After posting about some of my favorite homemade products to make, I got to thinking about what my essentials are–the ingredients and supplies I always have on hand and that I consider essential for all of the homemade things I enjoy making.
I love making many personal care, cleaning, and home remedies at home and these are the essentials I need to make them. Not only does it save me time and money to make my own products, but I also avoid bringing harmful chemicals and products into my home. The great thing about these items is that every one of them is something I use in many different products. I usually don’t make anything that calls for a random ingredient that I’m not ever going to use in anything else.
Depending on what type of homemade products you’re wanting to make, your essentials may differ from mine, but these 10 are a good place to start.
1. Essential Oils: If you’ve been a reader here for any length of time at all, you know I love essential oils. They’re probably number one on my list of essentials in my home. Some of my must have essential oils? Lavender, lemon, tea tree, and peppermint. There are countless ways to use essential oils, including these 25 uses for essential oils.
Tip: I buy my essential oils from doTerra.
2. Coconut Oil–of course! Right? Coconut oil is the fix all. Its many uses have been documented frequently. I use coconut oil in cooking, baking, and to make personal care products such as sugar body scrubs, toothpaste, and deodorant. If you’re not sure about how to use coconut oil, check out one of these posts:
- The Many Uses of Coconut Oil
- How to Bake with Coconut Oil
- 101 Uses for Coconut Oil
- The Wonders of Coconut Oil
Tip: I love Tropical Traditions coconut oil, you can read my review of TT coconut oil here. They often have specials and deals so keep a look out for those! Or, if you’re looking for a more economic option, I like Nutiva Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
3. Honey: I wrote all about the wonders of honey and I really do consider honey one of the essentials in my home. I use it as a sweetener instead of white sugar, and love making honey lavender syrup and honey sweetened lemonade. However, it also has some other uses in my home. I use it to wash my face, and it’s antibacterial qualities make it great for helping to heal minor cuts and scrapes. Honey is great for sore throats and coughs and I use it to make elderberry syrup all throughout the cold and flu season.
Tip: Make sure to buy local, raw honey if you can find it.
4. Vinegar: Although I haven’t made the switch completely to using white vinegar as my sole cleaner, I always have vinegar on hand and find I use it often. I usually add a splash to my laundry. I clean the tub/disinfect tub toys with it, and it makes a great all-purpose cleaner (mix 1 part vinegar with 1 part water and add in your favorite essential oil). I also always have apple cider vinegar on hand. I use ACV to make apple cider vinegar toner, as well as my Sparkling ACV Water. Read all about the benefits of apple cider vinegar, and check out this amazing story of how to remove a mole using ACV.
Tip: I recommend Bragg Apple Cider Vinegar
5. Castile Soap: I always have a big bottle of this on hand and it lasts for awhile because such a small amount is needed. I use it to make foaming hand wash (just add water to a foaming soap dispenser 3/4 full, and squirt in a few squirts of castile soap), as well as household cleaners.
Tip: I use Dr Bronner’s Magic Pure-Castile Soap
6. Baking Soda: Other than making a great deodorizer and room freshener, I use baking soda to make deodorant and as a household cleaner. You can make a paste by combining baking soda and castile soap, which can be used to scrub sinks, bathtubs, and more! Baking soda is also great as a carpet and mattress cleaner. Add a few drops of essential oil to baking soda and sprinkle it over your carpet or mattress. Let sit for 30 minutes and then vacuum it up.
7. Clay: Clay is a great home remedy for skin irritations, bug/bee stings, as well as burns. It’s also good to have on hand for upset tummies. Clay can be used as a face mask and you can use clay to make your own toothpaste as well. See this post for lots of great info on clay.
Tip: Try Redmond Trading for great clay and products made from clay.
8. Beeswax: Beeswax isn’t something I use as frequently as the rest of the items on this list, but it is always good to have on hand, especially for making salves, and also for the homemade deodorant I use.
Tip: Order beeswax pellets/pastilles–they’re easier to measure and work with. I get mine from Mountain Rose Herbs.
9. Glass Jars: Glass jars of all shapes and sizes always come in handy. I use smaller glass jars to store my homemade sugar scrubs (like my lavender vanilla sugar scrub and my grapefruit-mint sugar scrub), salves, and creams. And larger jars can be used in the pantry to store bulk items such as oats, flours, nuts, and more. For even more ideas, check out 31 Ways to Use a Mason Jar in Your Kitchen.
10. Glass Spray or Pump Bottles: I buy 2 oz, 4 oz, and larger glass spray bottles by the dozen. They are great for making linen and room sprays (like my relaxing lavender and chamomile linen spray,) household cleaners, and bug spray. I use glass any time I am using essential oils in a product because plastic bottles can absorb the oils making them difficult to clean out afterwards and ineffective to use again for other things, so glass is the way to go!
I also save any plastic pump bottles to re-use. You can use them to make your own hand soap in, as a dispenser for honey to wash your face, for lotion, and more.
Of course, there are lots of other fun ingredients and supplies I use, but these are my most used. Depending on what homemade items you like to make, your top 10 may vary from mine…so I’m curious–
What are your essentials for a homemade home?
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