DIY Febreze/Air Freshener WITHOUT the Icky Chemicals or Alcohol!

So let's be honest.

People can be stinky. 

It just happens. Life is messy and sometimes sweaty people sit on your couches or make your house smell like a locker room. I'm a dancer and I am 100% guilty of this. Sometimes you just forget to put on deodorant! O_O

But personal hygiene aside, I had been looking for a natural fabric refresher and an air freshener for John-John and I's bathroom for a while now, but everything in the store was either: 1. Aerosol (contains propellants and just plain bad for the environment), 2. Had a s**t ton of chemicals, or 3. Had an ungodly fake fragrance. 

So of course crafty-Andy decided to simply make his own! 

I was thinking back on my recipe for my DIY Lavender Deodorant (which btw still is the BEST deodorant I have EVER used) and thought to myself there was no reason this same base couldn't work to freshen up not just my armpits, but my entire home!

Except the thing is, this recipe is even EASIER AND SIMPLER! CRAY!

Here's what you'll need:

• Spray Bottle
• Enough water to fill your spray bottle
• Baking Soda
• Essential Oil of choice (Peppermint, Lemon, Grapefruit, or Orange are all great, I used OnGuard by dōTERRA)

          Cost: less than $2!!!

Steps:

1. Put your water in a small pot and heat until just before it boils.
2. Take off the heat and stir in baking soda 1 teaspoon at a time until dissolved (I used about 4 teaspoons for my 4 oz. bottle). Be sure not to add too much baking soda as it will clog your nozzle if it is not fully dissolved.
3. Allow your mixture to cool for a few minutes and stir in your essential oils. The amount you use is totally up to your personal preference how strong of a fragrance you want. I put in about 10-12 drops of essential oil.
4. Allow to fully cool before transferring to your spray bottle.
5. DONE!

Easy as pie and done in less time than it takes to do your eyebrows. 

I use this stuff all over my house, on the couch, blankets, directly in the sink and toilet, and in the air! You could even use this as deodorant in a pinch! The baking soda neutralizes any foul odors and essential oil leaves an uplifting and clean scent! The OnGuard oil was a gift from my mom before I left for London (thanks Mom!) and it is awesome! It is supposed to boost immune function when inhaled, applied to skin with a carrier oil, or taken orally. So every time I spritz this stuff I make sure to take a good inhale and breathe deeply. It relaxes me and I can breathe happily knowing there is absolutely nothing bad for me in it!

Happy spritzing! <3 xoxo

Lavender and Rose Revitalizing Body Lotion: An Andrew Kenshin DIY

Lotion. It's awesome. And for me, it's an absolutely CRUCIAL component to my beauty routine. The dang Irish in me leaves me with super dry skin if I don't lather on moisturizer EVERY SINGLE DAY.

And as I have become more and more aware of all the icky and harmful/completely unnecessary petrochemicals, preservatives, fragrances, and carcinogens that are so prevalent in the majority of mainstream skincare, it has become a no-brainer to me to simply make my own! This way I get to control the quality of ingredients and I can customize my products to suit ME.

Here's some skincare ingredients you want to AVOID like the plague:

• Parabens (Used as preservatives. Make your hormones go all out of whack.)
• Artificial Fragrances (The one word "fragrance" could be made up of hundreds of different chemicals. Yikes!)
• Sulfates (This is what makes products "foam" and are very harsh on the skin.)
• GMOs (Genetically modified organisms. These are NOT safe and most are carcinogens. The only way to avoid these is to look for the GMO-Free certification on the label or to buy Organic.)
• Anything you can't pronounce or that is a series of numbers and letters. (These are most likely created in a lab and WHO KNOWS how safe they are.)

Remember we absorb more than 50% of what we put on our skin right into our bloodstream!

Ok, now for the fun part! Let's make some lovely nourishing lotion!

Lavender and Rose Revitalizing Lotion:

What you'll need (organic if possible):

• 1/2 cup Grapeseed oil (Or olive, hemp, almond, whatever you fancy.)
• 1/4 cup Coconut oil
• 1/4 cup Beeswax (Make sure it is cosmetic grade! I grated mine but you could just chop into small pieces if you prefer.)
• 1 teaspoon Vitamin E oil
• 2 tablespoons Shea Butter
• Essential Oils (For this version I used 15 drops Lavender and 15 drops Wild Rose. But you can use whatever combination you'd like!)  
• Cute jar (I used the same 22 oz jar I used for the Lavender Purrrr Scrub. This recipe will fill this jar halfway so if you want to fill the whole thing then double this recipe.) 

Directions:

1. Combine all your ingredients minus the essential oils into a Pyrex glass measuring cup.
2. Fill a pot with a few inches of water and place your Pyrex into the pot.
3. Boil the water and stir your ingredients together as they begin to melt. (The beeswax takes the longest to melt as it has the highest melting point.)
4. When everything is melted together, remove your Pyrex from the water. Careful it'll be hot!
5. Add your essential oils to the melted oils and stir.
6. Pour your concoction into your clean and dry jar and allow to cool/solidify.

Enjoy your new luxurious and uber-nourishing lotion! Massage into your skin after exfoliating with your Lavender Purrrr Scrub for the ultimate skin-indulging experience! This recipe is VERY emollient so allow yourself some time to let the oils absorb before putting on clothes.

I've found this works wonders on sunburns! After one application my sunburn is already almost gone! AND it has helped diminish my pesky stretch marks! Seriously nothing else has worked as well! MAGIC!

What combinations of essential oils is YOUR favorite?

Lavender Purrrrrrrrr Scrub: An Andrew Kenshin DIY

Welcome back readers! Sorry for the short hiatus, life gets cray-cray sometimes. But that's no excuse to ignore you all so I'm back with a FAB DIY project that is simply, heavenly.

Today's DIY incorporates the magical healing powers of grapeseed oil (said to help with stretch marks, broken blood vessels, and is high in antioxidants) with one of my all time fav fragrances: lavender.

I have a slight obsession with lavender. Love it in cosmetics, food, chocolate (ohhhhh yeah), and of course in its original beautiful state as a flower. Lavender is known for it's calming and healing properties, and I don't know about you but I could use as much calm in my life as possible!

This scrub leaves you sinfully smooth, fragrant, and glowing! So smooth you'll be purring whenever you touch your skin. And it'll be accompanied with a wonderful feeling of bliss on the side *I maaaaaaay be exaggerating slightly, but heck, this stuff is magic to me and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!*

Lavender Purrrrrrrrr Scrub:

    What you'll need:

• 2 cups sea salt
• 1 1/4 cup grapeseed oil
• 4 tablespoons dried lavender
• 10-15 drops of lavender essential oil
• Cute storage jar. (Mine is 22 oz and I found it on Amazon) 

 I bought all my ingredients (minus the jar) at Whole Foods (that place is like a playground).

*Do try and buy all your ingredients organic. Your skin is your largest organ and we absorb more than 50% of what we put on it! You don't want to be feeding your skin pesticides and unknown chemicals.*

    Directions:

1. Add the salt and dried lavender to a large mixing bowl.
2. Mix in the lavender essential oil.
3. Add the oil and stir until fully incorporated. (Add more oil if your mixture is too dry, or add more salt if it is too oily)
4. Adjust the amount of dried lavender and essential oil to your liking.
5. Transfer your new wonderful scrub to your jar and enjoy!

 Make sure you moisturize after you scrub yourself to bliss! Stay tuned for my homemade lavender and rose revitalizing body lotion!