​Crystal Stevens

Body Wash

1 cup water

2 cups of liquid castile soap

4 tablespoons melted coconut oil

10–15 drops lavender essential oil or essential oils of your choice.

Never use clove oil or oregano oil directly on the skin as they will burn. If you choose peppermint essential oil, use only half of the suggested number of drops. To be safe, stick to gentle essential oils such as lavender and rosemary. Small amounts of peppermint, tea tree or other safe essential oils can be used as well.

Whisk all ingredients together in a measuring cup. Using a funnel, fill a reused body wash bottle or squirt bottle. Be sure to label. Use 1 or 2 squeezes per wash.

Invigorating Shampoo

1 cup water

1/2 cup liquid castile soap

8 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoons coconut or calendula oil

10 drops peppermint essential oil

10 drops lavender essential oil

10 drops rosemary essential oil

Whisk together all ingredients in a measuring cup. Funnel into reused shampoo bottle. Be sure to label. Use 1 or 2 squeezes per shampoo.

Natural Mint Toothpaste

6 tablespoons baking soda

1 tablespoon Celtic sea salt

5–10 drops peppermint or spearmint essential oil

1 tablespoon water

​Mix together ingredients in a small plastic container with lid. Be sure to label. Use ½ teaspoon per cleaning. Use within three months.

Spearmint Mouthwash

1 cup water

½ cup vodka

10–15 drops of peppermint or spearmint essential oil

2 teaspoons aloe vera gel (optional)

5 teaspoons liquid vegetable glycerin (optional)

Bring water and vodka to a boil and then let cool. Add 10–15 drops of peppermint or spearmint essential oil and mix well. If you like, add in aloe vera gel and liquid vegetable glycerin. Transfer to a recycled mouthwash container and shake well before each use. Be sure to label. Use 1 capful per rinse.

Deodorant

1 cup coconut oil

½ ounce beeswax

1 ounce shea butter

1 tablespoon vitamin E oil

40 drops lavender essential oil

1 tablespoon zinc oxide

Mix coconut oil, vitamin E oil, beeswax and shea butter together in a double boiler. Let cool. Stir in essential oils and zinc oxide. Store in small recycled jars (baby food size) jars with tight fitting lids.

Natural Baby Wipes

Medium stack of heavy-duty organic cloths (30)

2 cups water

½ cup aloe vera juice

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons calendula oil or vitamin E oil

1 tablespoons liquid castile soap

2 drops lavender essential oil

Whisk all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Gently press down cloths into liquid so it is all absorbed. Place wet wipes in a reused wipe box with lid. Be sure to label.

Diaper Ointment

1 cup coconut oil (infused with 1/8 cup dried calendula flowers, 1/8 cup chamomile flowers and 5 plantain leaves,)

¾ cup shea butter

1 tablespoon vitamin E oil

15 drops lavender essential oil

1 tablespoon zinc oxide

​Infuse coconut oil with flowers and plantain on low heat for 20 minutes. Strain. Mix coconut oil and shea butter together in the top of a double boiler. Let cool. Stir in essential oils and zinc oxide. Store in recycled shallow jars with tight-fitting lids.

#naturalbodycare #herbalbodycare #herbs #freepermaculture #permaculturewomen #DIY

​Crystal Stevens

Tincture making is an ancient art that has been passed down through generations, usually from mother to daughter, around the globe.

​Tinctures involve soaking herbs in a liquid — typically vodka, brandy, apple cider vinegar or vegetable glycerin — to extract the medicinal properties of the herbs. Alcohol tends to have a long shelf life so the tincture will last up to a year. Vinegar and glycerin tinctures have a shorter shelf life and may need to be refrigerated.

​The liquid used in tincture making is known as the menstruum. The standard ratio for fresh herbs in tincture making is 1 part fresh herb to 2 parts menstruum. The standard ratio for dried herbs is 1 part dried herbs to 5 parts menstruum. Typically the herb will rise to the top of the jar, above the liquid surface. To prevent this from happening, weigh down your herbs with a crystal (be sure to sanitize the crystal first). For advanced tincture-making, 190-proof organic alcohol works best. Different herbs require varying concentrations of alcohol.

Simple Tincture

Herbs and flowers of your choice

Mason jar with lid

Alcohol (organic vodka or brandy)

1) Label your jar with contents and date.

2) Fill jar ¾ of the way full with herbs.

3) Fill jar halfway with alcohol.

