Natural Wart Remedies

No one wants to look at pictures of warts - so here's an image of ACV

A fan requested this one as her daughter has a wart and she wanted to know if the common home remedy of Apple Cider Vinegar would work.

This proved to be harder to research that I originally thought it would. There currently isn't any published research on this (note to researchers: Get on it!) and the results I found online were mixed. Interestingly enough though, so were the professional treatments, with many people saying after several treatments either with lasers, freezing, or acids, that their warts remained.

The thing about warts that makes them so hard to treat is that they are caused by HPV--yes the same thing that causes genital warts. However there are over 100 different strains of HPV, and being a virus it's not like antibiotics will work on it. On top of that, once you have that strain of HPV, much like the herpes virus, it remains with you forever. And much like herpes, it has a high sexual stigma, though not all strains are transmitted sexually.

So the warts might fade or go away, only to return later. You can get them cut out, but that is extremely painful and leaves scarring.

ACV aside, the list of other home remedies is long, ranging from duct tape, to the really weird ones like rubbing an onion/potato on it, and burying said veg in the garden at midnight over a full moon (I wish I was joking). However things like duct tape have actually been tested, and research is still out on that. There's a lot of conflicting studies on it, though it seems to work only slightly for children, and not at all for adults. The other thing to remember with warts, much like cold sores, is that they will go away on their own given time. How long that is depends on your body, though it seems children with warts tend to heal faster than adults do.

Personally, from the research I've done, it seems that apple cider vinegar may help. It may not always work though, so if that fails you're best bet would be to see a doctor (note that the options of doctors are as varied as the list of home remedies).

I'm filing this one under "Mixed Results" - not enough data is in for me to say this is true, but it's one of those things that wouldn't hurt to try.

Home Remedies for Stretch Marks

"Uncover Stretch Mark Remedies with Things Already in your Home: Its unbelievable the simple stuff that are stretch mark remedies." 

I could narrow this down to one of the dozens, if not hundreds of home remedies for stretch marks, but instead I'll make it easier on everyone.

The truth is: there is no home remedy for stretch marks. Not.a.single.one. Not coconut oil, not vinegar, not mustard oil, shea butter, or drinking a lot of milk.

You see, it all comes down to what stretch marks are. They are essentially tears in your skin, causing thick, discolored scar tissue to build up between. Stretch marks occur in the the resilient middle layer that helps the skin retain its shape. They come in various sizes and degrees, and the truth is, pretty much every single person on the planet has them (yes, even men). When they first form they are dark hues, often red and purples, but after they heal they will fade to become closer to your normal skin tone, often times lighter, and possibly shinier than the surrounding skin, depending on the severity of the marks.

Unlike some scars which are only on the top layer of skin, these run so deep that nothing you apply--from creams to oils--is going to fix that. The only proven way to treat stretch marks is with various medical procedures ranging from prescription retinoids, to lasers treatments, to surgery to literally remove the damaged skin.

But what about prevention? I'm sure any woman who has been pregnant has been given various solutions to preventing stretch marks. Unfortunately not a single study has been able to prove any of these actually aid in preventing stretch marks. At the end of the day, rubbing a bit of shea butter in you skin might not help, but it won't hurt. Just don't be surprised if you end up with stretch marks by the time those 9 months are up.

All Natural Weed Killer

"{Weed Killer} 1 Gallon white vinegar 2 cups multi purpose epsom salt 1/4 cup regular blue dawn dish soap"

I've had a lot of people asking about this one, and even seen it debated on a few of the gardening forums I read. In fact, I'm embarrassed to admit that it was the siren's call of gardening that has kept me away from writing recently. If there is one thing I love, it's gardening. But as anyone with a yard or garden knows, weeds are a major hassle to deal with. You can get all sorts of sprays to treat them, from hiring a professional company to many kinds of pesticides sold at gardening and hardware stores. But what if you're looking for a more natural solution? There's always pulling, but some weeds are hard to remove that way, and if you're staring down a yard full of them, it could take way too long not to mention a back breaking job. 

