If you’ve been around here for long, you’ll know I love a good DIY. And I LOVE turning a DIY into a sweet gift. Here are some of my favourites for Christmas.
Peppermint and Grapefruit Sugar Scrub
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup white sugar
30 mL juice from grapefruit
Zest from a 1/4 of a grapefruit
10 drops Young Living grapefruit essential oil
5 drops Young Living peppermint essential oil
A few drops beetroot juice (natural colouring)
Method
In a mixing bowl, combine coconut oil and sugar. Beat on medium speed until creamy. Add the grapefruit juice, zest, essential oils and beetroot juice and mix again until well blended.
For a coarser scrub, just add more sugar and if you prefer smoother consistency, a little more coconut oil will do the trick.
Store in a sterile glass jar. Best made in small batches and made fresh as required.
Please note: Whenever you’re gifting homemade products, make sure you include a tag with ingredients and recommended usage. For this product, be sure to note that it’s best for body use only. Citrus juices and sugar are not suitable for use on the face.
Lavender and Tangerine Foot Soak
1 cup epsom salt
1 cup quick oats
1/2 cup baking soda
20 drops Young Living lavender essential oil
10 drops Young Living tangerine essential oil
Dried rose petals or dried lavender
Combine all ingredients well and divide between jars. Leave for a few hours before closing the jars.
Makes approximately 5 x 120 mL jars.
Remember, whenever you’re gifting homemade products, make sure to include a tag with ingredients and recommended usage. For this product, you might like to recommend putting it in the bath in an organza bag (or similar) so that the oats don’t end up down the drain.
NingXia Gummies
Perfect for gifting to the little folk in your life instead of something with artificial colours and a tonne of refined sugar.
1 cup NingXia Red
2 tablespoons gelatin
6 drops Young Living citrus essential oils*
2 tablespoons raw organic honey
1/4 cup elderberry syrup
2 drops Young Living mineral essence (optional, not for children)
Method
Pour the NingXia Red and gelatin into a small saucepan and bring almost to the boil. Stir gently to ensure gelatin dissolves completely.
Remove from the heat and allow to cool a little before adding honey, essential oils, elderberry syrup and mineral essence, whisking to combine.
Use a dropper or jug to fill the silicone moulds. Stir a few times during this process to keep the mixture well blended.
Refrigerate until gummies are solid and can be popped out of the mould. Store in a glass jar in the fridge.
*we love lime and grapefruit
Lip Balm
Making aroma sticks is a simple and inexpensive DIY and a great way to create oil combinations for various applications.
You can make aroma sticks to use under the nose to help with easing congestion, one for dry lips, another for the temples to help ease head tension or you could make the mix up into a small jar and use as a chest rub or for soothing bites and abrasions.
As with all aromatherapy DIYs, you can generally choose the essential oil to match your desired outcome and the way it will be used, but for simple Christmas lip balm gifting like I did recently, it’s best to stick with classic scents, such as lavender and peppermint.
You’ll need:
25 mL apricot kernel oil
6 grams beeswax
4 drops essential oil/s (total)
4-5 small lip balm tubes or small round containers
Method
You’ll need to work quickly as the mix will re-solidify rapidly, so have everything set up and read to go.
Melt the sweet almond oil and beeswax.
Remove from heat and add the essential oils.
Pour into prepared containers and refrigerate until fully set.
Label your balms appropriately and keep in a cool place. They won’t need to be stored in the fridge, but avoid direct sunlight or keeping them in the car.
