Green your Clean Series! Laundry room

Let's get real. Cleaning is one of those things either you love or you don't. I do not like to clean but I hate a mess. What a predicament?? I really want to challenge you (and myself) to look at the products you use around the house to clean and to try something new.

Lets start off this Green your Clean series in the laundry room.

Confession time... I used to be a fabric softener-aholic (yes that is a word). I used several dryer sheets and liquid softener! I had no idea what horrible toxins I was absorbing by putting on my (and my family) clothes daily. The chemicals found in fabric softeners are known neurotoxins, hormone disruptors, allergens, asthmagens and carcinogenic. Just Google it... no lie. You will be a bit overwhelmed. Needless to say, I stopped several years ago and went green. Lets talk about options.

Option 1: Vinegar

Several years ago, I went cold turkey. I changed over to using vinegar in my rinse cycle. In my old washing machine I would add it at the end or use my old dryer ball (until I decided to give that old thing up too). Then I got a machine that had a fabric softner dispenser so it was a no brainer. Pour my vinegar right in there- easy peasy.  Super cheap and soft clothes. Its been about five years now and I have not had any problem with static. Honestly, I can no longer stand the smell of laundry softener. I went through some old bins of clothes last summer that were from way back in my softner days and I just about choked on the smell.

Option 2: Wool dryer balls

Another option is to use wool dryer balls. They help speed up the dry time, soften, decrease static and can also be used with essential oils to add a scent to your laundry. 

I recently made some and was amazed at how easy it was! I have been leaving them in my dryer to help speed up the process (save energy). My clothes have certainly been drying faster.

You need to buy the kind of wool that is not made for washing so it will felt. No blends. I used two skeins of roving wool to make six balls. Super simple. You wind them into tight balls. Once you get the size you want, cut the yarn and tuck in the end.

Then you place them into old pantyhose and tie them off. Put them in with the wash and dryer for a few loads. Then remove them from the pantyhose. They should be felted. (You should  not be able to pull the strings apart.)

They are so cute and simple! If you want to add scent just add 3-4 drops of essential oil right onto each ball. You can add more or less depending on the level of scent you desire. Lavender or purification are great ones to start out with but the possibilities are endless.




Option 3: Home made dryer sheets

This one is the newest of the three I am trying out. My cousin has been using these for awhile and highly recommended them. I quite honestly love the smell! Seriously, it is so simple to make your own dryer sheets.

I had several receiving blankets in the donation pile. So I decided to use one for this project. You can also use old flannel sheets or t-shirts.  I cut them into squares. But generally dryer sheet size around 6x6 is good. Nothing fancy, just chop chop.








Stuff the pieces of fabric into a mason jar. In a separate bowl mix one cup of vinegar and 20-30 drops of Young Living essential oils then pour over fabric. Make sure oil mixture is evenly distributed over fabric, then shake to distribute.


Add a cloth or two to your dryer load, then throw them back in the jar. You can reuse them as much as you want!

So there you have it... three easy ways you can green your clean today! Try one out and let me know what you think! I will be back with more ways to clean up the toxins soon.

Blessings!

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Spring Inspection of the hives!

Going into winter I had three hives. If you recall from my post last fall, I was hopeful, but they were all in different stages and there are so many factors that come into play over our long winter months here in Minnesota.

Throughout late fall and early winter I would go up the hill at least once a month to just check and see if there was any signs of activity at the entrances. In February, I was very surprised to find Alveare (left) the shortest of the three still alive. I peeked inside Panj as well. Both hive's bee cluster were in their top box, which generally means they ate all their stores already. I set up mountain camp feeding on Alveare and Panj since they were the lowest on food. I left Kosnica knowing they should have had tons of food. They were active out front but I did not see bees on the top of the hive.

Going into March I checked Panj and Alveare two more times on how the feeding was going and if there was need for more. I added to Panj as they were eating it up really fast. They were definitely more active outdoors even when it was colder than the other hives. They would be flying outside even when I saw nothing with the others. Must be the Russian bloodlines. We had some up and down weather and checking the outside of the hives it appeared that Kosnica was most likely dead. I peeked inside and saw no movement. Late March I suspected that a cold snap may had also taken Alveare as I saw no movement and heard nothing when I knocked outside. Today I went in to look....

The above photo is from today's inspection the first day in April.

You can see Alveare (left) is shorter than the other hives. They had only two boxes going into winter and they were not full. It should have been a recipe for disaster. Upon opening them up today, they still had lots of feed on top and were very much alive! They are raising brood (babies) and taking in beautiful yellow pollen. My weakest hive going into winter made it!!! I am amazed at their resiliency.

