This story progressed from my interest in a simple jam recipe to the tale of a disease-fighting super fruit. I was first drawn to the recipe for Autumn Olive because I’d never heard of this fruit before. The fruit is also known as AutumnBerry, which is a better, fruity berry name for it. AutumnBerries are […]
Archives for September 2014
12 Home Remedies and Recipes for Coughs
Laurie of Common Sense Homesteading has collected 12 different home remedies for coughs. These are all-natural remedies and most are suitable for use by both children and adults. As we move into the cold and flu season, this is the opportunity to review remedies like these, make and store several of them and have them […]
10 Reasons to Love Lemons
What is not to love about lemons? They smell fresh like Summer. They taste wonderful in lemonade. And they have a wide range of uses in health, beauty and cleaning remedies. For the last 8 months I’ve started my day with a cup of heated, filtered water and lemon juice. It’s a pick-me-up and aids […]
Homemade Old-Fashioned Pine Tar Salve
My Grandparents called this “drawing salve” or “black salve.” If you got a splinter, thorn, insect stinger or tiny piece of glass embedded in your skin, they would apply this salve and cover it with gauze. They’d repeat the process each day until the splinter or thorn swelled up to a head and popped out.My […]
How to Make Aloe Vera Citrus Soap
There are so many advantages to making your own soap. You control all of the ingredients including the scents. It’s also generally less expensive to make your own soap. And like any other skill, the more often you make cold process soap, the better you get at it. As an aid, Marie includes a link […]
How to Make Homemade Tea Tree Foot Balm
If you think about it, our feet bear the weight of our bodies all day long. It’s no wonder that at the end of the day, they can be tired and achy. Shannon has created a wonderful Tea Tree foot balm that is all-natural. It softens, relaxes and deodorizes those tired tootsies so they’re ready […]
How to Make Lacto-Fermented Raspberry Soda
This article explains how to make lacto-fermented Raspberry Soda. This is a non-alcoholic fermented drink. Simply put, lacto-fermentation is combining helpful, healthy bacteria and fruit and sugar into sealed containers. The healthy bacteria consumes the sugar and produces a carbonated soda that tastes great and has probiotic goodness.. In this recipe, Craig uses real raspberry […]
Homemade Sore Muscles Soak Recipe
Jan selected this recipe for a sore muscle soak from the first unit in the beginning herbal class at the Herbal Academy of New England. The bath soak relieves muscle soreness, aches and pains. The recipe uses a wonderful combination of herbs, berries, essential oils and some other ingredients. You air dry the herbs, crush […]
Make Your Own Homemade Pain Relieving Cream
If you’ve ever had to deal with back pain, you know how debilitating it can be. If you move the wrong way, you feel either a sharp pain or a dull ache. You constantly try to find comfortable positions when sitting or laying down. If the pain is really bad, you may cut out certain […]
Fresh-Picked Beauty’s Version of Aqua Marina Face & Body Cleanser
I really love to see creative, natural, homemade versions of commercial beauty products. Not only do you end up with a product that’s safe and healthy, you almost always save money. This is Shannon’s homemade version of the popular LUSH Aqua Marina seaweed and calamine face and body cleanser. Shannon is an expert when it […]
20 Unusual Ways to Use Cinnamon
Cinnamon has been used for culinary and medical purposes for thousands of years. It’s one of my favorite spices because of the warm scent and sweet taste. However, in researching this article, I discovered there are really two types of cinnamon. Ceylon Cinnamon (Cinnamomum Verum) is native to Sri Lanka. It’s called “ True Cinnamon.” […]
Homemade Rose Spearmint Lip Balm Recipe
Marie’s recipe for rose spearmint lip balm uses rose wax which is wonderful for dry, irritated skin. Rose wax is used in some of the LUSH commercial products. The wax is usually obtained from the Damask rose, although other roses are used too. During the process of making rose absolute, a solid residue is produced […]