Natural Leather Cleaning & Conditioning

I own a leather couch and chair. I love the look, feel, and comfort of leather but leather needs to be treated to prevent splits and cracks. Commercial wipes and cleaner can get expensive, so why not use an all natural blend you can easily make at home!

Leather Cleaning & Conditioning Blend:
- 4 Cups warm water
- 1 TBS Dr. Bronner's Baby Mild Castile Soap (Lavender Castile would be another great choice)
- 1/2 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 6 drops Lemon Essential Oil

Mix all the ingredients in a small bucket or bowl and use an old rag(s) to buff your furniture. Wipe off excess water, allow to dry and enjoy the clean smell and look to your leather. 

Here is a picture of two of my couch cushions side by side. You can notice a huge difference after the cleaning:

I recommend using this blend atleast once a month. My furniture was handed down to us by my grandma & since we have owned it 8 years. Before I created this blend my furniture was in a rough state and having 4 cats who love to scratch and run across it didn't help at all. Since cleaning / conditioning regularly I have noticed an improvement and it has helped keep this furniture going. Here's to a few more good years!! =)

DIY Soft Scrub for cleaning

I have read and tried several versions of DIY soft scrubs, mainly found on Pinterest. Some worked ok, some cleaned well but I didn't like the texture, some just used too many ingredients, and some mixed ingredients that I later found out shouldn't have been mixed (ex: castile soap & vinegar). So I decided to come up with my own SIMPLE mixture that cleans very well and is also antibacterial!!

SOFT SCRUB BLEND:
* Glass Mason Jar (I love my little half pint wide mouth jars)
* 3/4 Cup Baking Soda
* 1/4 Cup Dr. Bronner's Citrus Orange Castile Soap
* 1.5 Tablespoons Water
* 10 drops Melaleuca essential oil
* 5 drops Peppermint essential oil (optional but I love the smell)

I have used this soft scrub for cleaning my bath tub, toilet, bathroom sink, stainless steel kitchen sink, it even surprisingly cleans spaghetti stains from plastic tupperware!!

Some before & after pics:

Get your PURE essential oils from Spark Naturals & get an extra 10% off your order with coupon code: Nature

Lemony Fresh Dish Soap

I think I am one of the few who do not own a dishwasher, so needless to say I use my good ole hands for cleaning my dishes. I prefer to use Castile soap because is it biodegradable and non-toxic, making it a great alternative for you and the environment! This type of soap doesn't suds up like typical soap since it doesn't contain any foaming agents AKA sulfates but don't let this fool you, my dishes are just as clean, if not cleaner than when I used dawn.

Now trying to clean without the suds can make you think you need to use more soap. A solution I've found is to use a foaming pump bottle. I actually took this a step further to make my bottle look a bit prettier. I used a 1/2 pint glass mason jar instead of the plastic bottle and cut a hole in the lid just big enough to fit my pump in, you may need to trim the straw portion of the pump to fit. Then use some hot glue on the underside of the lid to secure the pump. Of course wait for this to dry before making the dish soap recipe. ;)

DISH SOAP RECIPE:
- Dr. Bronner's Citrus Orange Castile Soap
- 7 drops Melaleuca Essential Oil (added for antibacterial, antimicrobial, antiviral, & disinfecting properties)
- 9 drops Lemon Essential Oil (added for antibacterial, antimicrobial, antiseptic & disinfecting properties)
- distilled or purified water

Fill the jar/bottle up 1/2 way with the Castile soap, add in the essential oils, then fill the rest of the way with the water, making sure to leave enough room for the pump. Give the bottle a good swirl to blend all the ingredients.  Now your ready to wash away!

Get your essential oils @ Spark Naturals and use coupon code: Nature to receive an extra 10% off!

cold season is a comin'

It's getting to be that time of year. ... beautiful colors, cooler weather, festive activities & unfortunate illness.

Essential oils can be a big help in making it through this season. 

Both as a preventative and as a healing staple. 

More than a billion cold cases are reported every year in the United States alone, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. The common cold is caused by a virus that is spread through tiny droplets released into the air every time someone infected coughs, sneezes or blows their nose.

How can you eliminate those airborne pathogens in your home and build your immune system?

DIFFUSE!!

A diffuser uses a cool mist of water along with the essential oil(s) to release micro-particles and disperse them into the air. 

What essential oil blend is great to diffuse? 

6-8 drops of SHIELD

Spark Naturals potent SHIELD blend contains these essential oils: Clove, Cinnamon Bark, Lemon, Eucalyptus, and Rosemary. This blend not only stops the growth of viruses and bacteria but it also helps aid in ridding the area of mold and fungi. 

In addition to diffusing, 

here's a great protective/healing blend to roll on the bottoms of your feet:

In a 1/8 oz roller bottle add the following essential oils:

20 drops of SHIELD

20 drops of Melaleuca 

20 drops of Oregano 

Fill the rest of the bottle with FCO (Fractionated Coconut Oil)

I have used this blend twice so far with my son's colds with healing results in 4 days and then 3 days, without the need for over the counter or prescribed medications. At the onset of his cold, I rolled this blend every 3 hours onto the bottoms of his feet. I also used this blend on the bottoms of my feet to prevent catching his cold & it worked. I prefer the steel ball roller bottles as they glide very smoothly compared to the plastic ones. Spark Naturals carries these hard to find bottles! 

