Photog: Matt Bowen
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Melissa Gladney for Curat!
Photog: Matt Bowen
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Handmade Soap Is Great For Everyday Use!!!!
By Essential Depot
Handmade soap everyday for everything: Would you believe if someone told you that people used hand crafted soap as a barter to buy things at stores during the great depression? Would you believe that this type of soap was so valued among the ancients that soapmaking was an important traditional work assigned to women? Would you believe if we tell you that daily use of hand crafted soap means your skin is healthy, glowing and simply remarkable? Yes, all these are true.
1.General skincare: Using hand crafted soap is like pampering your skin daily. Skin is one of the most ignored of the body parts. We expose it all day to heat, light and dust and yet, never take adequate care to maintain it. The least that our skin gets is a daily bath or shower. That too happens in a sloppy and hurried way. Hand crafted soap makes your skin fresh and young. Regular use of hand crafted soap cures psoriasis, eczema and other skin conditions like dry skin, itchy skin, bug bites, athlete’s foot etc.
2. Acne cure: Apart from other skincare treatments, hand crafted soap is a great acne cure. Many dermatologists and doctors recommend it for acne reduction. The soap is said to cleanse the pores and keep the skin moisturized for the whole day. For acne, wash your face for about three times a day (or as recommended by your doctor), you will see improvement in months. But ensure that you use hand crafted soap without chemicals, preservatives or additives. Unscented, mild soap is better.
3. Sunburns: Hand crafted soaps can relieve you of sunburns in minutes. Place generous amounts of lather on your sunburn and leave it overnight. The sunburn may disappear if you keep doing this everyday. Experts opine that hand crafted soap absorbs heat better than commercial soaps.
4. Bug bite relief: Hand crafted soap offers relief from mosquito, chigger and other bug bites immediately. Like in the case of sunburns, you can use your soap as an insect repellent.
5. Poison Ivy and Poison Oak cure: There is nothing which offers instant cure to poison ivy and poison oak like hand crafted soap. Apply the soap immediately on the suspected area of contact and rinse thoroughly. Keep applying as many times or at least 5 times a day in that area. After rinsing place soap lather on the rash and leave it till the next wash. Your poison ivy or oak syndrome will disappear soon. You can use hand crafted soap to even wash your infected clothes/other fabrics.
6. Insect repellent: Keep mosquitoes at bay by placing some hand crafted soap lather on bare skin. A bar of soap placed under the sink helps keep ants away.
Handmade soap everyday for everything: Would you believe if someone told you that people used hand crafted soap as a barter to buy things at stores during the great depression? Would you believe that this type of soap was so valued among the ancients that soapmaking was an important traditional work assigned to women? Would you believe if we tell you that daily use of hand crafted soap means your skin is healthy, glowing and simply remarkable? Yes, all these are true.
1.General skincare: Using hand crafted soap is like pampering your skin daily. Skin is one of the most ignored of the body parts. We expose it all day to heat, light and dust and yet, never take adequate care to maintain it. The least that our skin gets is a daily bath or shower. That too happens in a sloppy and hurried way. Hand crafted soap makes your skin fresh and young. Regular use of hand crafted soap cures psoriasis, eczema and other skin conditions like dry skin, itchy skin, bug bites, athlete’s foot etc.
2. Acne cure: Apart from other skincare treatments, hand crafted soap is a great acne cure. Many dermatologists and doctors recommend it for acne reduction. The soap is said to cleanse the pores and keep the skin moisturized for the whole day. For acne, wash your face for about three times a day (or as recommended by your doctor), you will see improvement in months. But ensure that you use hand crafted soap without chemicals, preservatives or additives. Unscented, mild soap is better.
3. Sunburns: Hand crafted soaps can relieve you of sunburns in minutes. Place generous amounts of lather on your sunburn and leave it overnight. The sunburn may disappear if you keep doing this everyday. Experts opine that hand crafted soap absorbs heat better than commercial soaps.
4. Bug bite relief: Hand crafted soap offers relief from mosquito, chigger and other bug bites immediately. Like in the case of sunburns, you can use your soap as an insect repellent.
