How to Make Herbal Tincture, From Start to Finish

Wash cut herb and lay on
a towel to dry for a
couple of hours.
(Or pat dry with a towel).

I LOVE TINCTURES!
I love making them. I love looking at them. I love collecting them. I love using them. I love all the money I save on doctors visits when I use my beautiful tinctures. They are very potent medicine, therefore, you only take up to one dropper-full at a time, depending on your tolerance of such strong medicine and the ailment which you use it for.

The more tinctures I have, the happier I am. I have tinctures for all different kinds of ailments, and they're soooo easy to make.

CHOOSE THE HERB YOU WANT TO USE
I was excited today when I looked at how BIG my oregano has grown with all the rain that we've been getting. I could hardly contain my excitement this morning as I went outside with scissors and chopped 2/3 of my oregano off. I mean, seriously, I almost skipped out to my oregano with a big silly grin on my face.

I brought the cut oregano in the house and washed it, then I lay it out on a kitchen towel to dry for a couple of hours. Then I patted it with another towel to finish drying it. 




Place herb on cutting board
and chop into tiny pieces.
 

CHOP CHOP CHOP

Next, I heaped the oregano on a cutting board and chopped it into small pieces with a butcher knife. If you chop up your herb before making your tincture (or, as my grandson and I would say, before tincing it) your tincture will be stronger, as the alcohol will be able to pull more of the medicinal properties out of the herb.

Put chopped herb in a mason
jar. I use quart size jars so
I'll have plenty of room.

FILL YOUR JAR 

Get your mason jar and place the chopped herb in the jar. Make sure your jar is large enough for the amount of herb you are using, PLUS, you'll need room for at least 2-3 inches of liquid over the top of the herb, PLUS, you'll need 1 1/2 to 2 inches above the liquid to allow for shaking. This is the reason I generally use a quart size mason jar.

Add vodka to 1 inch over top
of herb.

ADD YOUR SOLVENT

Now it's time to add the liquid. I like to use 80-100 proof alcohol (vodka, brandy, or gin) to extract the properties from the herb because alcohol is more effective than other methods. If you prefer, you can use Apple Cider Vinegar, or vegetable glycerin (for children). ACV and vegetable glycerin tinctures aren't as strong as tinctures made with alcohol, but they still work quite effectively.

Pour your liquid of choice into the mason jar and fill until the liquid is 2-3 inches over the top of the herb, (make sure there is at least 1 1/2 - 2 inches of room at the top of the liquid for shaking). Place a tight-fitting lid on the jar and shake the crap out of it to really get the liquid and herb mixed.

Place a label on the jar and write the name of the tincture and the date you made it so you'll know how long it's been setting.

 

 



Place in cool dark place for
six weeks.

SHAKE IT UP

Place your beautiful jar of tincture in a cool dark place for six weeks. I put my tinctures in my herbal supply closet because there's a door and it's very dark in there. That's were I keep all of my dried herbs, tinctures, teas, essential oils, herbal medicine, herbal oils, herbal vinegars, supplies to make MORE herbal WHATEVER...... Shake your jar of tincture HARD every day for two weeks, then leave the tincture untouched for four more weeks.

At the end of the six weeks, strain your tincture and squeeze the herb to remove all of the liquid glorious goodness. Rinse the jar and pour the tincture back in the jar, place lid tightly on the jar, and store it in a cool dark place. If stored properly, tincture will last for years. Be sure it has a date on it so you'll always know when you made it.

When making tincture, I always make it extra strong. My grandson and I say, we're going to double tinc it.
 

TO MAKE EXTRA STRONG TINCTURE
After the first two weeks that my tincture sets and I shake it every day, I strain my tincture and squeeze out all of the herb, and then I replace the herb with NEW fresh chopped herb and let it set ANOTHER two weeks and shake the crap out of it every day, then at the end of THAT two weeks, I let it set for four more weeks. This makes your tincture extra strong and it works even better than it would with just using a single batch of herbs.

 

Happy Tincing Everyone!!!