On the other hand my Russians, Panj (middle) had eaten all the feed I had given them. More than twice as much as Alveare. They were raising brood and filling in the extra space for more! In the picture below is some of the burr comb I removed that they were building. It had eggs in it. You can see the little white dots. Those are bee eggs. Another thing to note is their hive was so clean. When I went to clean the bottom board there was barely anything there to clean up. These bees are really good bees.

Kosnica (farthest away, on the right) had a third deep box FULL of honey going into winter.  They should have had enough food to last them until March/April easily. There was activity outside the hive but from my recent visits and outside observations, I was suspecting it was bees from other hives robbing the honey from inside. Upon opening the hive there was virtually no bees inside. The top box still was full of honey, easily eighty to one hundred pounds. It was tough to lift. I checked all the way down. No cluster. They were dead. Most of the bees were on the bottom board. I am suspecting moisture as a reason they may have perished. I had the bottom entrance open to the smallest opening and it should have been the three inch opening. They most likely did not get the ventilation they needed to be able to remove the moisture even with the moisture board on top.

It is sad to loose a hive but I am super happy to have the other two doing so well. I will be dividing the colonies in about a month from two to four. This will be a new venture and I will be happy to share when it happens.

That's the buzz!

Blessings!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.

Five New Fabulous Christmas Gifts you can Make with Essential Oils

I love giving homemade gifts! Below you will find all the details on how to make these five fabulous natural gifts with essential oils. These are such wonderful gifts to give and so easy to make!

Layered Lavender Hot Cocoa:

You know chocolate fixes everything! Well now its lavender and chocolate fix everything. Relax and warm up with this wonderful blend. For this project follow these steps:

1. Measure 1/2 cup sugar into a separate bowl and mix with 5 drops lavender.
2. Using a canning funnel, put sugar/lavender mix in bottom of canning mug.
3. Tap to get it all level and packed
4. Then add in order to layer 1/2 cup cocoa powder
5. 1/2 cup powdered milk
6. 1/4 tsp salt
7. 1/4 cup chocolate chips
8. Push down on the chocolate chips with your hand to pack the jar well
9. Then pack the top with mini marshmallows
10. Add lid and label. For the label add the instructions: Empty contents into a large bowl. Mix well. To make cocoa add 1/3 cup of mix to 1 cup hot water. Store mix in a sealed container. 

Super cute, fun with a lot of yum!

All Natural Glitter Body Spray with a Silver Diffuser Necklace: 

This all natural body spray has some shimmer and some sass. Use your favorite essential oils or try the suggested ones below. Pair it with a fun diffuser necklace for a perfect combination! For this gift you will need:

4 ounce spray bottle
1/3 cup witch hazel
your choice of essential oils 

• Beautiful- 8 drops ylang-ylang essential oil and 8 drops orange essential oil

or

• Energizing- 5 drops grapefruit, 6 drops lime, and 5 drops lemon essential oils

1/2 tsp all natural mica powder (glitter)
1 tablespoon glycerin
1 tablespoon oil (like sunflower, grapeseed or almond)

Once you have added all ingredients to the bottle, replace the spray top and make a cute label for your bottle. Shake well before using.

Diffuser Necklace: for second part of this gift you will need a rope or chain for your necklace, a spiral pendant and lava bead or wool ball. Put the wool ball or bead inside of your pendant by gently pulling the wires apart, then add pendant to your chain. Super simple and really cute. We gifted this with a small sample bottle filled with essential oil blends we made to match the spray.

Eucalyptus Mint Bath Oil: 

A wonderful addition to any bath. Pour one tablespoon of this into your bath as you are running the water.  Improve your concentration, boost your energy, ease sore-achy muscles and oh yeah, kills germs on the side.  For this gift you will need:

4 ounce glass bottle
10 drops eucalyptus essential oil
5 drops peppermint essential oil

Approximately 4 ounces of olive oil

Add essential oils to the bottle. Then fill to neck with olive oil. Screw on the cover, shake well and add a cute label. We gifted this oil with a super fluffy white spa towel.

Peppermint Foot Rub: 

A great treat for tired and achy feet! We wrapped this up with a pair of fuzzy socks for a super cute gift. To make this gift you will need:

• 2 ounce glass bottle
• 4 Tablespoons of oil (like sunflower, grapeseed, or sweet almond)
• 2 Tsp of Vinegar
• 15 drops of peppermint essential oil

Add all the ingredients to you bottle, cover & shake. Add a cute label and wrap it with your favorite fuzzy socks.