So in today's post I compare two more natural methods up against a chemical weed killer spray I picked up at the hardware store.

I have a patch of weeds that I've been battling for years (in fact if anyone reading could identify them for me, let me know in the comments!) I even installed a weed cloth in the flower bed to try to combat them, but they've grown along the edge and out of the rocks of the bed where the sheet meets the sidewalk (though I wish at the time I knew about newspaper as a weed barrier, it would have saved a lot of hassle and money in the long run for me!) And to make sure these methods work on various other weeds, I also tested out on my embarrassingly bad curb strip, which is plagued with awful thorny weeds. 

So here are the contenders: Boiling water, vinegar/soap/epsom salt mix, and a commercial spray. 

I marked each section I was going to spray, and then I mixed up the solution - 2 cups vinegar, 1/4 epsom salt, and a bit of Dawn dish soap. All of these are on the list of "Cure Alls" that are common on sites like pinterest, so I was a bit skeptical. To make sure the water stays boiling, I poured it into a insulated carafe before bringing it outside.

Here are the weeds in their before state:

And 24 hours later: 

Boiling Water: 

As you can see, the boiling water had the most effect on the weeds. I made sure to pour it as close to the ground as I could. I've actually used this method before with GREAT success, and it's been my go to weed killer this summer. You do have to be careful when using it that you aren't killing the plants around it. I use a carafe with a small pour spout, so I have better control over where the water goes. 

I give it an A. It's both effective, easy to use, and about as cheap as you can get. What's not to love?

Vinegar/Epsom Salt/Soap Mix: 

Much to my surprise, the vinegar/epsom salt/soap mix actually did a pretty decent job! I made sure to soak the leaves as well as the base of the weeds, though the stems of the weeds are still green (compared to the dead stems from the boiling water). 

I would give this a B. I still prefer boiling water - it's easier to make, and I have no idea what this mixture is going to do to my soil, unlike boiling water (which really the only real risk is killing off the soil flora, something easily fixed by either leaving it alone or adding some fertilizer to it)

Chemical Spray: 

And the Ortho spray didn't do a single thing. I'm not even joking. I'm shocked. Utterly shocked. I followed instructions, I sprayed both the leaves and the soil. and they don't look even phased. I honestly have no idea why this didn't work even a bit, you'd expect after 24 hours that the leaves would at least start to curl like they do when they are sprayed with products like this. I give this a big F.

So there you have it.. set down the costly sprays and reach for an electric kettle. Test these out in your own yard or gardens and let me know how it works for you. And if you have any other natural weed killers you'd like me to test out, post them over on our facebook page or on twitter and let us know. 

Salt and Vinegar to Remove Rust

"Solution for rusty tools. Soak overnight in vinegar and salt for good as new!"

I have a problem with moisture in my studio, which means if my tools don't get put away properly, rust happens. I found a cache of bits and burs I had left in a jar tucked away on my bench, and they were a mess of rust. I realized this would give me a great chance of testing out a pin I found awhile back, suggesting that vinegar could easily remove rust. 

Having used up all of my white vinegar for egg dying, however (I mean really, what else were we going to do with dozens of eggs after our test of popular hard boiling methods?), I did have some apple cider vinegar on hand, and it has the same acidity level as white vinegar (5%) so I figured I'd go ahead and test this out. I bought a commercial rust remover just in case and decided to test them out side by side to see which comes out the winner. I was honestly a bit nervous about testing this out since these aren't cheap burs, and I know salt water is just about the worst thing you could introduce to your tools. 

They both smelled pretty bad honestly and my kids were complaining, so I had to keep them stored overnight in my studio. After 24 hours I checked on the bits to see how they were doing.. The commercial rust remover in the forefront there, was looking pretty murky and dark. The vinegar salt combo in the back, on the other hand, just looked dingy and oddly foamy. 

