April Showers of Savings, and New Products
This newsletter contains:
NEW and SALE product on our Specials page:
Back in Stock favorites: Aloe Butter, Osmanthus and Tobacco Absolutes, Poplar Balsam Oil. ORGANIC Jojoba. All on our New and Special page.
New Essential Oil – PLAI, powerful pain reliever from Thailand on our New and Specials page.
Back in Stock / New Hydrosols – Wild Carrot Seed and Poplar Balsam – both wonderful for skin regeneration
April Showers Sale – save 10% on all our Shower Gels on our New and Specials page.
Back in stock, clearance, and NEW diffusers. See them first on the Specials page.
NEW for Mature Skin – Cleopatra’s Secret Smoothing Masque – All the women of Nature’s Gift love it!
and more:
SPECIAL SALE TAX DAY
April 15th is the day of reckoning in the US – personal tax returns must be filed and paid. To ease the pain, we are having a special sale on Sunday, April 15th. The %age of the sale will vary from time to time…MOST of the time it will be 15%, but sometimes it will be higher, or lower. Most of the day the discount will only apply to our essential oils, absolutes, and CO2 extracts. They will always be discounted. But sometimes our hydrosols, or skincare products, or carrier oils, or…whatever..may also be discounted. It seems to me that filing my taxes is always a huge gamble…so perhaps on our tax day sale you will be gambling a bit too.
Use the promotional code TAXDAY and press apply, and see what your tax day discount will be.
Blog Updates:
Lemon Tea Tree – We’ve always used it to repel mosquitoes and other flying pests… but we received and shared a LOT of information about its powerful antibacterial effects as well. Some amazing anecdotes about its efficacy, simply by inhalation.
Christi shared her experience in “Happy Accidents – Cade oil for Dry Skin.”
I love it when the “Mass Media” shares something we’ve known all along. Consumer Reports magazine issued a “Health Alert: Avoiding Synthetic Fragrances” (Sometimes we just want to say “Well, DUH!!!!”)
Near the end of the month we shared a wonderful letter from a client that reminded us all of why we are here, and how privileged we are to do what we do.
Our Clients Say:
Arnica and bruising:
Diane Ontko, from Connecticut, recently wrote the following (and gave me permission to quote)
Yesterday while clearing snow I slipped and landed on my nose and knee. Ouch! Thought I had broken my nose. I quickly made a 10% blend of helichrysum in arnica oil. I applied several times yesterday and this morning my nose was just about normal looking. Tender, but the bump is down, and the red mark from where my glasses hit is just about gone. My knee is less swollen, I have to see how the bruise does. Thank GOD for the heli.
When I wrote, asking for permission to use her story, she replied:
Yes, you may use my story. Here’s the other part. I was so busy with my 6 German Shepherds that I never thought to use ice once I made my blend. I had a lot to do that evening and didn’t think to stop. Extra kudos to the heli and arnica. I am still applying it. Oh, and the bruise on my knee is already dissolving, never having turned purple. I can see yellowish tinges. It’s about 1.5 x 2 inches right on the knee cap.
Thanks for the info on the oils. Calendula is one of my favorites. I made a shea butter balm using your products for my husband’s chapped and cracked hands and fingers. I used calendula and avocado oils with the shea. He is seeing good results. More importantly, I have stronger nails for the first time in my life!! (they are terrible) LOL
Thanks again,
Diane
Serendipitously… one of my local friends, Johnny Loveday, has VERY frustrating and painful arthritis. He found that our Miracle Oil didn’t help much (which shocked me…it shines with joint pains, normally.) and I wanted to try something else. Blended him some Helichrysum Italicum in our Arnica oil. (I didn’t take notes, but it was probably a 5% dilution.) His comment a few days later:
“Point of interest: The oil you gave me seems to help what my Dr. is calling bursitis; from what I know of the condition (which is not a lot), it shouldn’t. ???”
No…it shouldn’t. And the Miracle Oil should have. Which shows that we really don’t understand the human body!
Psoriasis:
Nancy Caltagirone recently bought some of our Cade Oil (mentioned in the blog article above.) and wrote the following:
I love the cade oil. I have been using it for two weeks and my psoriasis is beginning to clear. Nothing else I have used has had this effect. It is very soothing and it has taken away the burning and itching. Please continue carrying it. I blend it with aloe vera gel and squalane and it works pretty well.
