Herbal Household Remedies

cucumber, oatmeal

• Aching feet can be soothed with a mush of cucumber. Cut up several large cucumbers, whip them into a thick mush in a blender and refrigerate the mush until cold. Find two pans that accommodate your feet, one each, put the mush in the pans and put your bare feet in the mush, squishing it between your toes. Relax and enjoy the soothing cooling sensation.
• If your feet are hot, tired and aching and you long for a hot treatment instead, cook up a large pot of oatmeal, make the consistency soupy. Stick your feet in the pan while the oatmeal is still as hot as you can tolerate it and let your feet soak for an hour. Do not discard the oatmeal solution after using it, it can be used several times if reheated.

cucumber, elderberries, fennel seed and barley

• A slice of cucumber over each eye soothes tired, inflamed eyes. If you suffer from bloodshot eyes, eye itching and eye inflammation because of hay fever and similar allergies, mash cucumber and apply the poultice, in a cheesecloth, on the eyelids for half an hour.
• A tea from elderberries makes a soothing eye lotion for sore eyes. Just cook the berries lightly.
• To get rid of eye strain and irritation of the eyes, cook some barley in plenty of water, then strain. Then bring 1 pint of barley water to a boil and add 1.5 tsp fennel seed. Let simmer for 5 minutes, then steep for exactly 20 minutes.

cucumber

Nature’s own chap stick due to the fat in its skin is the cucumber. Just wipe the cucumber off well and run it over your lips slowly several times.