Vegeterian Tips: If you know you are going to be eating at a certain restaurant on Saturday night, call ahead and ask if they offer any vegetarian entrees. If the answer is no, ask if something can be prepared for your dietary needs. Most likely, the answer will be yes.

Ingredients (use vegan versions):

• 250 ml pure soap flakes or powde
• 25 to 50 ml washing soda

Directions:

Mix the 2 ingredients together.

Before using, remove detergent residues from you
clothes by washing them in hot water with 50ml of washing
soda for each load.

As a fabric softener, you can add 50 ml
baking soda to the wash cycle or 50 ml of vinegar to the
rinse cycle.

Serves:

[tubepress mode='tag', tagValue='Homemade Laundry Soap']

Vegeterian Tips: It s true ladies and gentleman! Certain fast food restaurants are now offering veggie burgers, as well as salads. While most of the salads may come with chicken or meat, you can ask them to leave it off. Just be careful of the dressings, as most have tons of sugar and calories. You also have baked potatoes, or fruit and yogurt options.

Ingredients (use vegan versions):

• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup olive oil

Directions:

Mix ingredients and shake well!

Pour into a spray bottle.

Use soft rag, slightly dampened with the solution.

Serves:

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Vegeterian Tips: Keep your favorite salad dressings on hand. I find that I m much more likely to eat my greens or some raw veggies when my favorite salad dressings are in the fridge. A little variety is great too I try to keep at least two kinds, either store bought or homemade on hand at all times. Some of my favorites are homemade goddess dressing, Thai peanut sauce from my local Asian grocer and rasberry vinaigrette. A vegan ranch dressing was helpful as well when I was trying to wean myself off dairy.

Ingredients (use vegan versions):

• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar (pref. organic)
• herbs of choice (see below)
• up to 10 drops essential oil of choice (optional but useful)
• 300ml boiling water or enough to cover herbs in jug

Directions:

Not only is this rinse much cheaper than the chemical gunk
you can buy commercially, but it is easy, effective, far
better for your hair, and smells wonderful – there is
nothing like using fresh rosemary to give you a lift!

You can use either fresh or dried herbs for this. If you
have a rosemary bush handy, use a sprig or two (say 10cm
long): rosemary is one of the best herbs for hair. Fresh
lavender is also nice to use; most of the herbs you can
grow in your garden will probably be useful in some way or
other. Fresh herbs are wonderful to use, but do remember
to rinse them if they have been sprayed with anything,
whether rose feed, pesticide, or contributions from a
passing dog.

If using dried herbs, you can use them either loose or in
teabags if they are available as such, e.g. one chamomile
teabag. Loose herbs, provided you have access to these (my
local herbalist has a large selection), give you more
choice; however, they can be messy to use. Use either an
infuser ball (I find a few bits always escape, though) or
tie a few teaspoonfuls of herb up in a bit of muslin or
similar fabric. You don”t want to have bits of herb caught
in your hair afterwards!

1) Put the herbs into a jug and add the vinegar and your
essential oil.

2) Add the boiling water and stir to disperse the essential
oils. Set to one side while you wash your hair: this gives
it time to steep, and also for the water to cool a little.
If you want a stronger herbal infusion, you can boil up
herbs in a pan on the stove for ten minutes.

3) When you have finished washing and rinsing your hair,
add enough cool water to fill the jug nearly to the top and
also to make it a bearable temperature. If you”re feeling
brave, go for cold water as it will give your hair added
shine.

4) If you have very long hair, as I do, you can dip your
hair into the jug before pouring its contents over your
head, rubbing into the scalp and catching any stray bits of
herb before they get caught in your hair. Avoid getting
the rinse in your eyes, particularly if you have used
essential oils.

5) Make sure you rinse out the shower afterwards, as some
herbs can leave it looking slightly stained; similarly,
watch out for your towels. The staining is only temporary
and washes off/out very easily; it is more likely to occur
with extra strong infusions.

Useful herbs:

Rosemary – excellent for all hair types and problems.
Sage – traditionally used to restore colour to greying hair.
Chamomile – another very useful herb for hair,
traditionally used for lighter colour hair.
Thyme – good for oily hair and dandruff.

Useful essential oils:

Rosemary and chamomile: see above. I would not advise
thyme oil, since it is very strong and a potential skin
irritant. Sage oil should not be used (unless by
professionals, but I don”t think they use it on hair);
clary sage is a good substitute.

Cedarwood: very traditional oil for all hair types and
conditions.

Lavender and geranium: useful for all hair types.

Lemon, patchouli, tea tree, ylang-ylang: useful for greasy
hair and dandruff.

You can use any essential oil you fancy, provided it is not
a skin irritant (I would never suggest using clove oil, for
example). If I am in meditative mood I sometimes use
frankincense, for example, or sandalwood (good for dry
hair) if I want the lingering smell of sandalwood that day.

In general, this rinse keeps your hair in good condition
and adds considerable shine, as well as seeming to make it
tangle less. It is also a useful way of treating hair that
is not looking its best, for example if it is dry, greasy
or prone to dandruff. I have hair I can sit on, and people
are always telling me how beautiful it looks and smells.

