Archive for November, 2008
November 20, 2008
· Filed under Environmental Detox, Herb Recipes, Natural Beauty, Personal Care, diy · Tagged coloring, diy, dyes, hair, herbs, homemade, non toxic, recipes, safe
I know most of you are aware of herbal hair dyes, mainly because you have heard of henna rinses which have become sort of the commercial standard. Henna is a herbal rinse and has all the qualities of herbs except when it’s manufactured with added chemicals and fragrances that make it toxic and harsh. You can make your own henna rinse at home that costs a lot less and is a lot more safe. In fact, any color of herbal dye you make yourself not only saves you money but puts you in control of your hair in a way you cannot imagine. When you use a commercial product you are stuck with full throttle color all at once that leaves your hair in shock. Frizzy, burned out hair is often the result. Too much color, too little color, spotty color, are all possible problems that can’t be resolved easily. Who wants to color over color over color until they get the right color, when the cumulative effects of all these treatments spells disaster for your hair.
But how about using herb based dyes you can mix up yourself for very little money and rinsing as often and as deeply as you like, gaining hair color as you rinse and only going as far as you want to? The more you rinse, the darker the rinse becomes so that over time you can control your level of hair color as you work with the various dyes. And over time this does not damage, dry out or shock your hair. No more blue frizzies or orange frays. No more streaky hair with gray that didn’t take mixed with hair that took too much. You can just rinse and rinse every night, twice a day, as often as you like, gaining more color as you do so and then stopping when it’s good enough. Washing over time will take it back out. Imagine this kind of control. It’s actually a real pleasure once you try it. So I thought I’d share some of my favorite herbal dye recipes that you can mix up and try. Remember, with herbal dyes, if you make a mistake you won’t need color remover. Just wash and wait. It will lessen in color over a short period of time or you can rinse over rinse until you find what it is you really want. So are you ready to try it?
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November 16, 2008
· Filed under Environmental Detox, Food and Drink, Home and Garden, conservation, recycling · Tagged compost, cooking, eating, energy, energy star, food, garbage, green, kitchen, packaging, recycle, reuse, save, shopping, waste
The prime object of greening the kitchen is a plan to reduce waste. This will make a significant contribution to saving this planet and reducing the carbon footprint of our industrial society. However, going green does take a commitment, it isn’t something that can be done will watching TV or taking a bath, although you can make those activities greener, too. But going green may take some research and planning. At the very least, it will take thought. And your thinking should be about changing up the kitchen first because it is the most waste producing room in your home.
The best way get started is to just do it slowly, making changes when they’re painless and making easy, budget friendly choices. The whole idea centers around sustainability which means you should only make changes you can sustain over a long period. If it’s too expensive or difficult to repeat, then don’t even go there. If you want to get started today, I have some easy, simple steps you can take to get the ball rolling.
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November 16, 2008
· Filed under Home and Garden, gifts · Tagged books, digital, ebooks, eco, electronic, electronics, ereaders, green, newspapers, paper free
There is no excuse in this day and age to be buying magazines, newspapers or even books! Admittedly, there are already an awful lot of books in circulation on this planet and it’s better to keep passing them along than throw them out. Magazines and newspapers have a place in big events, such as the 2008 Presidential election. They make great keepsakes of big events, photos and all.
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November 14, 2008
· Filed under Home and Garden, conservation, diy, recycling · Tagged build, construct, green, home, house, international, luxury, make, real estate, recycle, recycling, reuse, structure
Are you seeking a “green” way to build your next home? Can you operate on the principle that one person’s trash is another person’s castle? While ‘trash’ isn’t always free, using cast-offs to build a home is a great way to recycle. There are homes built in areas around the world that use tires, cans, earth, plastic water bottles and other items – or a combination of these items – for their construction. If you think about it, the possibilities are as limitless as your imagination and your local building codes.
If you’re expecting ‘trashy’ results with this, you are going to be surprised. I have found a site that showcases homes that are built from recycled materials and has photos that show you the actual homes as they currently stand. There are ten luxury homes altogether and they are international, with a few in America and the rest in other countries. Look at this list and get ideas for your green home project when you get ready to do that. They are really wonderful to look at and think about.
