I have been using essential oils recently and have found they have made a huge impact on my days.  I am able to give myself a pick-me-up, motivation, or the ability to calm down all by adding a couple of drops of my chosen oil to my diffuser. 

Today I got incredibly excited as I opened my newest oil, and I wanted to share why...

I have always been a good person to have around f you are eating starbursts or skittles - most people go for the red and purple ones, but I go straight for the green.  Lime is my friend.  

I love the sharpness of lime and how refreshing it is.  One of my favourite drinks is a G&T, with lots of ice and big a wedge of fresh lime that I squeeze & then drop into the glass.  That sounds as it clinks against the ice, and that smell as the citrus tones hit me when I take the first sip (gulp!) is utter bliss.  

Today I opened my lime essential oil.  It was everything wonderful about spring in a glass.  It was invigorating, fresh, and it smelt so clean. I could imagine sitting in a beer garden, surrounded by daffodils, trying to ignore the 'slightly too cold' breeze as I sipped my first G&T of the year (day!) 

One of the best things? This is 100% pure lime oil, and so it is amazing for baking.  Give a twist to your cupcakes, or revamp that lemon drizzle...

Plus with 250ml per bottle it will last and last.  If you store it in a cool cupboard it will last you up to 2 years.

Another amazing thing? Lime oil helps to lift listlessness and exhaustion, and it can also help with depression. 

So you can bake with it, you can drink it (a couple of drops in a pint of water and you're good to go!) and you can use it in a diffuser or oil burner.  The fact the oils are not padded out with cheaper oils means they are 100% Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade, therefore they are safe to use in food as you know exactly what is in them.  It also means you don't need as much as some other inferior oils as they are so strong.

If you fancy having a play with them you can buy them through me, or directly here: http://mydoterra.com/bubakes be sure to send me pictures of your bakes if you use any! 

Now... I'm off to open that gin... 

lots of love

​Bu xx

A few things that you may or may not know...

- Last week I was in Las Vegas.
- I regularly use Doterra wild orange essential oil to help me alleviate some of the effects of my depression.
- This week I made my first 'Sorting Hat' cake

The first two facts above are related to todays post; the third is just something I'm still smiling about, so I thought I'd share it! 

I wanted to tell you about the fact I have finally found a way to help me with my jet lag, and also pass my tips on to you - not only to help with the symptoms of time travel(!), but also to help in every day life when you need a helping hand to sleep or stay awake.

When I travel to the West Coast of America I always take a few days to sync with the time difference, and as I travel there annually I am always looking for ways to hep with this.  

A couple of my tips are:
- Get as much fresh air as possible within the first 24 hours of landing. 
- Try to alleviate a couple of hours of the jet lag in advance if you can.  Change your watch by a couple of hours a couple of days before you go, and this helps to start to shift your body clock - if you do this please remember that your flight time will still be on UK time! 
- Get some exercise in the mornings of your first couple of days away.  It may seem like a pain, even more so than usual - but I promise it makes a HUGE difference! 
- Finally, I had a new addition to my arsenal this year - and that is a couple of bottles of essential oils. 

The first was Lavender.

Lavender essential oil is traditionally used for balancing the body, and for helping with insomnia.  Therefore it is fantastic for when you need to wind down, even when your mind doesn't seem to want to.  Just a drop rubbed onto the soles of the feet when you need to sleep can work wonders.  As can adding the oil to a diffuser or burning it in an oil burner (note, obviously care needs to be used when using flames at bedtime or leaving them unattended).  You can add a drop to your pillow for the same effect, or to your bath for a natural way to unwind while you soak. 

The second was Peppermint.

Peppermint essential oil is purifying and stimulating to the senses, and can help with mental performance.  Just one drop rubbed between your fingers and then dabbed on the temples is all that is needed, but once again a diffuser to a burner are great.  Another reason it is great while you are away is that a drop rubbed onto your tummy can be great for occasional digestive discomfort (perfect if you are prone to feeling a bit bloated at the end of a flight, after all the carbs they have fed you to try and keep you slumped in your seat!).  Peppermint can even be drunk in water (one or two drops in a litre) to help increase exercise endurance.

How I used them.

This year the clocks had just changed in The States but not done so at home, so we only had a 7 hour time difference to contend with.  That's still enough to throw you off course though, especially if you have had a drink or two on the flight.

When we arrived in Las Vegas I unpacked my trusty oil burner and I burned a couple of drops of peppermint as we unpacked.  I then swapped this for lavender when we were getting ready for bed.  I also rubbed a drop of lavender on the soles of my feet and slept soundly through the night. 

As soon as we woke I started burning the peppermint again, and once again swapped to the lavender at night.  Both Mr BuBakes and I were amazed that we didn't have any signs of jet lag at all!   It was the first time ever we have been away and not had to have afternoon naps for the first couple of days. 

Another test was as we started to make our way home.  We had a night flight that left Las Vegas at 5.35pm and landed at 3.30am - or  10.30am UK time.  On our day of departure as we got on the plane I got settled and waited for our meal.  As soon as I had finished I put some Lavender on my feet and a drop on my travel pillow and slept even though it was only 7.30pm.  When I woke 7 hours later I pulled out the peppermint (as they are only 15ml bottles you can take them on with your hand luggage, which is really such a blessing) and by the time we had landed we were fairly human.

​When we got home I started up my cycle of peppermint and lavender burning at the times we needed to adjust a little, and once again we had no signs of jet lag.  In fact we were both up the next morning and off to work by 6am (which is normal timing for us!) 

I wanted to share this with you all, as it is a natural, and affordable way to help when you want to sleep or need a pick me up.  When you spend so much money on a holiday it always seems such a waste to have the first few days pass in a haze. 

There are many essential oils out there, and the reason I use dōTERRA is because every oil is tested using the CPTG (Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade) quality protocol, so no nasties are added, and no cheaper oils are used to bulk out the more valuable ones.  This means they are superior quality, and less is needed than with many other oils - Each 15ml bottle contains approx 250 drops, meaning they really do last.

If you are interested in these oils, you can purchase them here.

I hope you have found this interesting - I will be posting more about the oils as I use them myself and discover how they help, so if there are any you would like to know about do let me know and I will check them out for you! 

Oh, and here's the Sorting Hat cake... Just in case you hadn't seen it! 

​Lots of love, 

Bu xx