When we were in England, my cousin Olivia raved about essential oils. She uses them for everything from perfume to cleaning to baths. I was so intrigued! Here are 13 amazing everyday uses… First things first: What are they, exactly? An essential oil is simply a very potent extract from the leaves, stems, roots, flowers or bark of plants. Essential oils are relatively inexpensive and come in hundreds of varieties, from basil to lavender to sandalwood. For the ultimate bath: Add a couple drops of an essential oil to bathwater to help you decompress. (Scents that promote relaxation: lavender, camomile, bergamot, cedarwood and jasmine.) If you have sensitive skin, you can also mix the oil with coconut oil or a bit of shampoo before adding it to the bathwater. For a signature scent: To make your own fragrance, mix 25 drops of your favorite essential oils (sandalwood, patchouli and bergamot are all sexy scents) with 1/4 cup of high-quality vodka (the higher the alcohol content, the better) in a clean glass bottle.

Allow the mixture to sit for two weeks before using. For incredible moisture: Sweet almond oil, which contains vitamins A, B, and E, is a wonderful natural moisturizer. You can rub it on hands and feet, use it to heal chapped lips and even dab a bit underneath your eyes before going to sleep to help reduce dark circles.winix true hepa air cleaner 9300 To heal a pimple: Tea tree oil, known for its healing properties, is great for controlling oily skin and calming blemishes. holmes air purifier hap9422Neem oil is a natural antibacterial and makes a fantastic pimple-fighting potion. honeywell 17000 permanent pure hepa quietcare air purifierMix a few drops each of neem and tea tree oil and dab directly on your blemish with a cotton swab.

(As with any topical treatment, it’s best to spot test a tiny area first to make sure your skin isn’t sensitive to it. Also, beware the strong odor!) For a natural room freshener: Add a few drops of essential oil to a spray bottle filled with purified water and shake it up for an all-natural air purifier. (Lemon, lavender and peppermint work well for freshness, but this will work with any scent.) To make your whole house smell amazing: Add a few drops of your favorite scent to a pot of boiling water and let it simmer. Your whole home will smell fantastic. Warm scents like nutmeg and cinnamon are especially welcoming around the holidays. To make shoes stink less: Put a few drops of lemon or geranium essential oil on a cotton ball and then place into shoes to freshen them up. To freshen while cleaning: You know how vacuums can smell kind of gross? Put a few drops of essential oil on a cotton ball, then place it in your vacuum cleaner bag for help freshening while you clean.

If you have a bag-less vacuum, mix a few drops of essential oil with a small spoonful of baking soda, then vacuum it up! To make your own massage oil: Mix a couple drops of your favorite essential oil(s) with an unscented carrier oil, like avocado or coconut. (The scents of lavender and patchouli help you relax, while vanilla and orange are heralded as aphrodisiacs.) Perfect for an at-home date night. For relaxation: Lavender promotes relaxation, but did you know it may also help with stress and even teeth grinding? Some sources suggest rubbing a few drops on the bottom of your feet (!) before you go to sleep to ensure a restful night. For an energy boost: Peppermint is said to boost your mood and reduce fatigue. Keep a small bottle on your desk to sniff during a long work day or in your bag before you head to the gym. (Note: Peppermint oil can sometimes cause irritation when applied directly to the skin.) To reduce congestion: Eucalyptus oil is lauded as a wonderful decongestant.

The next time you have a cold, simply sniff the scent or place two to five drops on the shower floor and let the scented steam work its magic. For overall well-being: Jasmine oil is said to reduce stress and combat depression. Rub a few drops on your pressure points, like your wrists or temples, when you need a pick-me-up. Jasmine is safe to apply directly to your skin. Bonus: It doubles as a heady perfume. Would you try them? Or do you already use essential oils? I’d love to hear any tips or recommendations…You can find a bunch of essential oils here—I think I’m going to order sandalwood and eucalyptus:) P.S. Lovely fall nail polish. (Research and tips written by Caroline Donofrio. Photos by Kate Jordan for Cup of Jo. Tips found via Real Simple, Style Craze and Edens Garden)One of the very best things you can do for your baby–aside from giving them lots of love and care–is provide him or her with a safe and healthy environment. These days, this concept means more than simply scouring consumer reviews to find the safest car seats, strollers, baby carriers, high chairs, and toys.

Creating a healthy nursery and maintaining a healthier space for your baby also involves taking a long, hard look at your indoor environment. Fortunately, there are many ways you can make your home and baby's nursery healthier and safer–from cleaning the air to choosing eco-friendly paint to installing pollutant-free flooring. To help you tackle this ever-so-important project, Sylvane developed this helpful guide for creating a healthier space for your baby—and entire family. For easier accessibility to the sections in this article, use our topic list below: According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), babies and children may be more vulnerable to environmental exposures than adults for three reasons: Exposure to indoor pollutants—such as allergens, smoke, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), pesticides, chemical cleaners, radon, carbon monoxide, and lead—at such a young age can trigger dangerous health conditions. These can include allergies, asthma, other respiratory disorders, lead poisoning, radon poisoning, and even cancer, to name a few.