4) Fill remaining space in jar with water, leaving one inch at the top of the jar.

5) Be sure your herbs are covered. If they are not, tamp them down with a spoon.

6) Shake vigorously for 1–2 minutes.

7) Store in a dark, cool, dry place.

​8) Shake daily. Medicine will be ready in two weeks and will last up to one year.

#tincture #herbs #herbalremedies #wellness #freepermaculture #permaculturewomen #DIY

​Cold Infusions can be made by steeping fresh herbs in cold water for an hour or more. Hot infusions are soothing, warming and comforting during winter months. Herbs can be steeped for 5–10 minutes to extract the active constituents and the medicinal benefits from the herb. Leaves and flowers require less time to steep than roots and bark.

Try the following herbs when you are feeling under the weather.

Cold and Flu Support

​Ginger
Cinnamon
Turmeric
Garlic
Echinacea Root
Burdock Root
Dandelion Root
Slippery Elm Bark (ethically harvested)
Licorice Root
Pau d’ Arco Bark
New England Aster Flower
Chamomile Flowers
Nettle Leaf
Reishi Mushroom
Red Clover Blossoms
Calendula Flower Petals
Thyme Leaf
Oregano Leaf
Sage Leaf
Rosemary Leaf
Cloves
Cinnamon Bark
Mullein Leaf
Ginger Root
Peppermint Leaf
Lavender Flowers
Tulsi

​Immune Support

Cayenne
Ginger root
Garlic
Echinacea 
Goldenseal
Astragalus
Oregon Grape extract
Pau d’ Arco Bark
Reishi Mushroom
Elderberry
red clover blossoms
nettle leaf
sage leaf 
St. John’s wort

Natural Stress Relief
 
Skullcap
Oatstraw
Chamomile
St. John’s Wort
Motherwort
Peppermint
Lavender
Tulsi
Women’s Support
Red Clover Blossoms
Stinging Nettles
Red Raspberry Leaf
Skullcap
Oatstraw
Chamomile
St. Johns Wort
Motherwort

Floral energy

Roselle, red clover flowers, calendula flowers, chrysanthemum flowers, Echinacea petals, rose hips, lemon balm, red raspberry leaf, nettles

Digestion

ginger root, TULSI, peppermint leaf, basil leaf, and chamomile flowers
Rest and relax
chamomile and valerian root
Stress relief
kava kava, chamomile flowers, spearmint, passionflower herb, rose petals, lavender flowers and cinnamon bark
 
Headache relief

​peppermint leaves and lavender flowers

Crystal Stevens is an Author, an Artist/Art Teacher, a Folk Herbalist, a Regenerative Farmer, and a Permaculturist. Crystal is the author of Grow Create Inspire and Worms at Work, published by New Society Publishers. Crystal speaks at conferences and Mother Earth News Fairs across the U.S.. She has been teaching a Resilient Living workshop series for over a decade. She is the Garden Manager at EarthDance Organic Farm School in Ferguson, MO, where her husband, Eric Stevens, is the Farm Manager. They have two children and live along the rolling hills of the Mississippi River near St. Louis. Visit them at www.growcreateinspire.com, on social media @growcreateinspire and @earthdancefarms

​Crystal Stevens

The following is an excerpt from my book, Grow Create Inspire.

Herbal oil infusions are used topically for dry skin or to heal blemishes. They can also be used to make lip balm, first-aid salve or other healing salves. Making an herbal oil infusion simply involves soaking herbs or flowers in a jar of oil, then straining the herb to use the oil.

Oil Infusion for First Aid Salve

Supplies + Ingredients:

1 Mason jar with lid

1 cup dried herbs or 3 cups fresh herbs (comfrey, dandelion, calendula, echinacea, plantain and lemon balm)

2 cups carrier oil (grape seed oil, extra virgin olive oil, sunflower oil, sweet almond oil or apricot oil)

3 capsules of vitamin E oil

1) Pack your herbs in a large glass jar, cover with oil and add vitamin E capsules, leaving an inch at the top.

2) Shake vigorously.

3) Seal the jar and leave it in a warm, slightly sunny place for two weeks, shaking daily.

4) Pour into a clean glass jar, straining through cheesecloth.

5) Squeeze as much oil through the bag, and pour into clean dark glass bottles.

6) Seal the bottles and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.

First-Aid Salve

This great general-purpose healing salve will make about 10 ounces.

