Teach Me Tuesday: Liquid African Soap Re-Formulated

OK, so I did try this once before with not so great results- we toughed it out nearly a year as I made about a gallon of this terrible, watery, slightly smelly, & mucky looking soap.  

I tried to convince myself and my family it was fine, 
but my daughter was afraid of using the "dirt soap". 
And my mom, who at the time came over 3 x's/week to help 
me with the kids as I recovered from major surgery,
started bringing her own soap over b/c 
she refused to use my "Murky Nile Dirt Soap" she so dubbed it....

I stubbornly held on until the last 8-16 ounces of my concoction was left. I became so grossed out by the smell, not putrid mind you, but "off smelling"- kinda metallic. I ended up using it to wash the tub and scrub the toilets...basically money down the drain...:-(


I still have 2 lbs left of the soap & after I used up all the store bought liquid soaps I had in reserve- I was determined to give this another shot. I researched all kinds of formulas and "tweaked" this one one to my preferences and understanding of formulating from my previous trials (Err..) errors and errors. 

WHAT I CHANGED FROM MY PREVIOUS ATTEMPT:

• DIDN'T dilute soap mixture with as much water as I had before
• ADDED Vegetable Glycerin to preserve it {I think that is what I omitted last time, probably the source of the "off smelling" concoction}
• ADDED Caster Oil: as it's a powerful humectant, meaning that it helps attract moisture to the skin plus it boosts the soap's lathery-"ness"
• ADDED Aloe Vera Gel for skin smoothing abilities
• DIDN'T add any tea {another probable cause for the "off-smell"}
• ADDED a small amount of melted extra virgin Coconut Oil: it adds more moisture to the skin and contains lauric acid, capric acid and caprylic acid, which have antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-fungal, and antibacterial properties.

This makes a great hand soap and excellent body wash with a body poof it makes tons of lather, your skin feels amazing plus my razor just  

glided over my skin!

 

Was going to use tea tree EO but decided to use up another eo blend.

LIQUID SOAP FORMULA

1. 1 LB OF AFRICAN BLACK SOAP {could use a different natural handmade soap of choice about 2-4oz bars}
2. 6 C OF DISTILLED WATER
3. 3/4 C Vegetable GLYCERIN
4. 1/3-1/2 C Aloe Vera Gel
5. 1/4-1/3 C- Castor Oil
6. 3-5T Melted Extra Virgin Coconut Oil (EVCO)
7. Essential Oil/ Blend of choice{I choose *My Angles about 60 drops and 1/2 ounce from Birch Hill Happenings which is a much more affordable version of White Angelica Blend from a well known MLN. IT is one my FAVORITE scents!}
8. Carrier Oil {* *Rose Hip Oil. I purchase the majority of my supplies from Birch Hill Happenings, their prices, quality and customer service is really excellent}
9. ***Proper amount of Emulsifier{I choose Polysorbate 20, you basically use equal parts to essential oils}

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2 Ways to go about this,  

• #1: Crumble soap and place in a large pan over a low heat and stir until melted completely. Will take about 30-45 minutes. Don't worry about the tiny black specks that might be left in pan, those are cocoa pods fragments. (This is what I did, I added 1/4 C raw honey to melt it for added humectant properties plus it is great for sensitive skin)
• #2: Pour the 6 C of distilled water over the soap you have crumbled and leave in a large 2 Gallon container with a large opening overnight.
• Allow Soap mixture to cool (about 20 minutes) IF you melt over the stove top - if you allowed to melt over night start at this point 

and add glycerin, aloe vera gel,  EVCO, & Castor oil, stir well to combine

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•  After soap has completely cooled mix essential of choice- be sure to mix with emulsifier of choice before you add it to any water mixture- Or you will waste your essential oil as it will lay on the top, remember oil & water don't mix, you need to add something to allow it to blend!!

• Pour into container of choice, this makes about 1/2 Gallon

This makes a WONDERFUL body wash, bubble bath, and hair cleanser too! I added some honey for added moisture and cleansing -  

I just used it as a body wash and cleansed my hair following a "homemade hair conditioner MISHAP" & this also makes an EXCELLENT SHAMPOO!!
...it was amazing!! 

This defiantly is a KEEPER recipe, try adding the honey!!

 

*From Birch Hill Happenings: "My Angels ™ Blend: sandalwoods, rosewood, bergamot fcf, geranium, myrrh, spruce, ylang ylang #3, ylang ylang extra, hyssop, melissa, rose otto, and rose absolute...this blend will help you have a wonderful sense of wholeness as your negative energies turn positive. This wonderful blend of mind enriching essential oils will give you a glow like that of the angels. A healthy 'halo' will surround you. You will feel more spiritual. My Angels ™ blend will strengthen and protect your very being. Sit back, and simply enjoy."