Whipped Body Butter: 

This is not just lotion, it's butter! It is a wonderful blend of all natural oils to sooth your body. A little goes a long way.

1/2 cup sweet almond oil
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup mango butter
1/2 cup shea butter
1 tsp vitamin E (preservative)
Essential oils of your choice (we used 2 drops of joy and 3 drops of orange for each 1/2 cup)

Melt the coconut oil and butters in a double boiler until combined.

Remove from heat and add sweet almond oil and vitamin E. Then place in refrigerator to cool down for 2-4 hours. When it is almost solid put it in your mixer to whip it up. If it is not whipping well you may need to refrigerate it a little longer.

Once whipped add your essential oils to your preference and whip another minute to incorporate. Spoon into your jars and add a cute label.


Looking for more ideas? You can view previous years projects here:
Five more DIY gifts for Christmas using Essential Oils
5 Easy DIY Christmas Gifts with Essential Oils
Mens All Natural Bath and Body Products Using Essential Oils

I hope you enjoy creating these wonderful natural gifts for your friends and family. Do you have a favorite homemade gift you make? Share some of your favorites with us below. In the meantime have a wonderful holiday season and a very merry Christmas!

Blessings!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.

No diffuser? Try a Pillow Mist for a Great Night Sleep

My son was a horrible sleeper! Before he got his own "confuser" (that is what he calls his diffuser), he absolutely loved this pillow mist. He would spray it on his "blankie" before bed every night.

He did not show a huge response to the sleepy time roll on we made. He liked to use it but it did not change his sleeping patterns. He did much better with the spray. We started with just Lavender. He was sleeping better but still waking crying (we thought it was really bad dreams). I did a little research and decided to try adding White Angelica. Yeah! No more night terrors. He would still wake up but he was not crying with terror. Mostly there is no crying at all. It was more to do with wanting to have his Daddy next to him than it is not wanting to sleep or having a night terror. So here is what I made:

I use a 4 ounce glass bottle for his spray.

1.   Fill about 1/2 way or 2 oz. with Vodka

2.   Add 2 oz. distilled water

3.   Add 4-5 drops vegetable glycerin

4.   Add 15 drops Lavender Essential Oil and 15 drops of White Angelica

5.   Screw top on and shake a little to mix

Now he is a little older and has his own diffuser. He still uses his pillow mist occasionally but he gets the same aromatic response with his diffuser. He loves his "confuser" and turns it on all by himself each night. We bought him a spill proof one which is perfect for kids and the bedside.

How about you? Do you have a diffuser? If not, have you tried other ways to use your oils aromatically? If you want to learn more about how to use essential oils let me know. I teach classes in person and online regularly and would love to have you join us! If you are ready to jump in with oils I would love to help you. It is super easy just click on this link...Sign up for Young Living Starter Kit Here


Blessings!

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What's that Buzz?

My hive last year was so compliant. They only drew in the lines and were very pleasant overall. PLUS they gave me over one hundred pounds of honey. This year on the other hand, my hives are challenging me constantly. In this post I will share some more of their antics of late. First, since I have a few hives I will be discussing, I will give you a little bit of background on each of them before I get too far into my latest update. I named each colony so I could keep them straight. They are all named "hive," but in different languages.

Alveare (Italian for hive) is where Athena is. The hive started out as an Italian race of honey bees however I am not sure what Athena is, I would say is is most likely Italian. She is our new queen whom I have written about. On my last two checks she has been there however her brood pattern is spotty. The picture on the left is from this hive. See if you can find Athena, she is marked with a white dot.

I am hoping this colony picks up soon so they have a better chance to survive out long winter here in Minnesota. Currently they only cover about three to four frames. Only time will tell if she will be able to build a strong enough colony before winter set in. Lets pray for a long summer and fall.

Panj (Slovenian for hive) is an Carniolan colony which is doing very well. I used Panj to help Athena along when she was first introduced. Panj is the colony I switch locations with Alveare so it lost the foraging bees that day. However it is still going strong and in fact on last inspection I found the queen (unmarked) and was so excited. Its really hard with so many bees! They are currently running strong with three full deeps and are making extra honey. If you look at this picture you can see very few empty cells, this queen is a super star. Those are all baby bees in those cells soon to be born.

Kosnica (Croatian for hive) is an Italian based colony and has always been the strongest hive. It filled its three deep boxes and received its honey supers a good week before Panj. However with that comes some bee-attitude. In mid-May this hive had started a queen cup on one of its frames which freaked me out a bit. A queen cup is the start of a queen cell. The location of the cup made it a supercedure cell. Meaning if they filled it they were planning on replacing the queen. Talk about stress for me! Losing a queen is huge with our short season. False alarm, the queen cup was never filled and was gone by next inspection. However as you will see this is not the end of Kosnica's shenanigans...

