It would appear that our new puppy came to us bearing a fungal gift!

Does anyone have any suggestions of a really good natural way to treat Ringworm on a dog? I have been thinking Tea Tree Oil would be best.

I just feel hesitant to use the anti-fungal wash prescribed by the vet as I am 8 months pregnant and don't like the look of the chemicals on the back! My husband isn't home often enough to wash her three times a day so it's down to me!

Any suggestions or experience treating this sort of thing? I don't want to be stuffing around with natural treatments if they aren't going to work as I'd like the ringworm gone before baby comes!

What would you do if you were me?

i have a pair of leather boots that i'd like to waterproof. i know i can buy all sorts of mixes, but i'd like something that is more natural, even if i'll have to apply it more often, unless 'more often' means every time i wear the boots in snow or rain. i read that lanolin is one possibility, are there others?

x-posted to thetrail

I've recently received 2 pieces of hand-me-down furniture. One is a baby change table and the other is a beautiful old wooden rocking chair. They have been in storage apparently and are dusty and dirty. I want to clean these pieces - I normally use natural cleaning products and I am pregnant so it feels particularly important that I continue to use natural. These pieces are dirtier than I am used to cleaning. Any ideas on what I can use?

The change table is wood with a painted finish - once clean my partner is going to repaint it.

The rocking chair is varnished/lacquered wood that probably won't be refinished.

Thanks in advance.

Hello all, I have a slight problem. I currently have a sinus infection that I am on antibiotics for. However, I am finding that as the infection is draining one of the glands on my neck is, by the looks of things, getting infected as well, while I am still on the antibiotics. Do any of you have any suggestions on ways to beat the secondary infection, or help the antibiotics along? I have already been drinking lemon honey and ginger tea with a small amount of salt and gargling with warm water (boiled then cooled) and salt.

Thanks

Does anyone know of a place where I can find just the reeds that go in those reed diffusers everyone is selling? I hesitate to buy a diffuser kit because I can't be sure that the fragrances aren't awful for me, and because I can make a natural one for pennies on the dollar with some essential oil, an empty bottle, and reeds. But all I can find are wholesale reeds, and I really don't need that many. Any ideas?

renaissance2010
Turning to photography as a creative outlet during a valiant fight with breast cancer at age 34, renaissance10 survived and set up a photo contest to help raise funds for the Lavender Trust, a nonprofit that provides information and support to younger women with breast cancer. In the first two years, the competition brought in over £65,000 (that's $107,260.73 U.S.!), with entries from 130 countries last year. Renaissance10 recently joined LiveJournal to meet other passionate photographers and find supportive friends.

curiouscupcakes
Holy buttercream frosting! If you have a sweet tooth for sugary goodness or a wandering eye for whimsical confection, this is pure ecstasy iced in deliciousness. Hailing the beloved cupcake as the artisinal canvas of choice, you'll enjoy recipes, photos, and bountiful tips to bake up a batch, whether your taste leans toward French classics or funky and flavorful.

mission101
With New Years in the offing, it's an ideal time to reflect on past accomplishments, make peace with disappointments, and refocus the lens on future goals. This community welcomes you to create a bucket list of 101 things you plan to accomplish in the next 1,001 days. Offering support, guidance, and inspiration, this is a great way to jumpstart those pesky resolutions.

 Hey everyone!
Due to the plumbing structure in my not-so-well-planned-out house, the toilet gets clogged very easily.  We have tried plunging and it doesn't quite work everything down the drain.  
We are trying to not use Drano (work that work on a toilet clog anyway?), so what can we use?
I've checked the tags before posting and most posts seem to be about hair clogs... not really so much about human waste...
Help?
Thanks!!!!

I've used up my 2 non-stick frying pans and bought a few new ones.  The old ones are in such bad shape that I wouldn't feel good freecycling them.  I also feel awful about tossing them into the garbage.  Any creative (disposal) ideas?

