Herbal Oils: Infusing Aerial plant parts in oil

Directions on how to Infuse Aerial plant parts (leaves, petals, flowers, stems) in oil.

Materials needed (Method 1 requires patience, or you can skip to method 2):

• Therapeutic Grade Herb - I cannot stress this enough! It must be therapeutic grade, not soap grade or you are wasting valuable oil.
• Cold pressed Vegetable Oil that is readily absorbed (Almond or Sunflower are best)- High Oleic Sunflower has a longer shelf life, I prefer to use this as there is a least likely chance of allergies.
• Vitamin E (Optional)
• Mason jar- (I use a 1 litre jar, it holds approximately 100 grams of petals and 1000 grams of oil and without a proper press yields about 600mL's of finished product.)
• Muslin bags or cloth.
• Dark Amber bottle

1. Stuff as many aerial plant parts as possible into the mason jar (this is the infusion method for all aerial plant parts).
2. Fill the jar with your chosen oil to the top.
3. Let sit for a few minutes until all the air bubbles escape.
4. Fill again.
5. Repeat steps 1-5 until the jar is full and no air bubbles relaim. Stirring the mixture with a VERY clean spoon (preferably sterile) helps the process go quicker.
6. Close jar, write on the lid what date you made the oil. Count 6 weeks from that date and label when it will be ready. Don't forget to label the ingredients and the weight you added of each. If you added 100 grams of Petals and 1000 grams of oil, this will make a 10% concentration of herb to oil. (100/1000 = 10%)
7. Place the jar in a sunny window for 6 weeks, turning every so often.
8. When the oil is infused (the second date on your lid) pour oil into a clean glass container.
   Remove the oil soaked herb and using a muslin bag or potato press, squeeze the herb so the oil drains into the same container. This is the most concentrated oil and you want to keep it.
9. Continue to do this until no oil can be squeezed out. It will take muscle strength and patience.
10. Discard the herb (or in the case of some herbs, save to add as colourant for soap later).
11. Let the infused oil sit overnight covered to allow all the sediment to fall to the bottom.
    Run the oil through muslin cloth again and bottle in dark amber bottles. Adding Vitamin E to the oil will prolong it's shelf life. (Add it at a rate of 100IU to 1oz of oil).

You now have sun infused Calendula oil!

Method 2 (not as hard, but also not as effective due to the heat used):

1. Follow Steps 1-5 above.
2. Place closed mason jar in a pan filled with water (like a double boiler).
3. Place in the oven on the lowest temperature for 4-6 hours checking often.
4. Follow steps 8-13 above after 4-6 hours.
5. The reason this method is not as effective is due to the high heat used to infuse the oil. It kills much of the good qualities of both the oil and the herb.

Herbal Oils: Infusing root and bark plant material in oil.

Directions for the infusion of root and bark plant material in oil.

Materials needed (Oven Method):

• Therapeutic Grade Herb - I cannot stress this enough! It must be therapeutic grade, not soap grade or you are wasting valuable oil.
• Cold pressed Vegetable Oil that is readily absorbed (Almond or Sunflower are best)- High Oleic Sunflower has a longer shelf life, I prefer to use this as there is a least likely chance of allergies.
• Vitamin E (Optional)
• Mason jar-
• Muslin bags or cloth.
• Dark Amber bottle

1. Stuff as many plant parts as possible into the mason jar.
2. Fill the jar with your chosen oil to the top.
3. Let sit for a few minutes until all the air bubbles escape.
4. Fill again.
5. Repeat steps 1-5 until the jar is full and no air bubbles relaim. Stirring the mixture with a VERY clean spoon (preferably sterile) helps the process go quicker.
6. Place closed mason jar in a pan filled with water (like a double boiler).
7. Place in the oven on the lowest temperature for 4-6 hours checking often.
8. When the oil is infused allow to cool and pour oil into a clean glass container.Remove the oil soaked herb and using a muslin bag or potato press, squeeze the herb so the oil drains into the same container. This is the most concentrated oil and you want to keep it.
9. Continue to do this until no oil can be squeezed out. It will take muscle strength and patience.
10. Discard the herb (or in the case of some herbs, save to add as colourant for soap later).
    Let the infused oil sit overnight covered to allow all the sediment to fall to the bottom.Run the oil through muslin cloth again and bottle in dark amber bottles. Adding Vitamin E to the oil will prolong it's shelf life. (Add it at a rate of 100IU to 1oz of oil).