*I added Rose Hip Oil ONLY because it was at the end of it's shelf life, it only has about 6 months shelf life and I already had my facial serums and scar ointments made. So in lieu of  my expensive oil going bad I added it to my soap. IF you have the extra funds by all means add this oil it is a very effective oil for skin treatments. It is very rich in G.L.A. Gamma Linoleic Acid and Vitamin C- it is very healing and nourishing and would be helpful in healing winter dried hands.

**If adding Essential oils it is very important to add an emulsifier or the essential oil will lay on the top of any water mixture and not properly mix

Teach Me Tuesday: When Ambition takes the backseat to LIFE...

{Found this draft from back in March 2012, I just hadn't posted it} 

I had so many ambitions, as last week was so chock full of appointments, tests, and procedures- I was looking forward to catching up on household chores, Kissi-cat's homeschooling, mini-moose' therapy and more ambitious whole foods cooking. It really takes time to, planning, and prep to cook more traditionally and I look forward to the process of it {Just NOT the clean up}

Then it all came to a screeching halt as I heard the rumblings  & rattlings & hacking & coughing, sure signs of upper respiratory inflammation starting up in Kissi-cat. Mini-moose has had congestion and sinus issues since last Wed, didn't know if they would precede with his MRI since he had to be sedated, but they were able to work out a good situation for him. But now his nose is draining like a faucet down his face and Kiss-cat is draining down her throat.

There comes a time, when you have to choose to allow somethings to go undone when you are needed by children or situations happen outside of your control. It kills me to not reach my goals for the day even if that just means washing the dishes, I LOVE my children, it might sound the opposite because I am giving myself permission to hold a sick child versus doing chores. Yet, I had to mentally give myself permission to leave somethings undone,  so we had store bought egg noodles instead my homemade version. I usually keep some in the pantry just in case, now this might be a cop out, if I didn't have it I wouldn't rely on it? Perhaps, I am not that hard core though, and there are times when life happens and ambition takes the backseat, you know? I hope to make homemade pasta when I make Spaghetti Bolaganse this weekend, but we will see, I do have store bought pasta in my pantry-some shapes you just can't make or roll thin enough.

In the past we would rush to the doctor who would say the same thing, use Vick's Vapor Rub on chest, back and bottoms of feet, use humidifier, elevate her pillows, elevate her bed, restrict dairy and phlegm causing food.  IF they get all croupy take outside for them to catch their breath, or turn the shower on full blast and all hot to get extreme steam to help clear the air ways...

All drainage is clear so I am not going to rush them to the doctor's and risk them getting some other bug... This time I am mustering up my courage and tapping into my mother's intuition, instead of allowing fear of ridicule from others keep me from making choices I know are right for my family. In any case the doctor would not offer much else than I have all ready heard dozens of time before.

I have been interested in alternative medicine for as long as I can remember &  have made a "lung butter" or a salve like the "Vick's" only not synthetic ingredients and petroleum to get ingested into their developing systems along with the trace amounts of essential oils. So this time I utilized my years of research and applied what I have learned. Below is some remedies I have used time and time again and some new ones I have had in my files for years but only used recently:

Here is a list of Essential oils and the medicinal effects or issues they work best for:

• Asthma: clary sage, cypress, eucalyptus, frankincense and marjoram.
• Chesty cough: Cedarwood, clary sage, eucalyptus, ginger, myrrh, pine and tea tree.
• Hay fever: chamomile, eucalyptus, pine and rose otto.
• Sinusitis/catarrh: cajeput, Cedarwood, eucalyptus, lemon, rosemary and tea tree.
• Headaches: chamomile, lavender and peppermint.
• Insomnia: chamomile, lavender, jasmine and ylang ylang.

* DIY Vick's Vapor Rub:
Adapted this recipe from An Encyclopedia of Natural Healing for Children and Infants, by Mary Bove, N.D. page 286.

• Pour 1 ounces of almond or olive oil into a small bowl or cup.
• Add 1/2 Ounce Melted Coconut oil
• Add 1/2 ounce whipped unrefined shea butter-can omit and just use 1 oz melted coconut oil, I just like the softer texture of whipped unrefined shea butter
• Add 20 drops of essential oil {You want to use 10 drops TOTAL of oil per 2 ounces if you are using this on small children and infants} – choose eucalyptus, hyssop, thyme, peppermint,  basil, or rosemary.
• {I use 5 drops of tea tree, 4 drops hyssop, 4 drops peppermint, 3 drops lavender, & 3 Drops rosemary plus 1/8t of myrrh powder. This formula works well on my children, 10 drops didn't seem to do enough and 20 was too strong for Kissi-cat's sensitive skin}

Transfer to clean sanitized tin and allow to cool, apply to chest, feet and back you normally would.