Holy Oregano Tincture Batman!

Oregano (A.K.A. Nature's Antibiotic)

Ahh, the wonders of oregano. I cannot, no way, live without it growing in my garden. I was walking around in my yard this morning and noticed something in one of my pots. I went over to look at it, and there was my amazing oregano. I've prayed for its survival all winter long. I was never so happy to see an herb growing new little leaves, EVER! Oregano is lovingly referred to as "Nature's Antibiotic," so naturally, when I have an infection, I always run for my oregano tincture. I've had amazing success with oregano tincture in the past, but the most successful results had to do with cactus spikes and toes.

Last year I stepped on a Stetsonia cactus spike, (for those of you that haven't ever seen a Stetsonia cactus spike, they are about 4 1/2 inches long and are a tiny bit fatter than a toothpick, and much sharper. When the spikes poke you it feels like a gallon of poison was pumped in the wound) it only went in my toe about 1/8 inch, but the pain and suffering I went through for the next week was excruciating. My whole foot was swollen, my toes were HUGE, the spot where the cactus spike stabbed me was a burning inferno with hellfire shooting out of it, I couldn't walk without the most incredibly horrible pain, when I put my foot on the ground my toes were about 1/4 inch above the ground..... and the list of extreme painfulness goes on.

 

After a whole week of sitting because it hurt too bad to hobble around, a lightbulb went off in my head that said, "OREGANO TINCTURE." I thought, OH YEAH! I hobbled/limped/hopped, while groaning in pain and  to my herbal closet, got out the oregano tincture, and put one teaspoon in a shot glass of water and killed it, then I took another dose of tincture before I went to bed.

 

Imagine my shock the next day when I woke up and my foot felt much better. The swelling was half of what it was the night before, my toes almost touched the ground when I put my foot down, and while walking was still uber painful, it was a little easier to get around the house. After that, I knew I was on the mend. I took oregano tincture three times a day for four days. By the time the fourth day was over, I could walk normal, my foot was it's normal size, the pain was a small fraction of what it was a few days before, and the spot where the cactus stabbed me only hurt a tiny bit. It was an oregano miracle.

Diffusing My Way To A Happy Me

GreenAir Spa Vapor+
Ultrasonic Oil Diffuser

I ordered myself a birthday surprise from Amazon. It's a GreenAir Spa Vapor+ Ultrasonic Oil Diffuser, and I paid ONLY $29.99 for it. I love my sister's diffuser & bought one just like it. The light is blue, green, red & purple & changes color every few seconds. It's very calming to watch the diffuser changing from one color to the next. I filled it up with water & added 3 drops of peppermint essential oil and 2 drops of rosemary essential oil & turned it on. Instantly a vapor started coming out of the top & I smelled the incredible oils. I need to focus & concentrate this afternoon & these essential oils will help me do just that. I love my diffuser and the incredible Aromatherapy benefits I'll receive from using it every single day. It's fun knowing that I can use my essential oils to enhance whatever feelings I want to bring forward. It's amazing. So easy to use AND beautiful to look at. I love my birthday gift. Thank you me. You always know exactly what I want. You're the best.

Make Your Own Foaming Hand Soap. It's EASY!!!

A few months ago I read on the internet that you could make your own anti-bacterial foaming hand soap. I was very skeptical, so of course, I had to try it. But there was one major problem. My bottle of foaming hand soap was brand new. So I set out to accomplish PHASE 1 of my foaming hand soap adventure, which was to use all of the soap in my freshly-bought foaming hand soap bottle. But, alas, my memory is faulty and I would go days without using the foaming hand soap and my super plan to make more once the hand soap was gone was delayed quite a bit. So, in saying, it took me about four months to use all of the foaming hand soap so I could try my experiment...on to PHASE 2.

PHASE 2:  I got my empty foaming hand soap bottle, put one inch of hand soap in it and filled the bottle up with water. After I put the lid back on the bottle, I gently turned the bottle upside-down, then right-side up a few times to mix. And PRESTO!!! I have a new bottle of foaming hand soap. I never believed it could possibly be so easy to make, but it works perfectly. Try it! I think you'll be happy with the outcome also. I'll never buy foaming hand soap again.....well, I suppose when my bottle finally gives out I'll have to buy a replacement bottle. But just think of the money I'll save in the meantime. Yea me!!!

