I recently bought my Cricut machine and am starting crafting.  These are the best free script fonts for personal and commercial use that I found.  Click the name of the font for the link of where to download. Download to your computer, open the file, and click install. If using in design space you will need to log out and log back in to have them appear.  Sometimes this takes a time or two for them to show up. Enjoy. 🙂

This is an easy homemade all natural all purpose cleaner recipe made with theives essential oil.  Thieves was inspired by the legend French thieves who used a blend of clove, rosemary, cinnamon bark, eucalyptus radiata and other oils to use while robbing dead and dying victims of the plague to keep them healthy.  I don’t like to touch or breathe in chemicals when cleaning so I make this.   Here is the recipe. 🙂

Ingredients / Supplies :

1 cup Vinegar (I just used plain, but I added links below to scented vinegar)

1 cup Distilled Water

30 drops Thieves essential oil (If you don’t already have thieves, you can read more here about how to order it)

Spray Bottle

Directions:

Mix together in a spray bottle. Shake before each use

*Best if a dark colored bottle is used to prevent deterioration of the essential oil. I go through my cleaner usually the day I make it so I just used what I already had and keep it under the sink where it’s out of sunlight.*  Click Here to buy the 2oz dark glass spray bottles for only $1.39.

Essential Oils 101

So… I am a little bit obsessed with my Essential Oils since I bought my starter kit and wanted to share a little bit of information I have discovered since.

Essential Oils (EOs) are all natural oils extracted from the leaves, roots, bark, or other aromatic portions of the plants by distillation, resin tapping, and cold pressing. They are volatile liquids, meaning they will evaporate if you leave them open. Even though they are an oil, 1 deposit casino nz.com they are not greasy. Cosmetic, dietary, religious, spiritual, physical, and emotional support, are some of the uses for the oils. My favorite uses are: cleaning products, skin care, and helping get a good night sleep.

Facts

• Essential oils date back to 4500 B.C. even though it seems like they recently became popular.
• They are mentioned over 180 times in the bible.

Uses

Aromatically – Used within a diffuser or nebulizer (diffuser without water). Cleanses the air, gives off a scent, relaxing, decongesting, and works as a humidifier if using a diffuser that runs with water.

Dietary consumption –Can be used in water, tea, or put in vegetable capsules. This is a controversy subject. I do not consume very many essential oils since there isn’t much research on this. If I do it’s only every once in a while and only one or two drops at a time.

Topical Application – alone or diluted with a carrier oil. A carrier oil is taken from fatty part of the plant, usually the seeds, kernel, or nuts. Examples of these are Grape seed oil, olive oil, vegetable oil, and coconut oil.

They have antiviral, antibacterial, antiseptic, decongestant, uplifting, and calming properties.    EOs have been used for a long time in products before they really became popular in the last few years. Some products that use EOs are Listerine, Vicks Vapor rub, Poo-pourri.  🙂

Safety

• Each essential oil has its own instructions. Read carefully, how each essential oil can be used before using them.
• There are “hot” oils, these are more dangerous to be consumed and used topically. Examples of these are: Cinnamon, Clove, Lemongrass, Oregano, Thyme, Exodus II™, and Thieves®. Some just need to be used with a carrier oil. A carrier oil is just an oil it is blended with to dilute it. This doesn’t dilute the effect of the oil just makes it safe to use topically or consumed. There are dilution ratios for each essential oil on the bottle. It is best to test these out 1-2 drops on a patch of skin for 1-2 hours, before applying it on a larger area. Everyone’s skin has a different level of sensitivity, so what is okay for one person might not be okay for you.
• Avoid body entry points (eyes, ears, and mucous membranes).
• Talk with your health care provider before using essential oils with medications, pregnancy, other health conditions.
• Citrus oils are UV sensitive, so they shouldn’t be applied to the skin before going in the sunlight for 12 hours.

Choosing the right brand

There are tonsssss of essential oil brands. You want to make sure you are using a therapeutic pure grade essential oil, which are only about 2% of essential oils in the world. There are a lot of brands that will say they are pure, and technically they can be by using pure essential oils but diluting it with a carrier oil to make it cheaper. A good test for this is to put a drop of the essential oil on a piece of cardboard, if the spot evaporates it’s pure.   If there is a residual spot, it was diluted with a carrier oil.

After searching the web what I found was Young Living and DoTerra are both therapeutic pure grade essential oils. These would be good brands to use. I chose Young Living, because they are the oldest and largest. They have a bigger oil selection.  Otherwise, the brands are very similar.  Two of the cofounders of DoTerra actually were previously the Chief Operating Officer and secretary at Young living. Young Living has farms all over the world, so they can make sure their product is coming from the best environment for that specific plant. Another thing that is kind of frustrating then at the same time a good thing, Young living runs out of essential oils all the time because they only distribute oils that meet their seed to seal standards. You can read all about that on their website they do their own testing and have third party tests done. There is a really good blog about the comparison of the two companies at theessentialfamily.com.

Vitality vs. Regular

Some oils are labeled vitality and they are the exact same thing. Young living just has to label oils that are being marketed as internal use different to meet FDA regulations.

If you are interested in buying a starter kit and getting started with essential oils you can click here for more information. Or if you already have a starter kit and are interested in essential oil recipes click here.

Sources

Gould, M N. “Cancer Chemoprevention and Therapy by Monoterpenes.”Environmental Health Perspectives 105.Suppl 4 (1997): 977–979. Print.

Higley, Connie, and Alan Higley. Reference Guide for Essential Oils. Olathe, KS: Abundant Health, 1998. Print.

I can’t ever have a normal rice crispy again after my mom made these delicious things. ?

