DIY shampoo

Just the other day - the hb mentioned that he felt the shampoo I 'made' for him (essentially just diluted Dr Bronner Lavender castille soap) didn't work so well, and he felt that his hair didn't feel so clean.

so i googled this afternoon and found a really simple receipe.

• 1 tablespoon baking soda


• 1 cup water

that's it!  and its supposedly effective despite its simplicity.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="568"] a tablespoon of baking soda![/caption]

so I made a batch.  I like simple recipes so I don't end up buying loads of stuff which if I don't catch and control myself - tend to do at times.

What I did additionally included was some essential oils.  10 drops of 'Awaken the Mind' by Skin Pharmacy which smells fabulous!  The same one I use in the hb's hair gel.  It contains rosemary oil which is superb for hair.  so in it went.

[caption id="attachment_1551" align="aligncenter" width="458"] add 1 cup of water + 10 drops of your choice of essential oil. rosemary is good for your hair![/caption]

so how does it work?  dunno cos' i only just made it.  Will update again!

 

UPDATE @ 12 Feb 2013

shampoo's okay - very watery and no lather so it's hard to feel that your hair's cleaned.   The essential oils on the other hand - does make my hair softer though!  I was walking back home one day and felt that my hair feels softer after using the shampoo for about 3 days...

meanwhile, still on the hunt for a reasonable priced shampoo or a recipe for one that lathers better and makes me feel that my hair is cleaner!

haul from iherb!

heh!  please indulge me and allow me to blabber on about my loots!  yes, i'm aware it does seem like i'm on a shopping spree recently, though they are generally household items and healthier alternatives to the commercial detergents.

my parent's order from iherb arrived a couple of weeks ago, and take a look at the hauls!

[caption id="attachment_1441" align="aligncenter" width="614"] Hauls from iherb.com![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1442" align="aligncenter" width="614"] Dr Bronner's Soap! My cousin mentioned that I could open a shop! only 1 bottle is mine - the rest are for my parents and sis.[/caption]

as you already know - I am switching all my hand wash to Dr Bronner's cos' it has less nasty chemicals.  My parents got the Rose Hemp and it smells really nice!  a little bubble gum like smell - in a good way.  Managed to convince my sis to change too and she got the eucalyptus and lavender.

[caption id="attachment_1444" align="alignleft" width="205"] Magesium Oil[/caption]

i got magnesium oil for myself -  see link for what it's supposed to help you with. for me, I mainly wanted to improve my sleep quality (cos' i wake up an average of 3 times per night!) and boost my energy level cos' I feel lethargic and sluggish at times.   I rub it to the base of my feet and the 2nd night I did it - I actually slept throught the entire night w/o waking up!!!

While on holiday I didn't bring it but still managed to sleep well.  Back home, I was lazy to apply (cos' I slept well on holiday so figured doesn't hurt to skip it), and the past 2 nights - i woke about 3 -5 times.  Sigh.  Not quite sure if it's cos' I didn't use the magnesium or the late afternoon coffee or the later nights i sleep.  probably a combination of all I suppose.

oh. you might like to know that you can use the magnesium oil as a deodorant!  they say to spray it directly on your arm pits, and smell-be-gone! Haven't tried that yet since I still have my Soapwalla deodorant.

There’s also pet shampoo, dental floss and shaver blades - quite amazed at the range that iherb has!

Now I know why so many people love online shopping.  if done properly and at the right places, it yields a lot of cost savings than from buying retail!

oh.  only thing - this time round, the delivery took 2 whole weeks before it arrived.  maybe cos' it's was during the new year?

toxics in our daily products and an easy way to change

over the past few months - i slowly but surely embarked on a quest to become healthier - in terms of the things I use in my house.

many reasons - big and minuscule led me to this journey.  started when a friend had health scare which made me more particular about certain ingredients in my deodorant. partly I was trying to reduce consumption, simplify my life, have more time to read and also of my easily irritated skin.

it can be kindda scary when you first start noticing the ingredients in your daily products - from your shampoo, body soap, hand wash, etc and see the list of scary ingredients.  aluminum, parabens, tricolsan, etc.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfq000AF1i8&w=560&h=315]

So I started to see if I could replace the commercial products without burning a hole in the pocket.   and the happiest thing i found out??  switching to a healthier option - does not need to be expensive!  (you know when you step into organic shops that tout to sell healthier products?  ironically i get an unhealthy heart palpitation when 1 see the prices!)

