Oral Health is Bittersweet!! Homemade Natural Toothpaste and Mouthwash ...Oh my!!!

Today we'll be discussing ORAL HEALTH and how homemade products are awesome!  

(no self pictures this post, I couldn't bring myself to cheese smile for you..you'll get over it.)

The products I've been making are totally natural, easy to make (most everything is already in your pantry), it's better for you, and people have been caring for their mouth this way before toothpaste and Listerine came along to burn the crap out of your mouth.  I'm not suggesting you use a stick to brush your teeth though, just putting that out there.

I've been using these products/methods long enough now to feel comfortable sharing this information with you.  Which means, I'm not dead, so you should be ok. ^_^

Note that the topic of Oil Pulling is too topic intensive, I'll need to make another separate post on it.

Two things today:

• Toothpaste
• Mouth Wash

A couple things I'll touch on now....

Is it gross, doesn't it taste horribad??!!

Using natural products, especially with coconut oil and baking soda are an acquired taste.  It's not for everyone.  For me, I found such a huge difference in how clean my mouth felt, how cleaner my teeth are, how much whiter they are, how I don't have bad breath at all anymore, that I decided to just suck it up and deal with the bitterness.  And honestly now, it doesn't bother me at all.  It did at first, but now I'm used to it so it doesn't bother me.  

The hardest thing at first for me, and still when i'm oil pulling, is the Coconut Oil.  It's not your everyday sweetened coconut people.  It's oil made from the coconut.  It's not sweet, it's kind of blah and taste funky.  I'm getting used to it, but the texture of the coconut oil in it's natural state before it melts in my mouth during pulling makes me wanna hork sometimes...  Just a random fun fact for you. 

Where can I find Coconut Oil??

I believe you can find it anywhere that sells food pretty much.  I saw small containers of it at walmart the other day, but it was very expensive there.  We buy it in bulk from costco or sams.  We spent 45 dollars on our large tub of it.  But found a cheaper one at sams for 15 for about the same amount.  I actually use Coconut Oil so much for my beauty stuff that it's worth it to buy it in bulk now.  

Did you know you use a lot of bullet points??

Yes, I'm aware...I'm organized, and you'll learn to LOVE my organized, almost OCD powerpoint type style, presentations. :)

What the Ingredients we'll be using do for you!

I'll make this as painless as possible, since I could get really scientific here babbling about lauric acids and whatnot, but I'll give you the basic breakdown of things.

Baking Soda:

• Whitening and Stain Removal.  Who doesn't love that?
• It neutralizes bacteria causing acids...stops bad stuff from growing
• Mildly abrasive, so it can remove plaque
• Kills bad breath!  
• Deep cleaning.  The small particles of baking soda do a superb job of getting into all those cracks and crevices in your mouth, between your teeth, etc..
• Less irritating to your gums than "normal" toothpastes

Coconut Oil:

• Has anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal fighting powers  *fist pump*
• Destroys bacteria in your mouth
• Has great properties for improving oral health. (will go into detail with oil pulling post)

Essential Oils:

• They smell good and taste good (sometimes, it takes practice to decide if you like the taste of something)
• Tea tree Oil has antiseptic and antibacterial properties, but tastes gross to me, so I'd use peppermint oil, a citrus oil, something you know taste good.

Sweetener: Stevia/Apriva (NOT SUGAR dumdum geesh)

• Makes it sweet since it can be so bitter, this is optional.
• I added it initially because it is so bitter, but since I'm the only one using my toothpaste now I'm going to not add sweetener next time.

DIY TOOTHPASTE

Ingredients:

• Baking Soda
• Coconut Oil
• Sweetener (Stevia/Apriva) (optional) 1 teaspoon
• Essential Oil (for flavoring, also optional) 5-10 drops depending on how strong you want it.

Awes I like to draw stupid little things

What to Do

• Measure out an even ratio of Baking Soda and Coconut Oil (I used 1/4th cup).
• Mix all ingredients together.  Mash them well together, I used a spoon, until you get a mushy texture.
• Put your toothpaste into a container of your choice.  I will be figuring out how to get this stuff into a toothpaste tube eventually.  I used an Orbit gum container.  It works really well for now.

Brushing your teeth

• Put a small amount on your toothbrush.  I recommend a soft bristle toothbrush because this stuff has such a punch to cleaning power that I'm finding my medium bristle to be too harsh now.
• It will not foam like normal toothpaste and has a different consistency, give it a chance.
• It takes time to get used to, but I felt a difference after the first time I used it.  I actually feel like I've been to the dentist!  And it's been a while (ahem..years.) for me, don't tell my dentist... 0_0

As you can see you don't need much, just a tiny bit of toothpaste goes a long way

DIY MOUTHWASH

This one was making me leery at first, because I didn't see how it'd work.  

I want fresh sparkly breath like the next person, but I despise mouthwash.  And despise is a nice, less colorful term.

