When I think of hemp, I usually think of hemp fiber and hemp seed oil. Others may think otherwise. But it’s about time we all became more aware of the benefits of hemp.
The first benefit is that hemp fibers make great textile. And it can be beneficial as outdoor clothing since it’s resistant to mold and ultraviolet light. How about hemp patio umbrellas? Those would be neat to see.
And the oil is beneficial in skincare and soapmaking too. Hempseed Oil is excellent for providing essential fatty acids to your skin. Although I have yet to experiment with them.
Hemp seed oil is also great addition to salads besides the classic olive oil. Hemp oil has some really good properties and is naturally rich in omega 3, 6 and 9. It also contains minerals, vitamins and antioxidants, high in vitamins A and E.
Other hemp products range from hemp paper, seeds, and powder. Now there is even hemp milk too. Hemp powder I think taste ok, reminded me of seaweed. But since I am a fan of soymilk, I think hemp milk would be interesting to try. As hemp milk is suppose to be easier to digest. A Manitoba company from Canada makes then in plain, chocolate, and vanilla.
Photo from Manitoba Harvest. Organic unsweetened hemp milk.
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When I first made my Ginger Citrus soap, the tracing was beautiful like custard. But the next day it was still in the “gel” phase. A week later it was still not looking so good.
Now that it’s been curing for 4 weeks, I am happy to report that it looks better. Well, it’s not completely as nice as my other opaque bars as the middle looks like it’s still in gel phase. But I’m sure it’s safe to use.
This is the after picture of my Ginger Citrus Handmade Soaps. It has lemon essential oils and ginger root extract. And a bit of grapefruit fragrance, but it didn’t hold up too well.
The bar feels hard, but after the first use, it soften up and feels creamy too. But there is little to no bubbles unless you use an exfoliating body scrub (helps increase the lather).
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Since I’m on the topic of grapes this week, I went out and got a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon and Concord grape juice too.
I may not be able to finish the wine since I’m not a big fan of it. Yet I do love vineyards!
So I will probably use the wine to make Sangria and also the rest to make “Wine soap”. I also found two soap companies that inspired me to make wine soap. They are the Napa Soap Company and the Grapeseed Company from Santa Barbara. And both of these places mention there may be some botanical benefits to adding wine to soap.
Pretty bar of soap from Napa Soap. 6 oz for $7.95 each. “Cabernet Soapignon”
Here is a list of their ingredients:
“intoxicating blend of grapeseed, olive, coconut, palm & sweet almond oils, cocoa butter and a healthy dose of Napa Valley red wine. The delightful combination of ingredients and the fruity scent, makes this a Napa Valley favorite!”
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Since I am a fruit lover of all kinds, this new shampoo from Organix caught my eye. And the fact there was a “TRY ME FREE” offer attached to the bottle was nice too. I found them at Target and there was a good selection, from Cucumber Yogurt to Coconut Milk. I think grapefruit mango butter would be neat, but I didn’t see them there.
I decided on the passionfruit and guava shampoo and conditioner. The smell from the bottle is nice and fruity, but in the shower it’s more like fruit soda. Not too much like guava as I expected. The nicest guava scent I’ve came across is from the soap and candle company Pacifica.
Here is a list of some of the ingredients: organic passionfruit extract and guava adds essential vitamins and anti-oxidants, and orange blossom infused with honey.
Not only is it made from organic fruit extracts, but it’s also free from harsh chemicals. And the best part for me is that all the shampoos and conditioners are sulfate-free. And bottles are eco-friendly, manufactured from materials containing recycled post-consumer resin.
All labels are printed utilizing environmental inks and compostable label film made from annually renewable resource corn, not from petrochemicals.
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Once in a while I get these offer in the mail. I’ve already did one of these offer with Washington Mutual and it went well. So I may just do it again with Bank of the West.
Image from Bank of the West.
Open a checking account with a minimum deposit of $100 and get $100 free with Bank of the West. The offer is valid between now and October 2, 2009. But you have to establish direct deposit of at least $250 or make 10 online bill payments within 60 days of opening the new account.
You can do this online, on the phone, or at the bank. Contact them at
I would probably open the account at a local branch and get a written confirmation for the promotion. You just never know with the way things work these days.
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A few years ago everyone wanted to use “antibacterial” soaps. I was one of them too, until I found out that the antibacterial stuff was actually doing more harm to both your body and the environment.
Especially the very popular “triclosan” that is still widely used today in soaps and deodorants.
The main reason you don’t want to over use the antibacterial stuff is that your body will build a resistant to the bacteria. And that could lead to new super bug, the antibiotic resistant strains such as MRSA.