**Always keep your essential oils and blends out of direct sunlight as this can break them down**

HOORAY for natural healing!

All essential oils used as well as diffusers, roller bottles, and FCO can be purchased through Spark Naturals and receive an extra 10% off your order with coupon code: Nature

Cleaning your cutting board!

These instructions are from the Spark Naturals Facebook Page. You can like them here: Spark Naturals on Facebook to get more great tips for their amazing oils. 

For an extra 10% off your order @ Spark Naturals use coupon code: Nature

Do you love using a wooden cutting board but worry about what germs are left behind? 

Here is a great way to really get your cutting board clean plus leave it smelling lemony fresh!

Ingredients:

Coarse Salt

Spark Naturals Lemon Essential Oil

Directions:

1. Sprinkle a layer of coarse salt, such as Kosher salt, over your wood cutting board.

2. Take your bottle of Spark Naturals Lemon Essential oil and sprinkle 15-20 drops around on the cutting board. (my cutting board is on the smaller side so I used about 10 drops)

3. Use a scrub brush and a little elbow grease to scour the board for a few minutes. The acid in the lemon oil will disinfect the board and the abrasive action of the salt will get rid of any tiny food remnants or stains that still cling to the board. If you chop foods on both sides of the board, be sure to clean them both.

4. Thoroughly rinse the board with hot water.

5. Make sure the board dries in an upright position. Excess moisture can quickly turn your wooden chopping accessory into a bacteria cafeteria. Allowing the board to dry in a vertical position will ensure that moisture leaves the board.

Break out this cleaning method on your board about once a week. For everyday use, wash your board with a mild soap or a solution of one part vinegar and one part water. The vinegar will disinfect the board and remove any lingering odors from foods, such as the delicious, but potent onions and garlic.

To prolong the life of your cutting board, oil it every so often with beeswax, or walnut, almond, mineral oil. Constant cleaning will strip natural oils from the board, which can cause it to crack. So oil it up.

Hand Sanitizer using SHIELD essential Oil blend

Looking to make an all natural hand sanitizer? All you need are 2 ingredients:

Water & Spark Naturals Shield protective blend!

In a 1oz spray bottle add 15 drops of Shield and fill the rest of the bottle up with distilled or purified water. Put the cap on, gently shake, and spray! Give a gentle shake before each use.

SHIELD is a blend of Clove, Cinnamon Bark, Lemon, Eucalyptus, and Rosemary Essential Oils.

Now you can have the protection against germs without the use of alcohol or chemicals.

Spray hands, shopping carts, tables, toys, anything you need for quick disinfecting.

Looking to make this hand sanitizer a little more moisturizing for your skin? 

Just replace the half of the water used with FCO (Fractionated Coconut Oil).

FCO is also available at Spark Naturals, under their E-Spa category or click the picture below:

 Get an extra 10% off your SPARK Naturals order with coupon code: Nature

Boo Boo Spray

My homemade, all natural recipe blend for boo boos. This mixture is so versatile that we have used it for cuts, scrapes, bruises, burns, bug bites, diaper/butt rash, even deodorant in a pinch, and that is just so far!

Everything used in this spray, excluding the witch hazel, can be purchased through spark naturals. 

Don't forget an extra 10% off with coupon code: Nature

Supplies needed:
2oz spray bottle

20 drops Lavender 

10 drops Geranium
            20 drops Melaleuca (aka tea tree oil)
15 drops Frankincense 
Alcohol-free witch hazel (I prefer Thayer's brand)

Simply add all the essential oils into the 2oz bottle then top off with the alcohol-free witch hazel. Screw the sprayer on and gently shake to blend the EOs. I like to give the bottle a gentle shake each time before I spray. 
I also pour a little of the premade blend into a smaller spray bottle to keep in my purse. 

    Why did I choose these particular oils? 

Lavender - calming & soothing while healing. Just some of Lavender's properties: Antiseptic, Analgesic, Anti-Inflammatory, Antiviral, Bactericide

Geranium - A popular essential oil in skin products due to its healing properties. Also helps to stop bleeding. Some of geranium's properties include: Astringent, Analgesic, Antiseptic, Disinfectant, Sedative, Tonic and Relaxing. 

Melaleuca - I like to think of it as the natural Neosporin. It has the ability to kill many bacteria, viruses, and fungi on contact. Some properties are:  Antimicrobial, Antiseptic, Antiviral, Fungicide, Insecticide. 

Frankincense - Helps to enhance the other oils it is combined with. This is one of my favorite oils as it is helpful for so many things. Some of its properties are: Antiseptic, Astringent, Anti-fungal, Deodorant, Sedative, Cellular Protection and Vasoconstrictor. 

Lavender, geranium & frankincense also help aid in scar reduction.