of the neti pot in the nostril that is higher up. So if you tilt your head to the left, you'll put the neti pot in your right nostril.
4. Remember to breath out your mouth and let the water in the neti pot pour into your nostril and drain out the other. (This will feel very strange and maybe even scary. It reminded me of getting water up my nose when I go swimming. But there is no sharp, pulsating pain unless you end up accidentally snorting the water up into your sinuses. This should not happen, though, if you remain calm and remember to breathe through your mouth.)
5. After you have let about half of the solution has drained through one nostril, remove the neti pot from your nostril and let any excess drain out your nostrils. You may even tilt your head slowly from side-to-side.
   
6. If you like, lightly blow your nose. Spit out any solution that may have drained into your mouth.
7. Repeat steps 3-6, but using the opposite nostril.
   
8. Blow your nose when finished using the neti pot, but do so very lightly. The pressure in your ears will feel weird if you use any strength.
   

The neti pot works with gravity. If you do not have your head tilted forward down enough, you may have the solution drain down into your mouth and maybe into your throat. If this happens, bend your head down further in to the sink or bowl you are using.

Always make sure your neti pot is clean and the tools and storage containers you use with/for it are clean. I personally use a plastic neti pot because it was more affordable and have heard a lot of stories about the ceramic neti pots breaking.

Here are some recipes I have found that you can use to make your own saline sinus rinse solution. I have not personally made my own recipe yet because I still have the packets of the sinus rinse solution provided with the neti pot I bought.

RECIPES:

• Mix a heaping ¼ tsp of finely ground non-iodized salt or a slightly rounded ½ tsp of coarsly ground salt in the neti pot with 8oz of warm water until the salt is completely dissolved.
  
  
• Combine 1 teaspoon of sea salt to one cup of warm water into the bottle and shake it lightly until the salt is completely dissolved. The smaller the granules of salt, the faster it will dissolve. This is enough saline solution for one nostril.
  
  
• 1 cup warm water
  1/4 teaspoon salt (no iodine)
  1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  1/4 teaspoon glycerin (to help keep my nose from getting too dry)
  
  Mix ingredients everything dissolves
  
  
• Find a measuring spoon that matches the amount in the pre-mixed packets so you know how much to use and get an air tight container to store the mixture in.
  
  Using canning/pickling salt or kosher salt that does not have any additives and regular baking soda. Mix 3 parts of salt with 1 part baking soda. Mix it up well, and store it in the airtight container. You can adjust the balance of salt to baking soda to find a comfortable ratio.
  
  
• Mix one cup warm water with 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon non-iodized salt and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. This is enough for cleansing both nostrils.

Blackhead Buster

After years of buying different products, I have found a simple solution to ridding myself of unsightly blackheads: Noxema. Yup, I mean that cream stuff in the blue jar.





Here is what to do:

• Give your face a steam bath: stick your face in the steam of boiling water for about 5 minutes. Be careful to not burn yourself. I like to get my electric hotpot going to do this.
• Pour the boiling water over a towel, get it really wet. Let the towel drain in the sink.
  
• Slather the Noxema all over your face or just your problem areas.
• Wring the towel out and find a comfortable place to sit or lay down.
• Put the warm towel over your face for about 10 minutes. Rinse your face with warm water.
  
• Finish this facial by using an exfoliator on your face to get rid of dead skin cells. Ahava Ahava is an amazing brand for this.

If you are pressed for time, which I often am, I slather the Noxema on my face before getting in the shower. I then do all my normal shower things (shampoo, conditioner, soap up, etc.) and then rinse the Noxema off at the very end.

The deep cleanser in Noxema rids the pores of all the dirt and bacteria in them. It works like a charm. I do this treatment about once a week, but would not do it more than 2-3 times a week.

Eat Your Way to Good Skin

The "Today Show" on NBC featured a segment on preparing natural ingredients for facial treatments. Most of the recipes can even be eaten. Foods featured include strawberries, olive oil, green tea, pumpkin, and pomegranate.

"Strawberries smoothie mask
Strawberries have more anti-aging vitamin C per serving than oranges or grapefruit. Research shows that people who eat foods rich in vitamin C have fewer wrinkles (vitamin C helps fight free radicals, which break down collagen, leading to those dreaded lines) and less age-related dry skin. Apply a mask once or twice a week, and eat C-rich foods daily.

Recipe:
1 cup of frozen or fresh strawberries (you can also substitute in raspberries and/or blueberries — they’re loaded with antioxidants)
1 cup of vanilla or plain yogurt
1 1/2 tablespoons of honey (a great moisturizer)

Enjoy your smoothie, then apply the remaining smoothie to your face over a sink (it’s a little drippy at first), and leave it on for about 8 minutes before rinsing.

Easy green tea eye treatment
Curling up to a cup of green tea does a lot more than relax you. Green tea is filled with inflammation-fighting antioxidants. What’s more, research shows that drinking green tea may reduce your risk of skin cancer. (And when you add a generous squeeze of citrus juice-like lemon, lime, or orange — the tea’s antioxidants get a boost of staying power).

Recipe:
Chill any leftover damp tea bags in the fridge for an hour and then put them on your eyes for 10-15 minutes.

Sip at least three big mugs of green tea every day for an antioxidant boost. Green tea contains tannins, which can help reduce puffiness when applied to skin.

Pumpkin pudding facial
Pumpkin’s orange hue is from carotenoids, wrinkle-fighting plant pigments that help neutralize free radicals in the skin. Pumpkin is filled with vitamins C, E, and A, as well as powerful enzymes that help to cleanse the skin. Although the seeds make a great fiber-filled snack, you get the skin-saving antioxidants from the pulp. Eat and apply the facial once a week.

Recipe:
In a food processor or blender combine:
2 cups canned pumpkin
4 tablespoons low-fat vanilla yogurt
4 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Coat face; leave on for 10 minutes, then rinse.
(To make a sweeter pudding add: 2 tablespoons 1/3 less fat cream cheese and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract.)

Olive oil moisturizer
The antioxidant, anti-inflammatory properties of olive oil don’t just benefit you on the inside —they soften your skin, too. Ancient Romans massaged olive oil into their skin, resulting in smoother, radiant skin. Olive oil provides antioxidants to disarm free radicals and reduce inflammation (inflammation is a major cause of wrinkling and sagging in the skin). In addition, you can apply the olive oil as a lip gloss or use it on rough patches (think elbows and heels).

Recipe:
At meal time, drizzle a few tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil into a small bowl and dip whole-grain bread in it.

Pomegranate exfoliating scrub
Pomegranates are one of the most antioxidant-rich fruits. Eat some fresh pomegranate (in season now through January) or use it in the age-fighting scrub. Apply once or twice a week to remove dead skin cells.

Recipe:
Cut off the pomegranate crown, and score the rind in sections, without cutting all the way through. Place in a bowl of water for 5-10 minutes. Break rind away from seeds, which will sink; strain seeds.

In a food processor combine:
2 tablespoons of seeds
1 cup of uncooked oatmeal
Transfer to bowl
Stir 2 tablespoons of honey (an antiseptic)
2 tablespoons of buttermilk
Apply to face for a few minutes, then rinse.
Enjoy remaining pomegranate seeds au natural or with your favorite cheese."