I washed them with a bit of dish soap and then patted dry with a paper towel.

Can you guess which is which? 

The burs with rust still on them were the ones who got the vinegar salt bath, the blackened, yet rust free, burs are the ones who got the chemical bath. 

Now I've since seen a few youtube videos on this, and it seems that yes, it does work, to a degree at least. You have to admit the bits do look less rusty compared to the before photo, but they aren't rust free. The videos recommend scrubbing the rusted item with a coarse bristle brush. However these bits are tiny. Something like this might be worth a shot on random tools you pick up at a yard sale, but when faced with delicate costly work tools (or burs and bits in this case) I'm going to reach for the chemical bath. Not only that, but scrubbing alone will remove the rust. So the vinegar might loosen the rust, but you still have to scrub - if that's the case, you might as well soak it in anything and go to town with a steel wool pad.

Though really, I'll work better at putting my tools away, so I hopefully won't have to test this out again any time soon.

Good Idea Friday - The Truly BEST Fruit Fly Trap

Fruit Fly Trap : Wormilicious

That's a pretty bold statement in the title, I know. And today's Good Idea Friday didn't come from Pinterest (sorry!) but it's so amazing that it should be on Pinterest.

A few weeks ago we woke up to a to a huge fruit fly invasion, out of the blue. Apparently they are really common this time of year. We spent the day cleaning the kitchen really well, setting out glasses of wine with a few drops of dish soap in it, and figured that would take care of that.

We were wrong. Very wrong. By the next day, they had invaded every room of the house. I was so skeeved out I wanted to run out of my house screaming. So we spent all day doing a huge deep cleaning of the entire house, setting houseplants outside, pouring boiling water down the drains, trying the paper cone method that is fairly popular. We even set out bowls of fruit and vinegar, with plastic wrap over it with holes poked in.

By day three however, it was apparent nothing was working. None of the traps seemed to work. They just hung out on the rim of the soap laced glasses, and very few ventured into the paper cone method or plastic wrapped bowls. We talked of bug bombing the house, because at this point I couldn't even pour myself a glass of wine without having fruit flies instantly descend into the glass.

But as luck would have it, we didn't need to bug bomb the house. Instead, we grabbed the fly tape. Yes, the cheap fly tape you can get at the dollar store. We hung it over the sink with a glass of wine below it, and waited. By the next morning, there were noticeably less fruit flies flying around, and the fly tape was honestly disgusting looking it. By day two of having the fly tape up, we were pretty much fruit fly free.

Unfortunately my husband and I were so grossed out by the sight of the fly tape that we tore it down before I got a photo of it for the blog, but trust me when I say this is by far the quickest easiest method I've ever tried to get rid of fruit flies. I decided to do a google search and was amazed to only find one blog post about this method. Over at Wormilicious, she builds a really ingenious trap using fly tape as well. In fact, my husband was trying to figure out how to get a fly tape around the glass to begin with. I think next time we end up with an invasion on our hands, we're going to try her method.

Post Update: I've also had a few people ask about where to get sticky tape for the fruit fly trap. I found some just the other day at Winco actually, but I assume most hardware stores will carry it. It's actually marketed as a window tape for flies, it comes in a little package that reminded me of those hand warmers you find around winter time.  And of course you can find it on amazon if you don't feel like hauling yourself to the hardware store.

Baking Soda and Vinegar Instead of Helium to Inflate Balloons

"No helium needed to fill balloons for parties.....just vinegar and baking soda!"

This is a pin that if anyone took middle school science class, they shouldn't be pinning. Why? Because you can't just make up helium. Can you use baking soda and vinegar to fill balloons? Sure. But it's not going to float like helium will. You're better off just blowing them up with your own breath, unless you are planning on using it as a science experiment for kids. Which, come to find out, is what the image is actually depicting. 

