posted March 19, 2007 01:30 AM         

i would love to accomodate you in this area!

at this moment i am waning just a bit though...you intuited my disposition well.

so briefly i will suggest the following:

a very very basic remedy for you...but one that i still use often, as i find my spirits lifted and happy every time i wipe down my bathroom...and rest of house...with this solution ~ it is an all purpose, cucumber scented cleaning spray from a brand called Method. they claim to be all natural, with no harsh chemicals. I find it at Target, though i think i've seen it elsewhere. there are other fragrances, but the cucumber is really magical.

more later...

posted March 19, 2007 01:55 AM         

spray - cucumber

method is made with naturally-derived surfactants. It works by absorbing dirt rather than chemically degrading it. And method is biodegradable so you can clean your home without flushing super-toxic chemicals down the drain into our rivers, lakes and oceans. We're against that. Dirty doesn't have to roll downhill.

http://www.methodhome.com/products/laundry.php

posted March 19, 2007 01:45 PM         

excellent book for concocting very good natural cleaning supplies is Clean & Green -- The Complete Guide to Nontoxic and Environmentally Safe Housekeeping by Annie Berthold-Bond.

using essential oils in your house can change the energy and raise the vibration in the biggest way.

the simplest, and one of the best ways is misting water infused with essential oils throughout your home during the day. a plant mister works well for this. just add a few drops of essential oil to some fresh water in the mister. misting creates negative ions in the air, and lifts the energy immensely. for Azala i would suggest the essential oils of pine, rose, geranium, rosemary and lavender.

for separate uses of course...spray the pine throughout the day. combine rose and geranium and mist the bedroom. mist lavender around your home in the evening. use a natural cleaning solution with lavender and rosemary in the bathroom. you can add some drops of essential oil to the cardboard center of a roll of tissue to disperse scent continuously in the bathroom. keep the bathroom well misted with the scents of rose and lavender. add geranium to some baking soda and sprinkle the rugs in the bathroom and then vacuum, or make a floor wash with vinegar and geranium essential oil.

also, a very simple method of infusing your home with aromatherapy is with cotton balls. add a few drops of the oils to the cotton and tuck in drawers, among socks, clothing, towels, linens, etc...tuck them under your sheets and in pillow cases. put them in cabinets. if i'm feeling very stressed or bad, i will add some drops of lavender or rose to a cotton ball and carry it on me...and inhale it every so often. works wonders!

rose oil can be expensive, but you can find it diluted in natural oil in most natural markets. or purchase very small quantities, because it is so potent..

a lot of these great ideas are in the book Sacred Space by Denise Linn. i think you would love this book! it's full of excellent ideas for raising the energy in your home.

also see ~

http://www.care2.com/channels/lifestyle/home

and a great page for describing essential oils ~

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art20079.asp

some of these ideas i aslo gleaned from the book The Naturally Clean Home -- Over 100 Safe and Easy Herbal Formulas for Nontoxic Cleansers.

be blessed with love and joy Azala,
naiad

posted March 19, 2007 06:26 PM         

and....about potpourri -- feng shui wisdom says that dried flowers and botanicals do not have good energy. it is better not to have them in the home.

another fragrance and energy enhancer is incense...specifically nag champa for me...it does really make the spirits happy.

very nice in the bathroom...let some burn in the closet to give clothing a delightful scent.

i love the way my home smells when i keep nag champa always going.

posted March 19, 2007 08:32 PM         

Thank you so much for all the recommendations -- it's more than I ever dared to hope for!!

posted March 19, 2007 11:42 PM         

i am so pleased that you are happy with my aromatherapeutic thoughts.

here is a cute article from the care2 website ~

Housecleaning with Magic - How To

The antidote to housecleaning drudgery is magical fun. When we bring a little earthy magic to our spring cleaning, the result is a deeply nourished spirit as well as a cleaner house!

Here are a few simple ways to discover the joys of cleaning with spirit:

1. Sing a special song as you clean. If you know an earth-centered song, great. If not, make something up. Repeating even the simplest of tunes (with or without rhyming words) can help you relax, deepen, and open. You don’t have to sound like a “professional”--don’t judge yourself, just have fun with it.

2. Clean barefoot. This changes one’s perspective, somehow. As you clean, visualize rootlets growing from the soles of your feet, going down through your (clean) floor into Mother Earth.

3. Make yourself a Cleaner’s Crown. After all, you deserve a crown for all the work you do. Ribbon, paper, fake flowers--anything that strikes your fancy--can be used to make one. While you‘re at it, make up a silly name for yourself. If you‘re a warrior-type, you could be Spic n’ Spanna, Fighter of Grime; invent stories about your battles and adventures. Or become Our Lady of Perpetual Mopping; see yourself as a healer and soother, a sort of Mother Teresa of the kitchen. Your crown would be more of a halo. Maybe you’d be happy as the Wise One of the Woods, wreathed with wild grapevine. Find a character that suits you.

4. Clean green. Nothing discourages feelings of connection to the earth like toxic and carcinogenic chemicals. If your cleaning products are filled with them, your inner self can sense it, and it won’t be happy. Check out our care2 channels for lots of simple kitchen-cupboard cleaning formulas, or try some of the earth-friendly products from your local natural foods store.