Home Made From Water Bottles
Go to the site and view them Here
Technorati Tags: recycling, recycle, reuse, build, home, house, structure, construct, make, green, luxury, real estate, international
November 12, 2008
· Filed under Environmental Detox, Health Care, Home and Garden, Personal Care · Tagged chemicals, environmental health network, environmental working group, exposure, fda, fragrances, industry, neurotoxins, perfumes, petrochemicals, products, scents, toxins
I have long been bothered by perfumes, fragrances and air fresheners because I have an out and out allergy to these products. They are unable to tell me what I’m reacting to, whether it’s the smell itself or any one of many chemicals, some of which are unnamed. It is true that the manufacturers of perfumes and fragrances have the right to hide their ingredients, said to be “trade secrets”, from their competition and, subsequently, all of us. So I am sure I will never know which chemical I am allergic to even if I were to be tested for all of those on the labels. So many ingredients are not on the labels that it makes such an effort ridiculous. So what do I do? I buy every thing I use in an unscented, hypoallergenic version and, if available, organic and chemical free.
So what does this have to do with you? Well, the truth is that many symptoms that occur after exposure to these chemicals are not known to be allergic by definition but they are as damaging as any chemical exposure. We are exposed to an enormous amount of toxins in our current industrial world, from fumes to saturated air. Just think about it from the point of view of fragrances alone, discounting all other sources like petrol, various gases, industrial chemical run off and smog. We are exposed to a huge litany of these products such as in hair sprays, perfumes, air fresheners, room deodorizers, carpet dusters, makeup, laundry detergents, soaps, shampoos, deodorants, candles, incense, cleaning products including the stuff you wash the floor with and rub all over the furniture. If you think about it, the amount of it is truly astronomical. And how is it affecting you?
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November 11, 2008
· Filed under Hobbies & Crafts, Natural Beauty, Personal Care, diy, gifts · Tagged bath, bathing, body scrubs, care, diy, gifts, grooming, handmade, homemade, lotions, natural, salts
Here are some great ideas for homemade gifts people will just love! I have used every product I list here, made it myself and can swear on a stack of bibles that each one is easy and luscious. Some are more expensive to make than others so pick and choose as suits you. But each and every one will save you money over the retail version and when you take the time to make it yourself, it just drips with love. The way to rush past any possible negative reaction is to package carefully. Pretty bottles with ribbons and painted decorations are reassuring to “retail focused” consumers. Make sure you cap or stopper the product well and always tell them that there is nothing in it that can go bad or make them sick. None of these are edible, although the scrubs sound like they are! So folks shouldn’t be nervous about using them.
Some of these recipes take less than a half hour to make and can be packaged in a beautiful bottle and given for Christmas with delightful results. Body scrubs are the hot product of the day so make some up and package them in lovely jars. Your friends will love you for it, I promise. Some of these recipes are so awesome, they make your skin feel so soft and new, almost like a baby! Hey, I’m saying this and I’m a middle aged woman with a thyroid problem that makes my skin look like suede. So, if it made me feel good, you know it rocks! The only problem with this idea is once you make this stuff… you won’t want to give it to anybody! Be careful, folks. I ended up with an awful lot of scrubs, lotions and rinses, so much so that I just could not use it all over time. When we’re trying to go green, surplus is undesired. So make some and give it but don’t overdo it! Have fun.
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November 8, 2008
· Filed under Environmental Detox, Hobbies & Crafts, Home and Garden, diy, gifts, recycling · Tagged carbon, cards, cheap, Christmas, diy, garland, gift, green, handmade, holiday, homemade, ornaments, recycling, reuse, savings, tinsel, tree, wrap, wreath
It’s almost that time of year again and this year is going to be hard. With the economy on a downward spiral, many of us out of work and the cost of goods rising daily, it does not seem to be a joyful time of year. But there are good ideas on how to get useful stuff for friends and family, keeping it green and save money at the same time. In fact, going green saves money no matter how you look at it. It’s our overly commercial, plasticized and technology driven lifestyle that costs a lot to maintain and robs the planet at the same time.
So let’s see if going green is feasible and affordable. I have done a previous post on how to give green gifts that will help you with the gifting choices. But a lot more goes into Christmas than just the presents. There is, of course, the tree and the decorations that go on it. There is the packaging for all those gifts; a pile of plastic store packages wrapped in gift wrap, all of which gets torn to shreds and tossed in the trash. Ouch. According to an article I saw on Associated Content, over 4.4 million tons of holiday gift wrap, shopping bags, and holiday catalogs are sent straight to the landfills each year. And then to all of this you have to add the gas you spend scooting through bumper to bumper traffic from store to store and mall to mall, searching for the right item at the right price. And don’t forget the extraneous stuff like the extra electricity it takes to power all those decorations, especially Rudolph and the Elves on the front lawn surrounded by 400 feet of flashing colored lights. So how do you stop spending and wasting? How do you do the planet the favor and go green? Here are some ideas.
