Lemon peel

I've been enjoying this simple acid cleanser for my face.  Here's what I do: juice a lemon and store the juice in a small glass jar in the fridge.  Dip fingers in the jar in the morning and rub them on my face.  Let the juice sit on there for about 10 minutes.  Wash off in the shower or sink.  Apply moisturizer afterwards.

Easy facial

I first saw this idea here. I blended up some oats when I made soap recently, had leftovers and decided to use them this way.

Step one: blend 1 C oats in a food processor or blender. Store in a glass jar or tuperware -like container.

Step two: Cover a small towel in hot water, wring out, then place on your face to open the pores.

Step three: Put a small amount of the ground oats in a small bowl. Add just enough plain yogurt to make a paste, then spread on your face.

Step four: Wait. 10 minutes should do it. Not longer than 15, or you can damage the skin.

Step five: wash off with warm water over the sink.

Step six: apply a toner. Mine is just a few drops of lavender essential oil in water.

Step seven: apply moisturizer. Mine is aloe vera gel (100%) mixed with a tiny bit of glycerine (which can be left out all together if your skin feels too sticky)

Ahhhhhh. It's very relaxing, yet not very time consuming, and my skin looks and feels great afterwards.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

Shelly had the idea to try to make vanilla extract, and since she found a great deal on a big shipment of vanilla beans, she invited me to try it out with her. I used a blend of Tahitian and Madagascar vanilla beans. We bought the cheapest vodka we could find at the liquor store, and it worked just fine. I used this recipe, Shelly tried a different variation.

The results: smell test--this extract smells better than the store bought real vanilla extract (more like vanilla, less like alcohol). It contains about the same quantity of alcohol (35%), but it smells much better.

Taste test--I made cookies using homemade vanilla extract and they tasted great. I should probably try out something where the vanilla has a more prominent flavor, but haven't had the need yet.

Homemade Lotion

First, a warning. Homemade lotion has a much different feel than store bought stuff. When I first started making my own lotion, I was not 100% impressed, but I wanted to give it a good shot before I gave up completely. It seemed really greasy... I discovered is that I need a lot less lotion compared with commercial products. A small dab of homemade stuff is about equivalent to a full pump of commercial stuff. And when I started using less, it was magically less greasy. Anyway, now I am thoroughly addicted to homemade lotion. It just feels so much more natural. It is very softening, and you can customize it to fit your skin type. While Aaron was in the hospital, I ran out of my homemade lotion, and didn't have time to whip up a batch (not that it takes long). I still had a bottle of Curel around, so I just used that for a few days until I had time to make some lotion. I don't think I'll ever run out of homemade lotion again, because I HATED using the Curel. Please keep in mind that I have been using Curel lotion for like 15 years. I loved the stuff before I tried something better. Homemade is better. So you should try it. One batch lasts me about a month, but for other people it may last longer (I'm a bit of a lotion-aholic).

This recipe is a hybrid of a couple of recipes in Better Basics for the Home.

Basic Lotion

2 1/2 ounces almond oil
1 1/2 ounces coconut oil *
1/3 beeswax, grated (if you want really thick lotion, add a little more)
2 ounces aloe vera
2 ounces water
1 Tbsp glycerin
1/3 tsp grapefruit seed extract (GSE)
10 to 25 drops essential oil, if desired (I don't personally desire)

*I like to use deodorized coconut oil for lotion, but only because I love the light beeswax smell. Regular coconut oil covers the beeswax smell up. If you like the coconut scent, or if you are planning to add essential oils for fragrance, it probably won't matter either way.

Melt the oils and beeswax. I don't have a double boiler, so I usually just put my glass measuring cup in a pan of water on the stove. Or I use the microwave. If you use the microwave, do it in 20 second intervals and stir in between. It doesn't take very long.

In another bowl, combine the water, aloe, glycerine, GSE, and essential oils, if using. At this point, I like to let the oils cool a bit before combining. I just find the lotion emulsifies better if the oils aren't piping hot. You can't cool it completely though, or it will solidify. Then you just beat them together with an electric mixer until the mixture is nice and creamy. I doesn't take long, but do make sure it is fully emulsified before you stop beating. If you stop prematurely, your lotion will sweat (i.e. the waters and oils don't stay combined in the jar, and the lotion sort of oozes the waters out). I use jars that hold 1/2 cup, and this recipe fills two jars. Then I do the lotion equivalent of licking out the bowl, which is slathering the leftovers all over my legs. Isn't that a lovely visual in your mind. I bet you wish you had a picture of that...

It took me a couple of tries before I was proficient at this. But don't let me scare you, this is nothing like making cheese, or soap. My first batch or two really sweat a lot. Don't worry if that happens, you can still use it and it is just as effective. It just isn't the perfect consistency. No worries.

In case you are wondering, the GSE is a preservative. You can store this at room temperature. This lotion should have a shelf life of at least four months, but like I say, I go through one batch in about a month. If you think you won't use it that quickly, you can store in the refrigerator to prolong the life.

There are a million variations you can make to customize this, but I think this is a great place to start. I've tried a few different oils, and I really prefer the almond oil for lotion.

Make sure you don't judge homemade lotions prematurely. Get used to it for a while, then I dare you to switch back to store bought stuff. You will hate it!

p.s. What does "manually gifted" mean?

I'm sold!

I used my Moon Cup this past cycle and am a convert, complete with desires to share the find with the world. I was really easy to use, and very comfortable. I actually noticed it less than a tampon (I did have to trim the stem a little). And, best of all, it worked great! I also loved that it didn't dry me out or bug my skin.

I highly recommend it. It's especially easy if you've ever used applicator-free tampons before.

Okay, I'm done.

Massage oil

Darryl gave me a gift certificate for a massage for my birthday, which reminded me that I wanted to post about a great, natural massage oil. Just put a little coconut oil on your fingers and rub into the skin you want to massage. It melts on contact with the skin, and smells yummy too. Also, you don't feel greasy afterwards.

To quell the speculation

Okay, I was going to wait until I had tried it out to blog about the alternative to tampons, but I might as well do it now. I am NOT going to make my own tampons. But it did order a moon cup. A friend first told me about something like this about ten years ago, but I was too chicken to give it a go. In retrospect, this would have been really handy to have on my mission, since I had to be really undercover about tampon use (many people felt that tampons were vulgar and that a woman was no longer a virgin after using one, but that's another story for another day). Anyway, it should get here before my next cycle, so I'll let you know. A lot of the reviews I read say there is a learning curve and that you really need to give it three months before passing judgement.

Another alternative I read about was to use actual sea sponges--you're supposed to just rinse them out and put them back in each time, but I don't think I could handle that.

Anti-Antiperspirant

I finally took the plunge. My friend Shelly had great success with this recipe, so I decided to give it a go. She made me some while I watched. I put it in my old antiperspirant container for easy application (I washed it first). Result: it works better than the store bought stuff I used to use. I actually sweat less now (though this still might be more than many of you are used to). And I'll be glad to be rid of the stains on the underarms of all my clothes.

I've been gradually weeding out toxins in my life, and decided that I should do something about the two biggest offenders: antiperspirant and tampons (more on this later).