Crockpot Method (depending on your low setting on your crockpot, you may burn the herb):

More to come....

Newsletter: Chase Creative preorder plus coupon!

Hi all!
At Creations from Eden we are offering another preorder for June! This preorder consists of Chase Creative Molds. These molds are absolutely amazing, extremely detailed and the material makes them very easy to pop your soaps out without losing any detail. I have been playing with various ones for the last month and am very pleased with the outcome. To take a sneak peek at soap produced from these molds go to Natural Painted Soaps. There are also directions on how to accomplish these soaps right here in our blog.

Tired of the same old thing? These molds definitely stand out and offer unlimited creativity. Being that we are the first distributor, other then the manufacturer, you can guarantee these molds will be a unique offer to your customer base.

For more details of this preorder, please go to Chase Creative Molds Preorder To top it off, we are offering our customers an additional 5% discount on your next order, above and beyond your current discount (including sale prices) if you are willing to help us out with a little research. It is simple and may prove enjoyable! Go to the Chase Creative Molds website and look through the molds (I know, there are many)... email us a list of the top 10 to 15 molds you like the best (I'm giving lots of leeway as there are so many to choose from and choosing a mere 10 is almost impossible). Keep in mind, even if they do not say they are available to Canada, we can stock them.

Upon receipt of your email, we will email you a coupon code with your discount +5% to be used on any one purchase. There is no obligation to buy the molds you list, it is merely a way for us to get an insight into what our customers would like to see.

We are also currently running a special on almost all of our Essential oils and Fragrance oils until May 31, 2009. Please take a look!

I hope to hear from you all soon!

Happy Creating !

Thank you,

Randi Carr

The truth about Randi, CfE and a big thank you to all!

Well, I thought I would all let you know who I am and how CfE came to exist! Many of you do know me by now, but those that are far away might want some insight to the person on the other end of the emails.

As most of you know, my name is Randi Carr and I am a stay-at-home mother of two beautiful children (Samantha- 3 years old & Logan 3 months) and a stepmother of one (Taylor- 10 years). My husband is an industrial plumber that generally works in the Edmonton area, but once in awhile he travels the province for short periods of time. It is these times that it gets really chaotic around here and I need my customers patience and understanding. I must admit, I do have the best customers that anyone could ask for and I have never encountered a person that did not understand the trials of motherhood and the unpredictable events that can occur that comes with having small children and a family. For this I am grateful.

Okay, back to me... as you see, I have a tendency to stray from my original intentions often... this is actually how CfE was born. Originally the plan was to make my own natural bath and body products, get Certified as an Herbal Consultant and take the world by storm. Along the way, plans changed. I noticed that if I wanted to get the materials to make the products it was a long wait as the items had to be shipped. It bothered me, so I would order large quantities of product I figured I would use one day. Soon it occurred to me I had waaay too many ingredients and not enough time to make everything I had planned. So, I figured I would sell off some of my stock and save on the cost of the products. I built a website, and before you knew it I was receiving orders. It quickly became apparent that it was not only myself who needed materials readily available. I then began ordering items to see what they were and become familiar with it, then I would sell what I did not need. Before long I started to get busy and people started asking me where to find this and that. October 2008 Lynden House (my only competitor in Edmonton) decided to move to Saskatchewan and I had to make a serious decision... did I fill the void they were leaving? Or did I close up shop? At this point I was also pregnant with our son. As you can probably guess, I decided to keep it going and add to my inventory.

So from the initial $500 investment, a lot of hard work and with some help from friends and family, CfE is what it is now and growing rapidly. We are adding to our inventory every month and have met some wonderful people, both suppliers and customers along the way.

Aside from CfE I also have another company called R&I Bookkeeping Services (Get it? R&I= Randi lol) that was created shortly after CfE. I admit I wear many hats and sometimes these hats are overwhelming to say the least. This is where the understanding of my customers is crucial to my success. Once in awhile I do have to close up shop on short notice to catch up on life and clear my mind.