So let's get back to where I left you last... Athena was out of her cage and doing well. My plan was to let her be for a couple weeks.  My strong hives were doing so well. I did quick checks for eggs to ensure the queens were there and ok. I removed a little burr comb (drone brood which the bees make on the bottom of the frames- it makes a mess). And I accessed for the need to add supers, otherwise I let them bee. 

Mid June we had some really hot days so I let the next inspection go a few extra days. Normally I go in every seven to eight days. This one was planned for day eleven. Before hand, I was sitting outside with my kids eating lunch and I could hear a buzzing sound... I thought there was a hornet's nest close by. I told the kids to get in so I could check it out. As I carried our garbage to the driveway I found the source. There was a swarm forming above my driveway!!! One of my hives was swarming!!

I quickly inspected and found Athena wondering around. Alveare was a small colony, but thankfully still there. Then I went to check the other hives. However, since my other two queens are not marked, I was mostly going in to see if they were missing large amounts of bees or looking for other signs of swarming. Yes, both had bees.  However, Kosnica had made queen cells from the burr comb wax and hid them with the drones on the bottom of the frame. My strongest hive was now queenless. Well, at least for the next three weeks until the new queen *hopefully* starts laying eggs.

I left my hives to go check on the swarm. The swarm settled on a branch about forty feet up in our big oak tree. I set out a lure box with some lemongrass but they had other plans. Within two hours the swarm took off in a cloud and buzzed off over the houses and treetops.  

That buzzing, like a small engine plane was half my hive and my super star queen showing me they had other plans this summer.

Well, that's the buzz, for now...

Blessings!

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DIY Hair Detangler

Oh for years I bought the premade stuff. No more! It is so easy to make it yourself!

Seriously this is so easy it is embarrassing.

Ok ready?

1. Take a spray bottle.
2. Add conditioner.
3. Add water.
4. Shake it up.
5. Spray on hair.

Ok so you want more details?

Here is my exact recipe:

1. using a 4 ounce bottle
2. add about 1 tablespoon of conditioner
3. optional: add essential oils for hair health and to repel bugs (lice!) I use 3 drops of each: lavender, cedarwood, ylang ylang, rosemary and tea tree.
4. shake well and spray directly onto hair

There you go! Now go untangle.

Blessings!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.

God save the Queen

So where did I leave off on our girls journey? Oh yeah I left you up on the hill wondering about the possibly missing queen. Well long story short... turns out she flew the coup. After eight days there was still no sign of eggs in the hive. The other two hives had brood (babies) at various stages. My bee supplier did not have queens in stock for another week. To top it off in three days we were leaving for vacation for a week so there was literally nothing I could do until I returned.

When we returned from vacation I inspected the hive. I was elated, I found capped brood and larvae! That means eggs were being laid. Well lets say I had a brief period of excitement. Until I realized it was not the kind of eggs I needed. It was all drone brood. What is drone brood? Drones are boys. When you have ALL boys that most likely means the female that is laying eggs is not fertile (has not been mated), and not a queen. It means one of the girls panicked and started to lay eggs. She is called a laying worker.

When you have a laying worker, the hive thinks it has a queen since there are eggs and brood. However a laying worker can only lay unfertilized male eggs. This means as time goes on there will be less and less females to do the work. (Boys do nothing in the hive but consume food and fly off to mate with queens from other colonies).

As I started to research this I found that it is really hard to correct this problem. Its impossible to identify which female bee from thousands of bees is the one that decided to lay eggs. So all the female workers look the same. How do you get rid of her to replace her with a new queen?

After much discussion and research I came up with a plan. When my new queen arrived I had to dump the entire hive out of its home about 50 feet away up the hill. The reason for this is that the laying worker would not be able to fly back to the hive. Her abdomen is swollen since she started to lay eggs and she would not be able to fly. The majority of the other bees would fly back home.

This hive was already weak from being almost a month with no queen. So once I removed every single bee, I brought back the box and switched places with one of the other hives. The foraging bees who were out in the fields collecting pollen and nectar would return to the place they left from and make the weak hive their new home. This would give my weak hive a boost while the new queen had time to get accepted.

A hive can only have one queen. They identify their queen by smell. This queen was brand new and they would not recognize her. Queen Athena needed to be released slowly or the hive would kill her. Her cage had a piece of fondant candy plugging the hole. This candy would take the bees 3-5 days to chew through to release her. In that time the hope is that they will become accustomed to her scent and accept her.

