Tuesday, November 24, 2015

DIY gifts: Getting ready for Christmas!

It's ONE MONTH until Christmas Eve!!  Are you EXCITED?  

Okay, maybe I'm the only one who still gets pumped up about a month until Christmas Eve...



Even if you're not getting excited about the coming Christmas festivities, you CAN be excited about having some beautiful, low cost, high appeal gifts ready for the giving as Christmas approaches.  

Around our house we help Santa with the stockings. 
Each of the kids chooses one thing for everyone's stocking, so some things like this that we can make together are a great way to spend some productive time together as things get busy, 
and help the big guy in the red suit!!

Of course my kids go to school too...this means they have teachers.  
Teachers bless them, tend to get all manner of mugs, 
and other stuff that has just GOT to add up over the years!

In my years as a mom with kids in school I've tried to be thoughtuful with our gift giving....meaning mostly that I try to give the teachers CONSUMABLE gifts.  
For a few years we did Epicure Selections dip mixes. Something they can USE UP.  

Now that I'm in love with my essential oils, I'd love to give each teacher something Young Living, but with so many teachers over three children I'm afraid I'd go broke gifting full bottles of oil, 
add to that that many of them wouldn't really understand how to use them, and it's not ideal.

I've come up with a much better option.   
Enter my solution: Pretty DIY EO scented bath salts.

Every teacher on the planet can use a good relaxing soak.
...for that matter, so can every mom...but I digress.
(make extra and keep a stash for yourself too!)

These are super simple, look fantastic with the addition of pink Himalayan crystal salt stripes and can be customized to any scent you have.  


I'm betting that if I went to a bath and body shop a gift like this would run over $5.00 easily....plus it would be full of nasty synthetic fragrances that do nothing to help you stay healthy.



I have estimated that this gift runs me in the realm of $1.00 to $2.00 depending on the cost of salt, and what jars I buy. That leaves some room for adding some chocolate, a Tim Card for a cuppa or whatever else the kids think Mr. or Mrs. Soandso would like this Christmas.

You can save even more $$ by referring to this post, or you can simply follow these directions when you're using an oil that is not approaching an empty bottle.

HOW TO MAKE IT

1 cup coarse sea salt (as pictured, but you could use epsom salts as an alternative)
A few drops of essential oil(s) of choice. (I used Christmas Spirit for this, about 6 drops)
1/3 cup coarse pink Himalayan salts 


To a glass bowl add the sea salt/epsom salts and blend in 5-10 drops of essential oil of your choice with a spoon until completely blended.  
(Please be aware that if you are using a really hot oil such as cinnamon or clove just a few drops 1-3 will do, and you will need to dilute the EO in a carrier oil before adding to the salts.  I suggest diluting a 1-3 drops of hot EO in a teaspoon of carrier oil before adding to the salts.)

Holding your jar on an angle, spoon in just a bit of the white salt blended with the essential oil, 
so it collects in one corner.

On top of this layer spoon in some pink salts to show around the outer edge of the jar.  

Layer in some more white, and some more pink in the same fashion, until the jar is full to the very top.  You don't want space in the jar, or the salt will shift and your layers will be lost. 

Put the lid on tightly and apply a pretty label on the top. 

If you have raffia, ribbon, or a pretty country Christmas fabric, tear a strip and tie around the lid. 


Directions are to dump the whole bottle (this size is a 250 mL jam jar) into the bath while water is running.  Soak for a minimum of 20 minutes.  

This recipe will make two of these jars with a wee bit left over.

Great oil choices for scent would be Christmas Spirit, Clove (you would only need a few drops), Peppermint (1-2 drops) or Spearmint, Cinnamon (again, only need a few drops).
Bare in mind that Peppermint is a cooling oil, so even in a hot bath, if you add more than a drop or two it can leave you feeling chilled.  
Dispersing the oils in the salt does help lessen this effect, in my experience.

 Thieves is a fantastic blend for this, it smells like Christmas to me, and  It's one I use in bath salts regularly throughout the winter, but it requires dilution in a carrier oil before going into the salts.


I am a Young Living Independent Distributor, which means I buy my essential oils at the wholesale price rather than the retail price. I save 24% off retail, receive discounted shipping, and can earn free products through the Essential Rewards program as well as the ability to earn commissions. 

If you would like to become an Independent Distributor, I would love to sponsor you!  You can click HERE and enter 2066298 in the “Sponsor  and Enroller ID” boxes. 
I am always happy to answer any questions!  
Email me at thepureoil@gmail.com

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