10 Uses For Lavender Around The Home

I love lavender and lavender oil. It is one of my favourite scents, smelling of summer and the country side. It is fresh and uplifting and makes me feel better whenever I smell it. It is also a natural antiseptic and antibiotic, which contains roughly 150 compounds. Lavender essential oil is easily and quickly absorbed into the skin, and can be detected in the blood in as little as five minutes. Lavender has a long history in England, one of the countries it originates from. It had so many day to day uses, from farms -placed in farmers hats to ward off heatstroke, headaches and insects -to homes -used for everything from digestive disorders to cuts and scrapes to exhaustion and insomnia. It was even used in hospitals as an antiseptic and antibacterial cleaning agent. Here are the top ten things we use lavender for in our home:

1. Bath waterInstead of baby bath products, my daughter Ameli baths in a bath half full of water with about five drops of lavender oil in. The smell is great, she smells great and I am content in the knowledge that there’s nothing in her bath that is harmful to her skin
2. Washing LaundryWhen we wash reusable nappies we don’t use conditioner as it shortens the life of the nappy. That with allergen friendly wash powder can cause them to smell a bit funky, and sort of stale, so a few drops in the conditioner drawer and they come out smelling lovely. I was worried at first that doing this would cause oil marks on regular clothes, but it doesn’t, so for the most part we have actually replaced these lavender drops for all our washing. Linen washed with lavender oil retains the scent for a while, leaving everything smelling beautifully fresh.

3. Washing the floors Commercial floor polishes are not only expensive but they are full of chemicals that can irritate the skin of a crawling baby. The chemicals in them are unnecessarily harsh and can often be carcinogenic too. Instead, using a basin of warm water with four or five drops of lavender oil not only cleans and disinfects the floors, but leaves the whole house smelling like summer. If you are replacing your floors with epoxy, get the best epoxy resin flooring services from proresinflooring.co.uk. You can consider installing eco-friendly resin flooring because it’s easy to clean and requires low maintenance.

4. Air FreshenerA few drops of lavender oil in a spray bottle with water serves as an environmentally friendly air freshener
5. Kitchen CleanerIf you are specifically concerned about germs on your chopping board, for instance, you could replace water with vinegar in the spray bottle and use that with lavender oil to improve the vinegar smell.
6. Insect RepellentIf you find yourself outside in the evening a few drops of lavender oil in water sprayed on the skin will keep the bugs away all night. Also, pure lavender oil dabbed on an insect bite will remove the sting and bring instant relief
7. WardrobesDab lavender oil on cotton balls and pop them in any cupboard (or the fridge) to deodorise and remove bad odours. This is also really easy, convenient and non-lethal way to repel months and other insects from your linen closet -just remember to replace the cotton balls from time to time. These no sew lavender bags work really well too.
8. Cuts and Scrapes Lavender on cotton balls used to clean cuts and scrapes are the most natural and environmentally friendly way to disinfect cuts and scrapes. If necessary cover to keep them clean, but mostly leaving cuts and scrapes open to dry up is the best course of action. Then just drop some lavender oil on two or three times to keep it disinfected.
9. Culinary UsesLavender is such a soothing herb. Oil rubbed across the forehead can relieve a headache, a sniff from the bottle or of a live plant can lighten congestion and deep breathing in can lift the mood. A few lavender leaves in hot water with a little honey makes a deliciously refreshing tea, and the leaves can even be used in baking and decorating cakes.
10. Lavender PillowIf you or your child struggle to sleep at night a lavender plant in a muslin cloth or a few drops of lavender on the pillow can help ease the mind and bring on peaceful sleep. You can even use the no sew lavender bags for pillows.

Enjoy having scented flowers around the house all year by receiving flowers by post.

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Do you use lavender oil for anything else? Please do share below!