I had such a peaceful time on the coast last week. However, peace isn’t something that should just be felt while on vacation – we need moments to take a break and experience serenity in our everyday lives.
“After Dinner Ahh” Tea Blend
Tag Archives: homemade
Homemade Wheat Thins + Palm Oil PSA
Although I’m a few days late with this, I’d still like to share with you that last week was Orangutan Caring Week.
Help others step lightly!
A Night in the Dark & Echinacea Tincture
Hello Light Footsteppers!
I think today is another hodgepodge of a post for me. It seems that I have been busy, busy lately. All good things — friends visiting the states from South America, a conference, event planning, trying to continue a regular habit of eating well and taking walks in nature. It’s all left me with a lot of ideas for what I imagine to be profound posts, but time slips away quickly and then I wonder if it’s all still relevant. Continue reading
Help others step lightly!
Simply Homemade: Broth Powder and Face Wash
Last weekend, I was at the Chicago Bioneers conference. It was extremely empowering to be in the presence of so many inspirational figures who are leading the way toward a new future — one that is less dependent on oil, better at following the patterns found in nature, and is resilient to the inevitable fluctuations that happen in life. (My favorite presenters included Vandana Shiva, Richard Heinberg, and Starhawk.)
One of the themes that continually appeared was the need to focus on creating community and living simpler, more regionally-based lives. However, people often asked, “How? What can I do to help us transition?”
I believe one of the primary answers is, in fact, embarrassingly simple: we need to consume less and produce more. This cuts our carbon footprint, decreases our exposure to toxic chemicals, reduces the need to extract far away resources, supports local (and often home-based) economies, gives us meaning and purpose, reduces costs, produces less pollution, and on and on….
And so in case you haven’t noticed, that is one of the main things that I am attempting to do with this blog — get you excited about these simple-living changes! It’s one of the easiest ways to walk the talk of being environmentally friendly, socially just, and a participant in a new Earth-centered way of life.
Today, I’m sharing two new homemade products that I’ve been meaning to write about (although on different ends of the homemade spectrum) — broth powder and face wash. I know…totally unrelated to one another, but they are both about producing more ourselves and consuming less! Continue reading
Help others step lightly!
Remember to Take Your Pine Needles for Good Health!
Did you know that pine needles can provide you with more vitamin C than orange juice? And that they can help to heal your body from respiratory ailments, colds, and the flu?
Some say that the Native Americans taught the early settlers about drinking pine needle tea to help prevent death from scurvy!
Pine needle tea is easy to make, but what are some other things that can be done with pine needles?
They can be infused into a variety of menstrums (liquids used to extract the nutritional or medicinal properties of plants) other than water. For example, tonight I got a nice dose of vitamin C by using vinegar infused with pine needles in my salad dressing. White pine needle vinegar (the type I made) tastes similar to balsamic vinegar.
First, you’ll need to gather some needles. I collected a bunch from a white pine.
White pine needles
Pick through them to ensure the best ones are being added to glass jars. I also tore these up as I was adding them.
Fill the jar!
And then cover with the menstrum. In this case, it’s apple cider vinegar. I get large jugs of the raw kind so I boiled some first to ‘pasteurize’ it before making this vinegar (and I was able to boil enough extra for future use). Make sure to completely cover the needles — poke them down so that they’re an inch below the liquid line.
Let the finished product sit for 4-6 weeks before using. Also, use a plastic lid or put a piece of wax paper on top because vinegar will eat away at the lid.
White Pine Vinegar ready to be strained!
What’s another use for the pine needles? Infuse them in olive oil! The oil can then be used as a relaxing massage oil or as a chest rub to help with respiratory issues.
Cover a jar full of pine needles with the oil and let sit for 4-6 weeks.
When you’re ready to use the oil, strain the needles out.
And you’re left with pine needle infused olive oil!
The oil can also be turned into a salve that can help to remove splinters (although it seems that the actual sap of a pine tree might be best at this!), or it can be put on small wounds to help them heal. I’ve also been having a fun time using it as a lip balm!
To make a salve, create an easy double boiler by putting a measuring cup into a pot of boiling water.
Add 2 Tablespoons of beeswax (I just guessed at the amount when I made this…) to the measuring cup and let melt.
After it has melted, add 2 ounces (1/4 cup) of the oil infused with pine. Stir with a chopstick until you reach an even consistency. Test to see if you’re done by putting a drop on your counter. It will allow you to quickly see if the salve is firm enough or too runny. Too runny? Add more beeswax. Too firm? Add more oil. 
When the mixture is consistent, pour it into a reused container and let sit to become a salve! Use and enjoy knowing exactly what went into your product!
Also on ‘these light footsteps’
- Introduction to Nourishing Herbal Infusions – Nettle
- Steps Back to Nature: Harvesting Wild Chives
- Roasted baby beets in quinoa with feta cheese!
These Light Footsteps 