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Recipe for Natural Aromatherapy

Like many people, I have both an aversion and an allergy to many artificial scents.  This includes most sprays, candles, wicks and aromatherapy oils. 

For centuries, people used natural aromatherapy without calling it that.  You can too.  Here's some suggestions for when to use this spirit-healing aid:

• Your husband or wife is coming home after a bad day,
• You're depressed or worried,
• Your kid's had a difficult day at school,
• Company's coming,
• A prospective buyer for your house is on the way,
• You have smelly pets and want a quick fix,
• Winter blahs in a shut-up house make you cringe when you enter from outside.

Bring a pot of water to a boil.   Something other than aluminum is best. Add some or all of the following:

1 cinnamon stick
3 or 4 cloves
3 or 4 allspice berries
a pinch of ground nutmeg
a teaspoon of vanilla extract or a whole vanilla bean
two or three pieces of lemon peel
two or three pieces of orange peel

Turn the heat down to a bare simmer; the lowest you can get it.  Check about once an hour to see if you need to add more water. 

This recipe will make a house welcoming and fragrant, lifting the spirits of everyone in it for the entire day!

Other natural fragrances, to put in drawers and linen closets, are dried lavender, dried rose petals and eucalyptus leaves.   Eucalyptus, as well as bay leaves and cedar blocks or shavings, will repel insects as well.   

Alternative:  bake an apple cobbler or apple pie with lots of cinnamon and nutmeg, or make yeasty cinnamon buns.  Even a pumpkin pie will do it!   Makes your psyche and your tummy feel good! web tool