Normal mouthwash in my experience makes me cringe.  Even the "no pain" new mouthwashes make my mouth burn, I am very sensitive.  Swishing for a minute doesn't work for me.  By the time 20 seconds comes around I am almost in tears, i'm screaming internally and I feel like it isn't working unless my mouth feels like fire and brimstone right??   

This one is SO simple.  I don't even really feel like I need it because of my awesome toothpaste, but it's nice to have if I want a burst of freshness, or a make out session lol.

Ingredients:

• Water
• Baking Soda OR Sea Salt
• Essential Oils

Mixing your mouthwash

I kind of eye balled this honestly...

I used a 16 oz snapple bottle as my container, but you can use anything you want!

You're going to want to adjust your baking soda/salt to the amount of water you use so adjust accordingly

Simple :)  Label it so no one drinks it

I used 1 Tablespoon of Sea Salt (i used sea salt since my toothpaste has baking soda) for my 16 oz bottle of water

I mixed in about 6 drops of Peppermint Oil and 2 drops Tea Tree Oil

Shake and dance!  And you're done!  

Swish with it for 30 seconds, or how ever long you want and spit.

Always shake the bottle before using since the baking soda/salt and oils will settle.

It doesn't burn and has a different liquid consistency because of the oils, and I found it to be tingly (that's the tea tree oil doing it's thing)

And that's it!  

Two simple natural products you'll be glad you have made all by yourself!!

Until next time... 

*Namaste my Friends *

Natural Deodorant!! Going nuts for coconut deodorant!! ^_^

That's right...Homemade deodorant! All natural and good for you!

Sounds a little too "hippie-ish" for you?  Yea, I thought that for myself as well at first, but after making several switches over to natural products I've seen differences that make me feel better and my body is happier for it.  And I smell awesome still, so yay me!

I've been all into the natural homemade craze lately.  

Reasons why?

• Natural/Homeopathic is always (generally) better for you.
• It's better for the environment.  Because you're upcyling and reusing containers over and over it's less waste.
• Less toxins in your body from all the chemicals and what not.  
• Changes in my body are forcing me to.  As I'm getting older my skin is changing, I'm having more sensitivities to everything, hormones are all wonky, and nothing I'm trying from the beauty industry is helping me. 

Am I old?  Lol.  No I'm in my 30s, but as I get older (like most women coming into this age group) I find my hormones are all wonked out, my skin is different on my face and my body, my once oily face is now dry, my hair takes way more upkeep to stay fabulous, and you know...Changes...Lol. 

I've tried every deodorant out there and they all irritate the crap out of my skin.  Redness, pain, etc...  Not to mention all the "Natural" deodorants out there I've also tried and they DON"T WORK.  I don't smell daisy fresh.  My husband found this to a problem as well with his deodorants.  

I've done a lot of research on this, everyone does it a little differently, and I think you may have to tweak the recipe to your needs and by trial and error.  Some people add more or less baking soda based on sensitivities.  

Also, may I add that I took pictures, yes pictures, for your viewing tutorial pleasure!  Because who doesn't love that!  I know I do ^_^

**DIY Homemade Deodorant**

What you need!

(Don't forget the dishtowel to hide the cookies in the background..shhh)

1. Coconut Oil: 5 -6 Tablespoons
2. Baking Soda: 1/4 Cup
3. Cornstarch (or Arrowroot Powder): 1/4 Cup
4. Essential Oils (if desired for your sensory pleasure): 6-10 drops

What to do!

Mix it Together, all of it.

I recommend adding 4 Tablespoons of Coconut Oil first, and adding more as you go for desired consistency.  I added all mine at once, yes all 6 heaping tablespoons, and it was way too liquid for me.

A note about essential oils:  Please make sure you know how you react to certain oils, do some research people!  You are the best judge of your skin, your sensitivities, etc..  You can use lavender, or tea tree oil (my fav), or a citrus scent.  But this is not the time to figure out what you're sensitive to, especially experimenting in your pits...you'll be sorry.  You've been warned!

Stir/Fold ingredients together SLOWLY....

Or you'll end up looking like this.... (you don't want to see my floor right now)

Now that it's a lovely creamy consistency you can put it in a container!  

I chose to upcycle this lovely Marshmallow Creme container, because it's all I could find honestly.  But you can use a glass mason jar that you decorate with stickers or decoupage, or use a tupperware, or whatever your darling little heart desires!

Some people use a deodorant stick tube, an old one they've cleaned old stuff out of.  Now I'm going to try this with my secret tube later on, once I definitely like the concoction ratio, but for now I'll use a jar. 

And why don't we want to use a deodorant tube??

Let me tell you why!!

Some people do and more power to them...but...Coconut oil has a love/hate relationship with temperatures.  It's hard and solidified when cold and total liquid when hot.  So if you have this lovely creamy deodorant in a tube, and it's all awesome and nice when it's cooler....You can only imagine how you may, or may not, be able to efficiently apply it when it's melty and gooey.

