After some research and hints from Mrs. G at Pastoral Symphony Farms, I made my own toothpaste a few short days ago.
You see, I am on a mission here. Gone are the days of BUYING everything we use and back are the days of self-sufficiency, healthful home-grown food, and using the resources available to us to MAKE less caustic and healthier-for-us products, to re-visit days gone by when I made from scratch, produced home goods, and yearned to go back to the earth! I almost feel like shouting three loud HOORAHS! I’m back! And so, with this arising fervor, I bring to you with the help of many others, the simple works of my hands, which the Lord gave me to use.
As we research and learn—search and find…home remedies, days-of-yore toiletries, and other fanciful home-grown necessities, I will be sharing these with you and welcoming your precious knowledge also!
TOOTHPASTE
I based my toothpaste on Mrs. G's homemade recipe.
INGREDIENTS
Baking Soda
Salt
Essential Oil of your choice
Water
MIXING IT UP
Mix the baking soda and salt together.
Add in your essential oil (I chose Peppermint 100% pure oil. You have to watch, as they are not all pure. I added probably 25 drops all told of my oil.)
Once this mixture is thoroughly blended, add your water a bit at a time until desired consistency is obtained.
When all was said and done, I used approximately 4-5 parts baking soda to 1 part salt. You can adjust as you need. My original was too salty, so I added more soda.
According to Mrs. G, if I am remembering correctly, this must be refrigerated.
I mixed up quite a small portion while I am trying different recipes. I actually don't mind this one. Some may not like it due the strong baking soda taste, but to me it just brings back memories of home when we were out of toothpaste. Mom would have us baking soda and water. And, when I was done brushing, my teeth felt very clean.
Now this afternoon, my daughter whipped another recipe found online that she thinks will work for her. You combine baking soda, water, coconut oil, virgin olive oil, and castile soap. This recipe made my teeth feel clean, but I couldn't take the oil taste/smell that lingered long after I was done brushing. So, we see that not everyone's tastes are the same. Nonetheless, we are all on the same road, the road back to better moments in time...where fewer chemicals were used...where more pure water was found...and where there was virtually no cancer found. Anything I can do to promote health and frugality at the same time is my mission!
Also today, this same daughter made a deodorant that I am quite excited to try. There is no aluminum in it, which has been proven to bad to our precious bodies. I’ll let you know more when I test it, and believe me, I'll be testing it! I have the embarrassing problem of sweating—a lot!
CREAM
A good face cream is next on my list. I was hoping to not have to buy another jar but ended up doing so because I not yet found a good recipe without all the oils that make my acne-prone face break out.
More on this as we continue our search...
Good for you! I don't refridgerate mine but we go through it *fast* with 10 people in the house. I have a deodorant recipe that I'd like to try, will let you know how that goes. We never use lotion but use coconut oil instead, it feels greasy at first but it soaks in well. For *really* dry skin I mix some lanolin in with it, that's a heavy duty moisturizer. Go sparingly if you try it though, a little goes a long way!
ReplyDeleteParis
Wow... look at you go :)
ReplyDeleteAnd I work about 30 hours a week plus the drive time to and from work adds up to about another 5 hours a week and I do 5-7 hours a week of volunteering at my kids school... So my "part time" job really takes me away from my house a lot.
Angie,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the update. :)
Paris,
I look forward to hearing about how your deodorant turns out. I like your lotion idea. I have used pure lanolin before, and it works well. I used to use plain petroleum jelly also and after applying at night would sleep with thin gloves on over the top. I have since lost or gotten rid of the gloves (old white church gloves) so haven't done that in a while. It really made my hands soft by morning, however.
Do you find that coconut oil is expensive? My daughter got about 1-1/2 pints for $16.00. That seemed pretty spendy to me.
I get a pint for $7 and 2-3 pints last me a month if I don't make soap. We cook with it and sometimes I crave it so I just eat a spoonful. ;-)
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