My youngest daughter and I had the best time gathering violets from the backyard a few weeks ago. We turned them into a lovely purple bath soak and wanted to share the results with you. Violets only bloom for a short time, so if you see them, be sure to act fast. PSSST! Pardon the interruption…. But I think you'll want to check this out. The Herbs and Essential Oils Super Bundle is available for just a few days. This carefully curated collection of 34 resources would cost you $560 on a regular day, but this week you can get...

Commercial air fresheners are bad news. Loaded with chemicals, air fresheners add to our toxic load, have the potential to aggravate respiratory issues, and increase the risk of cancer (and other illnesses). According to the Environmental Working Group: “… a University of Washington study found that eight unnamed, widely used U.S. air fresheners released an average of 18 chemicals into the air. On average, one in five of these chemicals were hazardous substances highlighted in federal and some state pollution standards. Fully half the air fresheners tested released acetaldehyde, a likely human carcinogen according to the EPA.” OK. So, instead of freshening the...

Please note: this post contains affiltate links. Even though I've studied and used herbs for years, I feel lacking when it comes to Botany and wildcrafting. I can identify some plants and herbs, but there are many that elude me. When I had the opportunity to take and review the new Botany and Wildcrafting course at the Herbal Academy of New England I jumped on it! To me, this course was not just a chance to dive deeper into the world of plants, it was a way to enjoy nature and do something fun for myself. I do so much studying with the...

Add essential oils to the bath sounds like a good idea. I mean, who doesn't want a lovely scented soak in the tub? The problem is, essential oils are powerful substances. They are highly concentrated and very few of them can be used “neat” (undiluted). (Just read my story about shivering for an hour after using too much Wintergreen). PSSST! Pardon the interruption…. But I think you'll want to check this out. The Herbs and Essential Oils Super Bundle is available for just a few days. This carefully curated collection of 34 resources would cost you $560 on a regular...

Kokum Butter comes from the fruit of the Garcinia tree, also known as the Kokum tree (grown in the central east region of India). The butter contains antioxidants and vitamin E, making it ideal for skin care. This butter is non-greasy and is absorbed into the skin once it is applied, but works best when mixed with other butters for skin care application. The oil is expeller pressed and refined. Kokum is pronounced, Coke-um (which is what I might say if I found my child drinking a coke at breakfast one morning. Although I'd likely add a question mark to the end...

Salt lamps are beautiful, but did you know they have health benefits as well? One of the main benefits of salt lamps is the negative ions help produce.  Salt lamps don't produce negative ions themselves but are naturally hygroscopic, which means they attract airborne water molecules. The light bulb inside a salt lamp brings enough heat to accelerate evaporation. It is this evaporation process that produces negative ions. any people are reporting that salt lamps are very helpful in reducing allergy symptoms. The main reason salt lamps are helpful is that they produce negative ions. What is a Negative Ion? A quote from this...

Natural deodorant is not always easy to find. Sure, there are quite a few available nowadays, but not all of them work! No one wants to walk around smelling bad, so we need to share our effective, natural deodorant finds with each other when we discover them! (When we think about it, not only would we rather not smell bad, we don't really want others to smell bad either! Am I right?) Before I get today's recommendation, let's quickly go over why you'd want to use natural deodorant in the first place. Why Use Natural Deodorant? The two main offenders in conventional...

You've heard of Shea butter, but what about shea nut oil? Shea nut oil isn't as well known as Shea butter, but it has just as many great benefits and uses in all-natural body care. What is Shea Nut Oil? Like Shea butter, Shea Nut Oil is also extracted from the nut of the shea tree (Karite tree). While the oil is thicker than other oils it’s not as thick as the butter. The shea nut oil is a by-product of the cold pressed butter. It retains fatty acids while the butter retains more of the fat. It remains liquid up...

The sharp medicinal scent of tea tree essential oil is hard to mistake. It's one of the best essential oils to keep on hand for all-natural cleaning, skincare, and home remedies. It's also one of the least expensive essential oils, so it's a good idea to learn to the various ways to use it so you can make the most of it and maximize your savings. What is Tea Tree Essential Oil? You may be wondering, what exactly is tea tree essential oil? How is it made and what part of the plant is used? Tea tree essential oil is steam distilled. It...