Crafter Spotlight

For the month of May starting the week of the 5th, I will be featuring indie crafters. I am interested specifically in photographers and crafters of home decor & accessories, however all are welcome.

If you are interested you can contact me by:

-Leaving a comment here (and a way for me to contac you)
-Convo at Etsy (my seller ID is BlossomingTree)
-If you're a member you can leave a comment on the Ning Networks I'm a member of (Indiepublic, Etsy Artists Of Color, We Love Etsy, Nole Style and Beauty Indulgence and Crazy 4 Silkfair). You can click on the banners on the sidebar to take you right to my page.

Fresh Star Anise

I received my fresh star anise yesterday that I purchased from a wonderful place called Enfleurage, in New York. It is lovely, I must say, especially since I'm not a big fan of the liquorice smell. Funny, I'm starting to really appreciate and embrace aromas I once detested. Compared to the star anise I already had the fresh smelled a bit milder, softer, yet still sharp out of bottle. However I placed a drop of each on scent strips and after 24 hrs I could still smell the fresh quite well, while the other had faded, almost completely. I will definitely buy more of this.

Salt Bars

One of my favorite things to make and use is a salt bar. Salt bars are high percent coconut oil soaps made with the addition of any one or more different types of salts. Dead sea salt, Himilayan pink, Hawaiian red, to name a few. I love the way it softens the water as I use it and the slight scrubiness of the salt crystals adds a bit of exfoliation. And although there is a high percentage of coconut oil salt bars are not drying at all.

These bars were made with an essential oil blend with an emphasis on violet leaf absolute.

Aromatic Adventures

Let me start off by saying I love scent. Definitely “good” scents but “bad” scents have their place. How else would we appreciate the scents we love if they weren’t interrupted by the more (subjective) offensive odors? I have been blending a limited number of essential oils for several years but only recently become much more interested in digging deeper and becoming more familiar with plants & their essences. So I will be posting my aromatic adventures and sharing my studies & samplings of what nature has to offer. Or at least what I can get my hands on. :)

All are welcome to follow this path with me. Comments, questions, suggestions, constructive criticism…it’s all appreciated!

So, now I am patiently waiting (OK maybe not so patiently lol) for three orders of essential oils & absolutes to arrive, that I purchased over the weekend. I'm really excited at the thought of sitting at my work table and taking in all the different smells.

On the way I have absolutes of rose, maile vine 3x, tonka bean, jasmine sambac, fenugreek, hay, labdanum, nutmeg, honey, mushroom and cassie. Also essential oils of bergamot, frankincense, myrrh, sandalwood (mysore) and fresh star anise. Several I've used before but there's nothing wrong with a bit more...research lol.

I also have ruh khus, ruh kewda and choya nakh preordered. I should be getting those around the middle to end of this month.

Rose Sweetwater

It was proper during medieval times to wash one's hands with scented water prior to feasting. Handwashing took place before and often after meals. A basin was placed under the hands of the feastgoers and scented water was poured from a ewer (pitcher). A clean towel was made available for drying hands. This practice takes place still today in restaurants that offer finger bowls prior to serving meals.

This particular sweetwater was made with distilled water infused with fresh rose petals & fresh rosemary, white wine, orange and lavender essential oils and jasmine absolute.