All in Home & Garden

Selfcare Sunday | 4 Bath Teas You Can Make Right Now

It’s been a week, hasn’t it? We’re feeling tired, worn out, and a bit emotional. So while in some ways self-care has become a bit cliché and a brand unto itself we recognize the virtue of regularly stopping and carving out some time to slow down, reconnect with ourselves, and take some time for renewal.

We’ve found baths to be the perfect, low-cost way to create a little ‘relaxation cave’ and slow the heck down. We don’t need any special equipment, and most of the ingredients we’ve found to create the most lux baths have actually come straight out of our pantry or bathroom closet.

So read on, and we hope you’re inspired to create a little me-time this week. (Oh who are we kidding… Do it today.)

4 Steps to a Non-Toxic Kitchen | Guest Feature: Three Little Plums

You want, no you need a ‘detox’;  you want to eat healthier, feel better and decrease the toxins you are exposed to. Your first step, you might think, is to embark on a clean food regime- an organic, colorful,  superfood filled diet.  But, hold on there.  In order to have a truly clean meal you need to take a look at where your meal is prepared:  the kitchen.  Does your kitchen support you in your non-toxic living journey?  If it doesn’t , your kitchen and the items you use to prepare your meals, could essentially be contaminating your healthy food and exposing you to harmful  chemicals.  This is why detoxing your kitchen is just as important as detoxing your diet.

Bugs Be Gone! Clean Made Essential Oil Bug Spray

We’ve been ready for summer since the end of last summer, but the one drawback is bugs. Mosquitos, no-see-ums, ticks, ants, fleas — depending where you are in the country, you’ll have different creepy-crawlies to contend with, but no matter where live, one thing is universal: Those store-bought, toxic bug repellents are scary, can be actively harmful (especially bug sprays that contain DEET) and often unnecessary, especially when you can mix something just as effective but more gentle to your body, with better ingredients and oils you probably already have at home. There are dozens of recipes for DIY essential oil bug repellents online, but this is the one we make and we love it.

Urban Composting: Yes You Can

If it’s a vegetable, it’ll biodegrade in the trash, right? Wrong. Due to the anaerobic environment of the modern city dump, it takes an average of 20 years for a single head of lettuce to decompose. That means the salad you throw away now won’t return to the earth until 2038. Babies who are born today will have graduated college by then. There is a better way, even for apartment dwellers: Composting. It’s easier than you think, it won’t take any extra time out of your life, and the scraps you save from the trash will actually make a huge impact on the planet.