I checked at five days and surprisingly she was still in the cage. I waited one more week. When I returned I am happy to say I found her walking around a frame. She was out of her cage and was alive. All good news! So I removed the empty cage and closed up the hive. Letting her start her very important work of rebuilding the hive. She has a lot of work ahead of her, she is a month behind so hopefully she can build enough of a colony for winter. Only time will tell.


For now, that is the buzz... blessings!

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Girls on the bus, are you ready for this?

Like many beekeepers, our colony did not make it through winter. So this spring I ordered three new packages of bees. Mid April, they arrived in these new "buses". The plastic cages you see here. I was hoping they would be easier that the wooden ones but more on that later.

When the packages arrived, I was home with both the kids. The bees had already been in their bus for a week. I decided I could not wait for my husband to get home that night. It would end up being too late in the day. So I asked the kids to play nice and not scream or interrupt me so I could concentrate... lol.  Well, I think you know where this story is going.

The steps to install the bees into a hive from the new busses is slightly different from what I did previously. After watching the video of how the new busses work I was hoping for the best. I knew it would be a bit tricky with my recent surgery. My hands are both pretty weak.

First package, I was able to get my first queen cage out and put her in my pocket fairly easily.  I sprayed the bus with sugar water really good to wet the bees. It took a lot more work to open the end of the bus with my hive tool than it did with the old wooden cages. Finally I got it open and I dumped the bees into their new home. I instantly started to curse under my breath (and I do not curse). The new buses plastic cages really did not allow the sugar water to penetrate on to the bees. So when I dumped them into the hive, they did not stay there. They were flying everywhere. Then to add to my frustration, I realized I forgot to remove the cork from the queen cage and replace it with a marshmallow. This was suppose to be BEFORE I dumped the bees! Now not only did I have thousands of bees flying all over, I also had to somehow calmly but quickly get the queen in there with them.

Keep in mind, my kids are SCREAMING at eachother less than 50 feet away and I am trying my best to concentrate.

Frustrated, I was able to get the cork out and was covering the hole with my glove. I realized that my finger was not all the way over the hole. The gloves are longer than my finger. So I turned my wrist to pull the glove down a little. When I turned my wrist back to look at the queen and put in the marshmellow, she was gone. She had snuck past my gloved finger. I looked all over my arm and my body thinking maybe she was crawling on me. Nothing. What a great start.

I could not find her anywhere. I placed the cage in the hive and closed it up hoping she had flew in or would fly back. The kids were still fighting like rabid dogs in the background (ok, it was probably not that bad but really when you are trying to concentrate it seems like it). My heart sank. I still had two more packages to install. There was no one else who could do this, I needed to keep going.

I took a deep breath, said a quick prayer and started to work on my second package. The second and third went very smoothly. It was still hard to open the buses with the hive tool (aka small crowbar). The thickness of the plastic cages blocking the sugar water was still a problem. I sprayed a ton so they were flying less but still more than normal.

Most importantly, I decided to remove my gloves to work with the other two queens.  This allowed me to work with them more easily. I also stepped away from the hives about 20 feet while doing it. I did not have bees hovering around me. I took my time. I talked to each queen about her new home. I welcomed her. I found this little one on one time with the queen to be very peaceful and calming.

I was able to finish the last two hives with the queens (and most the bees) safely in their new homes. The kids were now playing peacefully in the backyard. With much hope for my girls (and my possibly AWOL queen) I went to the house to make dinner...

Stay tuned for more on happenings with the girls.
Blessings!

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Everything is better with glitter! Lip balm with attitude

My daughter always asks for those flavored lip balms. You know the ones, marketed for kids. The ingredients list always makes me cringe. So over the years I've made her some lip balms and she accepted them-reluctantly. However she still wanted those "cool" ones. So recently we made tinted balm with sparkle and she is head over heels!!

Here is the recipe we created:

You will need:
6-7 lip balm tubes
1/2 tablespoon beeswax
1 tablespoon Shea butter
1 tablespoon coconut oil
2 capsules or 1/2 tsp vitamin E oil
1 teaspoon mica powder- approximately
10-15 drops essential oils of your choice (like lavender, or lavender and peppermint)

First melt your beeswax, coconut oil and butter in a double boiler.

Once melted remove from heat and add vitamin E, mica powder and essential oils. Stir the mica powder in really well! It does sink to the bottom. 

Gather your lip balm tubes with a rubber band for ease of filling. Slowly pour the balm into your tubes. Let it cool completely before capping.

Add cute labels or use decorative tape.

