Let’s talk lavender for a second. Who here loves lavender, anyone? I mean come on, how could you not. Think about it, it is this gorgeous plant with these beautiful delicate purple flowers. When you run your hand through the soft willowy strands of leaves, this beautiful aroma consumes you. It brings you to a state of purity and peacefulness. You inhale the deep, rich scent of calmness. It is no wonder that this plant is used for so many things.
Table of Contents
- Why should lavender be apart of your life:
- 1. Make a tea
- 2. Lavender infused vinegar
- No chemically induced products needed here.
- 3. Make an air freshener
- 4. Make some linen spray
- 5. Diffuse it up yo
- 6. Make a tea for the bath
- 7. Make a tincture
- Folk Method Tincture Recipe:
- How to Use Tinctures:
Why should lavender be apart of your life:
Umm, well because it is down right amazing, that’s why. Not only does it smell so beautiful, it has medicinal properties to it, making it a must have for your apothecary cabinet. Lavender promotes calmness to the central nervous system making it a great remedy to help ease anxiety and relieve stress. It can be considered a mild antidepressant, antifungal, antiseptic, and antibacterial. It may also be used to help treat headaches, heal minor burns and scraps and relieve tension in the body.
Lavender is one of those plants that can do more then you ever imagined. You can use it in your bath to whisk away the stress of the day or disinfecting a door knob in a strange place.
How to use this delightful plant in your daily life: Here are 7 suggestions
1. Make a tea
Making a tea is one of the easiest ways to obtain all the beautiful benefits of lavender and it is delicious too.
- Boil a cup of water in a sauce pan on the stove.
- Turn off your water and add 1-2 tablespoons of lavender flowers, cover and steep for 10-15 minutes.
- Add a touch of honey and maybe a squeeze of lemon.
There really is nothing more relaxing then sitting in your favorite place in your home and sipping on this delightfully fragrant calming tea. As your hands grip the warmth of the cup and you slowly raise it to your lips, you are transported to this place of absolute peace.
2. Lavender infused vinegar
Whaaaat!?!? You heard me, lavender infused vinegar. As if vinegar wasn’t already awesome enough. Like mentioned above, lavender is an antibacterial, antifungal and antiseptic, making it a perfect addictive to help keep your home clean and safe.
No chemically induced products needed here.
- For every cup of white vinegar you use, add ¼ cup of lavender flowers. If you don’t have enough in your garden. The best place I have found to buy them is through Mountain Rose Herbs. They are organic and pure.
- Once you mix the lavender and vinegar cover with a lid and allow to sit on your sunny window for about 2 weeks. Everyday shake it and love it. I say a little prayer as I shake mine. For me, that just puts the good juju in and I believe that makes it work even better.
- After 2 weeks strain out the flowers…don’t forget to throw it in the compost.
To use: you want to dilute the lavender vinegar with water, making it a 1:1 ratio.
Now spray away my friends, clean and disinfect that house of yours.
3. Make an air freshener
This one is easy peasy. If you grow your own lavender, just cut some sprigs and some flowers and hang them to dry. In 2-4 weeks they will be nice and dry and all you do is scrap off all the leaves and flowers. Put then in some cheese cloth, tie it up and stick it in a drawer, closet or area needing a little pick me up. The smell is divine.
4. Make some linen spray
Here, you can make some lavender tea to add to your linen spray or you can use lavender essential oil. I would suggest using essential oil because the tea is a deep purple and could, not always but could, stain something. So, if you’re feeling brave enough tea it up yo!
Now, you’ll want to mix 2 cups of distilled, I repeat distilled water, ¼ cup of vodka or rubbing alcohol and about 30-35 drops of lavender essential oil or half a cup of tea. Mix it up and bam you’ve got some lovely linen spray.
5. Diffuse it up yo
We LOVE our diffuser. It runs almost every night with all sorts of yummy scents. Most of the time it’s lavender mixed with a handful of other oils. This is the best way to get those tiny scent molecules running though the air and making a positive impact on the whole family.
6. Make a tea for the bath
You heard me, tea for the bath. Not only is it a great way to relax for me but when our kids are a little extra crazy, I make a pot full of double strength tea and pour it in their bath and let them just sit and relax in it. They come out just a tad bit more relaxed and it helps them sleep. Not to mention they smell heavenly.
This is a wonderful way to calm a new baby. Adding a cup of lavender tea into their bath was always the ticket for my little ones.
7. Make a tincture
Oh my goodness I love tinctures. They are the best way to get direct results. A tincture is medicine made by infusing plant mass with alcohol. When making a tincture for children you can also use vegetable glycerine or apple cider vinegar. It just has a shorter shelf lifelong, about a year.
Generally, you use vodka 80-100 proof, which gives it a shelf life of about 5 years.
Folk Method Tincture Recipe:
A folk method recipe is using your eyeball to measure. While you could bust out an actual measuring cup, eyeballing half the jar works just as well!
- Take a mason jar and fill it half way with lavender.
- Now pour your vodka, apple cider vinegar or vegetable glycerine until it covers the lavender. The lavender will rise to the top and float in most cases. That’s ok as long as there is enough liquid.
- Cover with a lid and let it sit on your sunny window. Make sure to touch it everyday and give it a little shake with a little prayer. A tincture is used to help relieve an ailment so you want your prayer and good juju to be apart of that healing.
- Allow to sit for 6 weeks. After 6 weeks strain out flowers and put in a dropper bottle.
How to Use Tinctures:
Take a dropperful under the tongue when needed. When placing it under the tongue, it actually enters the blood stream faster, making it more effective.
This list can go on and on but we really need to stop somewhere right. So dive in and start exploring the world of lavender, it really is amazing.
We’d love to hear your favorite ways to use lavender! Leave your tips and tricks in the comments below!
Until next time…
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