So a BIG Thank you to all of you for your understanding and helping us become what we are now. I promise to continue meeting your needs where I can and hope to continue this endeavour for as long as life will allow!

Happy Creating!

Randi Carr

The truth about Micas, Oxides & Ultramarines

Many people ask me about micas, oxides and ultramarines and how natural they are today. Well, the truth hurts, but it should be made known... please note, I did not write most of this... I have taken it from various sources on the web...

Oxides and ultramarines are pigments. Pigments are not natural. They are manufactured in labs and have been since the 1970s. Pigments (oxides and ultramarines) used to be mined but the FDA stepped in and demanded some purity as these minerals were full of toxins such as arsenic, mercury and lead to name a few. Since then, these colorants have been manufactured in a lab - same molecular structure just a different way of processing. When you think about it, would you really want to put these toxins on your skin anyway? Sometimes natural is not the best option. Iron Oxides, and similar mineral pigments are not, by FDA standards, "Natural", because they are not directly from plants or animals. Instead, they come from minerals. While considered "natural" by consumers, cosmetic-grade pigments are all man-made in order to meet FDA approval.

2) Micas - Micas are actually natural organic products in the earth, however, cosmetic grade micas are not. Natural mica is an extremely expensive silicate mineral of crystalline structure that is easily broken into sheet-like flecks, however, the cost to mine it is outrageous and the natural mica has been reserved for the electonics and electrical industry. Cosmetic grade micas are synthetically produced in a lab, like pigments, and have been since the 1960s. Cosmetic grade micas are the same stuff you see in your lipstick, eye shadow and blush or other mineral makeup.

Well now that you know the depressing truth, your product probably just became about .01% less natural if you are using it as a colorant in soap or lotions. The good side is that very little mica or pigments are needed to colour products. The bad news is that your natural claims may not be 100% accurate, but 99.99% is pretty good!

What about natural colourants? I will get into that in a new post.

Happy Creating!

Randi Carr

How to make Hemp & Shea Lip Balm

People have asked me many times how to make lip balm. I am going to share my Hemp & Shea recipe I came up with through trial and error.

It's a nice hard balm that doesn't leave a gloss feel on the lips, so it's perfect for men. It can be flavoured or unflavoured depending on your preference. I'll tell you how to do both.

Equipment needed:

• Double boiler (I personally refuse to do anything like this in the microwave... the heat is uneven and it kills all the vitamins and minerals in the ingredients. If you prefer, you can use the microwave.)
• Something to stir your balm (I use a stainless steel utensil as it can be sterilized).
• Scale (all measurements are in weight, so use a scale, liquid measurements aren't as precise).
• Thermometer
• Lip Balm Tubes (Approximately 20)
• (Optional) Lip Balm Labels
• (Optional)Shrink Bands

Recipe (makes approximately 100 grams of product or 20 lip balm tubes, not suitable for lip balm pots):

• 35 grams Hemp oil (I use the refined due to the odour, but unrefined would work too).
• 28 grams Shea Butter (I use natural shea, it has more minerals than the refined... some people find the refined easier to work with though).
• 14 grams Jojoba Oil Golden (I am guessing clear will work too, however I have no experience with it... the jojoba adds a little more slip to it and makes it less waxy).
• 28 grams Beeswax (I use natural raw, single filtered... it has many soothing properties).
• 1 gram Vitamin E- (Used as an antioxidant to prolong the life of the balm, also has skin soothing properties).
• 8 Drops Carrot Seed Essential Oil
• 10 drops Tea Tree Essential oil
• 10 drops Peppermint Essential Oil (I use the USA Mentha piperita, but any peppermint will do, it provides that cooling sensation on your lips that most people like).
• (Optional) 4 grams Natural Flavour

Directions:

1. Melt beeswax in a double boiler, do not overheat.
2. Add oils and butter, stir untill melted.
3. Remove from heat.
4. Place the thermometer in the balm (keeping it in the middle). Let cool to 110F so that the Vitamin E, essential oils and flavour do not flash (disappear).
5. Add Essential Oils, Flavour and Vitamin E.
6. Stir well.
7. Pour into lip balm tubes. If you prefer a lip balm filling tray can be used. Do not cap.
8. When cool, close tightly, label and shrink wrap.

