Lavender Hair Rinse

It is officially SPRING! Time to get outside...time to smell the flowers...time to freshen up our homes and our wardrobes. Why not freshen up our hair as well? I've wanted to make a hair rinse for some time but didn't realize how very easy it was to do. 

So, I did a little research on Pinterest and found a super simple recipe. I gathered all the ingredients (baking soda, bottled water, a mason jar, a cute jar for the shower, lavender essential oil and my jar of lavender buds) and went to work.

Anyone who "knows" me knows that I have always have a SUPER cute bottle saved and ready to use for something special. This super cute bottle will now hold my lavender hair rinse in the shower!

First, I added the bottled water and the baking soda to my mason jar. 

Next I added my sunshine lavender farm essential oil. Then I closed the jar up tight and shook to mix everything together.

Finally I filled my "cute bottle" up with a single serving of the hair rinse and placed it in the shower.

I must admit, I LOVE IT!! After I shampoo, I add the entire bottle to my hair and rub it in, especially at the ends. Then I lightly rinse my entire head. 

Give it a try!! It smells just like spring...

Homemade Lavender Hair Rinse

1 1/2 cups bottled water
1 heaping tablespoon of baking soda
10 drops of lavender essential oil

Add all ingredients to a jar and mix. Pour into your hair after shampooing. Rub into the ends of your hair and then lightly rinse.

Sunprint Lavender Gift Tags

This time of year, lots of people are pondering the best gifts for their friends and loved ones. But, have you considered the packaging? I am certain that a wonderful gift would be appreciated not matter what the wrapping looked like on the outside. But, why not take a little extra personal time to make the packaging and tags unique. Typically, you can use items you already have in your house or crafting area.

I found a Sunprint Kit last year and have enjoyed using it with younger kids as part of a nature lesson or a sun experiment. The Sunprint paper is coated with light-sensitive chemicals, which react to light waves and particles when exposed to sunlight. When objects are placed on the paper, they block the sunlight and turn white while the surrounding paper turns blue. Water stops the process and fixes the image on the paper.

 

I came across the remainder of the pack the other day and decided to use the paper to make a few Sunprint gift tags using lavender. Believe it or not, I still have a few remaining sprigs of blooming lavender. I cut a few of the nicest blooms and found a piece of used cardboard to place underneath the paper.

 

 

While still inside the house, I laid the piece of Sunprint paper on the cardboard and then placed the two lavender blooms/stems on the Sunprint paper.

Next, I took the whole thing outside, covered it with the clear plastic that came with the kit and placed it in the sunniest area I could find...

After five minutes, I could tell that the exposed area of the Sunprint paper was turning white. I took the whole thing back inside and after removing the lavender, I submerged the entire piece of paper in a bowl of cool water. 

I then placed the wet Sunprint paper on a towel to dry. After an hour, I was left with the following sun drenched result!

Next, I cut the paper in half and punched a hole in each side.

Finally, I added some delicate ribbon to each side and VOILA!! I had quickly created two very unique,  lavenderific gift tags...

Do you have an interesting or unusual packaging or gift tag result? Please share...we LOVE new ideas!!

Lavender Facial Spritzer

In the constant quest to find new and wonderful lavender tid-bits to share with you, our farm friends, I realized this morning that I have neglected to share one of our essentials from this past summer. My children LOVE to be outside, especially at the beach, a pool, a park, etc. I have a bag especially dedicated to travel when there is a chance of us getting wet. One of the items in our bag (along with towels, sunscreen, organic bug spray, etc) is a lavender facial/body spritzer. We use it constantly to cool off and help us relax the day away.

Even though the days are getter cooler, I've discovered that we are still bringing our lavender facial spritzer along on our outdoor trips. It's super easy to make too...

Gather together your favorite mini spray bottle(s), some spring water and of course your lavender essential oil.

 

First fill the spray bottle half full of bottled water.

 

 

Then add several drops of lavender essential oil...usually no more then six drops total as you will be using the spritzer on your face and body. 

Fill the rest of the spritzer bottle with bottled water.

 

 

You are now ready to begin spritzing away to lavender relaxation!

ENJOY!!

DIY Lavender Salt Scrub

How easy is it to make a lavender salt scrub?? VERY easy!! With only a few ingredients (that you may already have in your home) and a few extra minutes, you can make your own jar of scrub plus a few extra for gifts. You need only four ingredients to make these moisturizing exfoliates. The base can be made from Epsom salts. Makes about 2 1/3 cups.

 

Ingredients:

2 cups Epsom salts

1 cup carrier oil

8 drops essential oil(s)

Dried lavender buds

Special equipment: plastic pipette, canning jars

 

 

Directions:

1. Stir together Epsom salts and carrier oil (we chose a Burt's Bees baby oil but any body oil on hand will do) in a bowl, mixing well.
2. Using pipette, add the essential oil, 1 drop at a time.
3. Add the dried lavender buds.
4. Spoon into canning jars.
5. Add a label and pretty ribbon.

Imagine how surprised your friends will be to receive such a lovely lavender gift...

And they will think it took you hours to create!

Making a Lavender Wreath

As promised, this post includes the instructions on making a fresh 6" lavender wreath. These instructions were given by Annie Baggett at the Lovely Lavender Day in Pharsalia 2012.

