Update

With all the business of life I hadn't realized that I didn't ever do an update on a few items. So here's the update after months of trial and error.

OCM- I use 3 TBL of olive oil and 1TBL of castor oil. I really like it. My skin is the clearest it's been in a long time. I haven't had an acne outbreak (a bad one anyway) for several months. It gets my make up off and it's relaxing and inexpensive. My skin is feeling a bit dry this winter so I will need to investigate some natural moisturizers. I tried using just a small bit of oil rubbed into my skin and it caused a breakout so, I won't be doing that again! But the OCM and I are very good friends now!

Poo free- I am using 1/2 TBL of baking soda dissolved in 1/2 Cup of hot water. I rinse with 3 TBL of apple cider vinegar mixed into 1 Cup of hot water with a few drops of teatree essential oil mixed in. I love it. I feel like my head has finally detoxed all the chemicals and is starting to make it's own oils again. My hair is clean and it doesn't smell like vinegar or teatree oil after I rinse will. I only wash my hair every other day due to the dry weather here in Colorado and my hair's natural dryness. I admit, I do still use over the counter mousse for styling so an assignment for the new year will be to find a way to make or buy a more natural version without breaking the bank!

Household cleaner- I threw that out! It just didn't work up to my standards however, a friend recently told me about a new recipe to try so that is on the list for the coming year as well.

Laundry Soap- Love it! I use Fels Naptha, Borax and water (see recipe in the links section). Truthfully, it may not work as well as good ol' "Tide" but it works well. I have not added essential oils since our family has sensitive skin. This has become a regular household item in our house.

Lip Balm- Love it! I think it's time to make another batch. I think I will invest in purchasing a bulk amount of lip balm containers since I gave all mine away last time I made the lip balm. :) This time I think I will also experiment with some essential oils. I put this lip balm on right before bed and it really does keep my lips from chapping in this very dry climate!

Bread- Still going strong on the bread making front! We'll never go back to store bought. It's too easy and too inexpensive to make our own and the taste is unsurpassed by anything we could buy off the shelf!

This year- My goals for this year are to try a new recipe for household cleaner, find a more natural hair styling product and also try making bathtime salt scrubs. I will also hopefully be trying a few more natural remedies for common sicknesses in our family. I will try to keep you updated on any experiments and how they turn out.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Household Cleaner

I have continued to use the vinegar and hydrogen peroxide cleaner and I like it. I feel like my counters, stove, sinks are getting clean. I have learned that to make my bathroom sink sparkle I have to wash with the cleaner and then rinse with water and wipe with a dry cloth. I still haven't completely decided what to do with the toilet. I do use the cleaner on the outside of the toilet and the seat. I still like to use my Clorox wand inside my toilet. It's easy and I know it's cleaning and I don't have to stick my hand in the water. However, on the rim and the underside of the ring (where most of the yuck is) I still haven't' decided. I did however find that using Borax in my tub works great! It's easy to use and very inexpensive and it contains no harsh chemicals. The only thing I am still wondering about is the grout in the shower between the tiles. So far it's okay but I think once in a while I'll have to use something that really gets into the grout.

Here's a couple notes about the shampoo free:
I really like not using shampoo and the baking soda/water mixture seems to work well. My hair feel clean. The problem is the rinse. I am still using the apple cider vinegar with honey and tea tree oil but I think maybe it's causing some buildup from the honey. So, I think I have decided to use regular shampoo one every week or two weeks. And as a side note- if you use the apple cider vinegar be aware that if it gets in your eyes it really stings! And since I usually tip my hair upside down to get the back of my scalp I have also learned that it burns when it gets up your nose. Just FYI.

Up next: Laundry soap. I've got all the ingredients and I'm almost out of my store bought stuff. I just need a five gallon bucket with a lid! So, as soon as I get that I will begin. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to leave them here or contact me.

Another Update

Hello all. I had to take a week break to get through the end of school. I have had some people asking me, "How's it going now?". It has been a couple of weeks since my first experiment - The Oil Cleansing Method.

I think I will NEVER go back to using over the counter facial cleansers. I LOVE the OCM! Now, I know it has no anti-aging qualities, so to speak, and none of the "miracle" face lift ingredients that certain products are claiming these days. But, it is natural. It is cheap! It is working. My skin is still feeling clean and it's not overly dry. I still have blemishes but I'm not totally sure how long it takes for my skin to get used to the new cleansing method. The blemishes I do have are smaller than usual and they seem to go away sooner than they used to. The Oil Cleansing Method is relaxing and effective.