If you want a softer balm.... add more oil or less beeswax, a firmer balm... less oil or more beeswax. It does take trial and error to get it the consistency you want. You can always check it, by taking some out and placing it on a clean cool surface. It will cool quickly. This is another reason why a double boiler is nicer, you can control the temperature for longer periods of time and have more play time.

If you have any questions, give me a shout!

How to make Calendula Salve

How to make Calendula Salve.

Many people ask me for my recipe for the Baby Butt Balm. I have decided to share it. It can be made three different ways, it depends on your patience and how much effort you wish to put into it. I personally start from scratch, but I can also do the work for you.

Part 1 : Infusing the oil

Materials needed (Method 1 requires patience, or you can skip to method 2):

• Therapeutic Grade Calendula officinalis - I cannot stress this enough! It must be therapeutic grade, not soap grade or you are wasting valuable oil.
• Cold pressed Vegetable Oil that is readily absorbed (Almond or Sunflower are best)- High Oleic Sunflower has a longer shelf life, I prefer to use this as there is a least likely chance of allergies.
• Vitamin E (Optional)
• Mason jar- (I use a 1 litre jar, it holds approximately 100 grams of petals and 1000 grams of oil and without a proper press yields about 600mL's of finished product.)
• Muslin bags or cloth.
• Dark Amber bottle

1. Stuff as many Calendula petals as possible into the mason jar (this is the infusion method for all aerial plant parts).
2. Fill the jar with your chosen oil to the top.
3. Let sit for a few minutes until all the air bubbles escape.
4. Fill again.
5. Repeat steps 1-5 until the jar is full and no air bubbles relaim. Stirring the mixture with a VERY clean spoon (preferably sterile) helps the process go quicker.
6. Close jar, write on the lid what date you made the oil. Count 6 weeks from that date and label when it will be ready. Don't forget to label the ingredients and the weight you added of each. If you added 100 grams of Petals and 1000 grams of oil, this will make a 10% concentration of herb to oil. (100/1000 = 10%)
7. Place the jar in a sunny window for 6 weeks, turning every so often.
8. When the oil is infused (the second date on your lid) pour oil into a clean glass container.
9. Remove the oil soaked herb and using a muslin bag or potato press, squeeze the herb so the oil drains into the same container. This is the most concentrated oil and you want to keep it.
10. Continue to do this until no oil can be squeezed out. It will take muscle strength and patience
11. Discard the herb.
12. Let the infused oil sit overnight covered to allow all the sediment to fall to the bottom.
13. Run the oil through muslin cloth again and bottle in dark amber bottles. Adding Vitamin E to the oil will prolong it's shelf life. (Add it at a rate of 100IU to 1oz of oil).

You now have sun infused Calendula oil!

Method 2 (not as hard, but also not as effective due to the heat used):

1. Follow Steps 1-5 above.
2. Place closed mason jar in a pan filled with water (like a double boiler).
3. Place in the oven on the lowest temperature for 4-6 hours checking often.
4. Follow steps 8-13 above after 4-6 hours.

The reason this method is not as effective is due to the high heat used to infuse the oil. It kills much of the good qualities of both the oil and the herb.

Method 3 (Easiest):

1. Follow this link. Buy the already made oil. Easy, isnt it?

Part 2: Making the Balm

Materials Needed:

• 58.8 grams Calendula oil (from one of the threee above methods)
• 11.2 grams Pure Natural Beeswax (although White will work)
• 8.4 grams Jojoba Oil
• 6 drops Lavender Essential Oil- I prefer the Fine French High Altitude lavender for it's superior properties. Mont Blanc is a comparable alternative.
• 6 drops Carrot Seed Essential oil
• 400IU Vitamin E - equivalent to 0.8 grams of our Vitamin E
• Thermometer- candy or fryer thermometer works
• Metal Tins and/or Glass Jars

1. Melt beeswax in double boiler (do not use a microwave as it may kill all the effective ingredients in your oils and beeswax).
2. Add the Calendula and Jojoba oil.
3. Stir until melted... watch closely, you don't want to heat it too much.
4. Once melted, remove from heat source. Let sit for awhile to cool.
5. Add Essential oils and Vitamin E (adding at too high of a temperature will kill all the therapeutic properties.)
6. Stir
7. Pour into containers.
8. Let cool.
9. Close and seal containers.