5. Poison Ivy and Poison Oak cure: There is nothing which offers instant cure to poison ivy and poison oak like hand crafted soap. Apply the soap immediately on the suspected area of contact and rinse thoroughly. Keep applying as many times or at least 5 times a day in that area. After rinsing place soap lather on the rash and leave it till the next wash. Your poison ivy or oak syndrome will disappear soon. You can use hand crafted soap to even wash your infected clothes/other fabrics.
6. Insect repellent: Keep mosquitoes at bay by placing some hand crafted soap lather on bare skin. A bar of soap placed under the sink helps keep ants away.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Do You Need "LYE" To Have Soap? YES!
"Properly made handmade soap has no lye left in it but cannot be made without it. Our ancestors made up a weak lye solution from wood ash to produce their handmade soap." - a soapcrafter
This statement is true. Many people think that lye is a horrible "chemical" that is best to avoid in soap. But let me ask you this....does your soap lather? If yes, then it is made with lye. It is impossible for it not to be.
There are no lye soaps on the market, but they are made with harsh detergents.
But natural soap (void of these manufactured detergents) is great to use everyday and can be very moisturizing.
The most common practice of soap-making is 'cold process'. With this method, the lye(sodium hydroxide) and fats are mixed then set in molds to cure. The curing process can take up to 3 weeks. After this time the soap is safe to use. This is great to make lots of batches in a small amount of time. Also many crafters use this method to take advantage of the artistic capabilities it offers. The visual effects that are possible are endless. You can swirl, use a vast array of colors and the soaps can be molded in many shapes that are not possible with 'hot-processed' soaps. But the crafter must be attentive to the curing process. The lye and fats come together(saponify) to create soap, so this process must finish before exposing to skin.
I have used the 'cold-process' method many times. And it produces a great bar of soap. I prefer the 'hot-process' because after my soap has cooked, I know it is ready for use by the next day. The saponification has finished and it is safe to use.
Another soaping method is "melt & pour". This is commercial soap offered in large blocks that can be melted down to add herbs, scents and colors. Many hobbyists use this method to produce personalized soaps. But they are not handmade.
The next time you purchase your soaps, ask which process your crafter uses. If they are proud their products they will be more than happy to tell you. If not, you may want to think about what you are purchasing.
This statement is true. Many people think that lye is a horrible "chemical" that is best to avoid in soap. But let me ask you this....does your soap lather? If yes, then it is made with lye. It is impossible for it not to be.
There are no lye soaps on the market, but they are made with harsh detergents.
But natural soap (void of these manufactured detergents) is great to use everyday and can be very moisturizing.
The most common practice of soap-making is 'cold process'. With this method, the lye(sodium hydroxide) and fats are mixed then set in molds to cure. The curing process can take up to 3 weeks. After this time the soap is safe to use. This is great to make lots of batches in a small amount of time. Also many crafters use this method to take advantage of the artistic capabilities it offers. The visual effects that are possible are endless. You can swirl, use a vast array of colors and the soaps can be molded in many shapes that are not possible with 'hot-processed' soaps. But the crafter must be attentive to the curing process. The lye and fats come together(saponify) to create soap, so this process must finish before exposing to skin.
I have used the 'cold-process' method many times. And it produces a great bar of soap. I prefer the 'hot-process' because after my soap has cooked, I know it is ready for use by the next day. The saponification has finished and it is safe to use.
Another soaping method is "melt & pour". This is commercial soap offered in large blocks that can be melted down to add herbs, scents and colors. Many hobbyists use this method to produce personalized soaps. But they are not handmade.
Shoe Fetish & Fashion @ Indy Fringe
Curat will be out to celebrate our new line, "STILETTO"! You can receive 20% off all Curat soaps Thursday at Indy Fringe. Make sure you are receiving the promo code by joining the Official Curat Newletter & E-mail list! Send your email address to misty@curatclean.com to get your promo code!
