At-Home with Herbs for Self-Care and Healing

Apr 4, 2020 | At Home Activities

AT-HOME WITH HERBS FOR SELF-CARE AND HEALING 

Basic Salt or Sugar Scrub  

  • 1 Cup of sea salt or granulated sugar  
  • ½-1 cup oil (almond, coconut, olive, apricot, shea butter)>>something you want to put on your skin!  
  • 25 drops or more of essential oil of choice (lavender, rosemary, lemon, eucalyptus) 
  • Jar for Storage (You’ll need tape and a marker to label all your jars with date and product)

Directions:  

  • Place the salt in a wide-mouthed jar and cover with the base oil.
  • Stir in the essential oils slowly.  Be sure to start with less essential oils-you can always add more if you find you don’t have  enough, but you can’t take it out once they’re in!
  • Use on damp skin, for example in the shower or bath, and scrub from the feet up, bringing energy toward (Rather than away from) the heart. 
    • Sugar is a more gentle scrub option than salt. It dissolves more quickly and is therefore less abrasive.
    • Substitute sugar for the sale in the above recipe and use on damp skin.
    • If your skin is too wet the sugar will dissolve more quickly. Sugar has some antimicrobial properties, as does  salt, and is more hydrating, while salt is more drying.  

Optional variations:  

  • If you want to make this into a cleansing scrub, add liquid soap.  
  • Add whole or powdered herbs for color and additional exfoliation.  
  • You can melt a body butter, like coconut, cocoa, or shea, and pour over the sugar to make a  more solidified scrub.  

Miracle Grains Scrub  

  • 1 cup white clay (optional)  
  • 1 cup ground oats  
  • ½ c ground almonds  
  • ¼ cup ground lavender, rose, calendula (aromatic herbs)  
  • Bag or Jar for storage 

Directions:  

  • Combine in a sealed glass jar  
  • To use, mix 1-2 teaspoons of the dry blend with water and stir unto a paste. You can use the palm of your hand or a small container.
  • Gently massage into skin.
  • Rinse immediately or leave  on for a few minutes to use as a mask.
  • Rinse with cool water and pat dry.  

Four Thieves Vinegar  

  • 4 cloves garlic  
  • ½ cup lavender  
  • ½ Cup Rosemary  
  • ½ C Sage  
  • ¼ Thyme  
  • 1 tsp Clove  
  • Apple Cider vinegar (preferably unpasteurized)  
  • Jar for storage  

Directions:  

  • Place the garlic and herbs in a widemouthed glass jar and add enough warmed apple cider vinegar to cover them.
  • By warming the vinegar, it will more actively pull out the medicinal constituents of the herbs.
  • Place the jar in a warm spot, like a sunny window, for 3-4 weeks. 
  • Strain the herbs out, storing the remaining liquid in a jar for up to a year in a cool, dark location, like a cabinet or pantry.
  • Take 1-2 tablespoons every 3 to 3 hours to ward off illness and use more generously as a flavoring body in a salad dressing or such.
    • Stories of four thieves vinegar go back to antiquity, protecting against spells, warding off the plague, and using for endurance.

Fire Cider  

  • ½ cup grated fresh horseradish root  
  • ½ cup or more fresh chopped onions  
  • ¼ cup or more chopped garlic  
  • ¼ cup or more grated ginger  
  • 1 lemon  
  • Chopped fresh or dried cayenne pepper ‘to taste’. Can be whole or powdered.   Optional ingredients; Jalapeno, Rosemary (Dried), Cinnamon, Turmeric, Echinacea,  cinnamon, etc.  
  • Jar for Storage  
  • Honey for later  

Directions  

  • Prepare your roots, fruits, and herbs and place them in a quart-sized glass jar.
    • If you’ve never grated fresh horseradish, be prepared for a powerful sinus-opening experience! 
  • Pour the apple cider vinegar in the jar until all of the ingredients are covered and the vinegar reaches the jar’s top. 
  • Use a piece of natural parchment paper under the lid to keep the vinegar from touching the metal, or a plastic lid if you have one.
  • Shake well.
  • Store in a dark, cool place for a month and remember to shake daily.
  • After one month, use cheesecloth to strain out the pulp, pouring the vinegar into a clean jar. Be  sure to squeeze as much of the liquidy goodness as you can from the pulp while straining.
  • Next comes the honey. Add and stir until incorporated.
  • Taste your cider and add more honey until you reach the desired sweetness.

Ginger Juice  

  • Ginger root  
  • Water  
  • Lemon  
  • Honey to taste  
  • Blender, Vitamix, juicer, grater  
  • Jar for Storage  

Directions  

  • Add ginger root to your Vitamix or blender, and turn on.
    • Add water as you go to help make sure the blender doesn’t seize up.
    • This will give you a rather thick paste.
  • Put this into your jar;  this is your ginger concentrate. You can also freeze this into an ice cube trays to have on hand  for later.  
  • To use, scoop 1-2 teaspoons into a cup, add water, lemon, and honey to taste.
  • Drink for an extra dose of energizing, healing goodness.
  • You can add the ginger concentrate to other juices, stir-fry’s, or baking that you might normally want to include ginger in as well.  

Aromatherapy Eye Pillow 

  • For a quick and easy eye pillow, grab a clean, long sock.  
  • You can also stich together two pieces of fabric, on three sides, at about 8 inches long   Rice (for filler), Or Buckwheat Groats  
  • Aromatic herbs: chamomile, catnip, mint, mugwort, sage, sandlewood, rosemary, rose,  lavender, myrrh, frankincense  

Directions  

  • Depending on the size of your sock or fabric, you’ll need a different amount filler and herbs.  Test it out before by pouring your filling agent into your pillow-to-be. That will help you measure out the proper amount without wasting in the end. Set aside what you’ve measured for  your pillow’s volume.  
  • You’ll want to have about half of your pillows volume made up of filler and about half made up of the herb.  
  • Now, in a mixing bowl, combine your aromatic herbs. Remember that when you’re making this, some herbs smell more than others, and some take up more space than others. Start with the herb that you want to be the most dominant (to your smell), adding in the others along the  way.
  • To finish your pillow, sew together the open end of the sock or fabric.
  • You can freeze or heat (in the microwave, briefly) your new pillow for added relaxation.
Sources for ingredients and supplies:  

Your local organic grocery store like PCC Markets will have a lot of these ingredients, including  ginger, vinegar, the herbs, and some of the basic body products, essential oils, and kitchen goods.  

Local:  

Herbs online:  

By Amanda Uluhan