Lemon Joy Dish Soap

Dish soap. Just another household item that is SO easy and inexpensive to make. I've tried a few recipes and they were either too watery, or left residue, or just didn't get the harder jobs done. So I finally came up on this one, which has a really good sudsy, slightly thicker viscosity. It has worked the best, in my opinion.

You'll need:

2 C water

1/4 C grated castile soap flakes (I used Kirk's)

1/2 C liquid castile soap (I used Dr. Bronner's)

2 Tsp washing soda

1 Tsp vegetable glycerine

Essential Oils (I used 5 drops of Lemon and 3 drops of Joy)

Liquid soap dispenser

Directions:

Bring water to a boil and add your soap flakes. Stir until they've dissolved. Add the rest of your ingredients and stir for a minute until everything has dissolved. Carefully funnel soap into your dispenser and you're done! It takes about 24 hours for the soap to settle, but I used it right away and it worked fine.

The mixture of lemon and joy is one of my favorite essential oil combinations! It's so uplifting and smells delicious. A really great scent for summertime, or any time for that matter, and makes me actually look forward to scrubbing some dishes just to catch the aroma. Lemon does a great job of cutting grease too! Both oils come in the Premium Starter Kit from Young Living. Even more proof to me that this investment of my kit purchase is paying for itself a thousand times over. I really do love this stuff.

Lavender Laundry Soap

I’ve always been a big fan of Gain laundry detergent because it smells amazing. When Tyler and I were dating, his clothes always smelled so good. So I hunted around his apartment and took note of his laundry detergent. Since we dated long distance and only saw each other every few months, I started using Gain so I could smell him (he’s not a cologne guy, so this was my best shot at being a creepy girlfriend and breathing in his scent when I missed him.) Since we’ve had kids, it always made me a little uncomfortable washing their clothes and blankies with the toxins in such delicious smelling detergent. Especially now that my second-born started teething and sucking profusely on any nearby item of clothing. So I decided to try making my own with natural ingredients! Here is the first recipe I’ve tried that I like, and it cleans clothing really well. It’s borax-free and still smells great with the addition of pure lavender. Also, it was so inexpensive and super easy to make.

You’ll need:

1/2 C washing soda

1/2 C baking soda

3/4 C Dr. Bronner’s Unscented Castile Soap

2 gallons very warm water

10 drops lavender essential oil

2 gallon containers for storage

Add washing soda to a very large bucket or pot, then cover with ONE gallon of hot water and whisk well to dissolve. Add baking soda, then the last gallon of hot water and whisk again. It's important to whisk these separately, otherwise it gets SUPER clumpy and hard to break down. Then, add your castile soap and essential oil and whisk until all ingredients are blended. Funnel into large containers. I used two half gallon mason jars + a recycled gallon-sized apple juice jug. 

Just add 1/3 cup to a regular load of laundry. After a few days, I noticed a little bit of white filmy build-up in the soap, so just shake well before each use! 

Mint & Frankincense Facewash

After trying just about every face wash throughout my youth, I finally found the best soap for my skin, which has been Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Castile Soap. I've been using it for the past six years and love that it keeps my skin clear. I've always diluted it with half water, just so it isn't as intense. Today, I ran out. With my recent purchase of Young Living's essential oils, a fresh supply of Unscented Dr. Bronner's and a splash of rose water, I've concocted the simplest, dreamiest recipe for a quick replacement. I decided to use a little rosewater to reduce the appearance of puffiness and to soften the skin (also, rosewater smells heavenly!) I also added frankincense to promote smooth skin, and I like peppermint for its refreshing and energizing scent. After my first wash with this recipe, I was actually in shock of how great my face felt! Literally, as smooth as a baby. I didn't even want to put any makeup on, and spent the next couple hours petting my own cheeks. 

8 oz. Dr. Bronner's Unscented Castile Soap

1 Tb rosewater

Therapeutic grade frankincense and peppermint, 3 drops of each**

A bottle with a small pour spout. I recycled an amber kombucha bottle and a squeeze bottle top from an empty honey bottle! Perfect fit.

Fill your empty bottle with all the ingredients, then fill the rest with purified water (about 8 ounces) and gently shake to mix! You're done. All it takes is a drop to lather.