Product Blog

Tis’ the season for holiday styles and updos—and for winter weather to wreak havoc on your hair. Did you know that the cold, dry weather can cause hair to be brittle and unhealthy? On top of that, indoor heating can dry it out even further, causing extra frizz and making it even harder to style. So to help combat bad hair days during the holidays, here a few essential oil-infused recipes to help you protect and repair weather-worn hair:

Hot Oil Treatment for Damaged Hair

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c. organic soybean oil or organic sunflower oil
• 8 drops Young Living sandalwood essential oil
• 8 drops Young Living lavender essential oil
• 8 drops Young Living geranium essential oil

Directions:

Mix all ingredients well. Warm oil to a comfortable temperature and apply the mixture to damp hair. Cover hair in a plastic wrap and apply a hot towel for 20 minutes. Shampoo.

Lavender & Rosemary Hot Oil Treatment

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c. organic soybean oil or organic sunflower oil
• 5 drops Young Living rosemary essential oil
• 10 drops Young Living lavender essential oil

Directions:

Mix all ingredients well. Warm oil to a comfortable temperature and apply the mixture to damp hair. Cover hair in a plastic wrap and apply a hot towel for 20 minutes. Shampoo.

Super Deep Hot Oil Treatment

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp. coconut oil
• 1 Tbsp. almond oil
• 1 Tbsp. jojoba oil
• 1 tsp. evening primrose oil
• 5 drops Young Living rosemary essential oil
• 5 drops Young Living Roman chamomile essential oil

Directions:

Melt coconut oil in a double broiler on low temperature. Add other carrier oils and allow to cool. Add essential oils. Apply to hair and wrap in a towel for 30–45 minutes. Shampoo.

By treating your locks to these hot oil treatments, your tresses will not only survive winter, but will also be beautiful and healthy come springtime. The Lavender and Rosemary Hot Oil Treatment is one of my favorites: Let me know which one works for you! And if you’re looking for additional cold weather hair protection, try implementing the following tips into your daily hair care routine:

• Wash your hair with lukewarm water. Hot water can strip your hair of moisture, and during the winter you need all the moisture you can get!

• Use a quality conditioner. If you have dry hair to begin with you may want to look for a hair conditioner that is made for dry hair, such as Young Living’s Rosewood Moisturizing Conditioner.

• Use styling tools designed to lock in moisture. Using hair tools such as ionic hairdryers and ceramic-plated straighteners will style your hair without drying it.

• Don’t go outside with wet hair. If you expose wet hair to cold winter weather, you risk the possibility of your hair freezing, which leaves it prone to breaking and getting severely damaged.

• Use a deep conditioner or hot oil treatment at least once a week. Your hair needs this extra attention to help repair and undo winter damage. Check out the end of this post for some essential oil-enhanced recipes for home hair treatments!

• Wear a hat or wear your hair up as much as possible. Choose a hat that will not flatten your hair completely, but one that will just cover up most of your hair. Fortunately, there are lots of cute style choices that can make this attractive as well as functional. Wearing your hair back and up will also help reduce exposure to the cold. Just remember: This doesn’t have to be the typical ponytail. Experiment with cute updos or sleek chignons to help protect your hair.

• Rub a dryer sheet on your hair brushes and combs to minimize static electricity. This might sound silly, but it works! Because most people have their heat on and their house closed up, static cling is a huge problem in winter. This simple little trick will save you that highly undesirable frizz frenzy.

—Rebecca Jarvis

Product Manager, Essential Living

It’s no secret that the average American gains a lot of weight around the holiday season—anywhere from seven to ten pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, in fact.* But even if you’re not ready to give up all your holiday indulgences (pass the egg nog), there’s still plenty you can do to maintain a healthy eating routine during the coming season.

As you prepare for the upcoming holiday parties and special occasions, remember these tips and you’ll be in good shape come the New Year:

1. Don’t skip meals—It may be tempting to skip lunch in anticipation of a turkey feast, but cutting back during the day often leads to eating excess later. If you eat regularly during the day and focus on healthy snacks, you will be much less tempted to splurge as the day goes on.
2. Control your portions—As with any good diet, moderation is the key to maintaining your health. You can go ahead and enjoy your favorite dessert, just treat yourself to a reasonable serving.
3. Eat slowly—There’s no need to be in a rush! Concentrate on conversing with friends and family. Take small bites and chew completely. Then, once you are finished with your meal, leave the table to avoid further temptation.
4. Bring healthy alternatives—If you have a food assignment, replace high-calorie dishes with a healthier option. For example: In place of pumpkin or pecan pie, try Young Living’s Apple Wolfberry Pie (see recipe below).

Don’t forget that Young Living Therapeutic Grade™ essential oils are a great way to incorporate healthy habits into your holiday celebrations. Did you know that when you cook with essential oils, you get all the great taste of traditional herbs and spices without any unnecessary preservatives? And from November 14–20, you can get a special discount on some of our most popular cooking oils. Check the promotions section of www.youngliving.com for more information on the Holiday Cooking with Essential Oils promotion and remember to have a fun and healthy holiday season!

Apple Wolfberry Pie Filling

¾ c. Blue Agave
1 drop nutmeg essential oil
2 drops ocotea essential oil or cinnamon bark essential oil
4 c. organic apples, peeled and sliced (Granny Smith is preffered)
1 Tbsp. rice flour
½ c. dried wolfberries

Mix all ingredients (except rice flour) in a large skillet. Simmer until apples are soft and crisp. Add rice flour and mix until blended. Place in an unbaked pie shell and apply an egg wash around the edge of the shell. Add the pie top and pinch the edges together. Make at least four two-inch slits on top of the pie to release stem. Place on a baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for ten minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake an additional fifteen minutes, or until crust is lightly browned. Makes pie filling for one pie.

