So, I was planning on making some felted soap (for the first time) for Christmas gifts this year. I got some raw wool (natural grey... wanted to stay away from super dyed, fake looking hot pinks/lime greens etc..) and a big hunk of shea butter soap base which I grated down and added some essential oils to.
Long story short, the soaps look like owl pellets. Or hairballs. They're quite unattractive, which doesn't matter in the least to me but since I'm giving them as gifts I'd like them to look somewhat more presentable and appealing. Also, not everyone who is recieving them is on the 100% natural bandwagon and I can only imagine their faces when I tell them they are supposed to rub this fuzzy mess on their naked bodies...hahaha.

I was planning on wrapping them in some cute fabric or ribbons but I don't know. Does anyone have any tips or ideas on how to make these soaps look less...well you get the picture.

I've seen felted soaps with different colored felt shapes attached to them..how is this done?

Any ideas/tips would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

I don't mean the high fructose kind, I mean regular corn syrup. Like Karo. In comparison to other sugars, how bad is it?

Also, is it true that the darker the corn syrup is, the better? My husband buys the dark Karo because he insists it's healthier.

Thanks!

My tired body craves warmth (and I just posted about being cold in New England, so this a pretty logical follow up), so I'm looking at investing in a hot water bottle. (Also useful if I move and don't have a microwave because God knows that I cannot live without a kettle, ever in my life, even when I move into the upper canopy of the Everglades during the zombie apocalypse and live off of canned jam.)

I'm looking at Amazon, but if they're attractive/well rated, they're expensive. If they're not expensive, they're ugly and have serious flaws. I want something with a cover that won't leak hot water all over me and my mattress in the middle of the night. Since this is an alternative to an electric blanket (obviously not natural) I was hoping for something a bit cheaper, but maybe that's not an option?

Suggestions?

I tend to get anemic due to low iron levels, and as a vegetarian I'm always looking for things to eat that will boost my iron intake. I know vitamins are an option, but I really prefer to consume it from natural food sources rather than a supplement or a fortified product.
I bought some blackstrap molasses today, which will provide 70% of the daily value of iron in one tablespoon a day, so I was wondering how you guys use it. Any simple recipes? I know you can cook it into baked beans, but I'm not a huge fan of them. I suppose I could just suck it up and eat a straight tablespoon of it, but it's strong stuff!
Any other good sources of iron that you know of?

Hiya, I have just been attempting to make my first ever soap, I stirred it for an hour and its now been an hour and a half but its not even reached trace! has anyone had this problem before? what could be wrong and what could I do to fix it?! thankyou in advance!

edit: after 2 hours I added some more caustic soda... was this a bad plan or is this ok?!
it doesnt seem to be dissolving...

Howdy All!

I'm having some shampoo bar issues and was wondering if any of you could offer some advice.

So, since about May I've been shampooing with Chagrin Valley shampoo bars. I love the simplicity of the shampoo bar concept, the fact that they don't contain unpronouncables, and the fact that I'm supporting a small business. During the warmer months I'm a wash and go kind of girl - wash, condition with diluted ACV, scrunch with some natural mousse and go! The shampoo bars have worked wonderfully for that. But, it's kind of hard to pull on a hat over my lion's mane of hair without it totally looking like crap so in the colder months I have to resort to blow drying the mass of it straight. It seems that therein lies the problem. When I try to blow dry my hair in the morning after shampooing at night with the shampoo bar I just cannot seem to get it dry. Actually, it does get dry, it's just that there's so much grease in it that looks wet.

What the heck could possibly be going on? I've tried switching bars thinking that one formula could be more conditioning than another, but same results. I've tried washing with baking soda thinking that perhaps the soaps have left some sort of funky residue that just needed to be stripped, but again same results. I'm totally ready to throw in the towel here and pick up some nasty chemical laden shampoo just to get things back to normal. The weird thing is that my hair has NEVER been greasy. My scalp is pretty oily, but my hair has always been on the drier side - probably because of it's coarse nature and all - which was cool because I could last at least 3 days between shampooings. Call me lazy, but this shampooing and blow drying every day is getting to me (and probably kicking my hair's butt since I used to just blow dry once a week and wrap for the rest of it).