The EPA reports that indoor air can be anywhere from two to five times more polluted than the air outside. This can occur for a number of reasons. For instance, your home may lack adequate ventilation and fresh airflow, which means that airborne allergens can be trapped and re-circulated throughout the rooms of your home, including your baby's nursery. Alternatively, your indoor air may contain higher traces of VOCs resulting from those chemical spray cleaners or air fresheners you like to use. Whatever the cause, it's important to take steps to improve the air your baby breathes every day to encourage his or her safe development. Airborne pollutants can enter your home through a multitude of sources. To remove some of these pollutants from the air, run your air conditioning system or the fan-only mode of your air conditioner to filter some of the particulates out of the air. Change your air conditioning filters regularly and keep air ducts clean. In addition, consider using a HEPA air purifier in your nursery, such as the Austin Air Baby's Breath Air Purifier, to help remove tiny allergen particles and airborne chemicals from your baby's breathing space.

For help in identifying specific allergens in your environment so you can remove them more effectively, consider using a do-it-yourself allergen testing. When your baby's nursery is either too hot or too cold, it's much more difficult for him or her to fall and stay asleep. Typically, newborns have a more difficult time staying warm, so it is imperative that your baby’s environment stays at a comfortable sleeping temperature. Consider using a dedicated air conditioner in your baby's nursery, such as a portable air conditioner or a window air conditioner, if you have trouble maintaining a cool temperature in the space. Alternatively, use a portable heater with child safety features if your nursery has a tendency to be too cold. Many nurseries are too humid in the summertime, which can spawn musty odors and mold problems, encourage the spread of dust mites and other pests, and contribute to an overall clammy feeling. Conversely, winter air, which is often too dry, can lead to bloody noses, sore throats, dry skin, respiratory issues—and an overall uncomfortable feeling for your baby.

Keep baby’s room comfortable year-round by maintaining the EPA's recommended indoor humidity level of 45 to 50 percent. In the summertime, your central air conditioner automatically helps reduce moisture levels. However, you may find that to reduce your indoor humidity adequately, you'll need to supplement your AC with a dehumidifier. In the wintertime, add a humidifier to boost your nursery's moisture level and keep your baby happy and restful Lots of parents-to-be wait until the last minute to paint the nursery, especially if they want to coordinate the nursery color with their baby’s gender. Before you do this, remember that fresh paints are a source of VOCs, which are toxic gas emissions linked to a host of health problems. According to the EPA, short-term exposure to VOCs can cause eye, nose, and throat irritation as well as headaches, loss of coordination, and nausea. Long-term exposure to VOCs has been known to cause damage to the liver, kidney, and the central nervous system and even lead to cancer.

Be sure paint your nursery well ahead of your baby's arrival to provide ample time for ventilating the room to remove noxious fumes and gases and prevent adverse health effects. If you are pregnant and plan to paint your nursery yourself, use extreme caution when using conventional paints. It's best to cover your face and body, paint in a well-ventilated area, and take frequent breaks to reduce exposure to airborne toxins. To relieve some of the stress surrounding painting the nursery as well as to protect yourself and your baby from toxic fumes, consider using one of the many low-VOC and no-VOC paints that have entered the market in recent years. Almost every popular paint supplier now produces lines of low-VOC /low-odor paint. Additionally, some paint suppliers produce no-VOC paint that is 100 percent non-toxic. Eco-friendly paints are available in hundreds of colors, so you won't have to sacrifice choice or style when planning your nursery décor. When you have a fast-moving toddler on your hands, it's critical to keep your floors clean and germ-free.

Carpeted floors add another level of concern because they are often notorious traps for dirt and allergens. To clean carpets, be sure to use a HEPA vacuum. Along with removing dirt, dust, and particles, HEPA vacuums contain High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) exhaust filters that prevent airborne allergens from being released back into your environment. For the cleanest carpets and air, consider a Miele vacuum. They feature closed systems in addition to HEPA filtration, making them some of the most effective vacuums on the market. When cleaning hard flooring and other hard surfaces, resist the urge to reach for chemical disinfectants. Chemical cleaning solutions often do more harm than good because they leave behind toxic residues in the air and on your surfaces. Moreover, if not used according to exact manufacturer directions–which often explain that you must leave the chemical on the surface untouched for 10 minutes or longer to adequately disinfect–the chemical agents may not be doing the job you expect.

As a much more effective and green alternative to chemical disinfectants, consider using a steam cleaner. Steam cleaners such as Ladybug steam cleaners and the Vapamore MR-100 use only water and heat to create a dry disinfecting steam that kills germs in seconds and won't leave behind toxic residues. In addition, vapor steam cleaners come with lots of attachments designed to help you easily clean all the nooks and crannies in your baby's nursery. Dust mites, which are tiny, microscopic organisms that can trigger allergies in babies, children, and adults, thrive in moist, warm environments. That means your baby's nursery is often the perfect climate to grow a dust mite population. To create a dust mite-free environment for your baby, consider using allergy bedding. Hypoallergenic bedding promotes a healthier sleep environment because it naturally repels dust mites, airborne particles, moisture, and odors. This bedding is also made from fabrics that are less likely to cause allergic reactions.

If you plan to use regular bedding for your baby, it's important to wash the bedding at least once a week in hot water to reduce the amount of dust mites and dust mite excretions on the fabric. It can be a heartwarming and interactive learning experience to introduce your baby to the family pet, under supervision of course. However, for health reasons, pets should be kept out of your baby's nursery and his or her crib. Pets are known carriers of many allergens, including their own dander and the allergens they pick up around the house. Pets that play outside also come into contact with pests, such as ticks and fleas. It's best to keep Fido or Fluffy out of the nursery, so your baby can enjoy an allergy-free, restful sleep. Visit the sites below to find additional information about creating a healthy environment for your baby. For more information on specific products that can help improve indoor air in your baby's nursery and entire home, please review our extensive product listings and visit our Learning Center.