In fact, if you shop at the right places, it can actually be even cheaper than the commercial stuff at supermarkets!   I've changed my hand soap, and am in the process of doing it for my parents too -  shared the info with my sis and cousin too and when they realised that it's a healthier option which is also more economical and smells darn good as well - it was easy for them to start trying.  some stuff I DIY - like my husband's hair gel which in fact made his scalp smelll wayyyyy better and in fact he said his hair is softer!  There are more I wanna try - just haven't start on it yet!



So I started a page to list the places where I shop - as my own personal reference list and also to share this info with you.  At the moment - both stores are online shops so they are able to provide better prices generally.  Will be building the list as I go exploring around!  Go check  it out if you are keen to start greening de-chemicalizing (yes, my own word) your home and whether it can help you save that bit too.

for your info, I am not a hardcore wellness person (at least at this moment) - I seldom buy organic stuff (maybe only 10%?), have stuff I'm unwilling to give up  my morning coffee!) and probably have a couple of products that I intentionally don't screen cos' i don't want to know...yet!  (like my Estee Lauder Advanced Night Recovery Serum cos' it helps heal my skin when I have those annoying pimples!), household products I love (bleach! to kill those nasty flies that reside in the drainage holes and for my toilet bowl), etc.

so I am by no means an expert.  My intention is very simple - reduce the nasties in my life and for my family so that we can stay healthier.   I would encourage you to try it - it takes just a little initial effort and the benefits of a healthier body / environment?  priceless.

Malki Black Mud Mask Soap

It's hard to buy my dad presents cos' the things he loves are gadgets and electronic stuff....and I know nuts about them.  My eyes go a dead blank when my dad enthusiastically tells me the exciting new features of his latest purchase.  i try to listen, but man...it can get hard. probably the same way his eyes go blank when I enthusiastically tell him how i helped cleaned his flat.

So I was pleasantly surprised when my dad loved a small gift that I bought him...and surprise surprise...it's not any electronic stuff.....it's a bar of soap!

I bought a Black Mud Soap for my dad about a year or so ago to try, and he ended up really loving it!

[caption id="attachment_1054" align="aligncenter" width="557"] Malki Black Sea Mud Mask[/caption]

I was pretty surprised by his enthusiasm  - he says his skin feels very clean after he uses this soap, and even uses it as a shampoo!

Also got one for the hb to use - to replace the commercial facial wash and when I asked him "how?" - he had the most boring answer "ok lor".  and "ok lor" from the hb is a decent rating.   And surprise surprise - it double ups as a shaving cream too!  I read it online and asked him to try it  just last week and he says it works!  So now he doesn't need to use shaving cream loaded with hard-to-read-and-understand ingredients!  and saves money too from one less unnecessary purchase!

Personally I don't have any personal preference for the soap.  Works alright for me, didn't do anything out-of-the-world for me.  Smell?  I don't like it (it is called mud for a reason) But I guess this soap works well for people with oily skin like my dad and hb.

You can get the bar from Real Foods or Zenxin, but it's really really expensive at $17.80 per bar!   My dad ran out of the soap really fast, so I went to search if there was a cheaper option and I managed to buy it online for about a third of the price!!! and that is even after currency conversion and shipping (then again, I did buy 30 bars to make shipping viable!).   I just checked and the company I ordered from went....bust!  Lucky I got it early!  I guess I will have to start my search again when my dad runs low...which will probably take a while!

Dr Bronner's Magic Soap!

remember a few months ago I was writing about a pretty red dispenser that I bought, but smelt really bad when I poured in the hand soap?