Needed:

1. Large bundle of fresh lavender
2. 6" wire wreath
3. 26 gauge floral craft wire
4. Floral shears
5. Ribbon for finished accent

First, harvest a large bunch of fresh lavender. We harvested Hidcote Giant due to the fact that once it dries, the lavender buds DO NOT fall off easily from the stem, unlike Provence.  Also, Annie recommended harvesting early in the morning for the maximum oil content and therefore fragrance. No need to place the freshly harvested lavender in water.

Unwrap the large bundle on a flat working table and begin making several individual mini bundles. Each mini bundle consists of ~25 individual stems of lavender that are arranged neatly by size and are wrapped tightly with wire at the bottom of the flower heads. Once wrapped, trim the stems very short, leaving about 2-3 inches of bare stem. We discovered in class that it was easier to make several mini bundles at a time.

Once you have collected several mini bundles, it's time to begin arranging your wreath. Lay your wreath base flat and begin attaching your first wrapped mini bundle to the base securely by wrapping it tightly with the floral wire around the wreath base. Next lay your second wrapped mini bundle (facing the same direction as the first bundle) overlapping the bear stem remaining from your first wrapped bundle. Make sure that only flower heads are showing...NO bare stem. Begin attaching your second wrapped mini bundle to the base securely by wrapping it tightly with the floral wire around the wreath base.

Continue this process of making several mini bundles and then attaching those bundles tightly to the wreath base until the entire wreath is covered. If desired, attach a ribbon bow to your wreath while fresh as it is easier to manipulate the fresh lavender around the bow. Lay the finished wreath flat to dry. If the wreath is hanging while it dries, the lavender may sag as it dries. You may add some lavender essential oil to the wreath as needed for fragrance. Your newly constructed wreath will last for years!

Handmade Lavender Comfort Pillow

Crafting with lavender...there are endless possibilities. Our latest endeavor came out of necessity and not just want. Our microwaveable comfort pillow developed a hole and before I could patch it up, the hole got bigger, everything spilled out, made a mess on the floor and it was eventually abandoned to the trash. Not to worry, it had been WELL USED! I decided it was time for a new one...with lavender of course.

Over the past few months, I have been collecting some old (worn out) wool sweaters for felting. This means the wool shrinks substantially and looses all thread or stitch definition. Therefore, any wool knitted items that have been felted can be used just like fabric...it won't unravel when cut! In my opinion, felting is a must try for ALL crafters. If you've ever accidentally washed a wool garment in hot water, you've felted. I am including a link with easy instructions on felting from a fellow blogger.

I collected together some of my favorite felted pieces and determined that our comfort pillow needed to be smaller in length and wider at the middle than most...more of a square piece and not so much an eye pillow size.

Once I picked out both a front and back and cut to size, I decided to hand sew this project using some "lavender" yarn I had leftover from a scarf I crocheted this past winter.

I love the way that the felted wool feels and really enjoyed sewing the two pieces together.

Now it was time to fill. I decided to fill with rice instead of dried beans. I also alternated BIG scoops of craft grade lavender buds until our comfort pack was full. Finally, I sewed the "fill hole" on the outside of the comfort pillow. This way, I can easily snip it open and refill when the time comes...in other words when the lavender needs an aromatic boost.

This project was easy and the family loves it!! I just finished the project Monday night and already our comfort pillow is on a bedtime rotation...

I definitely see making many more of these cute things for gifts in the near future. 

Homemade Lavender Play-Doh

Recently I have spent some time researching more fun, crafty things to do with lavender. I have found several different ideas that I can't wait to do with fresh lavender but I must be patient until the field is blooming and ready for my shears.

I did find a neat "recipe" for homemade lavender scented play-doh. It was so easy and included things we already had at home. Also, it was a really fun activity for a young visitor we had recently.

Recipe for Homemade Play-doh

•  1 cup flour
•  1/2 cup salt
•  1 cup water
•  1-1/2 tablespoons oil
•  1 teaspoon cream of tartar
•  Few drops of food coloring
• 1/4 teaspoon (~1.5ml) of Sunshine Lavender Farm lavender essential oil

First begin by mixing the dry ingredients (flour, salt and cream of tartar) together in a pan. Next mix the wet ingredients (water, oil, food coloring) in a measuring cup. A glass one worked the best so that the food coloring doesn't stain.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture in the pan. Carefully stir until combined. It is best to have the mixture pretty homogeneous before placing on the heat so mix well. Cook over medium heat for about 30 seconds to a minute. The cooking goes fast so stay close, and be careful not to overcook since it will dry out the dough.

If using, now is the time to add a 1/4-teaspoon of essential oil. My pipette measures in ml, and I did about 1.5 ml.

Mix in the essential oil and continue cooking, stirring constantly, about 30 seconds more. The dough will get clumpy and then start to pull away from the sides of the pan. Once it starts pulling together it’s done. Hurry and scrape the dough into a ball and remove from the pan.

Place the cooked dough on a plate and knead a few times until smooth. Store the dough in an airtight container so it won’t dry out. Coincidentally, we also used a peppermint and a rose essential oil for other colors of play-doh. 

With proper storage, your aromatherapy play-doh should last up to one month. HAVE FUN!!