Have you ever tried a steam tent? Have you ever heard of a steam tent? Well, it's a very easy technique using steam to carry essential oils. It can be a great tool to support your respiratory system or your skin. The steam itself opens everything up, pores, sinuses, ect, then, a cleansing or detoxifying essential oil can go to work! My favorite essential oil for tenting is Melrose (a proprietary blend from Young Living with 2 varieties of melaleuca, including tea tree, and rosemary), but there are lots of great choices! Watch my brief demo showing you exactly how it's done! Remember, as a word of caution, to remove contact lenses! Essential oils and contacts don't get along well :) Also, for best results for your skin, remove make up first. Want to get your hands on those pure, clean, top quality essential oils? I only use the best, including those exclusive blends, and you can too here!
It's that time of year again! As the season changes and the weather yo-yos, our bodies seems to be more susceptible to all kinds of ickiness going around. Now is the time to work some little steps in to your day to ensure that your immune system is tip top and working hard for you! One way I like to do this is with a Thieves Tea. Now, "tea" is really a misnomer. There is no actual tea in this recipe! Which is kinda nice, cause you can drink it any time of day without worrying about caffeine. Here's what you need:
1 drop Thieves Vitality essential oil 1 drop Copaiba Vitality essential oil 2 drops Lemon Vitality essential oil up to 1 tsp honey very warm water
Put warm water in a mug. (Remember not to use water that's too hot, like boiling water. High heat can damage the therapeutic properties of the oils and we definitely don't want that!) Put a small but of honey on the spoon, then add your essential oils to the spoon. I have a squeezy honey bear and I like layer honey, oils, honey on mine. I feel like it blends the 2 better. Rock the spoon a couple of time to combine, or stir with a toothpick. Then, stir the oil-infused honey in to the warm water.
I've discussed Vitality essential oils before. They are exclusively from Young Living and are labeled with directions for internal use.
Thieves Vitality essential oil is a blend of clove, cinnamon, rosemary, lemon, and eucalyptus oils. Thieves is the super cleaning blend and the Vitality variety does that for your body! It is the best for supporting a healthy immune system. Keep in mind that Thieves is a hot oil and without the honey (and for some, even with the honey), it can cause a mild burning sensation. I think it feels nice going down, but if it's too much for you, try drawing a toothpick around the top of the bottle and swirling that in your honey instead. You'll still get the same benefits, but using a bit less oil!
Copaiba Vitality essential oil is a single oil and Young Living exclusive. It is a booster oil and naturally supports your body's natural response to an irritant, keeping those natural defenses primed! It adds a lightly woodsy note to the "tea" since it's derived from tree resin.
Lemon Vitality essential oil is a great little detoxifier. It's cleansing properties are great for your body, including your digestive system, which is a vital part of your body's total defense system. And it tastes like, well, lemons!
Together, these taste delicious and very appropriate to the cooler months! The cinnamon really comes through the most for me! My husband and I enjoy this drink on a regular basis not that the weather is changing. So, even though it doesn't actually have tea in it, it is still tasty, warm, and comforting, and doing amazing things for our bodies!
*Please note that pictured essential oils do not reflect current labels for Young Living Vitality oils. The labels have been redesigned.
Did you hear? The FDA has banned 19 "antibacterial agents" from commercial soaps, basically saying that they do more harm than good! The problem is really two-fold: first, it drives bacterial evolution leading to antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria, and second, it kills off the good bacteria that your body needs to maintain healthy balance. So, in light of this information, maybe now is the perfect time to be more confident embarking on making your own soap, knowing that you'll still get plenty clean!
The easiest place to start is with foaming soaps. I love foaming soaps. I've been using them for years! I always felt like they lasted longer. When I started on my essential oil and DIY journey, I found out how easy it is to make myself. I also found out that they are mostly water! I really HATE paying for water, including watered down products! So, now, I make it, of course!
I love that I can change it up and customize it. It's a basic formula, but I can add different oils, carriers and essential, to make exactly what I need at the time, like to meet the needs of my skin in summer vs winter, or what I prefer, like spicy in the fall vs fresh in the spring. I will alos add, that since making my own this way, I don't use lotion as much. Since it is made with oils, it isn't as stripping and harsh as traditional soaps, so my skin loves this recipe!
To make your own, first, you need to start with a foaming pump. I bought some from Abundant Health (I love the little travel size!). I've also recycled empty ones from store-bought foaming soap. If you're going to recycle, be sure you strongly dilute any essential oils used, since the grade of plastic is not verified. I also avoid citrus oils in my recycled ones since those seem to be more strongly degrading to plastics.
The next thing you need is a concentrated soap base. I love castile soap for this! It is combination of water, and a number of saponified oils, including coconut, olive, and jojoba. It also has a small quantity or potassium hydroxide necessary for the saponification reaction (basically the mechanism that makes soap grab dirt and carry it away.) You can get it pre-scented with natural fragrances, but I like to add my own. And since I use it for multiple things, I like my soap unscented.
In your bottle, combine about 2/3 water and 1/3 soap, and you could be done there!
If you like, you can add some things first...
vegetable glycerin
vitamin E
extra carrier oil of your choice (probably steer clear of regular coconut oil since it can go solid in cooler temperatures)
essential oils for skin care (Some of my favorites include, but are certainly not limited to lavender, frankincense, tea tree, Purification, Thieves, Melrose... the list goes on and on!)
Check out my video demo, including my facewash recipe, showing you how easy it really is!
Want to get extra clean this month??? Young Living is offering a FREE bottle of their exclusive, super concentrated Thieves Laundry Soap to new wholesale members for enrolling in September! Learn more about what it takes to get started today here!
