How to Make Vegan Wax Melts + Stress Support Essential Oil Blend
Since I started sharing recipes for my aroma melts, people have asked me for a beeswax-free version. I was initially reluctant because the vegan wax alternatives can be a bit finicky, and I have always had great luck with beeswax. I finally decided to accept the challenge and took a retreat to my creative space to formulate a vegan wax melt recipe. After a few dozen rounds of trial and error, I discovered that carnauba wax is my preferred beeswax alternative. It has no aroma and is a much harder wax, so I don’t have to use as much of it as I would in a typical wax melt.
The hard part was finding the golden ratio to get the melts to stay solid at room temperature while also having them melt in store-purchased wax melters! And by golly, I have done it! It took hours of testing different ratios and combinations, but I finally came up with a core recipe I feel good about.
If you think “watching grass grow” is hard, you should try “watching carnauba wax melt.” Luckily, I have done lots of that for you so you can just jump to the fun part!
Natural Homemade Slime with Psyllium
Summer is a great time to make simple kid-friendly psyllium slime! Unlike so many of the DIY slime recipes you find on the Internet, slime made with psyllium husk is pure, natural, and safe. It takes less than 10 minutes to make and is good for days of fun. Many of us have psyllium husk around the house, so it’s easy to whip up a batch of this crazy substance that defies Newton’s laws of viscosity, but if you’re not one of those people, you may be asking yourself what in the world you’re going to do with the extra psyllium husk when it takes as little as a teaspoon to make slime. Research shows that psyllium husk offers our bodies myriad benefits, promoting digestive and heart health as well as healthy insulin and blood sugar levels. It’s also handy in the kitchen and is a key ingredient in gluten-free baking. Ultimately, what makes psyllium husk good for our gut and gluten-free lifestyle is also what makes it an excellent ingredient in natural DIY slime: this high-fiber husk expands with liquids and forms a gel. It just so happens that that gel is a lot of fun to play with!
How to Make Slime with Psyllium Husk
Slime—that strange substance that defies Newton’s laws of viscosity—has been a staple in store toy aisles for almost 50 years and the DIY versions have been around almost as long. The typical school-science-project slime recipe involves mixing either borax or contact lens solution with PVA glue and water. The science behind it is a chemical reaction between the polyvinyl acetate in the glue and the borate ions in the contact solution or borax, an action called cross-linking that results in a logic-defying substance that is a whole lot of fun to play with. However, fascinating DIY science aside, too much exposure to boron—which is the base of borax, boric acid, and also, ironically, that contact lens solution—can cause respiratory, skin, and eye irritation, and when ingested can lead to nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Note the caution on the front of a box of borax detergent: Caution: Eye irritant, may be harmful if swallowed. Needless to say, that DIY slime hack is not ideal for small children, particularly those who tend to taste-test things. Fortunately for the child in all of us, you can make slime from psyllium husk!
How To Clean And Upcycle Bottles, Jars, & Other Empty Containers
If you’re anything like me, you don’t like to waste. When you enjoy herbal preparations as part of your daily routine, you are bound to wind up with a stockpile of perfectly good containers that can still be used. But how can you make sure they are cleaned well enough to reuse, and how can you continue to put them to use time and time again? Here are some tips and tricks to help you keep those bottles in circulation.
Tips for Labeling Your Herbal Formulations + FREE Label Template!
At Mountain Rose Herbs, we talk a lot about the importance of labeling homemade herbal remedies, essential oil blends, and the other handcrafted goods that we put in our apothecaries and gift to our loved ones. Proper labeling makes at-a-glance identification easy, ensures we have appropriate dosage information, and helps us keep track of the age of our formulations. On a purely practical level, it also makes it easier to avoid having a cupboard full of unused mystery bottles. We may think we will never forget what we put in that tincture, tea, or aromatherapy blend, or we may have the best intentions of making a label and writing helpful notes later. But then life happens, and we put it off. So there we are weeks or months after, realizing we can no longer remember the exact proportions or even which tincture is which. We have all been there and done that.
Tips and Recipes for a Fresh-Smelling Home
When throwing a party, the bulk of my planning revolves around three main things: the tasty foods and craft cocktails/mocktails I will be serving; the parts of my home that need deep cleaning before the big day; and how to make the space smell and feel fresh and inviting. On this list, my favorite part is choosing my home fragrance! People often underestimate the power of scent or just don’t know where to start. With that in mind, I’m sharing some of my favorite tricks and recipes for freshening up a space.
Four Thieves® Multi-Purpose Spray Recipe
Versatility and effectiveness are two of the most important factors that we consider when it comes to green cleaning. That’s why we love this Thieves® multi-purpose household cleaner recipe! It cuts heavy grease, battles unwanted germs, smells wonderful, and is shelf stable for up to a year so we can make it in advance and have it ready whenever we need it. We think this super-easy Thieves® spray cleaner will become a staple in your natural cleaning supplies!
*Four Thieves® is a registered trademark of Young Living Essential Oils, LC. Mountain Rose Herbs is not affiliated with Young Living Essential Oils, LC in any way.