So, I got curious and looked up the Johnson's baby wash in the cosmetic database. EW.
Any recommendations for a good baby wash that won't cause cancer down the road?

Please bear with me if there are typos, or bad grammar, or sentances just sound a bit confusing - i'm having some major neurological issues and my mind is a little weird right now, and thinking is a bit difficult. I waited til I was having a good patch to post so it should make sense.

Because of these issues I've been given a commode by occupational therapists at the hospital I was in.
I won't explain the health issues any more than what I've said, but for those who don't know, a commode is a portable toilet. They use them in hospitals a lot for patients who can't walk for whatever reason, so they can wheel the toilet to their bed and close the curtains around it.

I will be using it in my bedroom at night and then wheeling it into the bathroom for the day time, where it will sit over my toilet, providing a solid case so I can transfer safely from my wheelchair.

Obviously when it.s over the toilet, cleaning is no issue as stuff goes straight into the toilet.

I know how to clean the bowl out, and keep it safe, but what about odours? I'm worried that a commode that's been used, sitting near my bed all night will be gross, if not a worry on the health front.
The ot was all for the idea of using it at night in the bedroom and just cleaning it in the morning, so it must be a common thing.
Any ideas for keeping the smell down?

Thanks in advance

I've been reading up trying to find some natural nail polishes and found out my old staple OPI nail polish has ingredients that can cause cancer??????
It seems that everything causes cancer nowadays :(
Have you ever heard anything bad connected to OPI nail polishes?
And if so do you use any "natural" nail polishes ( if such a thing exists..?)

My godmother just gave me these bath salts from Body Nature. It's some sort of wal mart product and it doesn't have any ingredients on it. I've googled it a lot, but there's nothing except reviews. Has anybody ever seen this brand? Used it? Happen to know what's in it? I would like to use it, but if it's like half the bath stuff I have, it's completly toxic.

I have some hair growing on my chin and upper lip and if I’m not mistaken it has to do with hormonal imbalance. I do waxing and electrolysis to get rid of it but I was wondering if anyone has uncovered some natural way to balance out the hormones so the hair will just stop growing? When I was on birth control not as much grew but then I went off it and more has started to grow. Any advice would be very much appreciated.

When you have a stick of incense or a candle or a minute herbal tobacco cigarette or you want to start a fire in your mud oven, what do you use to start your fire?

Matches?
Plastic bic style lighter?
Refillable Zippo style lighter?
Magnesium flakes + flint & steel?
A flint and steel?
Friction?

What's the smallest footprint, greenest, most environmentally responsible day-to-day fire starting you regularly use?

So my brother and his girlfriend are all about The Master Cleanse and I'm almost sold on it. But I thought I might just inqire here to see it any one has tried it. I'm only thinking of doing the ten day one and seeing how it goes. But any light anyone might be able to shed on this would be helpful.
Thank yous :)
~Nicola

Have any of you guys tried Jason shampoo?

I am using it now and I feel like it is improving my hair a little bit.

How do you suppose I get cigarette smell out of raw wool? My mother-in-law gifted me a pound of undyed wool to spin into yarn, but her husband smokes, and the plastic bag was not sealed. So now I have one pound of stinky wool. It's airing out in the other room, but I'm not sure what I can do to aid the process. I don't think I can stand to work with it and turn it into yarn before trying to get the stink out, so I need ideas for regular wool roving.

ETA: Do you think sealing it in a plastic bag with an open (upright) box of baking soda will help?

One of my goals for the next year is to totally phase out paper towels. I would like to get up a stash of cloth towels or rags that is large enough I can go a week or two without running out, while still using them as often as I use regular paper towels. I'm debating whether to buy fabric or just to cut up some old t-shirts and use those. I mainly use paper towels for wiping down the counter, squeezing out potatoes for hash browns, or for soaking up bacon grease. What do you all use for this kind of thing? Any specific fabrics that you like or that work better than others?