My thought...is to perhaps try a version of this with some beeswax, it should hold better in warmer temperatures and be more solidified, so that's something I may try later on.

Applying your deodorant :3

No, I am not going to show you my underarms nor am I going to apply it for you..

Now I WAS gonna show you how it looks when you put it on your skin....but...it started melting and looked inappropriate so...use your imagination you dirty birdies. :p

Basically, you take a tiny bit on your hand and rub it on your armpits, let it dry and voila.  Done and done.  I shouldn't have to tell you to wash your hands afterwards do I?  Wash your hands...

IT'S ERIN APPROVED!!  (I can't believe I posted this pic.. O_o)

A Few Notes.....

This is a DEODORANT.  It is not an antiperspirant.  But hey, guess what?  Humans are supposed to sweat.  So it's honestly not that big of a deal.  Unless you sweat like a gorilla...then you can change the ratio of the deodorant a little to see what works for you.

Now this isn't your normal deodorant, it's OK if it gets on your hands.  Unlike normal deodorant where if it gets on your hands god help you if you rub your eye or get it in your mouth somehow.  These are natural ingredients.  They won't hurt you, but it will taste a little funny.  Not haha funny, but "Ew there's baking soda in my mouth" funny.  But again, you should wash your hands after you apply it.  

All in all, do some experimenting, see what works for you.  But I gave you the gist of it.  You can play around with ratios, try different essential oil scents, do a citrus fruity scent or a manly pine tree dirt scent, whatever floats your boat.

That's all for now  ^_^  Hope you enjoyed!

Namaste!!

New direction for this blog...Moving towards living better ^_^

I liked my initial idea for this blog, then thought about the fact that us having an actual farm is probably a good ways off....like thinking retiring years off maybe lol.

So, for now, I figure I'd do this in a new direction.  I've been trying for a couple years to switch over to better foods, better habits, a better lifestyle for me and my family, and trying to do things more naturally.

Living Better is pretty much the new feel of this blog.  I will be sharing things off and on about nutrition, diy health and beauty, things like that.

For years now we have been making a switch over to changing our lifestyle habits.

Mostly because my husband and I were both very overweight and had picked up some terrible habits, like eating like crap and falling into a routine of doing nothing.  In turn not putting forth a very good example for the kids.

It takes time to change your life around!

So many people forget this and think everything is a quick fix.  If you really want to change something, realize it won't take overnight.  It took years for me to put weight on, it'll take about the same to take it off.  In a healthy way.

Sure I could take drastic measures to lose weight fast the unhealthy way but that won't teach me anything about eating properly, working out properly, and will most likely result in failure down the road and putting weight back on.  Even the contestants from the biggest loser have trouble keeping the weight off down the road.  I have a hard time enjoying that show anymore because it teaches improper and unhealthy ways to exercise and not to mention creates a very unhealthy mental relationship with eating.

It's the same with diet, and I'm not talking about dieting.  It took time to develop terrible habits, so don't expect it to change overnight.

Not to mention if you're switching over to healthier foods and whole food eating it does actually take time to detox from sugar, preservatives, things like that.  There's a new study out saying Oreos are as addictive as cocaine!  Now that's crazy.  And it also explains my serious love for oreos.

Getting over denial is the first step to change...
Once I got over the fact that I am overweight and I did this to myself it made things easier.  I still kind of live in denial that my chubbiness is "excess skin" and it's not lol.  It's 3 years of eating hungry mans every meal, eating fast food excessively, and playing video games without any physical activity.  I wanted change and needed it for my health.  And to be around to take care of my kids and enjoy their life, as well as my own.

Organica Changes!

What have I done so far basically?

• Changed eating habits.  We're eating whole foods for the most part.  But I'm not obsessive about it.  Sometimes I want candy, it happens lol.  But we eat a lot of meat, veggies, protein, fruit, etc..  Good stuff.
• Increased physical activity.  We go to the gym normally, other than that we work out at home.  I walk the dog daily when it's doable with the weather.  
• I've been doing a lot of natural changes with my hygiene and beauty regimen, like DIY beauty like using natural things to clean my face, my hair, deodorant, toothpaste, etc...
• We eat organic when we can.  It's kind of a huge hype right now, so I'm not obsessive about it, but I try to buy certain fruits organic since things like apples are heavily treated with pesticides and such.

DIY beauty is fun and I'm kind of a girly dork about these things....

I've recently discovered the amazing benefits of Coconut oil.  I could go on and on about it, but I'll make another post about it later.  I'll most likely do a different post for each thing I've discovered...  Most of them I'm sure you've never even heard of.

Blog posts coming soon!!

• DIY toothpaste
• Oil Pulling for Oral Health
• Oil Cleansing Method (OCM)
• Natural Hair Care
• Homemade Soaps, detergent, hand soap, body wash, etc...
• Natural cleaners

Many more I'm sure...

You know you're excited!!  

Till next time...Namaste!