The household cleaner:
Well, I'm still not totally sure what I think about it. I like it for the kitchen counter, the stove, the sink, the bathroom counter and sink and even the floor. I added some essential oils and it really cut down on the bad smell of the vinegar. I'm not sure I like it for the bathtub or the inside of the toilet. I haven't tried any alternatives, i.e. baking soda, to scrub the bathtub but I will and I'll let you know how it goes. The toilet has some staining that does not come off well with the vinegar and hydrogen peroxide. It might be clean but stains are not an option for me in the bathroom.

Shampoo free:
Still working on this. I like the baking soda and water wash. I still use the apple cider vinegar, water and honey for a rinse. I think I've been adding too much honey though since it seems my hair is feeling like it's not getting completely clean. I also added tea tree oil and I like that. I think it helps with the itching. So, now my recipe is 3TBL apple cider vinegar, 1TBL honey and 1 cup of water. I haven't experimented with my daughter's hair again. I also have used regular shampoo and conditioner once. I think I might do that once every couple of weeks.

I am not sure what I'm going to be experimenting with next.It may be a week or so before I make my next thing but I will update you via facebook when it happens. Some things that I am really excited about are: laundry soap, deoderant, lip balm and perfume. If you have any suggestions please let me know. The idea is find something that is natural, cost effective and fairly simple.

Day 7- Poo free and OCM

Day 7- One week! Well, last night I used the oil on my face and steamed it off with a hot cloth and them hopped into the shower. When I got out my face felt dry and I didn't do anything to it. This morning my face felt dry too and I could see dryness on it. Eventually, throughout the day it gets a little of it's natural moisture back. By the time I put my make up on this afternoon it wasn't really too dry anymore. However, I have discovered that if I'm going to cleanse my face with oil and take a shower at night I should just let it steam out in the shower. The less water the better I guess. Today I bought sunflower oil to try instead of EVOO. I'm going to finish out the EVOO mixture I made so I'm not sure when I'll try the sunflower oil. But, I'm wondering if it will be better for the dryness. I'll let you know.

I washed my hair last night with the baking soda mixture. I used a full cup of it (1 TBL of baking soda dissolved in water). I also rinsed with the ACV (I used about 3 TBL apple cider vinegar and 1 1/2 TBL honey in one cup of water. ) I used about 2/3 of the cup for the rinse. My hair is feeling dry to me these days and from what I've read it feels like maybe I'm using too much baking soda. So, I think I'm going to try using just 1/2 cup next time. I wonder if using more ACV rinse will help the itching. I am also considering using coconut oil or maybe even a little sunflower oil on my scalp once a week to see if it helps. I'll let you know what I try and how it works. One thing I am happy with is that the baking soda does get the mousse out very well and the rinse does not stink! I keep worrying that my hair is going to smell like vinegar but it doesn't.

If you have been trying this too and have found out anything you'd like to share - please feel free to leave a comment.

Now, since it's been a week I've decided to only update on the OCM and poo free topic whenever I make a change or find something new. The next items I will be talking about will be homemade flour and bread (that won't take long) and homemade all purpose household cleaner. I will be making that tomorrow.

Lastly, feel free to check out the links in the right hand column of this page. As I find helpful information I will post the link there.

Day 6 - OCM and "Poo free"

Had a party today!! Whoop Dee Doo! So, better late than never with the update I suppose.

Day 6- Didn't wash with oil last night. Woke up this morning feeling a little dry. I didn't do anything except put my make up on. So, I have felt a little dry all day. I do have a new blemish although, I must say, it is that time of the month (sorry if that is TMI for any of you). I usually break out really bad around this time of the month but so far this has been the least amount of break out in months! Yippee! But, due to the dryness I may be experimenting with new oils and amounts in the coming weeks. I'll keep you updated.

Also, I didn't wash my hair last night or this morning. It felt clean. I wet it this morning and slathered mousse in it. By the end of this day my head is ITCHING like CRAZY! So, back to the Internet to find out the problem and a possible solution. I'll let you know tomorrow what I find out! I did give my daughter a shower today but I had forgotten to make a new batch of "baking soda shampoo" and I was in a hurry so I grabbed the Pert. I liked it a lot better than our last experience with the baking soda but, I'm not going to give up. I'm going back to the internet for more information and will try again soon.

I am by no means an expert on any of this and I am simply chronicling my experience but if you have any questions let me know, I'll do what I can to answer them. Also, watch for links to helpful websites coming soon. I will also be making my first batch of laundry soap sometime soon, hopefully in the next week.

Day 4 & 5- OCM and "Poo free"

Yesterday I was gone all day so I didn't get a chance to update.

