Have you heard of Tea Tree Oil? I first heard of it as an ingredient in my dogs' Hot Spot spray, a topical treatment for sores on their skin. I also started buying an ear cleanser for my pups that included Tea Tree Oil, and then, I wouldn't buy either of these types of products UNLESS it had Tea Tree Oil. Why? It worked. Their sores would heal up because the oil kills bacteria AND the dogs didn't want to lick it off! Their ears smelled better.
Then I heard it was good for a plethora of human issues, too, and that got me a little excited!
Turns out, Tea Tree is one of the most versatile essential oils! It fights all kinds of nasties like lice, yeast infections, cold sores, dandruff, warts, psoriasis, eczema, and my fave - acne!
Apothecary Extracts was founded in 2013 because they wanted a brand of oils that was transparent about what was in them, and where it came from. Their Tea Tree oil is as protected as much as possible from pesticides, and tested by gas chromatography for purity. Their oil is free from preservatives, artificial color, fragrance, chemical solvents, petroleum, mineral oil, and parabens.
Check out the monster bottle you get when you order (exclusively from Amazon.com) - 4 fluid ounces! Most bottles of oil are either 2 oz or less (nail polish bottle is just for comparison - not included!) You're going to want a huge bottle, though, because they also send you an e-book full of recipes.
The bottle has one of those slow dropper applicators. It's handy if you want to put some on a cotton ball, but I found it frustrating to use to count drops for recipes, and I had to take it out all together for measuring anything more than a few drops.
The e-book has lots and lots of recipes - everything from skincare to household cleaners.
I made a few of them over a weekend. First tip: unless you really, really, really love Tea Tree Oil, don't try to make all the recipes in one weekend. I was getting a little sick of the smell. It's strong and medicinal.
My first recipe was a hair treatment made with the Tea Tree Oil and Coconut Oil.
After melting about a Tablespoon of Coconut oil, you simply mix in a few drops of the Tea Tree Oil and then apply it to your scalp. You then can leave it on for 20 minutes, or all night, and then shampoo your hair normally in the morning.
Here's the problem. My hair was already dirty, which meant that my scalp was a little itchy. Then, I put more oil on it.
Then, I scratched my head. Usually, absentmindedly.
Then, I would touch my eyes.
Bad move. The oil, it burns. So, if you're going to do this, try not to scratch your head. Or, don't touch your eyes, or both. Seems pretty simple, doesn't it?
The next morning, I made a batch of their Tea Tree Oil shampoo, with castile soap, a few drops of jojoba, the Tea Tree Oil, and water. It lathered nicely, and made my hair nice and clean. It was actually a good cleanser so that I could do a nice deep conditioning masque and not worry about buildup.
I also made an eczema scrub for my husband to use in the shower.
This was only a little more complicated, and required using a little food chopper to dice up the fresh rosemary and mix it with the salt and lemon rind. Tea Tree Oil and lemon juice were added afterwards. I only made enough for one application. It did seem to dry out my husband's eczema patch on his shoulder.
The last treatment I did was a doozy. It was for a face masque made with clay, Tea Tree Oil, and water. I can't recommend it. The original recipe called for 4 Tablespoons of Tea Tree Oil to 2 Tablespoons of clay (I used Bentonite, which I'd used before) and then enough water to loosen the paste. I only used one teaspoon of each, and then when I added some water, the whole mixture separated into a clumpy mess that I could never quite get integrated again. I could only leave the masque on for about 10 minutes instead of the recommended 15, because my face started *burning*. When I removed it, it looked like I had a bad sunburn. Luckily, we have an Aloe Vera plant, and it was just the thing for cooling down my face.
So, if you're going to use it in a masque, I would recommend starting off with a blend in a carrier oil, or adding a few drops to a store-bought masque or even to a DIY masque. There's no denying that Tea Tree Oil is great for acne, but if you're not used to it, it's a little strong.
I am definitely looking forward to trying this oil for cleaning, and I understand it's great for removing skin tags. I'm going to look for some recipes to make my own doggie products, too, because I know it's great for their skin issues. And now I know that I can get pure, tested Tea Tree Oil from Apothecary Extracts, so why get anything else?
As of this writing, this offer is only available through Amazon.com for $24.99.
Have you ever used Tea Tree Oil? Did you have any idea how versatile it is?
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