The Natural Home Issue

Dear friends, It’s hard for me to believe it’s springtime again. Last year feels like forever ago and like it recently happened at the same time. I’m chalking it up to a year filled with change, including the pandemic that has shaken our world. Our routines altered drastically, we started working from home, and we watched as the world tried to grapple with it all. When we put together the first volume of The Natural Home Issue, we had no idea what was waiting around the corner. The virus hit hard and changed the way we thought about cleaning our homes as well as our own personal hygiene. Everything was placed under a microscope. We became weary of other people and stressed about not being able to purchase our normal…

I strive to keep things simple. Creating zero-waste cleaners is one of the many ways I’ve simplified our daily routines, so when I came across a solid dish-soap bar for the first time, I was intrigued, to say the least. I’ve been making homemade soap for years, but never thought of making a zero-waste dish soap bar. What makes this zero-waste dish soap different from regular dish soap? Most notably, it doesn’t come in the form of a plastic bottle. In fact, each dish soap bar will wash up to six months’ worth of dirtydishes! Thatmeansyou’llbereplacingaboutsixbottlesof liquid dish soap a year; that’s more than enough to make my green heart feel amazing. This zero-waste dish soap is made with coconut oil. When it comes to making soap, it’s the most…

Green living is a primary tenet in my household. We have a simple rule: Nothing should be in your shower, personal products stash, or cleaning cupboard that you cannot eat. Early on in my life, I realized that I had strong chemical sensitivities; anytime bleach or other caustic chemicals were used at school for general cleaning purposes, I would get headaches, nausea, stomach cramps, and dizziness. When I was growing up, my parents and grandparents rarely used strong chemicals in their homes, but when they used even just bleach, I could tell dozens of steps before I walked in the front door. Unfortunately, my friends’ families and my schools weren’t so cautious with chemical cleaners. It wasn’t until I started a family and a household of my own that I…

Making your own linen spray couldn’t be any simpler; in fact, I think it might be the easiest DIY I’ve ever done! In a couple minutes you can have a customized scent that will make your home smell amazing. It also costs mere pennies on the dollar compared to buying it, and you can rest assured there aren’t any synthetic ingredients in this homemade version. Here are a few favorite scents: • Jasmine & Sweet Orange• Lemon, Lemongrass & Lime• Lavender• Nutmeg, Cinnamon & Orange• Grapefruit & Anise• Orange & Cardamom You Will Need 1 tsp. essential oils• 12 oz. distilled water• 2 TB. vodka (optional)• Mister bottle: 10 oz. To Make Mix together the essential oils, distilled water, and vodka in a mister bottle. This ratio of essential oils…

A well-loved wooden cutting board clocks in hours of chopping, dicing, slicing, and tenderizing. Without proper care, moisture and bacteria can build up in the wood’s pores, allowing for mold to grow. It’s essential to know how to correctly clean and care for a wooden cutting board. You might be thinking you’ve got it covered by using a plastic cutting board, but contrary to popular belief, they are not safer than wood. While they are less porous, you have to consider the knicks and cracks plastic cutting boards quickly acquire with use, and bacteria grabs hold of these scars. Wooden and bamboo cutting boards don’t scar as easily, and both are fairly easy to clean with simple ingredients you already have on hand, even if they can’t be put in…

Every day we are given the opportunity to take our lemons and make lemonade. Happiness and contentment are derived from how you approach what is, how do you view things, and what do you do with what you have? Sometimes, we need a little spring cleaning for our minds, too. Paying attention to your mental housekeeping can create a more calm and peaceful state of being. What are your mental mantras? Maybe it’s time to adopt some more creative and encouraging beliefs. A common mantra that marches through my head and one I love to share is a phrase by Theodore Roosevelt: “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” I grow organic rosemary in abundance, with inspiration, in east Texas. Rosemary thrives in our heat, good…