This is seriously so much fun. There are so many natural color combinations and essential oils you can choose from. If you try it out, let me know what you make. I hope you have fun with it!

Blessings!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.

Five more DIY gifts for Christmas using Essential Oils

This years "Christmas Make and Take" was a ton of fun. I took it up a notch with some of our projects. We made gifts which were a little more time intensive but overall are fairly easy and truly make great gifts for everyone on your list.







Comfort and Joy Lotion Bars: First up is my all time favorite lotion bar. I have been gifting these for years and I always get tons of compliments. These bars were seasonally scented with Joy and Orange essential oils to create a fun and luxurious bar. They are great for dry cracked skin. Rub them in your hands and the heat from your body will melt the oil. These bars are very moisturizing. I get cracked skin along my finger nails in winter and I will rub my lotion bar on the cracks at bedtime. By morning the crack will be gone.

You can use lots of options to make this with different molds. I use a small loaf silicone mold but you could make hearts for Valentines, silicone muffin mold for round shapes as well!

You will need:
1 cup beeswax
1 cup mango butter
1 cup coconut oil
1-2 tsp vitamin E oil or about 5 capsules of vitamin E
50 drops of essential oil- for this project we used 25 drops of Joy EO and 25 drops of Orange EO

In a double boiler melt the beeswax, mango butter and coconut oil. Once melted, remove from heat and add Vitamin E and essential oils. Then pour into molds. Let completely cool before removing from mold or if using deodorant containers make sure it is cooled completely before adding the cap.

Using the mold above I generally get 10-11 bars.

Essentially Infused Sea Salt Trio:Second we made Essential Infused Sea Salts in Rosemary, Basil and Oregano. I found some super cute jars (wedding favors) and some great coordinating stickers and boxes.

1. Rosemary bowl combine: 2 level Tablespoons sea salt with 1 drop of Rosemary EO
2. mix well then add 1 level Tablespoon dried Rosemary
3. mix in bowl and then scoop/pour into jar with a funnel
4. place the cover and label it, repeat with each herb, (keep separate bowls for each herb)

Diffuser Bracelet:Third up is diffuser bracelet. Using natural stones, Amazonite and Lava we created super cute bracelets and paired it with a mini dropper bottle so each person could share their favorite scent with the receiver.

1. Cut 9-10" of magic cord (1mm)
2. use 16 amazonite stones (8mm) and 3-5 lava stones (8mm or 10mm) to make your bracelet (don't fill the string or you won't be able to tie it!!!
3. triple knot it (hardest part)
4. put one dab of superglue on the knot
5. once dry, cut ends.

White Christmas Bath Bombs:These Luxury Bath Bombs with White Angelica EO and Lavender EO were like heaven....oh they smelled sooooo good. When you are ready to use them, fill your tub, climb in and drop in the bomb!

1. Combine in a large glass or stainless steel bowl until well blended: 

• 8 ounces Baking Soda for your skin and the bathwater
• 4 ounces Corn Starch
• 4 ounces Epsom Salts

2. Add the following ingredients and blend well: 

• 2-3 tsp. witch hazel
• 15 drops of Essential Oil for scent (more or less depending on how strong you want it and what scent you are using)
• 2 tsp. almond oil for your skin
• Food coloring if you want colored bombs and water.

3. At this point, your mixture should resemble wet sand.  Adding the food coloring helps you figure out if it’s well-mixed, an even color means a good mix.  When you squeeze some in your fist, it should hold together.  If it doesn’t, add witch hazel a teaspoon or less at a time until desired consistency is reached. ***Don't add too much liquid or it expands... a lot.

4. Add 4 ounces Citric Acid (this is what gives you the fizz). Mix well, but use a spoon for this because the pure citric acid can irritate your skin.

5. Once well mixed, tightly pack it down into your mold.  Let it dry 24 hours in the mold before removing.

Christmas Spirit Scented Soap: Finally we made Christmas Spirit Scented and swirled soap. I have wanted to do a soap for a long time. We used a glycerin melt-and-pour soap with shea butter. Its important when shopping for soaps that you look at the ingredients and choose one that you are comfortable with. 

1. Chop the soap into cubes and melt slowly in a double boiler or microwave. 
2. Once melted, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. 
3. Add your essential oils and mix well. (We used approximately 5ml bottle of Christmas Spirit for 2 1/2 pounds of soap.)
4. Pour into molds.
5. Let it set slightly, when a skin starts to show on the top is the best time to add liquid soap colorant. I used 5-7 drops in each muffin cup. stir slightly with a popsicle stick.
6. Spray with rubbing alchohol to break surface tension and pop a y bubbles. Leave to cool and harden. Do not place in fridge to speed it up- this will result in sweaty soap.
7. Once completely cooled wrap in saran wrap.
8. This recipe made 12 bars of soap, but will vary depending on molds you use and how much you fill them.

