Just in time for Halloween

I whipped up a few batches of Spicy Lotion Bars.  These smell like fall and were molded in spoooooooooky Halloween shapes.

Here you are surely terrified by the bones and fingers I have lying around the test kitchen.  

The spicy pumpkins turned out more like beach balls, but they smell terrific!

I do like the details on the little skulls!

These were made with shea butter, olive oil, beeswax, cinnamon, and tangerine.  Yummy!  Definitely a treat I would like to receive!

Have a Happy Halloween!

Fresh Pear Body Scrub

We picked a ton (figuratively) of pears recently at my uncle's house.  Worried about what to do with them all, I created this sugar scrub.  

After washing, drying, and coring the pears, I blended them into a puree along with some lemon juice.  Add in the sugar:

Keep Stirring:

Ta-da!  Lovely pear scrub.  Who wants to try some?

(Reminds me of applesauce.)  

I love making Body Butter

Although I recently posted this recipe and product, I made another batch and wanted to share it again.  I love the scent while making this.  The entire test kitchen smelled like chocolate.  

Make it a little easier on yourself and let the products cool in the refrigerator until it just begins to set.  Then whip it up with your mixer (hand held or stand) or use an immersion blender.  

Here it is coming together nicely.  I always want to lick the beater!

Ready for packaging!  Want to try this?  Ask me how!

Oh, and Happy Birthday to me!  :)

Solid Perfume Bars

Solid perfume does best in a small container with an airtight lid.  These are really nice to put in old lockets and you can wear your scent and always have it ready to dab on!  To use, rub your finger across the perfume and apply lightly to pulse points (or if in bar form like these, you can rub them right across the pulse point.)  These particular perfumes were made in a bar form for scent testing.  A friend asked for a particular scent combination and these bars were my three attempts at various ways of mixing up the scents.  These are being sent to her as of the time I am writing this post.

Interested in creating your own combination scent?  Let me know what scents appeal to you and I can help you craft a fragrance.  Like my friend, if I come up with any successful combinations, I can send you a sample to try and then help you learn how to make it yourself!

This particular perfume includes clove, lime, and patchouli.  Interested in trying this one out?  Let me know!

Pumpkin Spice (and Everything Nice) Sugar Scrub

Perfect for the season, this Pumpkin Spice Sugar Scrub is so easy to make.  I used equal parts organic cane sugar and olive oil and 2-3 TBS of pumpkin pie spice.  The olive oil may overpower the scent of the spice a bit, so feel free to swap it out with a less-heavy scented oil.  Pumpkin pie spice is made from cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice.  You can either use a commercially purchased pre-mixed spice or mix some up yourself.  

As I have mentioned elsewhere on this blog, cinnamon brings blood to the surface area of the skin and some people, especially those with sensitive skin may experience brief redness or tingling with use.  This particular recipe has very little cinnamon in it, but if you are concerned, you may wish it skip the cinnamon or use it on less sensitive areas.  If in doubt, do an allergy test on your inner elbow area and wait up to 48 hours to see how you may react.  

Perfect for your Sweetheart

Tomorrow is Sweetest Day and although I personally have never celebrated it and do not really know many people that do, I thought I would make some sweets for my... well, family.  

This was an experimental recipe crossover that I think turned out to be a sweet success!  I mixed my body lotion bars with my so delicious-smelling and popular body butter and created these chocolate scented body lotion bars.  The chocolate scent from the cocoa butter is accented with a hint of orange.  Make some for your sweetie!

Happy Sweetest Day!

Free radicals and Antioxidants

You hear me talk a lot about products having antioxidant properties or fighting free radicals.  What are these exactly?

Let's start talking about free radicals.  Free radicals are the most active compounds in the aging process.  They damage DNA, the cellular membrane, and connective tissues of the dermis layer of the skin, especially collagen.  Free radicals are caused by factors both inside and outside the body.  Internally, free radicals are produced by metabolic reactions.  Externally, free radicals can be caused by UV radiation, pesticides, air pollution, drugs, and an unhealthy lifestyle.

While the body does have some natural defense mechanism against free radicals, these defenses decrease with age.  This is where the importance of products with antioxidant properties comes in to play.  Antioxidants (also referred to as free radical scavengers or anti-free radicals) are components that counteract and block the damaging effects of free radical activity and are typically found in anti-aging cosmetics and after-sun products.  These ingredients can be consumed or applied topically and help break down the free radicals into compounds the body has defenses against.  They are available in a wide variety of foods, so be sure to include these as part of your normal healthy diet to fight the effects of aging from the inside out.

The information found here was largely found in the book I have been referencing quite a bit lately, Milady's Skin Care and Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary.  Be sure to check it out if you would like to learn more.

Pumpkin Sugar Scrub

Another seasonal favorite, I want to share with you today my Pumpkin Sugar Scrub.  Made from real pumpkin, organic cane sugar, and olive oil, this one is so good for your skin, you may want to stock up on pumpkin and use it year round.  Personally, I love everything pumpkin and am so thrilled this time of year when you can find it in everything and everywhere.  Maybe being born in the fall has something to do with my love of this ingredient.

Pumpkin is the perfect ingredient for products used on dry, cracked skin, especially for the hands and feet.  It contains enzymes and alpha hydroxy acids which remove the old, dead surface cells while encouraging new cell production.  These ingredients in pumpkin help to brighten and smooth the appearance of skin.  Pumpkin also contains antioxidants which will help reduce the appearance of free radical damage while boosting collagen production, softening and soothing the skin.  Use of pumpkin treats dull complexions, evens skin tone, and will help to hydrate the skin.

Swap out the organic sugar for brown sugar if you would like to use this on your face.  The granules in white sugar may be a bit too large for exfoliation of the more sensitive skin areas of your face but will be perfect for other parts of your body.  

Chocolate Covered Fruit Balms

On the left is Chocolate Covered Cherry Lip Balm.  On the right is Chocolate Covered Strawberry Lip Balm.  Yum!

Made from beeswax, coconut oil, cocoa butter, sweet almond oil, and vitamin e.  Thrown in is a hint of the appropriate fruit's oil.  

Caramel Lotion

A great lotion that reminds me of caramel apples, so perfect to use this time of year!  It was made from coconut oil, beeswax, shea butter, caramel extract, and vitamin e.  

Chocolate Facial Mask

My nephew was an excellent Do-It-Yourself-er during his recent visit.  He was so excited to help me create products in the test kitchen.  This time around, we decided to make a Chocolate Facial Mask.   Perfect for the upcoming Halloween Holiday, you can have your chocolate without all the calories!

Here is the nephew stirring together the yummy smelling mask.  This recipe calls for dark cocoa, ground oats, honey, and heavy cream.

Looks like dessert!

He was even an eager product tester!  He said it tasted great!  

Of course, I had to give it a test, too!

Good thing he didn't eat it all!

Here I am post mask, completely makeup free, immediately after the mask.  At this point I had not put any moisturizer on.  Rinse with warm water and a wash cloth.  Pat your skin dry and add a moisturizer.  My skin felt tighter, but not dry and was definitely smoother.  

(And though not the subject of this post, I have to say that the Anti-Wrinkle Skin Serum definitely is working.  Man, I love that stuff.)

Lip Balm

I made three versions of lip balm.  All three versions contain vitamin e, honey, olive oil, and beeswax.  One is left unscented, one has orange essential oil, and the last is scented with spearmint, which also gives it a little tingle.