Results for Category: DIY
4 Ways To Use Leftover Orange Peels
If you’re a fan of oranges, you may find yourself with an overabundance of leftover orange peels in your home, especially when oranges are in season. If you find yourself wondering what to do with all these peels rather than throwing them in the trash, let me offer some suggestions to help you put your […]
DIY Rosemary Memory Elixir
“You have to begin to lose your memory, if only in bits and pieces, to realize that memory is what makes our lives. Life without...
How To Strengthen Bones With Herbal Infusions
Six months ago, my then six-year-old son fell off a set of monkey bars at the park and broke his elbow. As soon as I saw it, my nu...
DIY Herbal Skin Steam and Aloe-Calendula Cleanser
We all want great-looking skin. A quick skim through any fashion and style magazine gives plenty of evidence that healthy, clear, youthful-looking skin is a hot commodity—you’ll see ads for anti-wrinkle serums and collagen creams, moisturizers, acne-fighting gels, lotions to minimize the appearance of pores. Some products are excellent (and often expensive), while others are […]
DIY Mother’s Day Tea Bags
Mother’s Day is right around the corner, and what says “I love you” better than a handmade gift of herbal goodness? Maybe the mom in your life is a tea lover, enjoying a cup in the morning to start her day or snuggled up with a good book in the evening. Or, maybe she has […]
How To Make Fresh Dandelion Blossom Oil
I have many favorite things about spring—one of them being the fresh, sunny faces of dandelion blossoms popping up everywhere. D...
How To Make Pine Resin Salve
One of the thrills of exploring the plants in my local materia medica is stocking my first aid kit with locally sourced herbal pre...
4 Herbal Recipes For Everyday Skin Care
With farm season and warm weather coming our way and the brisk cold winter air at our backs, stocking the bathroom cabinets with concoctions from the kitchen is one way to be proactive about caring for your exposed outer layer. Skin care is not only a method of self-care and body-love, it also offers preventative […]
How To Roast Herbs For An Herbal Coffee Substitute
If you’re anything like the majority of people in the U.S., you drink coffee on a regular basis—maybe even every day. This isn’t always a bad thing, especially when coffee is consumed in moderation, as it is known to have some health benefits (Liang & Kitts, 2015). But according to the Harvard University Chan School […]
A DIY Herbal Grief Tea For Loss
I can honestly say that I have never experienced raw, breath-taking, life-halting grief as some people have. Yes, I’ve lost frie...
How To Grind Herbs In A Coffee Grinder
As a beginner to herbalism, you will most likely start by learning about common herbs, making basic herbal preparations, and learn...
How To Use Essential Oils For Hair Care
As you walk down the drugstore aisle, you can be overwhelmed with the number and variety of hair care products. Their costs range from very inexpensive to an amount that would rival the gross national product of some countries. However, if you look closely, you will notice that the ingredients contain some startling similarities. Water […]
Nettle Beer: A Delicious, Healthy Herbal Ferment
Registration is open for our new Short Course—The Craft of Herbal Fermentation. Today we want to give you a little sneak peek inside the course so you can get an idea of what to expect. This course teaches you how to make your own herbal beers, mead, kombucha, water kefir, and lacto-fermented foods, and we […]
How To Make Herbal Homemade Wine and Mead
With the explosion of the DIY movement in recent years, more people seem to be returning to old-school food and drink traditions, ...
Rose Petal and Rhodiola Valentine’s Day Herbal Lollipops
Although sugar shouldn’t be a regular feature in a healthy diet, homemade candy making can be a delightful way to celebrate Vale...
Love Potions, Charms, and Such (+3 Recipes!)
Back in the days when I co-owned an herb shop at a Renaissance faire, a great many of our sales would be used as components of amulets, talismans, potions, charms, and spells. More often than not, they were used to draw love to the one purchasing the herbs. The only other purpose that even came […]
How To Make Essential Oil Solid Perfume to Warm Your Winter Romance
Winter, in many places in the world, means shorter days, longer nights, and cooler temperatures. We tend to stay indoors more and work on different tasks than we did during the longer, sunlit summer days. This can be a time to slow down, have a cup of tea, and nurture your personal relationships with friends […]
5 DIY Floral Body Polish Recipes
“The earth laughs in flowers” Ralph Waldo Emerson Flowers are delightful, bringing joy to a weary soul. Savor the beauty of fl...
How To Make and Use Rose Infused Honey
Tranquility, love, and contentment are some of the emotions triggered when inhaling the beautiful aroma of the humble rose. For th...
Homemade Marshmallow Root Lip Balm
Whether it’s the parching of the hot summer sun or the blustering cold wind of our Michigan winters, my lips always seem to be in need of some sort of soothing, healing, moisturization all year long. I used to spend money on fancy lip balms and butters at the store until I realized how wonderfully […]
18 Herbal Teas To Help You Stay Healthy This Winter
Keeping our bodies healthy and strong during winter can be a challenge! Thankfully, there many wonderful herbs that we can use to provide the support we need. Prepared as tasty teas, these herbs can help support wellness right in your tea cup! Brewing up a cup of tea to enjoy is a wonderful form of […]
Lavender Sachets and Dream Pillows
A delightful, calming herb, lavender is a great addition to any home during the holidays. Lavender sachets and dream pillows are ...
How To Make Homemade Fire Cider (With Video!)
While some think of this time of year as the holiday season, I tend to think of it as the season to make homemade fire cider! Fire...
Clove Pomanders: An Old Fashioned Holiday Favorite
Clove pomanders are a seasonal delight! Made with numerous little cloves, pomanders are a wonderfully fragrant addition to holiday decorations as well as a lovely gift to share with others. Gathered in bowls around the home, hung in windows to catch the warmth of the sun, or displayed on a tree, this old fashioned favorite […]
Homemade Squash Cinnamon Dough for Holiday Decorations and Ornaments
What spice reminds us more of the holidays than cinnamon? The smell of cinnamon cookies baking or perhaps a few cinnamon sticks brewing on the stove instantly brings warm memories to mind. There are many ways to enjoy cinnamon during the holidays and squash cinnamon dough is a surprisingly fun way to welcome this beloved […]
How To Make Your Own Fresh Rosemary Wreath
With its fragrant aroma reminiscent of fresh pine, rosemary is a wonderful herb to enjoy during the winter holidays. Bring rosema...
6 Natural Beauty Herbal Gifts For The Soul
This article is reprinted with permission from the Nov/Dec ’03 issue of The Essential Herbal magazine. Herbal Gifts That Are...
How To Make Immune Stimulating Elderberry Syrup
Holy shi…………itake! We are being invaded by cold and flu viruses! But, that doesn’t mean that we are helpless. Instead, we can use simple herbal support, such as an immune-stimulating elderberry syrup, to support our bodies as they resist viral pathogens like the common cold and flu virus. First of all, no one has time […]
How to Make Herbal Ear Drops
Earaches never seem to happen at a convenient time. They often sneak up on you in the middle of the night causing pain and misery. Thankfully, having a supply of herbal ear drops on hand can help ease pain and support the body when fighting a possible infection. I should know, as I recently found […]
How To Craft Your Own Herbal Smoking Blends
There’s something fascinating about the alchemy of herbs and smoke. Part of it is visual. We can see the plants undergoing a vio...
