Make Your Own Shower Tablets

After reading a friends find on how to make your own shower tablets I was off to the kitchen to experiment.  This recipe could not be more simple.  The ingredients are baking soda, water, and essential oils.  I didn't follow the recipe, because lets face it,  I rarely do.  That's just me.  I like to freestyle things.  I also wanted to make a smaller batch to see how well they worked before jumping in.

I started with a small bowl of baking soda.  I added water a little at a time and mixed.  I thought since the essential oils are also liquid, I shouldn't wait until the end to add them because this would make the mixture more runny.  I chose sweet orange, eucalyptus and tea tree essential oils.  Not realizing the sweet orange didn't have a dropper top, I kind of dumped more than I anticipated in the bowl.  Oops!  Oh well, it smells wonderful and has a nice yellow color just like butter. 

 I decided to use mini muffin cups since I don't usually take that long of a shower anyway.  And this would be the perfect amount to add to a bath.

 

I had thought about using my silicone muffin pans, but wondered if the oils would leave their scent and render them unusable for cooking in the future.  I opted for the paper cups and filled them to the top.

I placed them next to my air purifier to dry faster and my house smells awesome!  Not to mention my sinus' were starting to clear out. You can also place them in the oven to bake to dry faster.  I prefer having my house smell....awesome... for a little while longer.

Natural Insect Repellent

Prep time:  10 minutes
Yield:  2 Ounces insect repellent

1/4 teaspoon citronella oil
1/4 teaspoon eucalyptus oil
1/8 teaspoon pennyroyal oil
1/8 teaspoon cedar wood oil
1/8 teaspoon geranium oil
2 ounces vodka or rubbing alcohol  ( I prefer Everclear for less of an alcohol smell)

Place in spray bottle.  Choose one that isn't plastic if possible.  Essential oils can break down the plastic of bottles.  Apply directly to skin.  Reapply as necessary.  The scent disappears faster than those repellents which are not natural.

This recipe from the book, Aromatherapy for dummies!

Ahhh Tea Tree Oil

http://www.jason-natural.com/products/tea_tree.php

Tea Tree Oil is my go to oil when I get an insect bite.  Today while working in the garden, I got munched on by a mosquito.  Tea Tree Oil to the rescue! It instantly soothes the itching.  Tea Tree Oil has so many great uses.  I use it because of its antibacterial properties.  Check out all of the uses and great things about Tea Tree Oil  here

I use tea tree oil on my ears when they get infected from wearing earrings. You can use tea tree to treat acne, bites, burns.  My family uses tea tree when giving the dogs a bath to help with any skin irritations and to help keep fleas away.  I have even put it on stubby (our chicken) when the others had pecked a spot raw on her back.

I use tea tree oil in my dishwasher detergent.  I add it to my all purpose cleaner.  I have added it to the rinse cycle of my washing machine to help kill germs.  It's less harmful than bleach.  Tea Tree Oil is one oil I make sure to take when we travel and always have on hand.  Although the fragrance isn't the best, the results outweigh it.