Makes approximately 4oz (114 grams) of product.

How to paint soaps with micas and pigments.

How to paint soaps with mica and pigments. (For instructions on molding Melt and Pour soap, please see the how to on Melt & Mold Soapmaking... coming soon).









I thought I'd use this blog for recipes and a how-to section for those of you that want to know how something was done, or recipes to make certain products we have at Creations from Eden.

So, number one on the list and my latest passion: Painted soap.

Materials needed:

• Melt and Pour Soap Base - equivalent to the size of mold you are planning to use, or CP soap in the shape you desire. It can be fragranced in the scent you choose. I personally do not work with CP because of my kids and the danger of lye, but whatever you have on hand will work. I generally use a natural white M&P base, plus it is faster and I am impatient.



• Clear Melt and Pour soap base- equivalent to about 40-50% of your soap above. So if you are painting a 4oz soap, have another 1.6oz-2oz of clear base available for the overlay.



• Micas and other powdered colourants - I love micas because of their shine, but any powdered colourant will do the trick (including mineral makeup). I use micas, oxides and ultramarines, although be aware that ultramarines have a funny smell to them that will go away after some time.



• Distilled water- enough to wet your brush...a vailable at grocery stores.



• Paint brushes- the higher quality the better. I use professional artist brushes, but I realize that is not in everyones budget. Wal-mart sells an inexpensive kit with several types of brushes for around $3.50. These will work to start.



• One small container - For your water.



• Soap mold- any mold of choice, I prefer more elaborate designs, but if you are starting out, stick to the less extravagant. We are bringing in Chase Creative Molds soon and that is where I got the Keeshond in the picture.



• Paper towel - to clean up spills, and clean your brush



• Q-Tips to touch up your work



• (Optional) Arrowroot Powder

Directions:

1. Mold your soap of choice.



2. Have your colourants ready (I take a little out and place in 2"x3" Zipper bags so as not to contaminate the rest of my colourant jar).



3. Wet your brush.



4. Use a paper towel and wipe off the excess water so it is just barely damp.



5. Start with the darkest shade you plan on using and dip your brush into the bag. (In the case of both the Schnauzer and the Keeshond, it was black oxide).



6. Stroke your brush across the area you want that colour, it should stick. Blow off any excess, don't worry about getting it on the background or other places on the soap as we will clean it up later.



7. To clean your brush, wipe off excess colourant, then dip again in the water. Repeat steps 4-6 until the image looks how you want it.



8. Take your Q-tip and dip into the water. Carefully clean up any areas you do not want colourant on.



9. Melt your clear soap base until just melted. You don't want it too hot or you'll melt the soap you just painted. Too cool and you'll fight air bubbles. A nice runny consistency that has not started to gel yet, is perfect.



10. Pour the clear soap into the same soap mold you used to make the painted soap (about 30-40% full. You have to work pretty fast here. Spray with Witch hazel or Isopropyl alcohol to remove the bubbles and get the clear soap to adhere to the painted soap.



11. Take your painted soap and carefully place it in the mold starting at an angle, go slowly so as to not introduce air bubbles between the two layers.



12. Press down firmly. Look underneath at the image if you are working with a clear mold to ensure that the air bubbles have escaped around the sides. Pour more clear base over the back of the soap for a uniform appearance.



13. Spray with Witch Hazel again.



14. Let set until cool. 15-20 minutes or so.



15. Unmold.



16. You now have a painted soap with a clear soap overlay. This is why I use the crystal clear for the overlay. It does not distort the image.



17. (Optional) Brush with very little arrowroot powder before packaging, to keep the soap from sticking to the plastic.

I hope this was helpful. For any questions please email me at randi@creationsfromeden.com