The little birds...

If you watch little birds you will see they are busy and happy! Using whatever they can find they create the most gorgeous little nest.
I would be the little bird with some glittery thread in her nest!
We can be like this. Happily working away with the things that are available to us to create a beautiful and happy home.
All the while with a little song in our heart.

Banner by Free Pretty Things for You.

Tuesday 17 April 2018

The Home Pharmacy. Essential oil gift making.

Early in this little series we covered how far a bottle of essential oil will actually go.  It is a long long way!   This means you might have sufficient oils on hand to make gifts and beauty supplies.

I have been dabbling a bit in both.  I keep hearing of people with great essential oil supplies that they have bought as some time and not used very much.  Turning these into gifts is a great idea, as well as putting them to work for you! We also might have oils that we love and work for us and others that sit there unused.... these might still be perfect for someone on your gift list or to go into a blend or even a cleaning product.

Someone told me about a site called Camp Wander.  I forget who and I am sorry I lost track, this is how things have been lately... well THANK YOU!  Her information and her products are amazing.  I wrote to her and but does not ship to Australia sadly.   The things I was learning studying sites like this led me to google lots of information on beauty products using essential oils and gifts too.

Because I am messing around with oils Chloe gave me a bottle of hemp oil.  No hemp is l not like weed lol it is a great source of Omega's and I was keen to try this!  It is an interesting very dark green...
Mum gave me a bootle of Emu Oil.  This is rather interesting. Unlike baby oil it is actually extracted from what it is called and I think they do not necessarily fully cooperate.  So that is a bit off putting.  (To say the least.)   But then I thought ok Emus are raised as meat in many places and I eat chicken, duck and turkey.... so I decided to think of it as a large turkey!  Emu's I might say do not look moist.  I had a close up view of one the other day as it ran in front of Dad and I in his ute.  We missed it by about one inch I think!  Anyway I have this oil and Mum is saying this has helped her sore knee more than anything she has tried so far.  And that is a lot of things.

On Camp Wander she has a beauty serum she called Ultimate beauty Serum.  The ingredients are listed and so you have the basic recipe.  As it turned out the number one ingredient was Emu oil.
If you search the internet for serum recipes you will find many with Macadamia nut oil and others.  I think you can successfully substitute oils.  Mimi has her recipe here which as Vitamin E, Neroli and Jasmine.    Most beauty products you buy are full of fillers and preservatives. the actual active and good ingredients are usually well down the list.  Most times the jar has cost them more to produce than the actual product.  With good ingredients we can replicate many of them and make a better quality version.
The Camp Wander ingredients were seven things and I have five so I made this up for myself.


The ingredients I used were Emu oil (most by far) Lavender 4 drops,  Frankincense 3 drops,  Geranium 3 drops, Rose 3 drops.  The bottle is a small bottle I think maybe 50 mls.  Anyway this is so nice!  It leaves your skin feeling heavenly and with a velvety texture. Not oily at all, just like silk.  I love it and so I thought given serums are $50 to over $100 then it is a lovely gift too.

The next one I made was Hemp and Lavender.


This is sold as a antimicrobial,  it is good for nails,  known to reduce redness and eczema, anti inflammatory and antioxidant and anti ageing... (what more do you need, really?!) oh and full of Omega 3 and 6.  Then bonus... it can be used to remove eye make up and at the same time moisturise your lashes and make them grow better.   So I made up some of these.  And it does remove eye makeup beautifully and you then feel as if you have moisturised already.


I made up some gift packs of both oils and I am thrilled with the treats I have made myself.

In an earlier post I showed how I made cleaning products and hand wash with On Guard oil blend and used this pack as a gift.  I made room sprays and hand sanitiser and these all add up to very nice themed presents also.

Last week I made two gifts using my oils.  You have to be the judge of who you think a gift like this is suitable for but I think anyone who is into natural therapies, has a particular health issue, is interested in alternative medicine... they might really appreciate something like this.  Chloe first gave me some blends she made up to try and this is what got me started.  I am so grateful as it lead to so much more!

Here with  Autumn setting in anything that fights germs and flu is a well timed gift.  I gave Allie two little rollers of On Guard and a cold and flu blend for breathing...


So far I have ordered my roller bottles with metal rollers from Amazon. They have cost $20 or so for a dozen.  This is where I get them from here.