 I also have been giving Kiss-cat & Mini-Moose some tea, this tea is soo good and as long Kissi-cat doesn't see the grated ginger, pulp of lemons, and it is sweet she will gladly drink it- Mini-moose is a crap-shoot. Here is the Ginger-Lemon Tea recipe:

* Ginger Lemon Tea w/Raw Honey: This is my version of a tea I enjoyed drinking when I was fighting extreme nausea during some fertility treatments. I found out later the other medicinal qualities of the ingredients and we drink this when we are starting to feel under the weather- 

• Ginger is another traditional cold and flu remedy, & works well for that rattly cough that lingers because it  contains at least a dozen antiviral compounds. You can use fresh or powdered ginger for this recipe- I really don't think the compounds are as vital when they u purchase the dried, unless u have a reliable source, PLEASE NOTE:  Fresh ginger has higher levels of gingerol {If you want to know what gingerol is: chemically, gingerol is a relative of capsaicin and piperine, the compounds which give chilli peppers and black pepper their respective spiciness, this is LOST when using dried version!} as well as FRESH ginger’s active protease (it's anti-inflammatory compound) than using dried verions-FRESH IS ALWAYS BEST!!
• Lemon is a traditional sore throat soother, essential from all that hacking and coughing- so I steep the lemon slices, or if I have rinds in freezer I add them

To make the tea:
Add 1 heaping teaspoon of grated fresh ginger (or 1/2 teaspoon powdered),
3 slices of organic lemons,
To 1 cup of boiling water. 
Allow to steep COVERED for ten minutes
Strain {OR add the above to a tea ball and just remove at the end of 10 min}
Add Raw Honey to taste-then drink. 

If I am fortunate enough to have Licorice Root or Wild Cherry Bark I will add to my tea ball. They work well as a medicinal tea:

• 1t of dried licorice root- a natural throat coat, an expectorant to help keep your lungs clear and a booster to your energy when you are tired from coughing.
• 1t wild cherry bark- for irritating cough from bronchitis, croup, asthma and whooping cough b/c of it's Anti-spasmodic; Sedative; Anti-tussive; Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( COPD ), Expectorant, Supports lung and respiratory function, Antispasmodic, Expectorant, Sedative, &  Stomach Tonic.

Onion-Garlic-Ginger Poultice: WHY USE  onion, garlic and Ginger?
* Onion is filled with phytochemical and quercetin which assist the body by moving and breaking up the mucus in the head and chest. The powerful odor causes the eyes to tear and the nose to run is the affect that stimulates the immune system to fight the virus or bacterial infection. This is helping your body shed the virus and reduce the inflammation from congestion.
*Garlic is known to have strong antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal properties… and there are no known side effects (other than smelling like garlic!), getting kids to eat this raw or adults for that matter is impossible, so using it as poultice works for my family.
*Ginger has antiviral and anti-inflammatory compounds as listed above

• Crush 1/2 of a small onion, 3-6 cloves of garlic in a mortar and pestle  or with knife to get all juicy 
• Grate or slice thinly 2 T FRESH ginger.  
• Place in a thin material, cheese cloth, old t-shirt, I use the thin cloth diapers I used as burb clothes on kids when they were babies (these are the perfect thinness) and fold like a burrito
• lay in a deep medium bowl
• And pour Very Warm-Hot'ish water, NOT BOILING
• Allow to Steep until comfortably warm.

I rub a neutral oil, like sweet almond seed, jojoba on the skin prior to poultice as a protector of the natural secretions check often because garlic and ginger can be very warm to skin and will cause a "burn". 

I apply the poultice to the foot of my young children. The foot is a great receptor of natural remedies and the healing properties enter their systems fast. I will sometimes wrap a plastic bag over the foot to aid in keeping the poultice in place, checking every 2 min for skin irritations or hot spots. I will also apply to back and chest alternating up to 20 min, some people will suggest up to 60 min, since my kids are so young we don't apply this longer than 20 min.