I googled and the only explanation I could find was that the fragrance in the hand soap reacts with the metal, causing the bad smell - so I decided to put the red pump aside until I found some more natural soaps.....and....I DID!:):)

It's Dr Bronner's Magic Soap - seems to be widely known in the US, though not so common in Singapore (though I've been seeing it pop up at NTUC Finest, Watsons and mostly organic or health stores).

[caption id="attachment_936" align="aligncenter" width="371"] dr bronner magic soap[/caption]

what appealed to me was that

1. NO NASTY CHEMICALS

It's going to take too long and you probably be bored by the time I go through each ingredient....so what I linked the nasty stuff in red (possible links to cancer, fertility issues, etc), the neutral stuff in green.  The links in blue - well, it's not bad or good on its own - it depends what goes into it.   Read the articles using your discretion.  And if you are interested, you can further investigate and decide what works for you!

i) Dr Bronner's Tea Tree Liquid Soap 

INGREDIENTS: Water, Organic Coconut Oil*, Potassium Hydroxide**, Organic Olive Oil*, Tea Tree Extract, Organic Hemp Oil, Organic Jojoba Oil, Citric Acid, Tocopherol * CERTIFIED FAIR TRADE INGREDIENTS ** None remains after saponifying oils into soap and glycerin

I like that their ingredients are easy to read and understand.  Personally I have a good experience with using Hemp Oil based products for my eczema.   I think it's not available in Singapore in its pure form cos' it falls under the cannibis family  even though THC - the drug is not present in concentrations that induces a 'high'.  at least that's what I read.  I'm just happy to find out that hemp seed oil heals my skin!:)

simple homemade cure for headaches! almost instant relief!

An instant cure for headaches!  who knew that the secret is just residing in ingredients from our kitchen??? and it even beat a fancy cream that has more than a dozen ingredients!

You would have to pardon my enthusiasm, but I'm so amazed at how effective a simple DIY headache cure works!  and my consultant?  google search!

The husband suffers from headaches from time to time, and usually it lingers from a couple of hours to over a few days.

[caption id="attachment_890" align="aligncenter" width="347"] sucks to have a lingering headache[/caption]

Usually he applies Origin's Peace of Mind - which helps provide relief, though the headache is still present albeit less intense.  It contains Eucalyptus oil, so there is this mentholy-cooling effect after you apply (strangely, if you apply and massage the skin, the menthol effect doesn't work.  not so sure why.  so you gotta leave the cream alone to do its work)

so I helped the husband apply some, and the headache wasn't any better.   I went to google to see what else could possibly help - and I stumbled back onto this simple DIY solution!

.

.

.

cinnamon powder + warm water = paste.

apply paste on forehead and temple and that's it!

initially husband said he didn't feel anything when I first applied it on his head....then suddenly he said 'pain pain pain'.  The cinnamon paste was apparently heating up to the point of it being painful.  Lucky he bit the pain and left it on (at this point, he said he had less pain from the headache, but figured the heat from the cinnamon paste was distracting him).

The real reward came about 5 - 10 minutes, when the heat from the cinnamon paste slowly subsided and became bearable.  So I asked the obvious question 'so still got headache?'.....and he said 'no' - the headache was gone! just from cinnamon + water!! gosh.  washed the paste off after a few more mintues...and headache remained gone!!!  true story. It happened a few hours ago!

p/s:  I tried some on my forehead to test if really that painful, and from someone who normally has a high threshold for pain - it was indeed bordering on painful hot.

So the next time you or a family member has a headache, you can try this method!  Provided you are not allergic to cinnamon of course.  But do be prepared for some painful heat - we figure it's the cinnamon making the blood vessels dilate and probably helped the blood move and removing the cause of the headache!

boy oh boy!  I'm still amazed!

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="348"] I actually bought this cinnamon powder from phoon huat to make my usual oatmeal raisin cookies - but felt that the cinnamon smell was not as good as the usual Mccormick I used - so I kept this one aside...and boy was it useful today![/caption]