Ingredients:

6 Cups Peanut Butter Crunch

6 Cups Marshmallows (entire bag)

3 tablespoons Butter

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a saucepan on low

2. Mix in marshmallows until completely melted.

3. Mix in Peanut butter crunch, stir until evenly coated.

4. Use a butter spatula to press the mixture into a buttered pan. I used a 9×13 cake pan since this is what I had. They were spread pretty thin. If you want them thicker use a smaller pan. 

Young Living Premium Starter Kit Essential Oil Uses

Peppermint

Fun fact: It takes 1 lb of peppermint plant to make 15mL of YL peppermint EO

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: allergies, respiratory function, increasing energy, repelling bugs, helping focus, cooling body temperature down, baking, upset stomach.

Uses:

• After working out, dilute a few drops of Peppermint in Vegetable Oil, and use it in a post-workout massage to cool sore muscles.
• Add Peppermint and Eucalyptus Radiata to hot bath water and enjoy the refreshing scent.
• Mix 6 drops into your favorite brownie batter to make mint chocolate brownies.
• Diffuse 2 drops of peppermint, 2 drops of lavender, and 2 drops of lemon when you have allergies or a cold to help clear congestion.
• Add to 2 drops to your lip gloss tube and you have minty fresh breath each time you put it on

Lavender

Fun fact: It takes 27 square feet of Lavender plant to make one 15 mL bottle of YL Lavender EO

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: Calming effect, helping to fall asleep, skin irritations, hair health.

Uses:

• Add a few drops of oil to lotions, shampoos, and skin care products or 1cup Epsom salt and 4 drops oil to a hot bath.
• Make a homemade body scrub with coconut oil, sugar, and Lavender essential oil.
• Spray your pillow with distilled water and Lavender mixed in a spray bottle before bed to help you relax and fall asleep faster.
• You can apply it directly to any irritation of the skin. (burns, bug bites)
• *My favorite way to use lavender*Add a few drops of lavender oil to your mascara bottle, to help your eyelashes grow longer and thicker. (Won’t ruin your mascara or change the consistency. I was very nervous about putting it in my expensive mascara, so I tested it on a cover girl brand first.) I have tried Latisse, and am so much happier with the results of using Lavender.  You can also add a few drops to your shampoo and conditioner.

Lemon

Fun Fact: It takes 75 Lemons to make one 15mL bottle of YL Lemon EO

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: Energizing, Circulatory support, Cleaning, freshen the air, digestion, respiratory function, stains on surfaces and clothes, cooking.

Uses:

• Add 1-2 drops of lemon to your water bottle(glass only) to give it a lemony taste and help digestion without the bad acid on your teeth.
• Replace lemon zest in recipes with a couple drops of lemon oil to help bring out the natural flavors in your ingredients.
• Add a few drops to hard to get off stains on clothes or surfaces.
• Polish your tarnished silver with a few drops of lemon oil.
• Natural Goo-Be-Gone. Rub on hard to peel off stickers or labels.

Frankincense

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: cellular support, skin, spiritual (commonly used in churches), weak fingernails

Uses:

• Add Frankincense to your daytime lotion or night cream to keep your skin looking young and radiant.
• Apply directly on scars to help fade the appearance.
• Diffuse during your yoga or spiritual ritual.

Copaiba

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: reduce inflammation, digestion, prevent infection, skin, antifungal, respiratory health.

Uses:

• Mix a drop of Copaiba with any other essential oil to magnify the effects of that oil so you can use less of another more expensive oil.
• Add one drop of copaiba to one oz of water and swish for a natural mouth rinse.
• Mix with honey and warm water to make a healthy tea.

Thieves

Fun Fact:  Thieves was inspired by the legend French thieves who used a blend of clove, rosemary, cinnamon bark, eucalyptus radiata and other oils to use while robbing dead and dying victims of the plague to keep them healthy.

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: disinfecting, immune system support

Uses:

• Add one drop to the soles of your feet anytime you feel your immune system is low.
• Mix 10 drops with 1 oz witches hazel, and 3 oz distilled water in a spray bottle for an all-purpose natural cleaner.
• Add 5 drops to a cup of baking soda and sprinkle on carpet overnight before vacuuming to help removed musty smells.
• Add a few drops to your dishwasher detergent to help clean dishes and eliminate odors.

Purification

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: cleansing, removing odors

Uses:

• Add a few drops to laundry that sat in the washer too long to prevent musty smell.
• Add a few drops to a cotton ball and put it in your vacuum bag less compartment to prevent dusty smell when vacuuming.
• Add 10 drops to 5 oz of distilled water in a spray bottle to make all natural Febreeze.
• Diffuse through house to eliminate odors

R.C.

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: relaxing, breathing.

Uses:

• Rub on your chest and neck before a work out to help you breathe easier and stay energized.
• Add a few drops to a hot shower or bath to create a calming, relaxing environment.

DiGize

Ways to Use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: digestive support

Uses:

• Add a few drops to a veggie capsule when having a stomach ache or just to support healthy digestive functions.
• When having cramps, rub a few drops over the skin in that area.

Panaway

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: Muscle pain

Uses:

• Add a few drops to a carrier oil and massage on sore muscles.

Stress Away

Ways to use: Diffuse, Topically, Internally

Great for: stress, relaxation

Uses:

• Use the roller ball and apply to neck when feeling stressed
• Diffuse with lavender at bedtime to promote a healthy night of sleep.

Disclaimer:

This info is for educational purposes only.  If you have any medical conditions or take medications consult your primary care doctor before using essential oils.  These statements are not evaluated by the FDA.