Additional Remedies I found online and lost the resources but this we recently tried and I am liking the way it is seems to help soothe my throat: 
 

* Sore Throat Gargle with Hyssop or Sage:
Sage & Hyssop are traditionally calming herbs & known for their 
anti-inflammatory properties

• One cup of distilled water 
• 20 Drops sage or hyssop essential oil 
• Add 1/8 teaspoon of salt
• 2 t Food Grade Vegetable glycerin {My family won't use this without the sweetened taste glycerin gives the gargle solution, plus it helps preserve it longer}

 Store in the refrigerator for two to three days, gargling whenever you need some relief from your sore throat. [Not sure where I got this recipe, but have been using it and adapting to my family's tastes for years-kids haven't been able to gargle without swallowing so primarily this is for adults]

* Lemon Throat Spray:  is a traditional sore throat soother, and you can put into a spray bottle of any size (look for travel-size spray bottles to take some with you when you're on the go) and stored in the fridge for up to two weeks.

Combine:

• 15 drops lemon essential oil
• 5 drops peppermint essential oil
• ¼ cup water
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 2 t food grade vegetable glycerin (again my family won't use this if it's not sweetened, so this is a must, it slightly sweetens and helps the taste)

[Found this in my files a few months back, not sure of where I got this, but we have been using this and it is very soothing.]

Teach me Tuesdays: BEAUTY DAY!!

Today I will focus my attention of my skin care regimen. 

I have heard about using oils for cleansers and I all ready use an olive oil based cleanser which my dry & sensitive skin loves. SO no real tweaking until I run out then I will be making my own version.

I have some recipes I will be trying out soon:

• olive oil 
• castor oil, 
• jojoba oil 
• in 1/3 proportions.

But today I focused on my facial scrub, mask and moisturizer.

Recipe mine, pic from this site

Facial Sugar Scrub:

• Castor Oil
• Tamanu Oil
• Rosehip Oil
• Sugar

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1. I use a castor oil base scrub bc it gives you the most cleansing & dissolving bang for your buck. It’s also highly antibacterial in nature, along with tamanu and rosehip seed oil (These both are quite pricey and I don't typically use them for a scrub since it doesn't rest on the skin for very long, but they both have limited shelf life and I need to use them up)  

Both tamanu and rosehip oils are healing and regenerative, they DO need a carrier oil so castor works as a carrier (base) oil for this as well.

1. I used oils 1/3 portions. 
2. NEXT I added sugar- 2 parts oil blend to 1 part sugar. 

I LOVE they way my skin feels, I might be using the rosehip and tamanu on a regular basis, as long as I have these oils at least.

There are other essential oils I can add like:

• lavender, 
• helicrysum, 
• myhrr, 
• rose 

All good for the regenerative qualities since I am nearly into my 40's I am into regenerating my skin as much as possible, especially in my sun damaged areas.

I am quite pleased with my scrub, so I turn my attentions to my mask. I am really into cleansing clays for my masks, I have tried the green french and Benoite clays, but I don't have oily or problematic skin so I opted to try Rhassoul clay from Morocco. Click this link to learn more about this amazing clay.

My Rhoussoul Mask with customized Oil Serum:

• I used 1T clay & 2/3- 1/2 C helichrysum/Lavender/Lemon Balm(Melissa) hydrosol or distilled water to make a creamy semi-liquidy paste. 
•  I add small drops of hydrosol at a time and watch as it absorbs the clay to get the proportions just right to properly hydrate the clay. 
•  I made a Jojoba(for added toning affects), tamanu, & rosehip seed oil serum that I added an essential oil blend with lavender, helichrysum, rose and myrrh powder blend to lay directly onto my skin under the mask so it would ionize into my skin. 
• Then a layer of the clay mask directly over. 
• It gets really tight as is dries, so it really tones and pushes/ionizes the precious oil blend into my skin.

For my night time moisturizer I have been using extra virgin coconut oil with added essential oils:  

• lavender, 
• helichrysum, 
• rose, 
• and patchouli
• the standard is 7-10 drops per tablespoon. 

My day moisturizer varies, sometimes I just use an oil blend bc my nighttime cream is so rich I barely need anything during the day, I mainly use oil to protect my skin from pollutants.

That is my skin care regimen right now and it works!

I love the customizing aspect of making it myself. 

There are times your skin needs more hydrating than other times or needs more balancing other times-so I only mix small batches at time, it keeps it fresh and allows me to customize as needed.

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8/22/12-Update on Rhossoul Clay mask:  

I have to say that within one use my skin feels velvety soft like when I have a micro-dermabrasion treatment. And within 2 weeks of use- The jaw line is more defined, the sun damaged areas on my cheeks look less pronounced as well. Amazing skin texture, I would say it knocks off 5 years in a manner of 10-15 minutes. LOVE my rhossoul clay!!

10/1/12-Update on the EVCO Moisturizer: The flakiness that I typically have on my forehead and around my nose, gone, the texture like I said velvety soft, the "marionette lines" on either side of my mouth are much less noticeable.