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One of the first things I did when I went to a natural lifestyle was to throw out the artificial fragrances. They give me a severe headache. For a long time, that has meant that we had no smell-good frou-frou around the house. Of course, that is unacceptable to a certain young lady who has developed an obsession with potpourri (and perfume, jewelry, make-up and anything pink, purple or frilly).
I had no choice but to rectify the situation. Pinterest came to the rescue. Someone I follow pinned a recipe for Homemade Essential Oil Air Fresheners. I made mine with rosemary, lemon, grapefruit and tangerine oils, used cheap, iodized salt for the preservative (kept on hand for cleaning) and put a tiny bit of coloring in it. I poured them into jelly jars and used a jar ring minus the lid to hold a pretty square of decorative fabric across the top. Now we have one for her room, one for my room and two for the living room. I also gave two as gifts. They smell fabulous and don’t give me a headache.
Next time, I’ll figure out non-toxic colorant to see if I can better match the room, fabric and freshener color. While the pic looks like the gel is navy, it’s actually a deep purplish-blue color.
She now checks my Pinterest account daily for more girlie frou-frou we can make together.
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Have you checked out the India Tree food colorants?
They’ve been out of my budget, so I haven’t tried them yet. I used the Wilton gel while I’ve had on hand for years. We only use food coloring in a birthday cake once a year (if they don’t want chocolate icing) and they don’t react to artificial colors, so I don’t worry about one exposure a year. I know that’s far less than what the average TF child gets!
In winter, it is very dry with the heat on, so I keep a pot of water simmering whenever I’m not making stock.
I throw a few whole cloves and a stick of cinnamon in – makes the whole house smell awesome.