Natural Insect Repellents - Tip offered by Designer Nicole

 

With summer officially here, and the awareness for more eco-friendly products on the rise... I thought it might be a good idea to write this weeks blog on natural insect repellents that are easy to make and environmentally conscience. 

 

Natural insect repellent for skin

Get rid of those chemical and synthetic based insect repellents that I'm sure are chock full of parabens.

Things you need:
An essential oil (eucalyptus, lemon eucalyptus, or rose geranium)
A carrier oil (olive, vegetable, or sunflower) or alcohol

How to prepare: Mix one part of essential oil with fifteen parts of carrier oil or alcohol. The natural insect repellent for the skin is ready. I prefer using carrier oils instead of the alcohol because the alcohol tends to make my skin dry. Olive oil is always a good choice if your skin tends to be sensitive to alcohol.  Please note: test a small patch of your skin to make sure you do not have an allergic reaction before spraying full parts of the body.  This recipe has not been approved by the FDA nor any doctor or dermatologist.

 

Natural Insect repellent for stored clothing and outdoors

Things you need:
A citrus fruit, preferably orange or lemon
A sharp knife or a long nail
A bowl of cloves

How to prepare: Use the knife or the nail to make small holes all over the orange or lemon. Then push the cloves into the piercings. Hang the orange/lemon outside in the sun to dry. It may take 4 days or a week to dry, depending on the weather conditions. When it is completely dried, it becomes a natural insect repellent. It works the best when kept in the wardrobes, cupboards, and suitcases containing clothing.  Or you can use these fresh in a bowl outdoors on the patio to help rid the area of pests.

This not only repels the insects but also takes away the stale odor from the stored clothing. So, for me it works as both, an insect repellent and a cloth freshener.

Natural insect repellent for plants

Insects can easily be repelled by the odors they don't like.  If you yourself can stand the odor of this repellent then you can safely use it for indoor plants, otherwise use it in the garden!

Things you need:
1 Medium sized bulb Garlic
1 medium sized Onion
Peppermint oil
Cayenne pepper
Water

How to prepare: Blend garlic and an onion together by adding one liter of water. Sieve the mixture and throw away the pulp. Add 2 tablespoons of cayenne pepper and six drops of peppermint oil to solution. Mix. Let the mixture stand for at least four hours. After four to five hours, fill a spray bottle with the mixture.  Spray away!!!