Below is the picture of the new Dark knight in the mold, I'll post the cut pics in a couple days
I have another one I also made after this one of the Rosemary Nettle Shampoo bar being made but we will save that for another time.....
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Dark Knight Makeover & video
Yep, I did it. Just made a pitiful excuse of a video of one of my soaps being made, lol! I usually run & hide from any cameras in the area so this was REALLY out of my happy comfort zone. I think I may need to figure out how to use the webcam if i am going to do any more, you will see why if you watch! Sticking to my diet a little better looks like a good option too! The soap turned out pretty cool looking and i cant wait to cut it and see what the inside looks like. Its a Faux funnel swirl in a slab mold with 3 colors. The red is from Australian Red Reef clay and the black is activated bamboo charcoal. The scent is Drakar. In the past this soap was black and white swirl pictured below
Below is the picture of the new Dark knight in the mold, I'll post the cut pics in a couple days
and the video..........
I have another one I also made after this one of the Rosemary Nettle Shampoo bar being made but we will save that for another time.....
Below is the picture of the new Dark knight in the mold, I'll post the cut pics in a couple days
I have another one I also made after this one of the Rosemary Nettle Shampoo bar being made but we will save that for another time.....
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Great Cakes Soapworks Soap Challenge week 1
Amy Warden of Great Cakes Soapworks posted a weekly challenge to soapmakers from all over the world. Currently there are over 70 of us participating. The challenge consists of trying a new technique of her choice every week for approximately 20 weeks.
Week one of the challenge was to do an in the pot swirl with one more color than we ever have. Seeing i have never done an in the pot swirl or have even heard of it till this week I decided to start off with one color! I have always done all of my swirling directly in the mold so this was a totally new technique to me!
For anyone who is wondering what the heck I am talking about by an "in the pot swirl" It means removing part of the soap from the original batch, coloring it and then strategically pouring back into the original pot. This is then carefully poured into the mold to achieve the swirl pattern. It can be done with as many colors as you like. However the more you use the harder it is to keep the colors from all coming together into one mucky color.
For me this was quite a challenge even with one color! I am used to pouring my soap and swirling it in the mold at a very lite trace. I quickly found out with my first batch that I needed my soap to be of a whole different consistency for this.
Below is a picture of the first soap I did. It was too thin therefor the swirls are not that noticeable. Even so it did turn out quite pretty and smells amazing!
So.... Seeing I wasn't quite happy with it I had to try again :)
Below is the result of my second try. The dark brown color comes from cocoa powder and the green is chromium oxide green. I added lots of cocoa butter to this bar too and scented it with Peppermint essential oil. This time the consistency was a little thicker but still probably not where it should have been.
Week one of the challenge was to do an in the pot swirl with one more color than we ever have. Seeing i have never done an in the pot swirl or have even heard of it till this week I decided to start off with one color! I have always done all of my swirling directly in the mold so this was a totally new technique to me!
For anyone who is wondering what the heck I am talking about by an "in the pot swirl" It means removing part of the soap from the original batch, coloring it and then strategically pouring back into the original pot. This is then carefully poured into the mold to achieve the swirl pattern. It can be done with as many colors as you like. However the more you use the harder it is to keep the colors from all coming together into one mucky color.
For me this was quite a challenge even with one color! I am used to pouring my soap and swirling it in the mold at a very lite trace. I quickly found out with my first batch that I needed my soap to be of a whole different consistency for this.
Below is a picture of the first soap I did. It was too thin therefor the swirls are not that noticeable. Even so it did turn out quite pretty and smells amazing!
So.... Seeing I wasn't quite happy with it I had to try again :)
Below is the result of my second try. The dark brown color comes from cocoa powder and the green is chromium oxide green. I added lots of cocoa butter to this bar too and scented it with Peppermint essential oil. This time the consistency was a little thicker but still probably not where it should have been.
Oh! In case you didn't notice the log molds are new too! I decided to finally attempt smaller batches in a log mold :) The batches may be smaller but these are all gong to be big 5 -6 oz bars! I also broke down and ordered some micas for colorant to try something a little different, so for those of you that wanted new and different your going to in for some big surprises!
Monday, March 19, 2012
Meet Karma :)
Meet Karma :) Not real pleased with the colors, I'm going to have to work on that. I was hoping for more contrast. Karma is scented with a very balancing yet exotic blend of sandalwood, ylang ylang and vetivert. I'm in ♥ with this scent!! This soap should be ready and up on the website in 3-4 weeks.
I have a few more new ones I am experimenting with. I'll post them as they are made.
I have a few more new ones I am experimenting with. I'll post them as they are made.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Body absorbs 5lb of make-up chemicals a year - Telegraph
A rather eye opening article...
Body absorbs 5lb of make-up chemicals a year - Telegraph
Body absorbs 5lb of make-up chemicals a year - Telegraph
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Natural Hair Care
Lately I have had quite a few people asking me for natural shampoos and about natural hair care products, I haven't come up with anything yet but I am working on it and hopefully will have something ready soon. In the meantime I figured I would share some of my favorite natural hair care recipes and tips. This first recipe is one of my favorites, every winter when my hair starts get dry, brittle and fly away i mix some of this up. Avocados are high in vitamin E and help neutralize free radicals they are also high in natural oils and soothing to sensitive skin. This also works great as a facial mask for dry skin.