No shampoo or towels on MY hair

I hated my hair. I mean, I REALLY hated my hair. It was dry, frizzy, and just plain horrible. I always felt more like I was born with some kind of weird fur instead of hair. BLAH!!! Then in December, my sister told me to stop using shampoo and towels on my hair, and to leave the conditioner in my hair. I found this rather odd, so I got online and researched how to wash frizzy hair, and she was right!
I discovered that your hair will look healthier and less frizzy if you:
(#1) do not use shampoo while washing your hair, just use water (if you feel like you need something, then use a little conditioner instead of shampoo).
(#2) leave the conditioner in your hair, (do not rinse).
(#3) use an old T-shirt to dry your hair (Towels dry out hair and make frizzy hair even more frizzy).

Now I use ONLY water to wash my hair, and if I feel like I need to use something to wash my hair, I use a little conditioner. After I "wash" my hair, I put a little conditioner in my hair (I don't rinse out the conditioner) and wrap an old T-shirt around my head. After several minutes, I take the T-shirt off and fix my hair the way I always did.
I've been doing this every single time I wash my hair since December 18, 2013 and my hair has never ever looked so healthy...AND I don't feel like I have fur on my head anymore. I actually have HAIR!!! I'll never use shampoo or towels on my hair again. I threw all of my shampoo away so I wouldn't accidentally use it. Thank you Vannoy Fite for the good advice. :)

Oh! And I learned that you can make your own leave-in conditioner by adding 1 or 1 1/2 teaspoon of your fav conditioner to a spray bottle, then fill it up with water and shake. I made some and it works very well. I've saved tons of money on NOT buying shampoo and making my own leave-in conditioner. Yea me!

Homemade Ladybug House

I've wanted to make a ladybug house for months but I just haven't done it yet. Ladybugs kill aphids and all kinds of other little bugs and worms in your garden and it's a very organic way to control pests. Today I got in Pinterest and made myself a Ladybug House board. Then I pinned a bunch of ladybug houses. They're so cute and I really want one but I keep forgetting to get some kind of tube at the store to make one. After looking at those houses, I realize you can use anything to make a ladybug house. So here's what I did.

 First, I got a red valentines bucket I bought last year that has a lid with a slot in it. Then I wrapped Sisal twine around the handle to make it more stable while hanging in the tree. I cut four 2 1/2 foot long pieces of twine and tied to the middle of the handle so I could tie it to the tree.
I went outside with my pruning sheers and cut a bunch of wood of different widths into 4 inch long pieces. I also cut bamboo, cane, and strips of bark from my dead mimosa tree in 4 inch long pieces. I stood all the pieces of cut wood, cane, and bamboo up in the bucket. Then I shoved in the pieces of bark in between the wood/bamboo/cane to make more places for the ladybugs to go.

I put the lid on the bucket and hung it in the tree by my herbs. I quickly realized a potential problem. The back of the bucket was lower than the front of the bucket and when it rained it would fill up with water. So I untied the bucket and got a screw driver and popped a few holes in the bottom side of the bucket and I also put a hole in the bottom of the bucket so the water could drain out after it rains.

Then I hung it back in the tree. Perfect. It's so cute. Then I had one more thing to do to make my ladybug house complete. Hunt for ladybugs to put in the house to hopefully draw in more ladybugs. I searched for a long time and couldn't find a ladybug. I can't believe I can't find one. When I don't need a ladybug, they land on me. When I neeeeeed one, I can't find one anywhere. Oh well, I'll keep looking, and as soon as I find one, in the house it goes.

While I was tying the ladybug house to the Crape Myrtle, a big butterfly landed on my Beebalm flower so I took that grand opportunity to take a picture of him. It was pretty windy so this was the best pic I could get before it flew away.