Who doesn’t love the fresh and uplifting aroma of warm, fluffy, and fragrant clothing straight from the dryer? I especially enjoy when a fresh batch of linens and blankets are ready to be placed on the bed on a cold winter day, that’s my favorite! But let me ask you this, do you realize what you are coating your linens, towels, and families clothing in with dryer sheets? Let’s take a closer look...
Every day, our bodies are in contact with clothing from morning to night, absorbing the chemicals we choose to include in our dyers and washers. Few realize dryer sheets are coated with harmful chemicals including benzyl acetate, benzyl alcohol, chloroform and linalool. Addition synthetic fragrances are also used to hide the chemical scents release from dryer sheets in the heat. In addition, dryer sheet fragrances and perfumes are designed to stay on your fabrics long after being removed from the dryer, which leads to prolonged exposure of harmful chemicals through inhalation and skin absorption.
So what’s the best alternative option? For me, its wool dryer balls and here are a few reasons why:
- Chemical free and improves your indoor air quality
- Softens clothing and linens naturally
- Reduces drying time by 25%
- Reduces static and wrinkles
- Long lasting with up to 500 loads or a year depending frequency of use
How do wool dryer balls work?
- Place your wool dryer balls in the dryer with your wet load.
- As the balls tumble inside your dryer, the wool balls will draw out excess water from your load, reducing drying time and softening your clothes at the same time.
- Water within the dryer balls are redistributed during the drying time, reducing static and wrinkles.
Worried you will miss out on good smelling laundry? Simply add 3 drops of your favorite essential oil to each of your wool dryer balls before the load to add an all-natural fragrance to your laundry! Here are a few of my favorite essential oils to use with dryer balls: Lavender, Purification, Orange, stress away, joy, abundance, and lemon. My favorite part about essential oils is the fact you get to choose how you want your clothing and linens to smell so have fun with it!
I used to love Bath and Body Work Wallflowers. I had them all over my house at one point my newly married life. These days, though, chemical fragrances tend to give me a major headache. Since I have started diffusing essential oils in my house, my nose has changed and I cannot stand any type of artificial fragrances. Even the Febreze scented trash bags make me gag.
It’s odd how that happens, huh?
If you’re like me, but want to keep using those Wallflowers, here’s a quick little tutorial for ya! Enjoy!
DIY How to Reuse Bath and Body Works Wallflower Bulbs with Essential Oils
Items Needed:
- Unscented Fragrance Oil (Or you could also use Fractionated Coconut oil, Sweet Almond Oil or other carrier oil without a strong smell)
- Your Favorite Essential Oils (I like Thieves, Orange and Stress Away)
- Empty Wallflower Bulbs
- Needlenose Pliers
Directions:
- Begin by taking your empty bulb and your pliers (I used needle nose or a butter knife) and running it along the plastic edge of the top of the bulb where the wick is.
- Gently loosen the wick and pull it free but DO NOT pull it out of its plastic covering. You want the entire plastic tip to pop out with the wick still in it.
- Next, fill the bulb with the carrier oil of your choice like sweet almond or fractionated coconut, but be careful to not fill it to the top.
- Add about 10 drops of your favorite essential oil into each bulb.
- Take your plastic tip and wick you popped out and place it back in the bottle, giving it an extra push until it clicks in firmly.
- Swirl the bulb gently around to mix all the oils together.
- Twist into your wall plugin and you have a new wallflower!
Note: Read instructions on original Wallflower packaging regarding fire safety before use. Keep out of reach of children.
**When you have the wick out you can wash it with a little bit of Thieves household cleaner or hand soap under hot water, then rinse, squeeze, rinse, squeeze, repeat over an over to get as much of the fragrance out as possible. Be careful when squeezing because there is a tiny pin hidden in there that could poke your finger.**
Feel good about what you and your family are snaking on by trying this easy and wholesome no bake energy bite recipe! Energy bites are the perfect pick me up snack filled with nutritious and all natural ingredients you and your family will love. This simple recipe is easy to make and simply delicious.
Try something a little special by infusing your energy bites with a hint of Young Livings 100% therapeutic grade vitality essential oils! For this simple pumpkin recipe, I have chosen to include the warm and spicy flavors of cinnamon and nutmeg, which go perfect with pumpkin and oats. Other warm and fall like seasonal vitality oils such as ginger, clove, and orange also make a lovely addition to pumpkin energy bites depending on the preference of your taste buds.
On the go, packed in a lunch bag, family movie snack, quick hiking pick me up, pot luck poppers, or a quick bite before the gym … These energy bites will go fast, I promise you that! Feel free to add a superfood favorite like chia seeds or flaxseed for an added bonus of wellness!
I personally like to presoak my chia seeds to allow the seeds to sprout and release the enzyme inhibitors used to protect the seed. Soaked chia seeds are typically easier to digest and allow your body easier access to the chia seeds nutrients inside the seed. To soak seeds, mix 1 Tbsp. chia seeds with 2 Tbsp. water. Allow the seeds to sit for approximately 15 minutes. Your seeds will form a gel like coating.