This recipe makes enough for 2 treatments, be sure to refrigerate the unused portion and use within 5 days.
Avocado Dry
Hair Mask1 ripe avocado peeled and pitted
1/4 cup honey for light hair molasses for dark hair (you can use the honey for dark hair but it may lighten it)
1/4 cup real mayonnaise (not miracle whip)
Mix all ingredients together in a food processor or with a hand blender. Apply to wet (not dripping) hair and cover with shower cap or towel. Leave on for at a minimum 20 minutes (I usually go 30) Rinse out with warm water (not hot,hot water drys the hair out more) and shampoo. You can save the extra for another treatment or you can use it as a facial mask. To use as a facial mask apply to clean skin and leave on for 20 minutes, rinse off.
Lemon Hair Spray (not super hold but it does the job) Lemon does tend to lighten hair especially in the sun so if you don't want your hair lightened try the sugar hair spray below. I have personally never tried the sugar hair spray so I have no idea how well it
works, if you try it leave a comment to let everyone know what you think of it.
Zest from 1 lemon ( no white parts only yellow)
1 Tbls. Vodka
1 cup boiling water
place lemon zest in bowl and pour boiling water over it and leave sit 6-8 hours. Strain zest out and stir in vodka. Put into a spray bottle. Can be used on wet or dry hair.
Sugar Hair Spray
1 cup warm water
1 Tbls. sugar
combine sugar and water and put in spray bottle.
Natural Shampoo
This shampoo definitely takes a little getting used to, it will take about 1 week for your hair to adjust and it works much better if you have soft water. You will also need to use an apple cider vinegar rinse a few times a week which will help to balance the ph of your hair and keep it soft and manageable.
2 Tbls. liquid castile soap
1 cup distilled or spring water (I usually make an infusion of herbs such as Lavender, Calendula, Nettle, horsetail, sage and use this for the water portion)
1 tsp. Almond or Olive oil
Essential oil 5-8 drops (good choices would be Lavender, Rosemary, Peppermint or Lemon)
1 Tbls. Honey optional
Mix all ingredients together and place in bottle
Cider Vinegar Rinse
1 cup good quality apple cider vinegar
2 cups distilled or spring water (an herbal infusion works well in place of the water in this recipe also, choose from the same herbs in the shampoo recipe above)
Mix together and put in squirt or spray bottle ( I prefer the spray bottle, less waste and easier to use. You don't want to get this in your eyes as it WILL burn)
Spray or apply to hair immediately after shampooing. Leave on for a minute or 2 and rinse. The vinegar scent will disappear as your hair dries.
Rosemary Hair Oil
This oil is wonderful for a dry scalp and rosemary is said to strengthen hair and promote growth.
2 - 4 Tbls. dried rosemary or 1/4 cup fresh
1/2 cup Good quality Olive oil
Combine ingredients in a small pan and heat gently on stove to, Do not boil. Oil should not get too hot to touch. Remove from heat and let sit 2-3 days. Strain rosemary out of the oil and put oil in a glass bottle. To use massage a small amount into scalp before going to bed.
Lemon Hair Spray (not super hold but it does the job) Lemon does tend to lighten hair especially in the sun so if you don't want your hair lightened try the sugar hair spray below. I have personally never tried the sugar hair spray so I have no idea how well it
works, if you try it leave a comment to let everyone know what you think of it.Zest from 1 lemon ( no white parts only yellow)
1 Tbls. Vodka
1 cup boiling water
place lemon zest in bowl and pour boiling water over it and leave sit 6-8 hours. Strain zest out and stir in vodka. Put into a spray bottle. Can be used on wet or dry hair.
Sugar Hair Spray
1 cup warm water
1 Tbls. sugar
combine sugar and water and put in spray bottle.
Natural Shampoo
This shampoo definitely takes a little getting used to, it will take about 1 week for your hair to adjust and it works much better if you have soft water. You will also need to use an apple cider vinegar rinse a few times a week which will help to balance the ph of your hair and keep it soft and manageable.
2 Tbls. liquid castile soap
1 cup distilled or spring water (I usually make an infusion of herbs such as Lavender, Calendula, Nettle, horsetail, sage and use this for the water portion)
1 tsp. Almond or Olive oil
Essential oil 5-8 drops (good choices would be Lavender, Rosemary, Peppermint or Lemon)
1 Tbls. Honey optional
Mix all ingredients together and place in bottle
Cider Vinegar Rinse
1 cup good quality apple cider vinegar
2 cups distilled or spring water (an herbal infusion works well in place of the water in this recipe also, choose from the same herbs in the shampoo recipe above)
Mix together and put in squirt or spray bottle ( I prefer the spray bottle, less waste and easier to use. You don't want to get this in your eyes as it WILL burn)
Spray or apply to hair immediately after shampooing. Leave on for a minute or 2 and rinse. The vinegar scent will disappear as your hair dries.
Rosemary Hair Oil
This oil is wonderful for a dry scalp and rosemary is said to strengthen hair and promote growth.
2 - 4 Tbls. dried rosemary or 1/4 cup fresh
1/2 cup Good quality Olive oil
Combine ingredients in a small pan and heat gently on stove to, Do not boil. Oil should not get too hot to touch. Remove from heat and let sit 2-3 days. Strain rosemary out of the oil and put oil in a glass bottle. To use massage a small amount into scalp before going to bed.
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