In 2003, Researchers at the University of Minnesota (Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology) found when triclosan in water was exposed to sunlight, it converted into a dioxin. Dioxins are a group of chemicals that have been linked to a variety of health problems including respiratory to neurological conditions.
Because the dioxins do not degrade over time, they can accumulate in body tissues and cause a larger effect over time. Researchers say even low levels of this highly toxic chemical would become a problem because of its tendency to accumulate through the food chain.
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Since - On the Cliff By the Sea” is out in theatres now, I thought it would be nice to include my own list of my favorite Miyazaki films. As well as more info on the man behind them.
Kiki’s Delivery Service, image from Wiki.
Hayao Miyazaki was born in Japan on January 5, 1941. He is Japan’s most successful film-maker. He is said to be more of a pessimist when it comes to the future of our world, but at the same time he wants to give children hope by saying that life is worth living and the world is worth living in.
I have to agree, even watching the films as an adult, the scenes are all memorable and brings me back to my happy childhood too. The innocence and the wonder of everything around me. And it makes me want to preserve what I had for future generations to come.
As for his view on hand-drawn cell animation being replaced, his answer was “If it is a dying craft we can’t do anything about it. Civilization moves on. Where are all the fresco painters now? Where are the landscape artists? What are they doing now? The world is changing. I have been very fortunate to be able to do the same job for 40 years. That’s rare in any era.” But he admits he likes Toy Story because it opened the doors to a new breed of animation. And he does use CGI in his own movies (but never more than 10% of the finished print). Miyazaki continues by saying, “Actually I think CGI has the potential to equal or even surpass what the human hand can do,” he says. “But it is far too late for me to try it.”
Scenes from Howl’s Moving Castle and Hayao Miyazaki at the Venice film festival in 2005. Photograph: Claudio Onorati/EPA. Photo from the Guardian.co.uk.
I may be sad at illustrations being replaced by graphics or CGI, but I guess it is the sign of the times. At least it will still keep the themes I’ve come to love such as having a strong female lead character. As well as themes focusing on conserving our natural environment. It’s an important issue, if not for us, then at least for sake of our planet.
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It’s been on the curing rack for 3 weeks now. And I finally got to use this soap. I love the natural smell of almond and the slight hint of floral beeswax and honey too.
That’s a jar of German cream honey. I didn’t use it, but had the jar around while I took this photo. I actually used local honey from Northern California.
This is the same batch from the Loofah bars I made, except I added almond meal to this one. The almond meal gives off a nice brown (tan) color and a stronger scent of almond too. I cut them in small hand size pieces.
Cambree’s Honey & Almond soap recipe for 2 lb batch:
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Living in my part of California, there are are endless rows of vineyards to be found in the out skirt of the city. They are the one plant that makes me feel right at home.
As for eating grapes, I don’t think I’m too fond of them. I think it’s because they never seem to taste the way I last remember them. It’s either too syrupy sweet (like cough medicine) or a bit tart.
Beautiful bunch clusters of Muscadine grapes. Photo from Apellation America.
But now I may think twice and start eating more grapes again. Clemson University researchers found various grape extracts and their compounds to be effective at inhibiting Helicobacter pylori, one of the leading causes of gastritis in humans. Basically, it’s good for your gut and digestive health.
H. pylori is often acquired by eating contaminated food and water. And also by person-to-person contact, it is linked with peptic ulcers and gastric cancer.
They’ve tested extracts from red, white, black and Muscadine grapes. The most beneficial grapes are the dark purple and black varieties. The researchers say, “grape extracts and their compounds were effective at inhibiting H. pylori in vitro, with highest efficacy by Muscadine grape skin extract.”
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I’ve been wanting to make goat milk based soap for over a year now. Especially goat milk soap, but since I don’t have any of that I decided to make milk soap using “half & half” instead.
I do have goat milk powder and thought of just adding water to it. But Casey Makela author of Milk-Based Soaps doesn’t recommend goat milk powder at all, she said all the fat has been removed so it would not be good for soapmaking. But I have used goat milk powder in one of my soaps and find it to be just as nice and creamy. Although Makela’s book was informative, it seem to stretch out this process more then necessary! And also make you NOT want to make any milk based soap ever.
Here is the milk & cream soaps. Some say it smells more like sweet oatmeal. I think that smell may fade in 3-4 weeks time when it’s done curing. I can’t wait to give this soap a try! I can feel how creamy and rich it is while I was cutting it up.
Now that I’ve successfully made my first batch of “milk soap” it wasn’t much different then regular CP soaping. Well there are some differences, but not much.
Updated: The sweet smell is still there. Something I can’t describe, but like sweet cookies. I have given this soap the shower test and it’s great! Very nice and creamy bar of soap. Thick and hard bard too. I think it will last a long time in the shower. Just keep it dry in a nice soap dish.
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