Like I mentioned previously, the possibilities with no bake power bites are endless so have fun with your power bites and feel free to make them your own with different nuts, fruits, superfoods, essential oils and sweet filling like chocolate chips, and cocoa powder!
Ingredients:
I Cup Seedless Dates
¼ Cup Pumpkin Puree
1 Tbsp. Agave or Honey
1 Tbsp. Chia Seeds
1 Tbsp. Ground Flaxseed
¼ Cup Dried Cranberries
1 Drop Young Living Cinnamon Vitality Essential Oil
1 Drop Young Living Nutmeg Vitality Essential Oil
1 Cup Old Fashioned Oats
Directions:
Prep chia seeds as directed above and set aside for 10-15 minutes
Combine dates, agave, pumpkin puree, chia seeds, flaxseed, and dried cranberries in food processor and pulse until well combined and smooth.
Transfer your mixture into a large glass bowl and add vitality essential oils and rolled oats. Mix until well combined.
Allow your mixture to cool and become slightly harder. Roll into Tbsp., balls. If mixture is still wet, roll outer bites in rolled oats.
Store in an airtight container up to one week in the refrigerator
Saturday mornings are my favorite time to sleep in with my husband and dogs and start the morning with a healthy and wholesome breakfast. Waffles have always been one of my favorite Saturday morning go to dishes when I’m in the mood for something sweet, hearty, and delicious. ***Young Living Vitality Essential Oils are the oils for internal use and are used for cooking in this recipe
Waffles offer anyone the opportunity to customize and create unique and savory flavor possibilities. Don’t be afraid to experiment with your essential oils too! How about adding a few drops of orange vitality essential oil to your waffle mix for a refreshing citrus infused breakfast? Or perhaps create a more floral based and sophisticated waffle with fresh cut basil and lavender vitality essential oil in your waffle mix? Get the idea? Have fun with it! Apples and cinnamon are definitely one of my favorite flavor combinations when it comes to breakfast time meals.
Ok, back to my waffles! For my mix, I use Gary’s True Grit Einkorn Pancake and Waffle Mix. Unlike most waffle mixes, which are packed with empty calories and carbs, Young living has created a healthy mixture packed with ancient einkorn wheat and a blend of ground legumes, for added protein and fiber. Einkorn wheat is considered one of the oldest varieties of wheat and is known for its low gluten levels, making this waffle mixture easier to digest for most.
For this recipe, I’m choosing to keep my waffle mix basic, by simply sticking to the cooking directions, which can be found on the back of the box. My focus today is the waffle topping: Freshly sliced apples infused with Young Livings cinnamon bark vitality essential oil! Again, I’m going to encourage you to have fun and experiment. Use your favorite type of apple, or try something new like create a mixture from several different types of apples?
Simply peel, core and thinly slice 4 apples. In a skillet melt ¼ cup of butter and add apples, stir constantly until apples appear tender (about 5 minutes). Add ½ cup of brown sugar and three drop Young Living Vitality essential oil. Cook for an additional 2 minutes, remove from heat and serve over warm waffles.
I believe the quality of dog treats is an essential part of a happy and healthy furry-filled life. Free from the common dog allergens wheat, corn, and soy, these treats have no preservatives or fillers and are all-natural. Packed with heart healthy omega-3 fatty acids and fiber from ground flax-seed, ginger essential oil, fresh banana, peanut butter, and wheat free rolled oats this treat is guaranteed to please. Our fur babies are family, so let’s give them the very best!
Ingredients:
1 ½ Cups Oat Flour
1/3 Cup Ground Flax Seed
1 Large Banana
2 Tbsp Peanut Butter
1 Tbsp Blackstrap Molasses
2 Drops Young Living Ginger Essential Oil
To start, in place of flour I prefer to use gluten free rolled oats, which I process into a fine flour with my food processor. I find making my own oat flour is much cheaper than purchasing from the store, plus you have the opportunity to make some amazing oatmeal! Oats are also much more tolerable for most dogs to digest and are a great source of protein. When making your own oat flour, feel free to play around with the amount of time you process your oats; I enjoy leaving some texture, while others may process their flour to a finer texture.
Directions:
Preheat over to 300 degrees
Mix together oat flour and ground flax seed, set aside.
In a separate bowl of processer, blend together banana, peanut butter, molasses, and ginger essential oil until smooth and creamy.
Mix together wet mixture with oats and flaxseed until dough like. (If your dough still seems too wet, slowly add additional oat flour)
Roll out dough to approximately ¼” in thickness and cut into shapes.
Bake treats on cookie sheet for 22 minutes.
Place on a cookie rack and cool. Store in an airtight container. (To maintain freshness you can place in refrigerator for approximately one week, but don’t worry, they won’t last that long!)
Once all of your ingredients are blended together to create a dough like texture, use a rolling pin to evenly roll out your dough to about 1/4 “ in thickness. If your dough is still too wet, dust with additional oat flour. Use your favorite cookie cutter to create fun shapes based on the size of your dog. If you don’t have a cookie cutter, you can create strips or use a glass cup or shot glass as a cookie cutter.