I made my stressed and worried friend some relaxing and sleep blends and packaged them into cute little paper bags.


I also made Vanilla Spray.  This is with Vanilla Essential oil and it smells amazing.  It could be a perfume or a fridge spray.  I made some for both purposes...


In the war years my Nanna and her friend used Vanilla essence as perfume. They both ended up with brown patches behind their ears but still they smelled really good!   I love Vanilla and this is a stronger version than an essence.

Finally I made up some spray purse sized bottles.  I found these thanks to Mimi!  You can find them here.  For around $1 each they come in pretty colours.  I used half vodka and half water in these and made up a heap of germ busing sprays plus perfume sprays!  I go by ten drops of essential oil to one bottle.  I have found these suitable for purse perfume, sanitiser, On Guard mist, calming blend...



They are just lovely.  To make a perfume spray just go by scents you love.  You can google the main ingredients of any perfume and it will tell you what it is made up of.  I also made a sort of copy of Clarycalm which I love and that has Clary Sage, Lavender and others.  I really like that one.  That is a doTERRA Blend that I recommend as it is so calming.  It could be called Crisis Care! 

Since all of this I have ordered some other items on Ebay, some little velvet bags to put small bottles in and some lovely rollerball glass containers.  

You might have essential oils and carrier oils already on hand to be able to make up gifts and put them to good use for yourself.  If you have something and you are just not sure what to do with it then google away!  Many things are amazingly versatile and have many uses and something will be good for you or good for gift giving.   Look around and see how much these things cost ready made!  It is a lot! 
I just realised this is a Christmas Challenge, Money Saving, Beauty and Essential Oil post all in one!  

I will be making some more gift and beauty products so we will have more on this!
Do you have supplies you could put to use?
If you have an oil and don't know what to do with it then please post in comments as between us we will come up with ideas!
And if you have a recipe using essential oils for something beauty or gift related or an idea on this please share.  

Today is sunny and lovely. I am going to see Hilde and having a bargain hunting afternoon.  Mainly I am hoping for lots of veggies for soups and stews.  But I never know what I will find and I know Hilde has a basket of lemons for me and bunches of Thyme.  I have printed some of Mimi's recipes for her as I know she will love them (she doesn't use the internet...)

I hope your week is going well! xxx



16 comments:

  1. Dear Annabel,
    This is such a timely post as I have been looking into making my own natural products. I am almost out of moisturizer so I want to try making my own, plus face wash. I still need to do a little more research, then I will be adding ingredients to my Amazon cart. Once I make them, I'll give a report.
    Colton uses emu oil on his knee as well. Does the stuff you have smell? I can always tell when Colton has put it on because I can smell it lol. It's not bad, just a bit strong. I'm sure it is oil mixed with other things, not pure.
    One thing I have done for gifts is make up lavender room spray and pair it with lavender sachets, either sewn or printed on paper from Strangers and Pilgrims on Earth. Tied up with lace or a pretty ribbon it looks luxurious. I see things like this in stores for outrageous prices, but I'm not fooled ;)
    I hope you had a wonderful time with Hilde!
    With love, Kelsey

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    1. Dear Kelsey, I am betting that emu oil also has something else like eucalyptus oil maybe... but something! I am really liking just a simple oil for face wash like baby oil, almond oil... it is good for your lashes also.
      Lavender sachets are always just lovely. With a free sprigs of fresh or dried lavender then that is a lovely touch too.
      You have a way of putting your gifts together just beautifully! With love, Annabel.xxx

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  2. A good website for recipes is The Nerdy Farm Wife. She has recipes for bath, beauty and health. I enjoy reading all your gift ideas. Thanks!

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    1. Dear Ellen,
      It's actually her recipes that I'm going to be experimenting with! I purchased her book earlier this year so now I'm really looking forward to using it.
      Love, Kelsey

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    2. Dear Vintage Ellen, Thank you so much! With love Annabel.xxx

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  3. Love your post today! I hope you have a wonderful day of shopping and visiting with your friend Hilde.

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    1. Thats Laurie, it was great fun and productive. Love days like this! xxx

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  4. My go to gift is lavender hydrosol from Hopewell. It is the water that is left after the distilling process of lavender essential oil. It is awesome for any skin issue whether it is a burn, insect bites or just skin irritation. You can buy a large pourable bottle for very little and then put it into roller bottles just as it is with out diluting. This can also be used as a room spray.

