Homemade Lavender Salt Scrubs

It's almost Mother's Day and I needed an easy gift for my Momma! I decided to set aside a little collection of DIY beauty gifts for her because she loves that stuff and I'm broke. {wink}

Making salt scrubs is so simple and people go crazy over them so they are fantastic gifts. With the encouragements of a couple of my blogging friends, I made my very FIRST video ever to show you how simple it is!! OMG! I was so nervous-- can you tell?!

So now you can watch me make a fool of myself!! It's all for my readers!!! If you keep watching there are two videos after mine. You can meet my friends Kristi from Veggie Converter who uses a stand mixer for her salt scrubs and Kirsten from Cheerfully Imperfect who explains how she uses some of her favorite essential oils.

Yes, I know. I sound like a five year old.

What do you think? Have any tips for me to improve with my video skills?! 

What You Need

• ⅔ cup of Epsom Salt
• ⅓ cup of Coconut Oil
• 10-15 drops of Essential Oil (I recommend this brand)

If you have coconut oil in a solid form, melt it over a double boiler.

When it's melted-- then add it to the salt. Stir it up and then add your essential oils. I really like lavender for this, but lemongrass, peppermint, or stress away would work really well! 

And that's it! Easy breezy DIY beauty idea for a gift!

You can also join my facebook group by filling out this form. 

Here are some other things to put in your Mother's Day goodie bag

DIY Lavender Coconut Lip Balm

Lavender Eucalyptus Bath Soak

Homemade Face Lotion

Coconut Oil Lotion bars

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DIY Deodorant with Bentonite Clay & Coconut Oil

This is how I imagine myself:  {zombie walk, grunts} MUST MAKE STUFF BETTER!!

So, lately (in my endless quest to make stuff better) I've been using a lot of clay. I make things from clay so I thought "Why not put clay on my pits?"

If we're going to be honest, I was actually thinking about bathing in clay (which is an actual thing,
people), but that's when it occurred to me that my original DIY deodorant doesn't exactly make all the sweat go away-- just the smell.  And then this this thought just popped into my head: "OMG. I bet clay would make the sweat go away!" I'm not going to say the obvious because I'm humble, but if you want to comment on how brilliant I am then there is a comment section below. {bats eyes humbly}

Here is some good information about bentonite clay if you're interested in reading about it: Bentonite Clay Info.

Anyways, so I decided to toss a little bit of clay in my existing deodorant recipe. It was AWESOME.

DIY Perfume: Making Your Signature Scent

If you read my post about my DIY dryer balls or my carpet freshener, then you know that I'm in absolutely obsessed with the smell of orange and jasmine. {sigh} The jasmine is romantic and the orange gives it a little bit of crispness and freshness. I love it! I love it! I love it! So why not wear it, right it?

I decided to make my own signature fragrance, but I needed to figure out how to do it!

If you'd like to join my Natural Living Support Group on Facebook please fill out this form!

Research
If you know anything about perfumes (I did not until a year ago) then you know that there is a top note, middle note, and base note. It's recommended that you use one of each of the notes in your perfume, but you don't have to. It's your signature scent! Do what you want!

But before you decide on a scent, let's get some education on the basics of notes....

• Top Note: Your first impression and the scent that will fade the quickest. 
• Middle Note: I have seen it referred to as the heart of the perfume. It will fade after a couple of hours
• Base Note: This will be the anchor to your perfume and it will be the note that lasts the longest.
•  It is also important to note that usually a base note isn't the most pleasant of the three initially, but it will become more pleasing over time.

My top note is orange, my middle note is jasmine and my base note is.... uhhhhh.... I don't have a base note. And considering that it's the longest acting, well, I think I want a base note.

Lucky for me I stumbled across this great website that talks about blending essential oils and gives a general idea about which scents pair well with others. The author offers some ways to make perfume as well, but I decided to go with a slightly different recipe from Small Measures with just a small adjustment: Less alcohol. I was a little worried that I would end up smelling like a drunkard with all that booze. The alcohol mainly acts a preservative from what I've read, so to hell with it! I'm changing things up. BTW: She has great step-by-step pictures and she is way more detailed than I am so definitely check out her site.

Easy DIY Deodorant That Actually Works!

Deodorant has been my nemesis. I have never found one that really works and I usually have to buy three different kinds and rotate between them to get good coverage. I've tried all the natural brands and they just don't stack up.

After all, I live in Central Florida and the heat here is insane. I absolutely can't stand carrying sticks of deodorant in my purse so I can reapply. Nope. Not cool

So, I decided to make my own, but I polled a few friends first. One of my old Navy buddies swears by baking soda and cornstarch. It works well-- I tried it a few years ago, but I can't get past the gritty feeling in my pits! 

After much research I read that you can substitute the cornstarch for arrowroot flour-- sounds so much more gentler and healthier (most cornstarch is GMO)! It's so fluffy that it reminds me of condensed sugar. 

What's the most important thing about a deodorant? You don't stink. So that's my priority. 

What causes smell? Bacteria. That's where Tea Tree Oil and Coconut Oil come in! They are anti-bacterial and help control odors. 

Product Review: "Kiss My Face" Olive Oil and Aloe Soap

I have tried Kiss My Face Toothpastes before and really liked them, so when I stumbled across a "Kiss My Face" Olive oil and Aloe bar soap I was really excited to give it a try.

I believe this was intended for your face, but I plan on using it for my body. I'm a rebel, what can I say! I've been using my DIY aloe moisturizer for my face with just a splash of water before I apply it and it's been working great. My normally red face has calmed down and I'm not breaking out any more! Love that stuff. I am tinkering with the thought of making a coconut oil face cleanser-- but I haven't committed yet!

DIY Basic Body Butter Recipe

I have dry skin and I HATE using chemical ridden synthetic moisturizers! Nope, hate is not strong enough. LOATH! So many beauty products are full of harmful ingredients that get absorbed directly into the blood stream! Eck! The skin is the largest organ of your body-- it probably should be given a little extra TLC.

So to take matters into my own hands, I decided to make my own body butter! It's made out of oils so it won't mold and it'll last for months. If you're thinking "It's made out of oil. Won't that make me break out or be bad for my skin?" The answer is no.

How do you like them apples? ;)

A lot of research has been shown that your body needs oil. If it gets stripped of oil, then your body makes too much. If you apply oil to oily skin then it thinks it's made enough and it stops production. For dry skin, it will help lock in moisture and lessen redness. Most people don't know that oil actually help to clean your body by getting into the pores and pushing out the bad stuff.