Day 4- Shampoo free- I washed my daughters hair with the baking soda and water. Her hair is medium thickness and very long. It is very straight and very tangle prone. The baking soda mixture did fine at cleaning her hair. I also used the vinegar rinse. I noticed a couple issues with using this on her hair. One is that when she got out of the bath her hair and head still smelled like vinegar and even a little like it was still dirty. Also, her hair was VERY tangely! I had to use some conditioning spray to release the tangles. The rest of that day and the next her hair smelled perfectly fine and feels clean. I think I will try it again only I will use the shower head instead of washing it in the bathtub. I think the spray from the shower head may make it easier to rinse it out and cause less tangling in the process.

OCM- Two very small, new blemishes. Other than that, nothing different regarding the oil cleansing and my face for day 4.

Day 5- Shampoo free- I styled my hair with lots of mousse yesterday and today washed it with baking soda. It did not feel as though it got quite as clean as before. I wonder if the drastic change was when it stripped all the left over waxes and build up from my previous shampoos and conditioners and, now since that is all gone, it doesn't feel so drastic. I also wonder if I need to use more solution since my hair is so thick. I will experiment with this and let you know. There was a little more hair loss than before but not nearly as much as with store bought shampoos and conditioners.

Day 5- OCM- Yesterday I had on make up and mascara. Last night I washed my face with the oils. I was asked if I was sure that the oil was removing all my make up. Since I typically use dark colored wash cloths and towels, I wasn't truly sure. So, last night I did the normal routine and then I checked with a baby wipe. I wiped various parts of my face with the baby wipe and it was clean and white! All the make up was gone and the mascara came off easily as well. The blemishes I got the other day have almost cleared up completely. I think they were a result of my pores beginning to work properly again after being clogged and stripped for so long. This morning my face felt a little dry so I used a much smaller amount of the oil mixture and rubbed it into my skin. Then I hopped in the shower and let it steam out. I used a wash cloth and patted my face while still in the shower to insure any residual oil was wiped away. When I got out my face felt great! Not dry. Now, the rest of my skin? That's for another day. I have a feeling I will be investigating body soaps and washes very soon! Stay tuned!

Day 3- OCM and "Poo free"

Okay, last night I washed my hair for the second time with the baking soda and water mixture. My scalp had been itching before my shower, as it usually does at the end of hot summer days. I wasn't sure if the wash was going to fix the itching. It did! Another bonus to this wash and rinse- I am not loosing nearly as much hair! I'm telling you, I have been removing enough hair to clothe a small animal from the drain each time I washed my hair. Now, there was much, much less! Truthfully only a few strands! If this continues to be the case- I'm completely sold!

I spent most of the day outside in the sun yesterday and I did not wear makeup
or wash my face with the oil last night. I just rinsed it with warm water in the shower. When I got out of the shower my face felt very dry and tight but I did not moisturize at all. I just went straight to bed. This morning I found that my skin is not dry or tight. It seems soft and just the right amount of moisture- not too oily. I do have one small new blemish but the old ones are getting better. Hmmm. I think this might just be working.

Day 2- "Poo Free"

This is day 2- I woke up thinking my hair would feel dry and frizzy. I didn't style it yesterday after my shower. This morning it feels soft and it is LESS frizzy than when I use store bought shampoo. It still feels clean.

Day 1- "Poo Free"

Day 1- Baking Soda Shampoo and Apple Cider Vinegar Rinse. Today in the shower I used the recipe of 1 TBL of Baking Soda dissolved in warm water as my shampoo. I had not washed my hair the previous day but I had used Mousse to style my hair. I wondered of the baking soda solution would really get all that gunk out of my hair. Now, I have VERY thick, coarse, curly hair. I poured about a half a cup of the solution all over my hair and scalp. I mixed it in. I rinsed it out. AMAZING! My hair was squeeky clean and felt smooth and soft. It didn't lather but I had no need to reapply. What would it feel like when I got out of the shower and after my hair dried? Read on.

After the baking soda wash I applied about a quarter cup (or less) of the following recipe: 2 TBL of Apple Cider Vinegar, 1/2 TBL honey to hot water. I mixed it really well and spread the mixture on the ends of my hair and massaged a bit into my scalp. I let it sit while I finished my shower. I rinsed it out. I wondered if I would smell like vinegar all day.

After the shower I towel dried my hair and it felt clean and smelled clean (not lovely, but not like vinegar- whoo hoo). I put it up in a clip and now that it is mostly dry it still feels clean, doesn't smell like vinegar and the ends are actually soft. I even asked my husband to smell my hair and he said it doesn't smell like vinegar and it smells clean.

So, there you have it. Day 1.