    My favorite cream to make is Roman Chamomile in a fragrance free lotion. I do 3 drops of oil per tablespoon of lotion. It is so calming on the bottoms of the feet at bedtime. It should be stored in an amber glass jar.

    Emu oil definitely has a smell all it's own. We use Deep Healing from Hopewell on bruises or injuries and I just kind of endure the smell of it because I know the blend works so well.

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    1. Dear Lana,
      Now you have told me about this I will go to Hopewell and look it up. It sound lovely plus so useful. I never even knew about it!
      Also thank you for this about the lotion. I will take a look at Deep Healing as well... I dont get on with anything peppermint or "menthylated" for some reason so my pain lotions are a problem for me. With many thanks, Annabel.xxx

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  5. Hi, Annabel! I don't know why I find all of this so intimidating. When you first started out, did you follow recipes? I have some almond oil, jojoba oil, also lavender, orange, rose oils that I have on hand. I also have some vodka. Can you recommend something I can make from any of this? There are so many products that it can be bewildering!
    Thanks,
    Phyllis

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    1. Dear Phyllis, There are recipes available for everything... mind you I am happy to copy ingredients in something as well. Think what would you like to make for yourself as gifts? You have the ingredients to make sleep/relaxation roller balls with the lavender and almond oil. Or lavender room spray or laundry spray. Orange and vodka could be a very refreshing room spray. Rose oils are beautiful and you could make perfume or a roller blend. Rose oil in jojoba could be a lovely facial oil. You can also try googling "what to make with rose essential oil" and recipes will come up. These sound like really lovely things to have and could give you lots of gifts and treats. Start simple with what you have. I hope this helps! With love Annabel.xxx

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  6. Dear Annabel, I have heard of Emu Oil being used as a salve for aches and pains, so this is really interesting. I laughed at you thinking of them as large turkeys! I think it usually has things like Wintergreen, Scotch Pine, and Eucalyptus added which may explain Kelseys comment that it smells strong. Wintergreen is what gives muscle rubs their distinctive scent. I love my home made facial serum. Someone said to me that they just use jojoba oil, and probably that's effective too, but why wouldn't you add Jasmine and Neroli, if not just for the effect those beautiful scents have on your psyche. L'Occitane boast that their products have a positive effect on your general wellbeing for exactly that reason. Fascinating! Mimi xxx

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    1. Dear Mimi,
      I am thinking you are right about Kelseys husbands Emu oil... I bet also it has a liniment type mix in it. Mum has it perfectly plain yet she still is finding it great on her dodgy knee.
      I think there is probably miles more to discover how scent and oils re therapeutic. Like a scent can make you feel ill... sleepy.... happy... uplifted etc so it impacts our day enormously. Interesting!
      I might have a nosey at L 'Occitane ingredients! I say all this sitting here with a hair pack on and face mask! haha! With love Annabel.xxx

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  7. Hi Annabel,i have a few lovely essential oils now in my collection i have come home after driving through worst ever traffic this afternoon,while in the car i thought of what oils would be best lavender is one, does anyone recommend one for calming the mind,? i ordered some rosemary essential oil yesterday to add to my collection and i have one for sleep too xo

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    1. Dear Melissa, Look up ClaryCalm by Doterra as this I find really calming to me. The ingredients should all be calming I think. As for calming the mind... I wish I had an off switch honestly! But this clary calm is the best I have found and also I have a homeopathic remedy this if for "racing thoughts and racing mind" well that is me. I am going to talk about homeopathic coming up and I will share the homeopath contact as she gives free advice! She is so good! I hope this will help. With love Annabel.xxx

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  8. I do have some oils that I use by themselves. My daughter got into making mixes last year and has made me a few, they do work. I really need to learn more about them.

    Your gifts are lovely. Your friends and family will be very lucky to receive them

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I really appreciate your comments thank you! The aim of my blog is the be a place of encouragement and happiness. Very rarely is anyone rude. Actually only twice so far! If you post a rude or aggressive comment I will read it but not publish it, thanks for understanding.xxx

Spam is never published... if you are advertising a product or selling website your comment wont be published. I am inundated with stuff about drugs, horses and weird things! I am not going to publish this stuff! Thank you.