A quick search and I found the source of the image. Over at the blog Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas, she writes about a common trick of using vinegar and baking soda to fill a balloon, showing off the gas the chemical reaction produces. In fact, she has even added a disclaimer on the post explaining that this will not produce helium. Helium is a naturally occurring gas, you can't just make it. It's number 2 on the periodic table of elements, meaning it's lighter than air (which is primarily made up of heavier oxygen and nitrogen), which is why when you fill a balloon with helium, it floats instead of sinking like if it were filled with air. (The only reason an air balloon sinks in the first place is because you're loading it up with compressed molecules, making it heavier than the air around it.) The gas produced from baking soda and vinegar, however, is your run of the mill carbon dioxide. Since carbon dioxide is heavier than air, it won't float. In fact, technically it will be heavier than if you simply filled it normally with air.

So there you have it, this is a great experiment for the kids, but don't think this is going to magically replace helium in balloons. 

DIY Water Marbles

"Water marbles! Crazy how a few kitchen ingredients will make these. Weird, I can't wait to try. Science party? THIS is COOL!" 

Oh these are fun! My kids have quite a few themselves that it seems they are constantly playing with, so the idea that we could spare a few bucks and just make it ourselves is always nice. According to the links, all it takes are a few easy kitchen ingredients - baking soda, vinegar, and salt. (is there anything apparently baking soda and vinegar can't do?!) mix parts of baking soda and vinegar then freeze, mix with salt and more vinegar then boil. This apparently will get you your own set of water marbles.

But it's false. What you'll end up with is a huge mess to clean up. It's a hoax. Water marbles are polymers, not something you can just cook up normally in your house. There's a great write up over at ChemSpider on this hoax, which originated with a Youtube video and has quickly been making the circuit everywhere. 

Miracle Vinegar Ice Melt

"Saving this idea for the Cold Days ahead! Hate scraping off ice! Ice Proofing the Car Windows with 2/3 Vinegar 1/3 water! Just spray on windows and ice will melt away! Totally making a bottle of this for this winter!" 

This was a request from a friend, who wanted to know how true this pin was. Because honestly who doesn't hate having to take an extra 30 minutes in the winter to shovel your way out, scrape ice, warm up your car. Ick. That's an extra 30 minutes I could have spent in my nice warm bed.  

I was hoping to be able to test this out myself before posting about it, but here in the Pac Northwest we seem to be keeping a steady 40 degrees and rain, so I haven't been able to test it out. However due to science and numbers, I can say this is most likely false. 

Why? Well first off, the pin states "spray your windows and watch the ice melt away!" I've also seen the same idea that says if you put it on your windows before it snows or becomes icy it will prevent ice from building up on the windows. But vinegar (one of the biggest go to miracle items of pinterest - its up there with magic erasers and coconut oil go to Cure Alls) has a freezing point of 28°F. That is only a few degrees lower than water. So if you're outside and it's 31°F and you happen to keep this vinegar mix inside meaning it's room temperature this MIGHT work. It's not going to cause the ice to just melt away though. And if you apply it before night to prevent ice, you're going to wake up to a smelly frozen vinegar water snow ice mix you get to scrape off. On the other hand, the freezing point of  sodium chloride (aka: Salt) is around -6°F, you stand a better chance at getting results with salt water than you do vinegar. 

Now I'm not a car person, but a few forum posts about this also brought up the issue vinegar is an acid by nature, so too much vinegar on your car's metal or chrome trim and detailing might just damage it. 

All in all, this one is a bad idea. Not to mention a time waster, since you're still going to have to scrap that ice once the vinegar failed to melt the ice away. Alcohol based DIY deicers might work better as would windshield fluid designed for winter use. 

But what CAN you do to help cut back time in the morning scraping ice? An amazingly simple item you probably have in your home can in fact prevent snow and ice from clogging up your windshield. Cardboard. Simply cover your windshield with cardboard, holding it in place with the wipers  If that's a little too unsightly for you, you can also buy covers made just for this purpose.