Any suggestions?

~Ania~

Could I make a floral infusion using Jasmine buds to use in a body wash/ shampoo or as a body spray?

I was thinking of steeping the buds in hot water, then cooling it down and storing it in a spray bottle in the fridge. Is that a good method, or would some other method work better, and preserve the scent for longer?

I want to do this because I saw the Jurlique Jasmine shower gel, and I don't want to buy it, but I miss having something Jasmine- scented to use.

Thanks :)

I'm going on a long trip (cross-continent, 18 hours, three plane changes) at the end of the month and am trying to plot food options (yes, I start planning REALLY early- I have the packing list nearly done.) Trail mix seems like a good carry-along snack, so I am mixing up one from peanuts, cashews, dried blueberries, starfruit and raisins. What other food items would people recommend? Airports are not known for easy healthy food choices, for the most part.

The following are caveats- I am allergic to walnuts and brazil nuts, citrus triggers migraines for m so I avoid it, dairy can only be eaten at meals because I have to take medication with it.

I used to bring a cooler with breakfast and lunch, but with luggage restrictions and the new liquids rule, it's not really workable. Also, I'm trying to do carryon only- we will see about that.

Hello everyone,

I am hoping there are some people on here that make their own jerky and have some good recipes to share. I made one batch, it was OK and I know now that I can make it in my dehydrator but I am searching for more recipes.

At the moment I am looking for beef recipes, but would try salmon. I'd love venison but don't have access to it at a local store(you can hunt deer in CT but not sell it and I don't know any hunters anymore).

My problem is that SO many recipes I look up on line are ALL salty. I don't mind a little soy sauce, but I don't like it too much(for salt or taste). I have a small bottle of liquid smoke and various other sauces(a spicy hot sauce I might try eventually)but my true goal is to find some healthy, more natural ingredient, lower salt marinades that enhance but don't cover the taste of good local raised beef. I enjoy spicy, but again don't want it to overpower the meat.

I am open to all flavors, from sweet to savory varieties. I am using a brisket cut at the moment, but also curious what other cuts people use for beef jerky.

Hello,

I have tried to figure this out on my own and am not succeeding. I am curious as to why some people spell "vegan" with an asterisk in place of the letter "a".

Namaste,

Mimi

I just saw a previous post about soap bars as christmas gifts, and I was wondering if anyone had any good advice for natural bar soaps that are unscented, for sensitive skin or hypoallergenic..

i use ivory soap... i like it because it has almost no scent, but it leave my skin really dry. any suggestions?

Why is it that most people assume "natural living" means "vegan/vegetarianism?" In all honestly, when humans were at their most natural, imo, they were prehistoric... and if prehistoric people had all been vegan or vegetarian, I really don't think the human race would have lasted very long.

So, do you feel it's possible to live naturally and be omnivorous, or live a natural lifestyle including hunting, fishing, and raising meat animals along with produce; also skinning animals and using their leather for clothing, shoes, etc? And if so, why not?

If you don't feel a person can live a natural lifestyle while eating venison and wearing deerskin boots made from the hide, for example, why isn't doing those things a natural part of human life on earth as it has been for thousands of years?

Every year I like to try to get things for my parents that are more natural or sustainable versions of things they use. I'm also still in college, so it can't be anything too pricey. This year, the list includes:

1) A Reusable Coffee Filter
- They use the disposable ones, so I thought this would be a neat gift. I have to wait until I'm home to check what brand it is, but I think it's a Mr. Coffee. Any recommendations?

2) Natural Bars of Soap
- My parents, or at least my mom, have switched over to almost all natural/vegan body and home products...except for their Dove bars of soap. It's been ages since I've used that stuff, but I want to try to get some natural bars of soap (at Whole Foods) that isn't too weird or different from it. Any ideas?

