Being creative is not necessarily about art-making, like painting or drawing or sculpting. There are countless of DIY projects that require your imagination and creative chops.
Any do-it-yourselfers out there? I morphed into a DIYer when my kids were young, and they loved to join in, or come up with stuff on their own. They are all grown but continue to be resourceful and creative. About 5 years ago, after the economy tanked and art became a luxury purchase, making things from scratch became a constant. Out of night cream? No problem. I improvised and learned to make soaps, cleansers, face masks, facial oils and serums, makeup removers, hand lotions, toners, medicinal salves, room misters, hair conditioners, shaving creams, hand-sanitizers, toothpaste, and obsessively more. Thus began a lifelong fascination with essential oils and other interesting ingredients. I learned that essential oils are known to boost mood and lift one’s spirits. Their benefits are many, and maybe they are part of my healing arsenal. I feel like an eccentric apothecary-ist (is that even a word??). One of my all time favorite is an olive oil brush cleaner I made after being dissatisfied with the ones I had tried from the art store. This is by far more effective than all of them. (Message me below for the how to). I even made a beard conditioner for my eldest son Adam and a dry skin balm for another son Andrew for the cold, drying Denver climate. It’s great fun to be creative this way. They make wonderful unique gifts too.
There’s a wealth of ideas in cyber-space. All you have to do is google the DIY item you’re interested in making, and I bet you’ll find tons. Another option is to try Pinterest. I have a Pinterest board dedicated to DIY beauty products.
Here’s one of my favorite recipes for all you DIYers out there. I’m a fanatic about antibacterial anything, and this is that, with a clean, lovely, sleep-inducing scent. It is from one of my favorite sites online: Humblebeeandme.com.
Clean Dreams Pillow Mist 20 drops lavender essential oil 20 drops grapefruit essential oil (pink or white) 10 drops tea tree essential oil 15mL | 1 tbsp high proof (99%) isopropyl alcohol (or other high proof clear grain alcohol) Water, as needed Witch hazel, as needed 60mL | 2 fl oz spray bottle Count out the drops of the essential oils into the bottom of your spray bottle, and top off with the 1 tbsp of rubbing alcohol. Cap the bottle, turn to combine, and leave the essential oils and alcohol to mingle and dissolve for at least 10 minutes. Top off the bottle with equal parts water and witch hazel (I found I needed about 20mL/4 tsp of each), cap, and turn to combine. To use, mist the mixture over your pillowcase a few minutes before going to sleep. Enjoy! Due to the high alcohol concentration in this pillow mist, it doesn’t need a preservative. It does, however, need a minimum of 20% alcohol content for that to remain true. As written, with 99% isopropyl alcohol, this spray is approximately 25% alcohol. If you need to use a weaker alcohol, increase the alcohol percentage and decrease the amount of water accordingly. So, if you were using a 50% alcohol, you’d need to use 30mL (2 tbsp) alcohol and one less tablespoon of water to maintain that 20% minimum.
Next post I promise will be back to art and creativity topics. Don’t forget to comment below and share some of your own projects.
All my best,
Irene
You never cease to amaze me my very talented friend.
1 ? for you! Do have to use tea tree oil for the mist?
I’m allergic to it! And I don’t like the fragrance either! I’m with you about sanitizing, especially my hands.
Hi Maggie, you don’t have to use that oil. It is a very strong disinfectant, antiseptic and antifungal. You could try more lavender, eucalyptus or clove. Let me know how that works out.