2 cups of your herbal-infused oil (comfrey, chickweed, calendula, echinacea, plantain, lemon balm, dandelion)

1 ounce grated or chopped beeswax

3 vitamin E capsules of at least 400 units (this is your preservative)

10 drops of lavender essential oil

cheesecloth to strain herbs

double boiler, or 2 pots (one that fits inside of the other)

Glass measuring cup

Large spoon

Stainless steel container with a narrow pouring spout

Baby food jars or tins

Labels or a permanent marker

Place your herbal oil infusion in the top pot of your double boiler on a burner or on the stovetop.

Very GENTLY heat the oil mix on low.

Puncture and add your vitamin E capsules and then add your beeswax. Stir until it’s completely melted and blended.

Remove from heat and let cool just 1 or 2 minutes.

Add 10 drops of lavender essential oil and stir.

Pour into a wide mouth jar or several small jars. As it cools, the mixture will become semi-solid and the perfect salve consistency. First-aid salve may be used in place of double or triple antibiotic ointment. It helps to heal minor cuts, scrapes and burns. It also helps with bruises, dry skin, joint and muscle pain and even arthritis pain.

Lip Balm

For a mint flavor, use peppermint and spearmint essential oils; for chai flavor, use small amounts of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and clove essential oils; for a citrus blend, use grapefruit and orange. Purchase pure essential oils online or at your local health food store. It is best to get pure food or cosmetic-grade essential oils. A few drops go a long way.

Basic Lip Balm recipe:

1 cup coconut oil or other solid carrier oil
(An herbal oil infusion with herbs such as chocolate mint could also be used)

½ cup hemp seed oil

2 tablespoons of vitamin E oil

1½ ounces beeswax (or ¾ ounce candelilla wax and ½ ounce soy wax — vegan option)

¼ ounce cocoa butter

10–15 drops of pure essential oils

Double boiler or 2 pots, one smaller than the other

Small stainless steel pitcher with spout

Approximately 50 lip balm tubes or tins (available online under the title “eco-friendly lip balm tubes”)

Heating element (stove top, double burner, etc…)

Have all ingredients available and ready. Set up lip balm tubes upright with enough space between each tube to grab and fill.

Pour about 2–3 inches of water into the bottom pot of a double boiler. Once the water boils, turn heat to low. Place beeswax (or candelilla wax and soy wax for vegan lip balm) and cocoa butter into the smaller stainless steel pot and stir frequently until completely melted.

Add coconut oil, hemp seed oil and vitamin E oil. Stir well until mixture is liquid again. Turn heat off. With a potholder, remove the pot with the mixture and pour it into the small stainless steel pitcher with the narrow spout. Stir in 10–15 drops of essential oils. Immediately pour mixture into the lip balm tubes. A pitcher with a narrow pour spout works fairly well if you pour slowly. Otherwise, use a stainless steel funnel. Let the tubes sit until they harden. Once they harden, put the caps on, wipe them with a clean damp cloth and label.

Lotion

½ cup coconut oil

¼ cup shea butter

¼ cup cocoa butter

1 cup emulsifying wax

2 tablespoons vitamin E oil

4 cups hot water

¼ teaspoons of citric acid

Pure essential oils (pick gentle ones such as lavender)

Melt oils, butter and wax together in a double boiler on low. Put mixture and hot water into large stainless steel bowl. Mix for one minute using an electric mixer, or whip by hand. Store in a baby food jar with tight-fitting lid.

Sunscreen

½ cup coconut oil

¼ cup shea butter

¼ cup cocoa butter

1 cup emulsifying wax

4 tablespoons beeswax

2 tablespoons vitamin E oil

4 cups hot water

¼ teaspoons of citric acid

10 tablespoons zinc oxide

10 tablespoons aloe vera gel

Pure essential oils (gentle ones such as lavender or eucalyptus)

Vegan option: replace beeswax with candelilla and soy wax.

Melt oils, butters and waxes together in a double boiler on low heat. Put melted mixture, hot water and citric acid into a large stainless steel mixing bowl. Mix for one minute using an electric mixer, or whip by hand.

​After the mixture cools, add 10 tablespoons of zinc oxide and 10 tablespoons aloe vera gel. Increase zinc oxide and aloe vera gel if you would like to increase SPF. One tablespoons of each will increase the SPF by 5. For an insect repellent component, add 15 drops of citronella essential oil, 5 drops of eucalyptus essential oil, 10 drops of lemongrass essential oil and 10 drops of lavender essential oil. Store in baby food jars with tight fitting lids.