Looking for more ideas? You can view more projects here:
Five New Fabulous Christmas Gifts you can Make with Essential Oils
5 Easy DIY Christmas Gifts with Essential Oils
Mens All Natural Bath and Body Products Using Essential Oils

Let me know what you are making this Christmas. I would love to hear about it!

Blessings!!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.

The End of the 1st Bee Year

Oh the excitement of harvesting the honey!! I never expected (or planned) to be doing it this year. It was a whirlwind but once the honey was collected and the excitement past, there were still a few important tasks to be done.

So let's talk a little bit about what happens with the bees after the harvest. Afterward you have to: clean up the supers (the boxes we removed the honey from), clean the beeswax, feed the bees and ultimately prepare the hive for winter.

 

First step is feeding. Above is a large pot of sugar syrup I was in the process of making to feed the bees. Once you remove all the honey supers you want to feed them. This is to prevent them from eating all their winter stores before true winter even starts. There is not much nectar available for foraging after labor day in this area so they will start to consume what they stored to stay alive if you do not provide them with other sources of food. I also gave them pollen patties, which is a source of protein for them.

Note: I removed 100 pounds of honey from the hive, which is awesome for a first year hive! I left them with a very full deep box filled with honey for winter, it was approximately 80 pounds. 

The bees help with cleanup. After harvesting the honey from the frames, I placed the supers back on the hive and they clean up all the leftover honey very quickly. After cleanup the boxes go into storage for next spring- for when the bees will make honey again.

My second big task was to take care of all the beeswax I had collected. The crush and strain method I used to harvest honey resulted in lots of wax for one hive. I decided to use this low heat double boiler method to clean my wax.

It worked beautifully and I ended up with almost 7 pounds of absolutely wonderful smelling clean wax.

Finally, once the temperatures drop it is time to remove the feeding pail and wrap the hive. I reduce the entrance to the smallest opening to help them defend from honey robbers, mice and other opportunistic predators. They do fine taking turns in the little door.

In the winter, they do not hibernate. They are awake but just not foraging. They form a cluster to stay warm inside the hive. Wrapping the hive helps keep them warm in our harsh Minnesota winters. It is an added insulation and also helps generate heat in the sun because of the dark color. I used a black cardboard box for insulation. You can also wrap it with a double layer of roofing paper. A windbreak on the northeast corner is also recommended to shield them from the harsh winter winds. You will notice there are two holes for them to go in and out. (They do need to leave the hive to relieve themselves all winter long.) The upper hole is in place because as winter goes on the lower entrance may be blocked by snow or other debris. In my winter preparations I also included a moisture board. This goes on the top of the hive to collect condensation. Condensation happens from the bees activity inside the hive. It collects on the top, inside and can drip down on the bees causing them to freeze.

Winter is the time when most beekeepers lose their hives. Last year in MN it was a 50% loss. There are so many factors at play in this. The length of the winter, how severe the winter is, the strength of the colony, the mite load and disease resistance and so much more. At this point the best you can do is make sure they have plenty of food and offer them some winter protection in hopes they survive until spring.

It is suppose to be a mild winter, so I am praying they will survive it. We are planning on expanding our apiary in the spring with hopes to have more honey and stronger bees next year. Next year I plan to use essential oils to assist in my honey bee health and pest management.

This little video shows my girls getting out on an unseasonably nice 60 degree November day. I saw several return with full pollen baskets. Wonderful to see they are finding some pollen.

I have been up to check on them a few times since wrapping the hive. We have had some warmer weather so I saw the girls out foraging last weekend. I will probably get up there a few times this winter to check on them in hopes that I will see- or more accurately hear-any activity.

Blessings!

Bath Tea, the no mess way to enjoy a spa like bath

So who does not love the idea of the beautiful bathtubs with rose petals and wonderful spa scents... until you realize you have to clean it up. Well, worry no more! You can make bath tea! This was so easy to make and it smelled and looked wonderful. This would make a great gift for teachers, friends and family. Just place three bags into a box or mason jar with some simple instructions. 

Ingredients:

1 cup Epsom salt

1/2 cup oatmeal (finely ground in food processor)

1/2 cup powdered milk (whole preferred)

2-4 T dried flowers (I used rose petals and calendula from my garden)

8-10 drops essential oils (I used Lavender)

Directions:

Mix the ingredients together in a large bowl.  Scoop carefully into extra large tea bags and tie shut. You can add a tag if you like as well. To use, place one tea bag in tub before running water. If you don't mind the clean up feel free to open it and pour contents into your tub.

