Tea Storage and chalkboard paint

How do you store your tea?

I found that the tins that you can buy for your loose leaf tea a bit expensive and also realized I would have to go through all the tins to find the one tea i wanted since the labels were all on the front of the tin. (I have a lot of teas for some reason)

So a trip to the $2 store and I was all set to solve my current issue.
I found some nice glass jars (you can use container you want) I also had some old jars at home that I later added to my tea jars.
I also fished out the left over chalkboard paint from a previous project, you can make your own.

Chalkboard paint
1 cup paint
2 tablespoons non-sanded title grout powder

mix, apply, dry, write.

Once you have chosen your containers give them a wash, the best way is to add a little bit of just boiled water (A tablespoons worth or so since some glass may crack from dramatic temperature change) Swirl it around the jar and it should kill any bacteria, smells, etc.
Dry the lids and jars.

Now paint the jar lids with your paint. some may need two coats. you can paint the whole lid like i have or just enough to write the name of the tea down. Feel free to paint the jars themselves too.

Once the lids and jars are completely dry add in your tea, write the name of the tea and what ever else you want on the lid. I wrote down the type of tea it is too (black, green, white, etc). you can also add what the tea helps with for example sleeping or stomach ache.

Have fun with it, use different colored paint for different teas or just different colored chalk.

Extend it further, paint your herb containers, your homemade beauty products containers, homemade tomato sauce, glassware, the list goes on.

Toothpaste

So I had started making DIY beauty products for one main reason and that was because no matter what I tried none of the commercial products helped my oily hair, so I started to look at other ways to help my hair. When I stumbled upon all sorts of home made beauty products and the like I noticed the home made toothpaste and deodorant and remember thinking that I would never make any of  those because BO and dental care was not something I was willing to mess with.

So naturally I made my own toothpaste.
here are my reasons for it:
I had run out of toothpaste and was too lazy to go to the store, just so I could brush my teeth.
While browsing the net I found out that a lot of questionable things were added to most toothpastes.
I actually read the back of the label on my toothpaste.
lastly and most importantly (at least at the time) I already had everything I needed to make it at home.

Now there are all sorts of recipes out there but here is mine.

Ingredients:
2 parts baking soda
3 parts coconut oil (depends of consistency you want)
optional:
mint extract (for flavor)
2 parts calcium powder
1 part or less sea salt (depends on how salty you want it)

I put about equal parts of baking soda and coconut oil (I wasn't too fussed) But adding a bit more coconut oil will make it less grainy.
a few drops of a flavor peppermint is best for that traditional toothpaste feel and helps with the breath. 

Mix it all together and there you have it.

Use only a small amount and brush your teeth as normal.

This toothpaste thanks to the baking soda will help whiten your teeth.
Calcium powder could also be added to help your teeth out even more.
Also sea salt (the finer the better) can also be added and is great for your teeth.

*I should note that you should not substitute baking powder for the baking soda as some baking powder has traces of aluminum that can be bad for your teeth.*

As for this toothpaste I actually really like it. It was not what I was expecting from a homemade toothpaste and my teeth actually feel nicer from it than they did from a commercial toothpaste.

I guess it won't be too long till I start making by own deodorant.

Do you already make your own toothpaste? Tell me about your recipe below.

Use this recipe or similar? Tell me how its working for you.

Update

So I've been using this recipe for about two weeks now and I have to say I am never going back to buying commercial toothpaste again. 

I would also like to state that prior to the switch I had a slight toothache that I had been meaning to go to the dentist about but no longer have to. After two days of using the baking soda toothpaste my toothache vanished.