Baby-Safe Vapor Rub

Commercial vapor rubs are full of things we really don't want to absorb into our bodies, ingest, or breathe in - petroleum, turpentine oil, and camphor. Additionally, these rubs are not safe for children under 2.

Since everyone in my house in congested right now, I decided I needed to make my own chest rub. Most of the recipes I found use beeswax, which was not an option for our vegan family. Many also contained oils such as peppermint and eucalyptus, which can cause laryngeal spasms in babies and toddlers. Peppermint oil can be a uterine stimulant in pregnant women when used topically or internally. Additionally, peppermint can reduce milk supply in lactating women.

This super-simple vapor rub recipe is subtly-scented, so don't expect the menthol blast you get from commercial rubs. It contains chamomile and lavender oils, which are suitable for all ages and have decongestant properties. The coconut oil melts on contact with the skin so it goes on easily. Make sure you use only pure essential oils and not perfume or potpourri oils.

Baby-Safe Vapor Rub

1/2 cup coconut oil
3-4 drops chamomile oil
3-4 drops lavender oil

Place all ingredients in a small bowl and whip with a hand mixer for 2-3 minutes. Spoon into a clean, dry jar and keep in a cool place.

Rub onto chest as needed and breathe deeply.

Aromatherapy Play Dough

We're still fighting illness around here. Turbokid was coughing all night, so I decided to make him some peppermint-scented play dough to help relieve the congestion. Since this made a huge batch, I split it to make nine different colors and scents. When Turbokid squeezes or kneads the dough, the scent is released.

Salt doughs and play doughs are the only thing I use bleached flour and cheap iodized salt for. The color of the dough isn't as light if I used unbleached and whole wheat is too coarse. This is a cooked dough, which has a smoother texture than no-cook doughs. Making this play dough will give you a bit of an arm workout between the stirring and kneading.

I only have five essential oils in my cabinet so far(lavender, lemon eucalyptus, chamomile, orange, and peppermint), so I experimented with coconut and vanilla extracts. The scent is more subtle with the extracts and you have to be careful not to use too much or the dough becomes sticky. You only need 2-3 drops of most essential oils to scent a ball of dough the size of a preschooler's fist.

Red - tension blend (lavender-chamomile-peppermint), natural white - vanilla extract, blue - peppermint, light purple - lavender-chamomile, orange - orange, green - lemon eucalyptus, brown - coconut extract, dark purple - lavender, yellow - chamomile

Aromatherapy Play Dough

2 cups bleached all-purpose flour
1 cup salt
1 Tbsp cream of tartar
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 cups warm water
food colorings
essential oils or extracts

Stir together flour, salt, and cream of tartar in a medium saucepan. add oil and water and mix well with a hand mixer, making sure there are no lumps.

Heat mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook until the dough forms a big ball and is no longer sticky. Remove from heat and allow the dough to cool until it is cool enough to handle.

Divide dough into desired number of colors. Knead sections and roll into balls. Make a depression in the center of a dough ball and drip in food colorings and essential oils. You only need a 2-3 drops of each to start with and you can easily add more to get your desired color and level of scent. Kneed the dough ball until the colors are well incorporated. Repeat with other dough balls, scents, and colors.

Store in an air-tight container between uses.

You can use any skin-safe essential oils you like. Peppermint is good for congestion, lavender and chamomile are good for stress, and citrus is energizing.

Tension Relief Body Lotion

Store-bought lotions and body butters contain long lists of unpronounceable ingredients and acronyms. Why expose your skin to a battalion of lab-made chemicals when you can make your own lotion at home with just a couple of natural ingredients? 

I made this lotion with an essential oil combination that sometimes helps with headaches and general tension. To test it, I put a few drops of each oil in a carrier oil and dipped a washcloth in it. I put the washcloth on my headboard last night and woke up feeling more refreshed than I have in a long time. Feel free to substitute your favorite essential oils or oil combinations for the lavender, peppermint, and chamomile. You can also alter the ratios. The ratio I gave yields a strong peppermint scent over more subtle lavender and chamomile scents.

This lotion may go on a little oilier than you are used to, but that's actually a good thing. Let the oils absorb into your skin and they will leave it super-soft. This is especially wonderful for dry winter skin and would probably feel great on the feet and covered with spa socks. The scent lingers a lot longer than commercial lotion... I can still smell it 30 minutes after rubbing it into my arms... so it is probably best applied at night unless you don't mind smelling like peppermint for a while.

Ingredients for homemade lotion.

Tension Relief Body Lotion

1 cup pure cocoa butter
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup almond or apricot oil
1 tsp vitamin E oil (optional)
15-20 drops lavender essential oil
15-20 drops chamomile essential oil
10-15 drops peppermint essential oil

Put the coconut oil and cocoa butter in the top of a double boiler. You made need to immerse the cocoa butter container in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes to soften it so it can be scooped out easily. Melt the coconut oil and cocoa butter. Remove from heat, stir, and let cool for about 10 minutes. Place in the freezer for 20 minutes (or if it's cold outside, you can stick it on the porch).

Coconut oil and cocoa butter in my improvised double boiler.

Coconut oil and cocoa butter. 

Fully melted coconut oil and cocoa butter. It doesn't take long to melt them because of the low melting points. Coconut oil melts at 76F and cocoa butter melts at 93-100F, which is why chocolate melts in your mouth. If your home is warm (above 75F), you will start off with liquid coconut oil. Coconut oil has a low melting point, but melting it does not change its properties so it is fine to use either melted or solid.

 Stir in almond or apricot oil and essential oils. Adjust the essential oils according to your preference. Place in the refrigerator or another cool place until the mixture is partially solidified. This can take a while - about 40 minutes in the refrigerator for my batch.

Partially-solidified mixture right out of the refrigerator.

Whip with a hand-mixer or stand mixer, scraping the sides often, until a butter-like consistency is achieved. This will take several minutes, longer if the kitchen is warm. If it is still runny, return the mixture to the refrigerator or freezer for a few minutes and then whip again.

Whipped for 30 seconds.

Whipped for 3-4 minutes. It now has a consistency similar to buttercream.

Scoop lotion into a clean glass jar. It may continue to set over the next 12 hours. It doesn't need to be refrigerated and won't mold because there isn't any water in it, but it should be kept in a cool place. This batch made 2.5-3 cups of whipped lotion, enough to completely fill an old pickle jar.

Finished lotion. 

Notes: The thickness of this lotion can vary depending on temperature and oil content. The first batch I made in December has a thinner texture more like a commercial lotion. The batch I made today set up thicker, more like a body butter. It may seem a little thick, but your body temperature will melt it.

The essential oils can be replaced with any skin-safe essential oils you choose. Amount needed will vary depending on scent strength of the oil. An unscented lotion can also be made by leaving out the essential oils. The lotion will still carry a faint aroma of chocolate and coconut.

Shea butter can be used instead of cocoa butter. Mango butter might also work, but I haven't experimented with it because of Turbokid's allergy.

I don't own a double boiler or a stand mixer, so this became an exercise in hand-mixer endurance. The whipping is very easy with a stand mixer since you can just turn it on and scrape down the sides on occasion. I improvised a double boiler by placing a Pyrex bowl over a saucepan containing about two inches of water. If you do this, make sure the boiling water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl and let the bowl cool before chilling it. Thermal shock is nothing you want to play with.