One day I was flipping through Netflix and came across a movie called STINK. This movie is Why I Started Making My Own Personal Care and Cleaning Products.
The movie made me think about what I put on my body and in my home. The movie talked about Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals, we will call them EDC’s. Please bear with me for a moment so I can explain, I can see your eyes rolling. Ha! I will keep this part short, promise! Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals mimic hormones that naturally occur in our bodies, including both female and male sex hormones, thyroid, pancreas, neurological, and immune system. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, the endocrine system is very complex, regulating our body’s functions including growth, development, maturation, and operation of various organs. When this system is disrupted a variety of health problems can occur. I will name a few, but this list is very long: cancer, neurological problems, skin problems, diabetes, infertility, cardiovascular disease, allergies, inflammation, and obesity.
What types of EDC’s are in personal care and cleaning products?
Fragrances, triclosan which is an antibacterial and antifungal agent, parabens (preservative), pesticides, and artificial coloring. This is a short list that we can elaborate on in a future blog.
So I made a few changes! Knowing that we cannot remove all EDC’s from our daily lives, I thought changing a few items that I use on a daily basis could make a difference and it did. My first adventure was to create a body wash that cleaned, smelled nice, lathered and did not dry out my skin. After trying various recipes I hit the jackpot! I had to tell everyone! As I began to spread the word and bragging to my mom and my aunt, I found out they have been making their own body wash and many other products for years! I should have just asked them first but a self-learned lesson is the best! My body wash can be customized with any scents using essential oils, moisturizing level, and amount of soap used. Here is the recipe that works for me!
Body Wash Recipe
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¼ cup Aloe Vera Gel
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2/3 cup Castile Soap
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1 tsp Vitamin E
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1 tsp Oil of choice ( sweet almond, avocado, grapeseed, MCT)
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10 to 20 drops of your favorite essential oils. I use Doterra. (optional)
Place in a bottle and shake it up. Shake well when you are ready to use.
What you will notice with homemade body wash is that it is not thick. Why? Because EDC’s make traditional products thick! This is something that you can get used to. Also making products is extremely cheap! Even after buying all the products to make the body wash you end up with at least four bottles of the wash for the price of one popular name brand product. And without the EDC’s! I gifted all my clients a bottle of the wash for Christmas. I got positive feedback and a few requests for refills. If you would like your bottle refilled or bring me a bottle to fill, I will fill it for $3.
I also make my own face wash and I love it!
The recipe is the same as the body wash except I add ¼ cup of raw honey and 2 tsp of oil of choice. I also heat this slightly when making to blend all the ingredients. I have gotten lots of compliments on my skin lately which leads me to believe it’s working better than anything I have used. For the record, I have oily skin and pores that you can drive a truck though! AND NO CHEMICALS!
I make my own face moisturizer. I absolutely love it! This recipe will work for oily, dry or normal skin by adjusting to the type of oil you put into it. To find out which oil works best for your skin do a test. I had avocado, grapeseed, sweet almond oil, and fractionated coconut oil. I put a drop of each on my skin and waited to see which one gave me the results I wanted. Grapeseed oil works best for my skin. Much cheaper than spending $50 on a chemically laden moisturizer that does not work for your skin type. And you can cook with most of those oils! Win! Win!
Face Moisturizer
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3 TBSP Aloe Vera Gel
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1 TBSP Grapeseed Oil
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1 TBSP Shea or Cocoa Butter
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3 to 5 drops of essential oil of choice
In a small saucepan or double boiler melt the three ingredients and mix well. Place into a container of choice and add essential oils, mix well.
I store this in a glass 4 oz mason jar on my bathroom counter. It is best to store all your non-chemical products in glass. I prefer to use plastic in the shower area for safety.
The homemade body butter is another one of my projects. This recipe works great for me in colder weather but I may have to tweak it for summer. A larger batch of my face moisturizer would be a great warm weather product.
Body Butter
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¼ cup each of Shea Butter, Cocoa Butter, Coconut Oil, and ¼ cup of oil of choice. Choose from the list above.
Melt all oils in a double boiler. I use a pan of simmering water and set a glass mixing bowl on top. Melt and mix well. Set in refrigerator to cool and harden. With a hand, mixer breaks up the mix and continue to beat until it fluffs up and looks like whipped cream. Add 1 tsp vitamin E and essential oils. Store in a 12 to 16 oz glass mason jar.
What I changed to clean my home and laundry?
I discovered a product called Sal Suds by Dr. Bronner’s. I love it! It is so versatile and can be used to clean most anything from laundry to dishes to bathrooms. Sal Suds is concentrated and can be diluted for many household needs. www.drbronner.com has many ways to use this product. I take a ¼ cup and put into a 28 oz spray bottle filled with warm water. I use this to clean everything! Wiping counters, sinks, my yoga mat, and my favorite is dishes. I spray my dishes I’m hand washing with a squirt or two of this and scrub it and rinse. 
Laundry has been a fun adventure!
I have always been a Tide and Bounce girl so this was a hard change. The results will astound you! First I found Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda. Similar to baking soda but a different chemical compound. A box is very cheap and can be used for cleaning just about anything. I use ¼ cup of Super Washing Soda and two TBSP of Sal Suds. If the load needs a deodorizer I add a ¼ cup of white vinegar. I then dry my clothes with wool dryer balls instead of dryer sheets. Yes, the laundry has a little static but that can be resolved by not drying them to death! What happened? Washcloths that I have converted to cleaning rags can now be used as body washcloths again. I converted them because they no longer let the soap get lather when I took a shower. They also had this weird film on them that made them feel like slick plastic instead of a 100 percent cotton cloth. This is because my detergent and dryer sheets left a film of chemicals all over them and I was unable to use them. The same was happening with my clothes but I did not notice as much. Your clothes touch your skin, which is the largest organ of your body, any EDC’s on your clothes seep into your skin. Laundry items that need a gentler touch I have created a liquid soap that cleans and refreshes.
Laundry Soap
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1 cup of Super Washing Soda
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1 cup Sal Suds
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8 cups of water
Put all ingredients in an empty laundry jug and shake well. Add water first to avoid excessive suds.
