What on Earth is a Ginger Bug?

For sometime now I have been working at making a good Kombucha brew and it's been a bit of a long haul. So now that I know about the GINGER BUG, I'm wondering why I have slaved over a SCOBY for almost year with only mediocre results.

I'm not saying you should forget about Kombucha.  Absolutely not! I am finally getting the hang of it, and I will continue to make and experiment with that for sure.

Rather, I'm saying if you don't have access to a SCOBY, or are daunted by the week or more long process of making booch, or if you're trying and trying and not happy with the finished product, take heart!  This seems as close to a no-fail fermentation starter that I've found. All of the ingredients are readily available, I think almost anwhere.

So, what is a Ginger Bug anyway?  

It's a mixutre of water, sugar and fresh ginger.  That's really it.

For a pint size jar, (2 cups volume) you put 3 tablespoons of grated fresh raw ginger into the jar, (use organic if you can find it, and don't peel it.  The yeasty bugs live on the skin, and they're the workers here!) add some water (about a cup), add 1/2 cup of sugar (she says use plain white, but I used raw cane sugar), and then stir to dissolve the sugar.  I fill to the neck with more water and gently stir. I then covered it with the canning jar ring over a coffee filter to keep any buggy bugs out of there.

You have to feed the culture every day with a tablespoon more of sugar and a tablespoon more of fresh ginger.   In all honesty, don't fret if you forget a day, just pick up where you left off.  Of course if you find mould, you need to lay this Ginger Bug to rest, and get to work on a new one.

I think the reason mine started working so quickly is that I put it on the floor near a heating vent, and the furnace is on.

Please, head over to Wellness Mama where I learned about the Ginger Bug, and learn from her like I did.   Her post is HERE.


Some more pics of my Ginger Bug while she's 'growing up'.  Is it silly to name her Ginger?

Look at all those yummy bubbles!

This isn't a great picture, but I'm telling you, Ginger is ready to go make some fizzy drinks!

Time to make some Switchel (or Swizzle if you prefer)!

Wellness Mama also has a recipe for home made gingerale, and that's next on my honey-do list for Ginger. :)


I will do a post soon about the way I made my Switchel, because it differs from the way Katie at Wellness Mama makes hers.   I'll link up then!

I am a Young Living Independent Distributor, which means I buy my essential oils at the wholesale price rather than the retail price. I save 24% off retail, receive discounted shipping, and can earn free products through the Essential Rewards program as well as the ability to earn commissions. 

If you would like to become an Independent Distributor, I would love to sponsor you!  You can click HERE and enter 2066298 in the “Sponsor  and Enroller ID” boxes. 

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How to keep mantle greenery fresher for longer

First, I'll share a quick before and after of our fireplace, because I'm so darn pleased with our new mantle!  (which really isn't new.  My wonderful Daddy made it for me over a year ago.  I developed the plans, and  he made it perfectly!  It has sat on the bedroom floor against the wall for over a year...but that's a whole other story!)

In any case, here's the sad before photo...

And here's what it looks like now, all gussied up for Christmas!

A close up of the lovely beam mantle.  

It's made of 1x10x4" boards that cost me less than $4 each at Home Depot.

It took 4 boards in total, plus a few hinges, so it opens on small hinges at the top.  

It will hold the seasonal decor that will go on top of it throughout the year. 

This is a double duty mantle. :0)

Thanks Daddy!!

This was my problem.   I was so excited to have this lovely mock farmhouse beam mantle (which even holds all of its out of season decorations inside!!!), that I went out to the back yard...and the front yard, and gathered some fresh cedar, and blue spruce.  

I can't obviously have the boughs in water when they're laying on the mantle, and I don't particularly want to disassemble this every few days to a week and re-do the whole thing.  

Plus, I might kill my cedars if I have to do that.  

So, I came up with this!

It's fantastic, because it even stores right inside the mantle, and I remember to spray it at least 2-3 times a day.  Plus it smells amazing every time I mist!

You could certainly use any number of essential oils to scent this however you like. You truly only need a drop to a few drops of each.   When this bottle runs out, I might try clove or peppermint rather than the nutmeg and mix it up throughout the season.  

If I had a glass bottle, I'd blend in some citrus oils, or go with Christmas Spirit or even Thieves.

I have a plastic bottle now though, so citrus is out as long as I'm using that.  

I'm at about 5 days in now, and they are still lovely and fresh, not dropping any needles at all.  I do expect I'll have to change them at least once before Christmas, but I'll put it off as long as I can.

For this particular blend (which I love!) I used the following:

1 drop each of  Cedarwood, Nutmeg and Idaho Blue Spruce

and 2 drops each of Cypress and Balsam Fir.

The bottle holds about a scant cup of water.  

I did consider adding about a half teaspoon of glycerin, and if this doesn't keep the greens fresh as long as I'd like, I'll add that next time.  For now, the blend is super simple: water and a selection of festive essential oils.  It smells fantastic and is a great way to 'diffuse' without a diffuser even!

Do you bring fresh greens in at Christmas that can't be watered?  

How do you keep them fresh as long as possible?

I am a Young Living Independent Distributor, which means I buy my essential oils at the wholesale price rather than the retail price. I save 24% off retail, receive discounted shipping, and can earn free products through the Essential Rewards program as well as the ability to earn commissions. 

If you would like to become an Independent Distributor, I would love to sponsor you!  You can click HERE and enter 2066298 in the “Sponsor  and Enroller ID” boxes. 