If you like doing facial saunas or face masks, before you
wash your hair is a good time to do so. Here is what I
usually do:

1) Put the herbs into the jug together with the boiling
water, but do not add the vinegar yet. Put in only 2 drops
of essential oil after the water has been added.

2) Put a towel over your head, tying long hair back, lean
over the jug, and inhale the steam for 5-10 minutes. Be
careful not to scald yourself: if the steam is too hot, let
it cool for half a minute or so.

3) Use a little of the infused water to mix up a face mask
with clay and anything else you may use.

4) While the mask is drying on your skin, add the cider
vinegar and the rest of the essential oils to the jug.

5) Wash the face mask off (I find it is easiest to do so in
the shower) and proceed as above with the hair rinse.

Preparation time: 2 min

Serves:

[tubepress mode='tag', tagValue='Herb and Vinegar Hair Rinse']

Vegeterian Tips: Make it a goal to eat at least one piece of raw fruit or a handful of raw vegetables every dayI try to eat an apple first thing in the morning to get it out of the way.

Ingredients (use vegan versions):

• 20 ml standard carrier oil (e.g. almond) incl. 6 drops wheatgerm oil
• 10 ml comfrey oil (macerated/infused)
• 2 drops lavender essential oil
• 2 drops marjoram e.o.
• 2 drops Roman chamomile e.o.
• 2 drops juniper e.o.
• 1 drop German chamomile e.o. (optional)

Directions:

Gives a 1 1/2% dilution. May also be made up in a plain,
vegetable oil-based lotion. The wheatgerm oil is necessary
to preserve the life of your blend; if you intend to use it
up quickly, then this is not necessary. You can also
purchase ready-blended carrier oil bases, which usually
include the correct amount of wheatgerm oil already.

Very good for both muscle and joint pain and similar
problems. Also effective for insomnia.

Serves:

[tubepress mode='tag', tagValue='Muscle & Joint Oil Blend']

Vegeterian Tips: Make sure to befriend your waiter or waitress. Be polite, friendly, and remember to leave a big tip. Servers have access to your food before you do, and they have information that you don t. So make sure to be nice and you will get everything you want!

Ingredients (use vegan versions):

• 30 ml carrier oil (e.g. grapeseed) incl. 6 drops wheatgerm oil
• 5 drops lavender essential oil
• 5 drops sweet marjoram e.o.
• 5 drops clary sage e.o.
• 2 drops basil e.o.

Directions:

Gives a 3% dilution. May also be made up in a plain,
vegetable oil-based lotion. The wheatgerm oil is necessary
to preserve the life of your blend; if you intend to use it
up quickly, then this is not necessary. You can also
purchase ready-blended carrier oil bases, which usually
include the correct amount of wheatgerm oil already.

This blend was formulated with menstrually-related
migraines in mind, since these are the ones I principally
suffer from. As a result, the oils chosen also have
hormone-balancing properties as well as being good general
analgesics and muscle relaxants. This oil is also useful
for menstrual cramping.

Migraine tends to affect one”s sense of smell and often
causes nausea; hence what may be perfect for one person may
not be acceptable for another. This blend has a herby,
somewhat heavy aroma that I find is absolutely fine, but if
you want something sharper, try:

5 drops lavender
5 drops rosemary
5 drops grapefruit
30ml carrier oil

If your headache is due to having a cold, eucalyptus would
be a particularly useful oil to use (instead of grapefruit,
say; same quantity).

If you feel a migraine descending, rub this oil on your
face, neck and shoulders, put some of the essential oils on
an oil burner if you have one, drink a glass or two of
water (mint tea is also useful), eat something starchy, and
a lot of the time this will do the trick (if it doesn”t,
rest in a darkened room).

Aromatherapy is very successful in treating migraine, where
conventional painkillers often aren”t. This is because the
essential oils get directly into the bloodstream, either
through the capillary network if applied to the skin, or
through the lungs if inhaled. They do not need to pass
through the digestive system first, which is just as well
since digestion tends to “shut down” during migraine, which
is why painkillers often do not work.

Drinking gallons of water and eating regularly makes an
enormous difference to migraine attacks. If you suffer
from nausea, try eating pickled ginger, the thin pink
strips that are used in sushi. Then go and eat some toast
or something dry, whether you feel like it or not: not
eating will only worsen both the nausea and the migraine.

Serves:

[tubepress mode='tag', tagValue='Migraine Oil Blend']

Vegeterian Tips: Many upscale food chains have either one or the other, or both salad and soup bars. Salad bars are great for vegetarians, but be careful not to overload on dressings, croutons, nuts, or cheese. Be sure to check with your server about the soups available and that they are bean based, with no meat. If there is nothing else available, salad and soup bars can make a hearty and tasty meal.

Ingredients (use vegan versions):

• 2 cup vegan soymilk
• 4 oz. pimento
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 3-4 tablespoon yeast flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/4 cup raw cashews
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice.

Directions:

Blend cashews and pimentos in small amount of soymilk until smooth,
add remaining ingredients, blend to mix. Cook in heavy sauce pan until
thick stirring constantly. Makes good macaroni and cheese or nachos
Can add Rotel tomatoes but drain juice for nachos. This recipe is used for the
Cheesy potatoes casserole.

Sorry, use above directions for cooking.

Serves: 8

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