For years we have been told how bad salt is for our bodies and in our diet, causing high blood pressure, heart attack and kidney stones. What we have not been told is how we can harness the power of salt in our lives aside from our diet. We have also been told about the wonderful relaxing power of salt in a bath with Epsom salt, but did you know you can use salt for so much more than a bath? Here are some fabulous non-toxic ways to incorporate more salt into your daily life. Continue reading “52 Weeks to Toxin Free – The Power of Salt”
52 Weeks to Toxin Free – DIY Dandruff Shampoo
Our oldest son has always had the most sensitive skin. As a baby he had horrible eczema that caused a great deal of discomfort. We tried every cream on the market until I found a natural, chemical free option. That was one of our first steps to removing harsh toxins in our home that were causing more harm than good. So we were not surprised when G started to experience a dry itchy scalp. We saw how his condition was starting to worsen and so I began researching a DIY dandruff shampoo that would not be loaded with chemicals or would further agitate his sensitive skin. Continue reading “52 Weeks to Toxin Free – DIY Dandruff Shampoo”
Making Life Easier Robert Rose Cookbooks
One of my favorite gifts that I receive year after year are cookbooks. As I age, my cooking ages as well. Not only my cooking but my recipes, my style, and my interests. So this year was no exception when the folks at Robert Rose shared their newest Fall/Winter 2016 titles. The two that really jumped out to me, out of the almost two dozen titles, were The Compassionate Chick’s Guide to Beauty and The Complete Sous Vide Cookbook.
Cookbooks for Interests
As you may or may not know, I have opted for a natural and alternative lifestyle with my essential oils, etc. To my delight when I saw The Compassionate Chick’s Guide to Beauty I squealed with excitement. Making my own soaps, lotion bars, tonics, air fresheners, cleansers, etc are my way to rid toxins in my life. This book is chock full of goodies with DIY Vegan, Gluten-Free, Cruelty-Free Makeup, Skin & Hair Product recipes that I have been terrified to wing on my own but have this fantastic recipe book at my disposal.
The second book I received was The Complete Sous Vide Cookbook. What is Sous Vide you ask? Well it is the height of cooking at a precise, controlled temperature by placing food in a vacuum sealed bag. Tender meats, crisp vegetables, buttery fish, and mouthwatering desserts. Sounds too complex? Oddly enough, anyone can cook using sous vide in their home because I found everything I needed on Amazon.
Cooking for Any Topic
Robert Rose offers a wide variety of books and is North America’s leading publisher of bestselling and award-winning cookbooks and health books designed to guide, inform, advise, and do everything possible to make your life easier. From nightly meals in slow cookers to mastering leading chef’s techniques in some of the most noted Michelin restaurants, the vast selection of cookbooks are the most comprehensive line from the experts in the field.
If these are not exciting enough, we are offering a giveaway to four winners. One will each receive a copy of the following:
The Compassionate Chick’s Guide to Beauty: 115+ Recipes for DIY Vegan, Gluten-Free, Cruelty-Free Makeup, Skin & Hair Products, Sunny Subramanian + Chrystle Fiedler
The Complete Sous Vide Cookbook: More Than 175 Recipes with Tips & Techniques, Chris McDonald
Best of Bridge: The Family Slow Cooker, Best of Bridge featuring Julie Van Rosendaal, Sue Duncan, Elizabeth Chorney-Booth
The Chile Pepper Bible: From Sweet & Mild to Fiery & Everything in Between, Judith Finlayson
Disclosure: The bloggers participating in this event have NOT been compensated for this post. Networking Perks provides honest opinions, beliefs or experiences on products reviewed. Networking Perks is NOT responsible for prize fulfillment, Robert Rose Publishing will be sending the prize directly to the winner. This event is in no way associated with, sponsored, administered, or endorsed by Twitter, Google, Pinterest, Facebook or any other social media. If you have any questions or would like help in promoting your own product please contact me at Karie@TheFiveFish.com. The disclosure is done in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 10 CFR, Part 255 Guides concerning the use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising
52 Weeks to Toxin Free DIY Facial Toner
Our skin is the most vulnerable and the most absorbent to toxins. We take for granted that our skin is porous and acts as a sponge to all environmental factors. Consider your daily beauty routine: lotions, toothpastes, moisturizers, soaps, shampoos, conditioners, toners, foundation, the list can go on with toxic products. An area I have had major concern with regard to toxins is my skin; I have extremely sensitive skin and when your skin acts like a sponge is absorbs everything. My skin and body exhibited the greatest difference when I began to incorporate my DIY toxin free products in my daily beauty and personal care regimen. So for fresh, luminous, toxin free skin I researched some alternatives to my beauty routine and found an amazing DIY facial toner. Continue reading “52 Weeks to Toxin Free DIY Facial Toner”
52 Weeks to Toxin Free DIY Homemade Lotion Bars