* http://www.betterhealthusa.com/public/273.cfm

It’s the time of year when all types of masks abound! Scary and spooky is definitely in the air. But when the festive mask and makeup comes off, so should the looks of fright. That means it’s also the perfect time of year to start incorporating a different kind of mask into your beauty routine. Taking a few minutes a week to give your face some special attention will be a treat for you and help keep your skin refreshed, rejuvenated, and in its best condition in any season!

There are several recipes for facial masks you can make at home utilizing the benefits of essential oils and green clay. Each mask listed below is designed for a specific skin type. Find the one that works best with your skin type and do a little pampering! A good mask usually isn’t needed more than once a week, but you can utilize certain formulations more as needed.

Green Clay Mask Base

Although clay masks are thought to be drying, they contain great benefits for the skin and can be used very successfully in your beauty regimen.

Green clay has become the talk of the beauty world. The absorbent properties of green clay work in beauty treatments by drawing out impurities and toxins from the skin, toning and firming while stimulating circulation. Estheticians use it to tighten pores, exfoliate dead skin, and reveal a smoother, fresher complexion. Green clay is readily available online and at natural beauty retailers. It makes an ideal base for any of the masks below.

Create your mask base by mixing green clay together with a little cornflower and a quarter teaspoon of powdered raw oats.

Mask for Normal Skin

For a normal skin, mix the clay, cornflower, and oats together with one beaten egg white and floral water. Add one drop geranium oil and one drop neroli oil. Mix well to form a paste and apply.

Mask for Dry Skin

For a dry skin, mix the clay, cornflower, and oats together with one beaten egg white and floral water. Add one teaspoon wheat germ oil or evening primrose oil, plus one drop chamomile (Roman or German) oil and two drops carrot seed oil. Mix well to form a paste and apply.

Mask for Oily Skin

For an oily skin, mix the clay, cornflower, and oats together with one beaten egg white and floral water. Add one drop lavender oil and one drop frankincense oil or juniper berry oil. Mix well to form a paste and apply.

Mask for Problem Skin

For a problem skin, mix the clay, cornflower, and oats together with one beaten egg white and floral water. Add one drop lavender oil, one drop tea tree oil, and one drop neroli oil. Mix well to form a paste and apply.

Rejuvenating Skin Mask

For a general skin boost, mix the clay, cornflower, and oats together with one beaten egg white and floral water. Add one teaspoon jojoba oil, one drop chamomile oil, one drop frankincense oil, and one drop myrrh oil. Mix well to form a paste and apply.

Before Application

Before applying the mask, make sure that the skin is cleansed properly and dried by patting it with a towel. A light exfoliating cleanser such as Satin Facial Scrub Mint will work well in prepping the skin for the best mask application.

After applying any of the masks, leave on for at least fifteen minutes and wash off with lukewarm water and pat the skin dry. Apply moisturizer. ART® Day or Night Activator is a good recommendation for effective and refining moisture with the benefits of frankincense.

Note: If you have never used essential oils or green clay and are prone to allergies, do a patch test on a small area to gage sensitivity before applying any of these masks.

Take a few minutes to work a mask in your beauty regimen this Halloween season and beyond. Your skin is sure to benefit and you will never be confused for a ghoul or goblin—unless of course you choose to wear it when opening the door for trick-or-treaters!

—Rebecca Jarvis
Product Manager, Essential Living

From Gary Young personally mixing shots to the NXR dancers, the NingXia Red® bar was one of the many exciting highlights from convention in Minneapolis. Check out this short video and enjoy a few of our favorite NingXia Red shot recipes!

“Who Let the Dogs Out?”
2 oz. chilled NingXia Red
1 drop lemon or orange essential oil
2 drops tangerine essential oil
1 drop frankincense essential oil
1 drop cinnamon bark essential oil (That is where the barking came from!)

“The Unnamed”
2 oz. chilled NingXia Red
2 drops of each:
Frankincense
Peppermint
Tangerine
Grapefruit
Ocotea

“The Nuclear Explosion”
2 oz. chilled NingXia Red
1 drop of each:
Peppermint
Lavender
Frankincense
Lemon
Tangerine
Orange

If you didn’t get a chance to visit the bar this year, you’ll have to make your way to convention 2010 in Salt Lake: We are already planning some amazing surprises!

We’ve talked in previous posts about the benefits of exfoliating to give your skin a great glowing boost in summer or all year round. An excellent scrub to use is one that includes salt. Using a salt scrub once a week will eliminate the dry, dead cells on the surface of your skin. This will speed cell turnover and let great skin shine through. Plus, salt contains minerals like magnesium that add an extra level of benefits to your skin pampering routine.

There are some great recipes for salt scrubs that you can make at home. One favorite of mine includes salt, cucumber, and buttermilk. The salt and the buttermilk’s lactic acid exfoliate and the cucumber cools.

This scrub is perfect for exfoliating before applying a self tanner or just for a weekly exfoliation boost.

Buttermilk/Cucumber Salt Scrub

You need:
1 medium cucumber, peeled and grated (use a cheese grater)
1 c. buttermilk
1⁄2 c. sea salt or kosher salt (I prefer sea salt, but both will give you great results!)

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