The Healing Scents of Nature

Without repeating the same information that anyone can find on the Internet regarding the dangers of  artificial fragrances, we have eliminated such things from our home and lives maashaa Allah. This paragraph provides a brief summary of why.

"Synthetic musks, for instance -- widely used in perfumes, deodorants, and detergents -- have been linked to cancer. They can bioaccumulate, or store themselves in the body, and have been found in breast milk, which means that nursing infants ingest them. Research indicates that these musks don't biodegrade; they've been found polluting watersheds and the plants and animals that live there. Another worrisome class of chemicals, phthalates, are often used in fragrance because they allow the smell to last longer. They have been linked to changes in the reproductive and endocrine systems as well as in the liver, kidneys, and adrenal glands."

( http://www.wholeliving.com/133573/replacing-your-artificial-fragrances)

So for laundry we use ground soap nuts, which smell rather like pineapple, and grated Castille soap, which has only natural essential oil and plant extract fragrances. We wash with Castille soap, unscented or scented with essential oils. We make our own shampoo, boiling herbs suitable for our specific hair type, color, and condition, and using complimentary essential oils. We make all our own dishwashing liquid and household cleansers, using essentials oils of lemon, orange, or lime for grease-cutting properties and fresh scent. We also make our own toothpaste using essential oils.

Have you noticed a common ingredient in most of those things listed above? Yes, essential oils! So, when it came to finding a healthy and beneficial replacement for personal fragrances, we automatically started looking at natural essential oil blends. To start off, I ordered this set for hubby.

We have since seen this lovely set as well:

  

These blends were the perfect way to transition to natural scents without going through a lot of trial and error coming up with our own concoctions. The blends can be chosen on any given day or occasion for their therapeutic properties. For example, when hubby wants to feel energized, he puts on Energy and when he has a potentially stressful day ahead, he puts on Tranquility or Relax. Once these blends proved themselves to be a wonderful replacement for the synthetic fragrances, it gave me confidence to start making my own blends with similar base notes. I ordered a wider range of organic essential oils from Mountain Rose Herbs and the Amber and Aphrodite oil blends for hubby for Eid.

Of course, in the long run, once we grow our own herbs, plants, and trees, we plan to distill our own essential oils, inshaa Allah. It is actually an easy process with fairly simple equipment maashaa Allah. In the meantime, we will make flower waters and infusions, inshaa Allah.