I was shopping online for a candle the other day and quickly realized this: candles have gotten very expensive! Soy candles, aromatherapy candles, eco-friendly candles in fancy jars. If only there was a way to create some nice romantic lighting without breaking the bank.

But wait – there is! Introducing the orange peel candle: the solution to expensive candle-buying syndrome. And it’s a guaranteed prize for getting your daily dose of vitamin C from its citrusy contents.

Naturally providing the candle holder from the peel and the wick from the pith, all you need is a little oil and voila – you’ll have yourself a candle in no time!

Related: 5 ways to use orange peels in the kitchen – candied and

Try the fun and easy process for yourself by following along:

1.  First, slice your orange in half. That’s the half with the knobby part on the outside – the one I’m holding in my right hand, in the picture. The pith coming from that knob is stronger and will make for a better wick.

2. Remove the fruit, being careful to leave the thick string of pith that extends up from the center intact. I used a spoon to make a nice clean shave inside the orange peel towards the end of this step.

3. Fill the orange peel with oil of your choice. Here in my kitchen in Greece, where I’m currently living for work, I had only sunflower oil and extra-virgin olive oil. Deciding to save the latter for eating, I went with the sunflower oil. Do not drown the string of pith that extends upward – remember, this is your wick!

4. Light it up! (Optional soundtrack: “Light It Up” by Major Lazer, followed by “(Burn Baby Burn) Disco Inferno” by The Trammps) It took a while for the pith to catch fire; I felt as if I was toasting a marshmallow, watching in eager anticipation. Just be patient, and it will light. Good things come to those who wait!

5. Optional: Create candle covers by cutting shapes into the as-of-yet unused orange peel halves. I chose a crescent moon and a star.

6. Especially optional: Place your candle in a bowl that’s filled with water. Marvel as it floats around, and place a freshly picked flower in the water. You can customize your add-ins; choose your favorite leaf or flower to add an herbal or floral note to the orange scent from the peel. And then – because why not – take a selfie.

A word of caution: I left my orange peel candle out for a couple nights, and when I checked back, I saw that hundreds of fruit flies had come to feast. Most had died in their gluttony, floating in the oil inside the orange peel, but many were lingering above it. So I’d suggest refrigerating your orange peel candles after their first use, if you plan to reuse them later.

What do you do when life hands you oranges? Why, make orange peel candles, of course! If you have grapefruits or lemons, you can also make candles from their peels using this how-to guide.

The post The orange peel candle: A how-to guide appeared first on Green Prophet.

Like our popular guide on reusing air conditioner water, old tea bags ? … that’s easy. As an avid tea drinker, I was intrigued when I stumbled upon a variety of sources that promoted the eco-friendly use of tea bags, outside the teacup. Arthur W. Pinero, an Englishman, of course, said, “Where there’s tea, there’s hope.”  That’s definitely true.  Brewed tea bags can provide a pick-me-up in ways you’d least expect.  Here are 13 of them. You can use tea…

1. As a cold compress.

Got tired eyes, bruises, or sunburn? Bee stings or mosquito bites?  Did your child just get a shot at the doctor’s but the free lollipop wasn’t consolation enough?  Apply a cool, moist tea bag made from black tea to these kinds of affected areas on the skin to get soothing relief and quicker healing.

2. As a hot compress.

Trying to get rid of pinkeye, canker sores or fever blisters?  Or maybe a plantar wart smack dab in the middle of the sole of your right foot?  Warm, wet tea bags can draw out the infections.

3. To clean your carpets.

For more delicate, Persian or Oriental carpets, sprinkle almost-dry tea leaves on the carpet, and then sweep them away when dry.  Tea leaves on more heavy-duty carpets can be vacuumed.

4. To take a flavored bath.

Treat your skin as you would your taste buds, in the bathtub.  Give your bath salts a run for their money by running the bath water over several used tea bags.  You’ll have yourself an aromatic, skin-softening soak in no time.

5. To feed your garden.

Cultivate your healthy plants and bring your dying ones back to life by breaking open a soaked tea bag and disseminating the contents over the soil.  Roses and ferns do especially well with the acidic tannins found in black tea.

Don’t have a garden? Add the used tea leaves to your enrich your compost pile – and if you don’t have that, make one.  (Remember to take the staples out of the tea bag, if there are any.)

6. To eliminate odors around the house.

Put dried tea leaves in your garbage can and your kitten’s litter box.  They’ll also suck up food odors when stuck in a bowl in the fridge.  And combine them with your favorite essential oils to make all-natural air fresheners.

Odors might also be closer than you think: especially if you’ve been handling fish, your hands might smell…fishy.  Rinse your hands with old tea.  As for your mouth and all that bad-breath bacteria, skip the shocking Listerine and go for a gentle mint tea mouth rinse.

7. To give your locks some love.

Tea acts as a sort of leave-in conditioner: Make your dry hair shiny by rinsing your hair with unsweetened tea.  Leave your head alone to dry, then rinse out the tea. This works well in areas with hard water.

8. To polish your wooden floors.

You might need to amass quite a few tea bags for this one.  Mop your wooden floors with brewed tea, and while you’re at it, shine up some furniture, too.

9. To say goodbye to greasy dishes.

Whatever it may be that is caked onto your plates from dinner, do not fear.  Soak the dishes in hot water with a few brewed tea bags.  The more the grease, the more time will be needed to break it down; soaking the pile overnight is recommended.

10. To recreate potpourri.

Rarely do used tea bags lose their scent completely.  Dry out your favorite teas (any kinds will do) and add the leaves to potpourri; they’ll blend right in, aesthetically and also in form. After all, potpourri is made of dried fruit peels, herb leaves, flowers, and spices.

11. To replace Windex.

Maybe your kids had their hands all over the windows, or maybe the glass is just dusty.  Make them sparkle by rubbing a damp teabag over them or applying brewed tea from a spray bottle, then wiping it away with a cloth.

12. To discover your inner Michelangelo.

Artists have started to use strong black teas to paint backgrounds or accentuate black-and-white sketches.

and my favorite…

13. To make flavored rice.

When cooking rice, add your used herbal tea bags to the water to allow a new, mild flavor to permeate throughout. Jasmine tea, one of my personal favorites, is a great choice for rice-flavoring.

After steeping a tea bag two or more times (because once is never enough) to enjoy my favorite hot drink,  I always felt bad tossing it.  Knowing now of brewed tea bags’ reusability, I’ll be able to leave the leaves out of the trash for a little while longer.

Now read on for 10 surprising green ways to use olive oil. And surprising uses for kitchen salt.

The post 13 Surprising Green Ways to Reuse Tea Bags appeared first on Green Prophet.