Wholesome Wednesdays: Chamomile

I don't actually have any chamomile growing here - it always gets too hot for it, and since i don't actually LIKE chamomile, i've stopped trying. BUT it's good for the skin and since i put some into my last batch of shea butter soap, i thought i'd point out some of its positive attributes.

crappy out of focus picture of dried chamomile flowers.

I think most of us are familiar with chamomile tea and the calming effects it has on our mood and sleepiness. I personally detest the flavor, but will sometimes force myself to consume the herbal remedy to help get me to sleep and perhaps sooth a sore throat with some honey and lemon added.

Apparently, chamomile has a cumulative affect - meaning that if you take a bit each day you will find a greater benefit than just the occasional sporadic cup of tea. Some of the uses for chamomile include:

• Muscle Relaxant
• Chamomile taken in pill or tea form may help relieve menstrual cramps and other muscle pains. Drink 2-3 cups every day to sooth muscle pains
• Skin Soother
• Chamomile can sooth burns, skin allergies, and other nasties like eczema. Instead of using a salve apply cooled tea to burns - creams can be used for other skin ailments

It's the essential oils and flavonoids within the chamomile that work their magic. The oils sooth the skin and the flavonoids help the body to heal with their anti-oxidant properties.

Lavender, chamomile shea butter available soon!

Chamomile is a great all over soother - for the skin and for insomnia. Consider growing your own chamomile if you suffer from particularly unpleasant menstrual cramps - the fresher the herb, the greater its benefits will be. Plus, chamomile makes a very atttractive low growing ground cover. I've combined freshly ground chamomile flowers with lavender essential oil in my latest batch of soap (ready to order the end of this month) which is a specific blend excellent for soothing eczema and other skin maladies - plus it smells nice :)

I'm Really Tired of Making Mistakes

Yes, we all do it. But it gets frustrating when mistakes are made a little too often.

I just finished a batch of soap: Shea butter soap with Lavender oil, calendula and ground Chamomile. Should be soothing and great for bothersome skin and eczema. Referring to the directions and tips in Smart Soapmaking by Anne Watson, making soap really is pretty easy, as long as you take the right precautions: gloves, goggles, prudence. And using stainless steel submerged in a cold bath to mix the lye in - SO much better then glass! It cools off in just minutes, verses what seems like an hour when using glass.

But i misread my recipe and put 14 oz of shea butter instead of 12. That's a big difference, and if i'd known it i should have upped the lye to about 5.83 oz instead of the 5.6 i used. Sigh.

But i just worked out the INS value of the ingredients, and got a value of 156. The ideal range is 145 - 160, so hopefully this soap works out after all. I'll know in about 3 weeks. Feel free to place your orders if you're interested, and i'll be sure and update then to let you know if it's viable and happy soap.

AND i realized in the middle of the night while being kept awake by a perpetually stuffy yet dry nose: i forgot to line my mold with freezer paper. What does that mean? It means i have no freakin' idea how to get the soap out of the pyrex. Big sigh number two.

Anyone know if i can freeze the mold without damaging the soap quality?

So now, what to do with this 1 oz of shae butter left over? Perhaps i'll go rub it in my hair while trying not to make any more mistakes.
Sigh.

*********Happy Update: i froze the soap in its mold (after cutting at the edges and making a mess of it) and it easily shrunk away from the sides of the mold and popped right out. Hopefullyt eh soap quality is unharmed, and at least it's out and ready to be cut into bars!