5. Add a strong herbal tea to your cleaning water. Sweet scents and good vibes go a long way toward making your home feel connected to the Great Power. Just boil a couple of cups of water and throw in a handful of herbs, steep for several minutes, and strain the tea into your cleaning bucket.

Here is a list of some traditional herb correspondences; choose one or more according to your desire. We don’t usually think of sea salt and basil and apples as magical, but our more earth-centered ancestors knew they were. It is a wonderful affirmation of the magic in the ordinary to use kitchen-cupboard ingredients in magical ways.

Apples: Food of the Goddess, love. Add a few pieces of fresh or dried apple to your water (but not too much or you’ll end up with sticky surfaces!)

Basil: Love, fidelity, wealth, protection. A nice all-purpose herb with a luscious summery scent.

Chamomile: Serenity and calm; purification. Smells like a blend of apples and new-mown hay. While you’re at it, make yourself a cup of tea to drink after you’ve finished cleaning; it’s very relaxing.

Cinnamon: Happy home, safety, healing, protection. The primal home-and-hearth spice. Use pieces of cinnamon stick for your brew (the powdered kind will turn into a gelatinous glop in the bucket).

Clove: Purification; promotes love and spirituality. Try it with cinnamon--delicious!

Eucalyptus: Health, protection. Warm and fresh, actually kills germs.

Evergreen: Health, purification, vitality. A few sprigs of pine, cedar, or juniper growing nearby, a few sprigs placed in boiling water will add green freshness to your housecleaning brew.

Lavender: Love, friendship, peace, happiness, protection. Such a sweet, relaxing, and calm-inducing scent--and it’s also an antidepressant.

Lemon peel: Purification. It’s no accident that so many cleaning products are lemon-scented; lemon smells fresh and uplifting and cleanses negativity.

Marjoram: Love, protection, antidepressant. You can sprinkle a little of this dried herb in the corners of every room to promote love and safety.

Peppermint: Purification, healing, soothing. A wonderfully relaxing and refreshing scent.

Rosemary: Cleansing and protection; clears negativity; encourages clear thinking.

Sage: Purification, wisdom. It’s no coincidence that the word for ”wise one” is the same as the herb’s name. A traditional ingredient of many Native American smudge bundles, a strong sage tea will help clear your home of negativity.

Sea salt: Traditional for purification and protection. If you’ve been feeling vulnerable or weird and you only have time to add one ingredient to your wash-water, this could be it.

Vanilla: love, happiness. A piece of the bean or a few drops of extract will make your home smell and feel delicious.

6. Smudge. See our article in the care2 channels on smudging to clear and harmonize the atmosphere. Burning bundles of dried herbs is a traditional way to do this.

http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/1280

posted March 20, 2007 09:54 PM         

please do tell about your shopping your excursion...Whole Foods is such a treat.

posted March 20, 2007 11:18 PM         

I love Whole Foods -- it's such a dangerous place to be in possession of a credit card Their wooden shelving feels so homey

Today I had a wonderful lunch from the Salad bar
and got some spinach tortillas, marjoram, sea salt, a gorgeous spritzer/misting bottle the same color as the old ST-37 blue bottle glass I grew up with, and essential oils of rosemary and lavender -- they were out of the pine and geranium you recommended. They had "wild rose" and some other rose, but not plain rose (I would imagine there is a difference) so I'll look for that online -- do you have a favorite online essential oils website?? I also got some liquid herbal extract of sage but am not sure how to use it and when.....

quote:

---

using essential oils in your house can change the energy and raise the vibration in the biggest way.

---

I am ordering the books you recommended -- and I thank you so much for all your suggestions!!

posted March 21, 2007 12:15 AM         

Here are some of my favorite links for essential oils, these are companies I highly recommend and the prices good:

Essential Oil University http://www.essentialoils.org/Complete_EO_List.htm

A Garden Eastward http://www.addy.com/brinkley/index.html

Liberty Natural http://www.libertynatural.com/

New Directions Aromatics http://www.newdirectionsaromatics.com/

Laura

posted March 21, 2007 12:57 AM         

yay whole foods... i recall shopping at the original store in austin on lamar...when it was the only whole foods in existence.

now they are so megalithic, with stores abounding everywhere....and so metropolitan now too...their first store was such an austin-ish establishment...i think they had something like a wooden porch in front of the store...it was so much different. but i am happy that their natural philosophy is such a phenomenon these days.

your trip sounds fun....i don't know about sage extract -- but it sounds like a wonderful thing. as for essential oils i ordered some from a lady online...they were very inexpensive, and some of them were very good quality. i would go with the sites that BlueTopaz has provided here...they look quite reputable.

i think ordering essential oils from a good source online is a much better idea than purchasing the commercial oils in markets. you probably get much better quality and cost effectiveness.

as for the books...i think you will be very pleased with Sacred Space by Denise Linn. i'd suggest the book Better Basics for the Home by Annie Berthold-Bond rather than the Clean and Green book (which i think i purchased from Whole Foods years ago/... ). Better Basics is much more comprehensive. her website, care2, that i mentioned is very good as well, and has a great amount of excellent ideas...and has constant supply of new ones.

you will find delightful ways to enhance the energy in your home, and will feel like a new person! our homes are extensions of our body temples...they are the temples that house our temples...it is good to care for them as extensions of ourselves. please discuss how your efforts progress...i'd love hearing how these concepts work for you, and discussing them further.