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November 6, 2008
· Filed under Home and Garden, diy · Tagged diy, heating, home, insulation, prepare, projects, safe, saving, snow, utilities, weather, winter
In snowy areas where temperatures really drop, there is a need to “winterize” the homestead to improve efficiency of heating methods, to save money on heating costs and to prepare for the worst. But it’s a tough call to make. The economy stinks and inflation is out of control; most people are living in homes that aren’t worth what they thought they were. This keeps people from investing in home improvements of any kind. But there are some small things you can do that won’t smash your wallet and may improve the value of your pad over time.
I wanted to address both the cheapest and simplest ones and also the most important ones. There are things you can afford to do because they don’t cost much but then there are things you can’t afford not to do because they will give safety in case of the worst situation that can happen. Winter storms are nothing to look forward to, but it’s a good idea to be ready just in case.
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November 6, 2008
· Filed under Environmental Detox, Health Care, Natural Remedies, herbs · Tagged diy, gardening, healing, health, herbs, homemade, natural, non toxic, plants, remedies, safe, sickness
Yes, I am referring to the bark of White Oak trees. I have seen these lovely trees throughout the north east. White Oak is the state tree of Connecticut, Illinois and Maryland. Drive through the ranges in the New England area and you see them all over the hills and mountainsides. It is impervious to liquids and has been used extensively in ship building. It is one of the tallest trees and the largest one in Ohio stands a mighty 84 feet tall.
White Oak has traditionally been used in furniture, flooring, architectural millwork, mouldings, doors, kitchen cabinets, paneling, barrel staves (tight cooperage) and caskets. It has not been known to be useful as a medicine. However, there are wonderful medicinal uses for the bark of this majestic tree. Just as there are uses for Pine and Cedar oils, you can also purchase White Oak Bark in liquid form or in capsules or tablets. It has strong astringent and antiseptic properties and the uses for this readily available bark are many.
The leaves, inner bark and the cups of the acorn from the white oak tree (quercus alba), are the parts used in a variety of medicinal and natural remedies. Herbalists for many years have used the inner bark of the oak tree specifically in the treatment of hemorrhoids, thrush, pyorrhea, and varicose veins. A strong, dark tea made from white oak bark is helpful with Leukoreah and other uterine troubles. It will also expel pin worms. To make use of the tea, simmer a tbsp in a pint of water for ten minutes. Drink up to three cups a day or 1 cup every 8 hours.
Oak Bark tea is also one of the best remedies for piles, hemorrhoids, hemorrhages, or any trouble in the rectum. Drink as a tea or use in an enema. For enemas and douches, steep a heaping tbsp in a quart of boiling water for a full thirty minutes, and strain through a cheese cloth or coffee filter. Try to use it as hot as you can tolerate. This tea also stops hemorrhages in the lungs, stomach, and bowels and helps stanch bleeding in the mouth. This is an expression of it’s antiseptic and astringent properties.
The active ingredients in oak bark are tannin and quercin. Quercin is similar in effect to salicin and is used along with bioflavinoids to strengthen the capillaries and veins. White oak bark also contains a lot of calcium, manganese, potassium and magnesium. It can shore up a weakened system and speeds healing. Several Indian tribes used thin strips of the inner bark to heal sores on their gums and to tighten up loosening teeth. They did this by placing them between the gum and lips, and leaving them there over night. Today, the tea is drank and topically applied to bleeding gums, gingivitis, thrush and pyorrhea. The crushed bark was also used in a poultice for gangrene.
Other than being antiseptic and astringent, Oak Bark also has the properties of haemostatic (arrests internal bleeding), febrifuge (reduces fever), diuretic, anti-emetic (relieves malarial-type fevers and chills), and anti-venomous (antidote for poisonous plants, insects and snake bites.) White Oak Bark also increases the flow of urine, and removes gallstones and kidney stones. It also helps to slow excessive menstrual flow. The tea is good for use in bathing when the skin is stricken with scabs and sores. In fevers it brings the temperature down and works like aspirin. This is because has similar properties of the White Willow Bark
Adding to White Oak Bark’s list of medicinal properties seems extensive. Why it isn’t used by more people is a mystery to me. In addition to everything I’ve already listed here, White Oak helps with ulcerated bladders, goiter and varicose veins. In treating varicose veins, make a strong tea (as described above) and either drink it daily or wash the veins externally with it. To make a compress to be used externally for skin problems, goiter and varicose veins just fold a small towel into a manageable square and moisten in the tea. Apply by pressing it to the skin and holding it there for some time.
Now that you know the whole story with White Oak bark, consider getting some and using it. You can forage for it if you have White Oaks in your area or you can just mosey on down to the health food store and buy it there. Available online at Amazon.com
Technorati Tags: diy, gardening, healing, health, homemade, herbs, natural, non toxic, plants, remedies, safe, sickness
