Here's our growing list of sensible, easy-to-do tips, techniques and relaxations for yourself, your family and your home! Do you have a creative way to use essential oils, or other time-saving or healthy tip to share? Please email us. If we use it here, you'll receive a $25 gift certificate and a link from this page to yours. 1) Keep a journal - daily, if possible. This is an absolute MUST for your test batches and finished products. 2) drink LOTS of water - 8 to 10 - 8 oz. glasses per day. As long as it's clean, clear water, it's good. No need to drink bottled - just buy a filter for your kitchen sink. 3) Keep fresh flowers whenever possible! 4) WALK! 5) Take a long, warm bath before bed. Add a few drops of lavender or chamomile essential oil or rose otto and indulge. Get ready for your beauty sleep! 6) Get PLENTY of sleep! 7) For colds and congestion, sprinkle three drops white thyme eo & two drops camphor on the wall of your shower (where the water won't wash it away), and shower as usual. Contributed by MK Hansen, Fickle Hill Naturals. 8) STAY OUT OF THE SUN! 9) Rinse your face with milk and water. The lactic acid in milk is a great treatment for sluggish skin. Consider also ascorbic acid rinses such as pineapple, lemon & orange or tomato juices. 10) Make your own toner with 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and 4 oz. of distilled water. Or, try cooled chamomile tea applied with a pure cotton ball. No rinsing needed! 11) Vitamin enrich your own lotions with gel caps of vitamins A, C & E you've purchased at the market. Squeeze in the contents of a gelcap or two, and voila! Your very own version of those over-priced lotions! 12) Let your face drink in a Brandied Peaches masque: for normal or normal/oily skin types. Mash a peach (fresh, frozen or canned), then add 1 teaspoon of brandy. Mix and masque your face. Leave on for 15-20 mins. while you enjoy your bath! Rinse with warm water. 13) Sweeten up with a honey facial: Use pure honey from the jar. Massage lightly into your skin, then allow to set for 15 minutes. Rinse thoroughly with warm water. Wild honey is always best! 14) Crush half a cucumber in the blender, then smooth on face and rinse. Great toner for oily skin types 15) Sweet Almond oil makes an excellent eye make-up remover. Place a few drops of a cotton ball, and rub lightly over make-up to remove. 16) Homemade Face Lift: Most hemorrhoid creams contain shark's liver oil and yeast-- same ingredients as found in those ultra-expensive department store creams and lotions. To make your own, add 1 ounce of hemorrhoid cream to 16 ounces of your favorite cream or lotion, and apply to puffy eye and neck areas, and areas of drooping skin. Look like a million for only a few bucks! 17) Re-use cold tea bags and use fresh cuke slices to relieve your tired eyes. 18) Turmeric (the spice) is invaluable as an anti-septic and stimulant. Add ½ teaspoon powdered turmeric to 8 oz. of lotion. Massage into troubled skin, follow with a warm water rinse. 19) Make an avocado masque! Mash an over-ripe avocado and add 1 tablespoon. Add 1 tablespoon sea clay or kaolin. Mix and masque your face! 20) Let your moisturizer sink in completely before applying your make-up. 21) Five simple ways to avoid wrinkles - a) avoid the sun and use a moisturizer with a SPF b) don't smoke c) drink in moderation - wine spritzers, if you must! d) eat properly e) drink plenty of water 22) Exfoliate your skin - try a mix of granulated sugar or table salt and oil for a quick exfoliating treat you can probably cull from your kitchen cabinets. 23) Before your bath - dry brush your skin with a natural backbrush BEFORE bathing. 24) Use Epsom salts in your bath to relieve swelling 25) Combine one cup instant milk with 1 teaspoon of honey and 10 drops of essential oil for a soothing bath treat 26) Add fresh lemon, lime and/or orange slices to your bath to invigorate your skin. 27) Change your moisturizers with the seasons 28) Treat sunburn with fresh or bottled aloe vera gel. Follow with sweet almond to soothe. 29) Make a soothing massage oil from scratch! Pick fresh St John's Wort flowers and leaves - gather your harvest early in the morning. Place flowers and leaves in a sterile glass jar and cover with wheat germ, sunflower or jojoba oil (or a combo). Close jar, and allow to soak in a cool, dry place for 4-6 weeks. Shake and turn jar often. Filter. Expect a red oil. Works well as a massage oil. Or take internally (10-20 drops in 6 oz. distilled water) to relieve PMS or general melancholy. 30) Make a simple oat bath by tying ½ cup quick oats up in a muslin cloth and dangle it from your bathtub's spigot. Allow water to run through it. Nourishing and soothing, this bath is particularly relieving to sunburn victims! 