Also, any other gift ideas along this thinking of "Here's something that easily makes you live more naturally/sustainably! It's something you'll actually use!"

This inspired me to try just a little bit harder today to live a natural life.




Peace.

Hey everyone!

Two questions:

1. Can anyone tell me why my cilantro plant is sprouting flowers? Should this worry me?

2. I wish to clean my tile floors, and I heard vinegar and baking soda could be used. Is this true? What would be the best natural concoction I could make for this purpse?

Thanks!

Ariel

I tried and tried to take a picture but the camera simply could not capture the rash.
A series of bumps will spread suddenly across my skin if I hug my dog. If I flex my hand to tighten the skin, then the bumps become white.

My theory is his guard hairs. I use to get this with a cat once. However this rash is far far worse. It's hot, it itches, it aches, and it does not respond to a Bendryl spray my roommate lent me.

Because my dog is a pitbull, getting rid of him is not an option. He's a stray that wandered into my backyard and shelters actually kill pits immediately, they do not bother trying to get them adopted out. So I didn't choose to purchase a pitbull - he just happened.

He likes to snuggle, sleep with his head on my leg and he follows me very closely. He accidentally nailed the back of my knee with a whisker and the rash spread like crazy.

The rash mercifully will go away within an hour, but the pain and itchy is terrible. I tried aloe to soothe it. I also tried a sunburn ointment with lidocaine in it.

Any help deeply appreciated. Just something to kill the itch or the burn.

I'm living in New England and it's getting to be Real Winter. I'm doing my best not to turn up the heat at home (oil heat) and we're having heating issues at work.

I've been drinking lots of hot teas (esp. herbals) and eating hot dishes, like my cold-killing spicy rice. At home, I wear hand warmers (I've got mild Renaud's which results in freezing hands/feet even in warmer weather) and thick slipper, but my job requires office-professional (despite being right in front of the door and getting a face full of cold wind). What's your favorite office-appropriate way to stay warm? Or ways to keep your cup of tea hot/warm while you're inundated with Christmas-rush work?

At home, I like to wear a hat because you lose most of your heat through your head. However, at the moment, I do tend to look a bit odd (at the moment I've got my white indoors hat on and a grey wool sweater) and the people with whom I live tend to laugh quite a bit. Are there any - for lack of a better term - indoor-style caps that would help keep my head warm?

Any other natural ways of staying warm? How do you naturally stay warm in cold months?

If it takes 45 minutes to walk to my destination, how long would it take to bike there?

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I've been trying to figure out what holiday gifts to give various relatives for some time now, and yesterday I finally figured out what to make for two of my aunt's families and for my fiance's step-mother and father: infused vinegar and olive oil sets. I've made infused vinegars and oils before, but always with weeks of lead time. I basically just made them like tinctures. I need to have these done by some point tomorrow. Instructions I'm finding are vague and contradictory- you must use a double boiler, a double boiler is entirely unnecessary, leave the dried herbs in for added flavor, don't leave the dries herbs in etc.
What's worked for you to quickly infuse oils and vinegars? I'm looking to make two sets infused with rosemary, thyme, and oregano or basil, and one set infused with black cardamom, kalonji, and ajwain seeds, if that makes a difference, and I'm working with a gas stove. I've got nonstick and enameled cast iron saucepans to choose from for the big batch and a small copper bottomed stainless which might be big enough for the small batches. I have glass and metal bowls I use to make a double boiler type setup when I need to.

Edit:
Today I did two liters of olive oil with a handful each of rosemary and thyme in a crock pot on low for about six hours. Seems all right, but not amazing, in line with what a commenter said: like steeping it for a week, not a month like I find ideal. Tonight I'll do the vinegar overnight on low with probably roughly the same liquid to herbiage ratio. Tomorrow I'll try the double boiler method.