Don't forget to grab a good book and light a candle or seven. Take some time to really relax and enjoy it. Let me know how you liked it!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.

Blessings!

Kids Bedtime Spray

I recently hosted a Back to School Make and Take and one of the things we made were bedtime sprays. We had two options for them to choose from. They were also invited to decorate the bottle with stickers, markers, etc. to make it their very own.

A good nights sleep is a great way to help your little one start their day. Some kids have problems falling asleep because of fears.  Monsters or other nighttime fears can be hard to rationalize with little ones. I have found its better to acknowledge the fear and give them something to help overcome it. Monster spray can be a great help here! White angelica has really helped our family in this area. Lavender and white angelica is what I used with my little guy when he was waking in the middle of the night with night terrors. He loved to spray it on his pillow and blanket and he no longer woke screaming in the night. (happy mama)

Some kids have trouble staying asleep or may wake up really early. Cedarwood is a great scent and can help extend the sleep cycle.  I really have fallen in love with it. In fact, lavender and cedarwood is what I use nightly in my diffuser. (You don't have a diffuser? Then, we need to talk!)

Monster Away Spray or Sleep Spray:

1.  place 2-3 drops glycerin in bottle

2.  10 drops of lavender

your choice of:

o    5 drops of White Angelica (monster) or

o    5 drops of Cedarwood (extended sleep)

3.  add approx 1 ounce distilled or purified water

4.  top off with approx. 1 ounce witch hazel or 100 proof alcohol

5.  add top and shake well

6.  decorate sticker and add to bottle!

7.  spray on linens (or monsters) before bed

Involve your kids in making it and I hope you enjoy a restful night sleep!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.

Blessings!!

Green Your Clean Series! Your body products

So far, we looked at a few areas of the home: the bathroom, the laundry room and the kitchen. Now lets wrap this up and take a look at how you may green up your personal body products.

When you look at all the things you put on your body, the chemical load can really add up. Lotion, shave gel, soap, shampoo, conditioner, mousse, hairspray, foundation, eye shadow, toothpaste, deodorant... I could go on and on. Look at the ingredient list on just one of those products...pretty crazy huh? 

I do not recall exact order I took when changing over products. It was one thing at at time. Taking the first step. Mostly I looked for stuff I could replace (and still be satisfied with it) without paying a ton of money for. This is how I ended up making most of my stuff (much cheaper) and ultimately what led me to Young Living.

Here is a little list of things I have done and hopefully you will find some you can try crafting. You can change the essential oils used for the scent or benefit you desire.

Foaming Shave Soap - love this stuff!

Sugar scrub - great exfoliant

Foaming Hand Soap - this can also be used in the shower or bath

Deodorant - no stink here!

Bath salts also here - so many options!

Roll on Perfume

Lotion Bar

Face Serum - replaces my face moisturizer

Pillow mist 

Magnesium Oil - great way to get your magnesium

Baby wipes - not just for babies, works great for clean ups of many kinds!

Waterless Hand Sanitizer - oh, this stuff is the bomb!

Here are two new things I have done that I have not talked about before:

Thieves Toothpaste: I made this one last year. Pretty simple to make. If you try it let me know what you think. This recipe makes a small amount which is nice, since you do not need much.

What you will need:
1/2 tablespoons bentonite clay
1/2 tablespoons coconut oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt - finely ground
1/2 tablespoon hot water
4-5 drops Thieves essential oil



Stress Away and Lavender Whipped Body Butter: This is awesome for all over lotion. I have made it with a few different essential oils but I think stress away and Lavender are my favorite combinations.

What you will need:
1/2 cup coconut oil
1 cup mango butter (or shea butter or cocoa butter or a mix or each)
1/2 cup sweet almond oil
1 teaspoon vitamin E oil
essential oils of your choice! (I put in 10 of each stress away and lavender but I do love my oils!)

Melt the coconut and butters in a double boiler. Remove from heat and add almond oil, vitamin E. Chill in fridge for 1-2 hours until it starts to solidify. Then mix in a stand mixer with the whip attachment to get it a whipped consistency. It will take several minutes. Add essential oils and mix them in. Store in a jar on your counter. (If your home it really warm it may melt but you can always whip it back up.)

So what do you want to replace? What have you tried? What is missing from this list?

Where ever you decide to start, have fun playing and enjoying all your chemical free body products.

Blessings!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.