31) Condition your Shampoo! Add an egg to boost your shampoo's nourishing action. Rinse with warm water (unless you like to pick scrambled egg out of your hair!) 32) Add a packet of Knox gelatin to your shampoo. It will add thickness to your hair. 33) ¼ cup of lemon juice or ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar in the final hair rinse fights hard water (that can dull hair) and brings out your highlights 34) Run out of conditioner? Try a capful of your favorite facial moisturizer! 35) Plain yogurt makes an excellent hair pack. Shampoo, then apply the yogurt and allow to set for 15-20 minutes. Rinse thoroughly. 36) To bring out your hair's natural highlights, rinse with chamomile tea for light hair or strong coffee (an excellent use for the end of the coffee pot remains) for dark brown or black hair. Watch it sparkle and shine! 37) Got Dandruff? Break open a few Vitamin E gel caps and squeeze into 2 oz. of aloe vera gel. Massage into scalp before you shampoo. 38) Women of color use shea or jojoba oil to condition hair and scalp 39) Give yourself a manicure or pedicure (or both!): a) Soak your nails, push back cuticles and remove excess cuticle with cuticle scissors. b) Massage cold-pressed nut or veggie oil into your fingers and nails (kukui is excellent for this) c) File and buff d) Cover with polish, if desired 40) Create a Foot Fetish! Add several drops of peppermint oil and ¼ - ½ teaspoon to 2 ounces of moisturizer. Massage into feet and ankles. Rinse. Follow with peppermint foot spray: mix 8 oz. distilled water with 40 drops of peppermint essential oil and .1 oz. of potassium sorbate (as a preservative). Dispense from a pretty spray bottle. 41) Pickled burdock root makes an excellent pre-digestive. Wash the burdock root and cut into small pieces. Simmer in water til soft. Strain and place in a sterile jar. Cover with HOT cider vinegar. Chew a piece 20-30 minutes before each meal. 42) Use marsh mallow paste to relieve bug bites! Take a small amount of mallow root, and mash with cold water. You might need a very heavy hammer type object or a mortar and pestle to accomplish this task. Apply the paste to bites. Wash off and reapply every 2-3 hours. 43) Kill dust mites and other allergens in the laundry with this two-step program: a) Add ¼ cup eucalyptus essential oil to the final rinse water b) dry clothes in the dryer 44) Make your own Aloe Vera Oil (excellent for sunburns and scrapes): Into a sterile glass jar, slice up a long leaf of a juicy aloe vera (about ½ cup) and add macadamia nut oil or jojoba oil to cover. Allow to soak for 45-60 days in a cool, dry place. Strain into sterile glass bottle. Add Rosemary Oil extract (.5%) to prevent rancidity. 45) Place a slice of raw onion directly on a burn to soothe the skin 46) Take a powdered mustard bath to fend off or relieve symptoms of a cold - ½ teaspoon powdered mustard per full warm bath. Don't use too much mustard-it can cause overheating to the skin. 47) Got a cold? Take a camphor breather! Fill a large heatproof bowl with boiling water, and add 7-10 drops of camphor oil. Use a towel to make a tent and inhale deeply for 5 mins. Stop if you begin to feel light-headed 48) Make a cheering room spray by adding 25 drops of lemon essential oil to 25 drops sweet orange essential oil and then combining with 6 oz. of distilled water. Add .1 oz. potassium sorbate (as a preservative). Add a pinch of borax to emulsify. Bottle in a pretty cobalt or aluminum bottle. 49) Clean your windows and sanitize counters with a mix of 8 oz. distilled water and 3 tablespoons of isopropyl alcohol. 50) Wash wooden floors with 5 gallons of hot water, 1 ounce of liquid soap base and ½ oz EACH of sweet orange and eucalyptus essential oils. Freshens, cleans and definitely won't destroy the wooden floors' patina 51) Sweet orange oil is an excellent degreaser. It's jam-packed with d-Limonene to remove beeswax, road tar and industrial lubricants., too. 52) Make a pretty, fragrant pomander by decoratively pushing whole cloves into a fresh orange. Hang with a stain ribbon pressed into the top of the orange with a pin. 53) Carry wet wipes with you in your handbag! Excellent as a hot-weather face picker-upper and dirt remover. 54) Candied ginger is a wonderful tummy settler. Carry it when traveling to prevent and lessen road and motion sickness. 55) Make your own toothpaste! Mix 1 tablespoon baking soda, 1 tablespoon hydrogen peroxide and 5-7 drops peppermint, cinnamon leaf or clove essential oil 56) TIP: for a serious tooth whitening technique that is safe for tooth enamel and does not cause sensitivity, soak your teeth in the gel used for ear Wax removal. Simply fill the mouth guard trays that you can purchase in the sports section and soak your teeth for 10-15 minutes. This wax removal gel contains carbamide peroxide, the same peroxide that dentists use in their professional whitening treatments. PS, this tip comes from a dental hygienist. I started out with just brushing the gel on with a craft brush but the mouth guard is much more comfortable. Contributed by 'tricia Westervelt, Anna Bellina Skin Care.

For live assistance, click here. Check our extensive recipe file