I am always happy to answer any questions!  

Email me at thepureoil@gmail.com

Diffuse or soak!

This is another blend I'm enjoying the scent of.  

3 drops Christmas Spirit

1 drop Peppermint

2 drops Orange

You can add the above to your diffuser and turn on for a lovely smell throughout the house.

OR

Add to a cup of sea salt, or epsom salts.  Blend well and add to bath.  

Soak at least 20 minutes

Enjoy!

I am a Young Living Independent Distributor, which means I buy my essential oils at the wholesale price rather than the retail price. I save 24% off retail, receive discounted shipping, and can earn free products through the Essential Rewards program as well as the ability to earn commissions. 

If you would like to become an Independent Distributor, I would love to sponsor you!  You can click HERE and enter 2066298 in the “Sponsor  and Enroller ID” boxes. 

I am always happy to answer any questions!  

Email me at thepureoil@gmail.com

Don't waste your egg shells

These girls work hard to make the delicious eggs that my family and I eat, so I don't want to waste even the shells.  Besides, egg shells are so versatile, why would I want to waste them?

It's a tough job foraging, sun-bathing, clucking and walking around all day!

First of all, what exactly are egg shells anyway?

Eggshell is made almost entirely of calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) crystals. It is a semipermeable membrane, which means that air and moisture can pass through its pores. The shell also has a thin outermost coating called the bloom or cuticle that helps keep out bacteria and dust.

Science of Eggs: Anatomy of an Egg | Exploratorium

https://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/eggs/eggcomposition.html

Take a look at this site for loads of great information on the value of egg shells!

An excerpt from this site: 

One whole medium sized eggshell makes about one teaspoon of powder, which yields about 750 - 800 mgs of elemental* calcium plus other microelements, i.e. magnesium, boron, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, sulphur, silicon, zinc, etc. There are 27 elements in total. The composition of an eggshell is very similar to that of our bones and teeth.

*Elemental amounts are the amounts absorbable.

There are many ways I use egg shells, so I keep all of them.  

As soon as I'm done with my eggs (the insides), I rinse out all the shells and leave them to air dry.   If they're going to be smashed up for the garden or my plants, I don't always bake them, but if they're going to be used for cosmetics then I make sure they are put in a low temperature oven (about 170-200 degrees) for about 15 to 20 minutes to dry them out completely and dis-infect them further.

I have this cute little marble mortar and pestle. I put the broken and clean dry shells in there and smash them up!  Once they easily fit into the bowl of the mortar I use a circular motion with good pressure to get them more finely ground.

At this stage I consider them about perfect for going into planters either in the house or garden.  

They are fantastic if you have a slug or snail problem as they deter these critters from crawling across the earth to get to the plants.  If they can't get on the plants, they can't eat them!  As it rains (outside) or as you water the plants inside the water will slowly carry the calcium from the shells through to the soil and therefore the roots.  Tomato plants especially love this treatment.  

Another way to draw the calcium from them for plants is to soak them in water for a long time, and use that water for the plants.  I have dropped egg shells in the rain barrel, and then in the fall just dump it all out into the garden and turn the dirt over to complete the composting process. 

Of course, if you're a composter, then I'm sure your shells make it to the compost heap anyway.

Next spring I intend to start a few seedlings in clean dry egg shells too!  Add a tablespoon or two of potting mix to half a shell, and plant the seed.  The whole mess can go into the ground, and they look super cute in the house while sprouting!

Now on to the really fun uses!  

Since egg shells are essentially Calcium Carbonate they are a FREE source of calcium, and can be great for skin care!

Some people even ingest the finely ground powder, and I might even try that in a capsule form.

Take a look at THIS SITE, for some great information on the health benefits of egg shells!

Now as for cosmetic uses, take a look at this AWESOME BLOG for a Mario Badescu knock off recipe for Silver Powder.  

I've made it myself and it's a recipe I will make again when I run out.  

My spin on her silver powder knock off is that I add a diluted drop of Melrose Essential oil blend (or sometimes Frankincense) to the cotton ball before applying to the face, and I use colloidal silver to wet the cotton ball too.  This really makes it a 'silver' powder, and gives it an acne fighting boost ;)

To make the powder fine enough for such a purpose, you will need to use a high powered blender.   This means saving egg shells for a while to have enough to properly blend.  

Marie uses a coffee grinder for hers I think, and that's a fantastic option if you don't have enough shells to make a blender go work.

Last but not least, I have heard of soaking sterilized egg shells in ACV (preferably home made) to extract calcium and produce a 'calcium citrate' which can be used as you would regular ACV.  

I have also personally tossed some finely ground shells on my nylon scrubber when trying to get stubborn burned on food off of my stainless steel or cast iron cookware.  

It would not be safe on Teflon, though I don't consider Teflon a safe cooking surface anyway.  

If it could kill a pet bird in the house, why would I want to cook for my family on it?

Please chime in and share how you use egg shells if you do.

If you didn't before, will you try some of these ways of recycling them?

I am a Young Living Independent Distributor, which means I buy my essential oils at the wholesale price rather than the retail price. I save 24% off retail, receive discounted shipping, and can earn free products through the Essential Rewards program as well as the ability to earn commissions. 

If you would like to become an Independent Distributor, I would love to sponsor you!  You can click HERE and enter 2066298 in the “Sponsor  and Enroller ID” boxes. 

I am always happy to answer any questions!  

Email me at thepureoil@gmail.com