Monday, August 29, 2011

Herbal Medicine Box at the Boston University Farmers Market!

I am really excited to be a participating vendor at the Boston University Farmers Market this fall.

The market runs on Thursdays, September 8 - October 27, from 12 - 5 pm, at the George Sherman Union (GSU) Plaza at BU, at 775 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA 02215. Although the market runs from 12 - 5 pm, I will be at the market from approximately 12 - 4 pm, because I waitress at night at Taberna de Haro. For more information about the BU Farmers Market and participating vendors, visit their web page and keep updated with their Facebook page.

I will be selling various natural body products, including, but not limited to:


-Moisturizer creams

-Lip balms

-Shampoos

-Body washes

-Facial exfoliating scrubs

-Other rotational items- stay updated on Facebook


Geranium Moisturizing Cream


Items will be subject to availability. If there is anything that you would like to see me sell at the market, let me know, I love hearing suggestions and feedback!


For the latest updates on the products I will be bringing to the market, connect with Herbal Medicine Box on Facebook.

Hope to see you at the farmers market!

Monday, August 22, 2011

Recipe: Homemade Deodorant

I had a great time at my Kitchen Cosmetics Demo a few weeks ago, and so I wanted to share another natural body product recipe with you: homemade deodorant. I first tried out this recipe when I saw it on Alex's blog, Feed Me Like You Mean It, and I'm so glad I did! I've found it more effective than the natural deodorants I've tried in stores, and it's really simple to make. Read Alex's post on homemade deodorant here, and two sources of his inspiration to make it here and here. Below is the recipe including Alex's adaptations and some of my own:

Coconut-oil based deodorant:
  • 1/2 cup coconut oil
  • 3 tbsp baking soda
  • 1.5 tbsp arrowroot powder or cornstarch
  • 8-32 drops assorted essential oils (including tea tree)
Directions:
  1. If the coconut oil isn't already melted due to warm temperatures (it melts at around 75 degrees F), gently melt the coconut oil in a warm/hot water bath. Pour the coconut oil into an 8-oz glass jar.
  2. Add the baking soda, arrowroot powder (or cornstarch), and essential oils, and stir until combined.
  3. Once the ingredients are combined, cover and put the jar in the refrigerator so that the deodorant solidifies. I usually keep my deodorant in the refrigerator, so it stays at a solid state. If you leave the deodorant out at room temperature and if it's warm enough, the ingredients will separate, so just mix the ingredients before use. In addition, you can fill an old and empty deodorant container with this deodorant recipe. To use, apply the deodorant onto underarms.

Explanations for the ingredients:
  • Coconut oil acts as the base.
  • Baking soda cleans and deodorizes.
  • Arrowroot powder and cornstarch aid in absorbing moisture and here, perspiration. Arrowroot powder tends to be gentler and smoother on the skin, so that is what I used.
  • Essential oils aid with their beneficial properties and pleasant scents. Antibacterial essential oils are especially helpful in deodorant, because it is bacteria that causes body odor. Thus, tea tree essential oil is recommended, because it is one of the strongest essential oils in terms of its antibacterial properties. I used 16 drops juniper essential oil, 12 drops of tea tree essential oil, and 4 drops lemongrass essential oil in this recipe, because tea tree and lemongrass are both antibacterial essential oils. Lavender is another nice essential oil, that is also antibacterial. Choose essential oils according to their properties and your own preferences. To read more about essential oils and the aromatherapy course that I took, read my blog post here.
Again, there are many reasons to using homemade and natural cosmetics, including not being exposed to various chemicals and toxic substances that may be found in commercial products. To read more about what may be found in your everyday cosmetics, check out The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetics Database. In this recipe, all of the ingredients are edible (although consuming essential oils should be done with caution, if done at all, as I previously mentioned. If you have any concerns about this, you may want to contact your health care practitioner).

I hope that some of you will try out this homemade deodorant, and please share if you do!