For the past eight years I have been making homemade soap for our family that is free of conventional chemicals, dyes and perfumes. I had not yet learned to make DIY homemade lotion so I opted to start learning to make soap first. Living in the arid Arizona climate can be brutal to your skin; hard water, 350 some odd days of sunshine creating the beautiful dry climate can also make your skin dry. Showering should not make the situation any worse, yet I have found that commercial soaps and lotions often leave my skin feeling less than hydrated. So this year while tackling fears, I decided to find a way to make DIY homemade lotion for my family and the recipe I found required some adjustments for our sensitive and dry skin. Continue reading “52 Weeks to Toxin Free DIY Homemade Lotion Bars”
52 Weeks to Toxin Free – DIY Laundry Stain Remover
We have covered so much on our DIY front about how to remove toxins, maintain our sanity with cleanliness (if we can call it that) and we have found we are saving money all the while. So here is another money saver that I truly love! While taking a queue from my love of cooking and experimentation I decided to apply that to my laundry. You see I have a true DIY laundry stain remover that my mother and grandmother and their mother’s used. This DIY laundry stain remover is the original before the fancy spray and wash. Bear with me as this will include several recipes in one share, depending upon the stain, level of soiling and or the type of stain. Continue reading “52 Weeks to Toxin Free – DIY Laundry Stain Remover”
52 Weeks to Toxin Free DIY Air Freshener & Linen Spray
Apparently “poo-pouri” is all the rage. I see so many ads on Facebook and hear about ridding your bathroom of poo smells with this newfangled air freshener. Well I am here to tell you that shit happens. There it is! Everyone poops, even celebrities. I digress in sarcasm and little laughs to myself. Anyhow, with this “poo-pouri” business I am just in awe. In our house, we have the saying “Light a match Flannagan!” and quite literally we have boxes of matches in the bathroom. However, sometimes the methane gets the better of our environment and we are required to bring in the big guns of air freshener, but I am not one to use the chemical laden, compressed, flowery, mumbo jumbo considered air freshener. Quite frankly I would rather choke on the smell of sulfuric ass gas than chemically laced lilac and lavender. Continue reading “52 Weeks to Toxin Free DIY Air Freshener & Linen Spray”
52 Weeks to Toxin Free DIY Laundry Brightener
When you have kids, laundry becomes a chore of insanity. We complete and hope for different results each time, that the dirty clothes would stop piling up! Alas, only in a fairy tale or when the kids grow up and move out do the never ending piles of children’s clothing end. In the meantime, how do we keep brighter, fresher clothes without all the chemicals, toxins and perfumes. For me, I love fresh laundry and bright colored clothing; what I do not love are dingy clothes that still have hard to remove stains, like whites for instance. Even colored clothing can have hard to remove stains, so here is a great DIY laundry brightener that is cheaper than oxy clean and safer for your colored clothing than bleach. Continue reading “52 Weeks to Toxin Free DIY Laundry Brightener”
52 Weeks to Toxin Free Homemade Stainless Steel Cleaner
When I remodeled my kitchen some ten plus years ago I did not think about the struggles and troubles of owning stainless steel appliances. Granted I only had my oldest son at the time and I figured we would be a one child family, not even considering the possibility of when we had our twins. Now we have 20 hands and 50 fingers all over my gleaming appliances…well once gleaming. I really do not mind the smudges and fingerprints most days, they are a beautiful reminder of the blessings God has granted me with these awesome people in my life. Other days when my inner dragon lady takes hold and we have company headed over, I curse and rue the day I ever bought stainless steel appliances no matter how gorgeous they may look in my kitchen. Those times I want my appliances to shine like new I sought after the best stainless steel cleaner, of which I came up short, a lot! I have tried every commercial cleaner known to man and even tried vinegar and those stainless steel rat bastards got the better of me. Until I opted for a toxin free option for a stainless steel cleaner and with items right from my pantry. Continue reading “52 Weeks to Toxin Free Homemade Stainless Steel Cleaner”
52 Weeks to Toxin Free Homemade Wood Furniture Cleaner
Funny thing when I was perusing Facebook the other day, I follow a page called Grow Food Not Lawns and one of the memes they posted was that we want natural ingredients in our cleaners but our foods we are okay with artificial or chemical ingredients. The meme said something to the effect of a wood furniture cleaner made with real lemons, but our foods are flavored with artificial lemon. We have become of backwards society in that we look more to convenience and ease than what is really good for us. Yes, the argument is that the items are cheap and inexpensive, but what about the overall cost to our health? Is the immediate savings really worth the long term price? With all the being said here we are for another week in our 52 Weeks to Toxin Free, where I am pleased to share the easiest and most lovely homemade wood furniture cleaner. Continue reading “52 Weeks to Toxin Free Homemade Wood Furniture Cleaner”