Shoe Fetish & Fashion @ Indy Fringe Downtown is sponsored by JC Cognac!!! Indulge yourself within the shopping networking mixer, where you can take pleasure in a complimentary experience of JC Cognac, wiggle your toes, and enjoy the showcase of fashionable finds locate...d in the heart of Indy. Oh! Have you heard…”Sweet Revenge” is sponsoring a fetish gift basket for the savviest shoe slayer! So, if you come looking shabby, you better make sure your looking Shabby-Chic!!!! 6pm-7pm JC Cognac Hour of Networking with DJ Gabby Love 7pm-8pm Debut of Signature Shoes & Nikki Blaine Couture Handbags along with showcasing other merchandise from the vendors 8pm-9pm Shop and network until you drop…But, save some of your energy for the No Coast Art Series Show and Tru on Saturday, May 29, 2010!!!
Shoe Fetish & Fashion @ Indy Fringe Downtown is sponsored by JC Cognac!!! Indulge yourself within the shopping networking mixer, where you can take pleasure in a complimentary experience of JC Cognac, wiggle your toes, and enjoy the showcase of fashionable finds locate...d in the heart of Indy. Oh! Have you heard…”Sweet Revenge” is sponsoring a fetish gift basket for the savviest shoe slayer! So, if you come looking shabby, you better make sure your looking Shabby-Chic!!!! 6pm-7pm JC Cognac Hour of Networking with DJ Gabby Love 7pm-8pm Debut of Signature Shoes & Nikki Blaine Couture Handbags along with showcasing other merchandise from the vendors 8pm-9pm Shop and network until you drop…But, save some of your energy for the No Coast Art Series Show and Tru on Saturday, May 29, 2010!!!
Friday, May 14, 2010
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Herbal Blends Help Condition of Skin!
For centuries herbs have been applied to the skin to help with healing and preventing skin problems. With the "natural movement" in the cosmetic and beauty industry gaining a huge following, one concern I do have is the quality of the products being used, and if they are really effective in overall treatment.
When I started "soaping", I used the cold process method. Meaning, no heat source is used to make the soap. You mix fixed oils (coconut, olive etc) with a sodium hydroxide
solution (water and lye) and allow to saponify for up to three weeks. This method is a good way to make soap. I had no problems, and it was relatively easy to do. But then I thought about the materials I used to enhance my soaps and if they were being utilized properly. Meaning, were the herbs making a difference or were they being demoted to mere decoration.
For an herb to have any effect, it's properties must be able to get to the skin,and most need the help of carriers. Not only that, it has to be absorbed. Now taking a fresh mint leaf and rubbing it on your skin doesn't give you the full benefit of the herb. But if you release the properties of the mint leaf effectively, the essential oil, then it becomes absorbable and you would have the true benefits of mint available to you.
I switched to hot processing my soaps because I wasn't getting the full effect of the dried herbs I used. Yes, I also use essential oils, but I really like the benefit of having an all-natural product in it's natural form as well. When I add the herbs to my fixed oils and heat them, they release their healing qualities effectively. Not only that, but after the mixture has "cooked", the product is stable. I ensure the chemical process is finished, and I can actually use my product immediately. I know if a batch is good right away, and this prevents alot of wasted effort.
I have a history of cystic acne, and many of my friends have various skin conditions they suffer with. The leading culprits are acne and eczema. I used Acutane for awhile, and it wreaked havoc on my face, I mean the side effects were devastating. Raw irritated skin followed by dry peeling skin. It effected my mood, my digestive system, but I continued with the prescription because I wanted clear skin. After a year I just couldn't deal with the effects and switched to using medicated skincare. Some worked, some didn't. It was trial and error.
My grandmother told me of natural remedies and I tried tinctures and decoctions (teas) and these really helped my condition. Healing teas are becoming more common placed again, but one has to be very careful and armed with knowledge, as well as the a-okay from a physician to proceed with a personally made formulation.
Herbs in soaps and body products, for me, was a great way to receive all-natural benefits that were consistent and readily available. Also the repetitive use of the product also helps to improve the skin effectively. I suggest reading more about herbs and the healing properties they possess.
A great book I suggest to everyone is actually endorsed by the Herb Society of America, "Encyclopedia of Herbs & Their Uses" by Deni Brown. Deni is a botanist and freelance horticultural writer. The book is very informative and I have had mine for over 11 years. If you are willing to invest the time to discover the benefits of herbs and how to use them effectively it is well worth it.
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