We have heard so many raves about the Pomegranate CO2 for Psoriasis, I’m wondering about adding a bit of that???
SQUALANE
And speaking of Squalane…remember last month one lucky client was going to receive a 29% discount on her Leap Year Day order. The order that hit at the 29% interval came from Arizona, and was for three 4 ounce bottles of our Squalane. The winner’s comment at checkout just tickled me “Squalene is wonderful. Even my 81 year old sun-blasted skin is still soft as a result of using it and it harms no sharks! Thank you for providing this.”
When I asked permission to quote her, she replied, “Marge- You may certainly use my quote but only if I remain anonymous. Or give me a moniker like Desert Dora or some such name. I’m not a Facebook subscriber and really treasure my anonymity. But, again Squalene is THE greatest. And, thank you so much for the wonderful discount.” We all thank Desert Dora for the endorsement! 😉
RECIPES:
Springtime breakfast/snack/treat:
Orange Almond Bagel spread: (great with muffins, crackers, etc…but wonderful on bagels.)
8 oz cream cheese (dieters can use the “light” version)
(let this warm to room temperature for blending)
2 tablespoons ground almonds
4 drops of organic orange essential oil
Cream all ingredients together and chill for two hours, for flavours to blend.
Let the spread reach room temperature before serving.
PS…adding a drop of Orange EO to your favorite muffin recipe is a wonderful flavor perker upper, as well, and would compliment this spread most nicely!
From a blog article three years ago:
Super Scones
Now, even though I live in the Midsouth; the HOME of great biscuits, I can’t made biscuits worth a darn. I’m a Yankee born and raised, and biscuit making isn’t in our genes.
BUT… ah, can I make good scones. They have always been a lot of work, and normally I only go to the effort when I have fresh strawberries and heavy cream. Strawberry Shortcake is WORTH the effort.
Recently came across this recipe…and found it one of the fastest and easiest, and BEST I’ve tried. (And I season them with Orange Oil so that makes them suitable for an aromatherapy blog.)!)
You should own a food processor to make these. They are “do-able” with nothing but a grater, a bowl and a fork, but in the processor they are done faster than my oven can heat up.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, and you might want to grease a cookie sheet while you are at it.
Then… with the grating blade of your food processor grate ONE 4 oz stick of FROZEN butter.
(Plan ahead…I always have butter in the freezer.)
Switch to the “regular” blade and dump in:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Process these until you have a crumbly mess.
Break in one large egg.
To 1/2 Cup sour cream add 4 drops of organic orange oil. Add to the processor bowl. (The original called for beating the egg and sour cream together, and adding the grated rind of one large orange. The changes I made work beautifully.)
Process “on and off” until well mixed. You will have a sticky mess on your hands.
Toss in 1/2 cup of raisins, or currants, or “Craisins” (dried cranberries) or dried Cherries (bliss!)
Pulse just two or three times to mix the dried fruit into the dough.
Scrape the contents onto a cutting board, form into a 7 or 8 inch circle that should be about 3/4 inch high. At this point you can sprinkle them with granulated sugar, raw sugar would be even better.
Cut into 8 wedges, place about an inch apart on that greased cookie sheet. Bake in the 400 degree oven for 15 to 17 minutes, until lightly golden. (Mine took 18 minutes.)
These were amazing. Hot with butter. I suspect they’d be very good cold, as well, but there were none left to get cold. The Cream Cheese Blend above is awesome on them.
Other suggested combinations.
Use Lemon Oil instead of the orange, and add dried blueberries.
Use Almond Flavoring with the dried cherries.
Use Vanilla Extract (one teaspoon?) and chocolate chips.
Please note, the 4 drops of Orange oil gave a subtle flavour, definitely not an “in your face” Orange taste. You could add another two drops…especially if using dried cranberries.
Whenever I go to my favorite bakery, I’m more apt to bring home a couple of scones to heat for breakfast or a bed time snack than some of their richer desserts. I can make a batch of 8 of these faster than I can drive to the bakery, and they surely don’t cost.00 apiece!
REMINDER- Shipping
Jim suggested we remind you that, since March was the hottest month of March in Tennessee since records have been kept, we may have to discontinue shipping Shea Soufflé and/or Baby Bottom Balm sooner than usual. If we ship them during periods of extreme heat, you would receive Shea Soup. Perhaps ordering early to meet your summer’s needs would be appropriate.
COMING SOON
In the past we were able to offer REFILLABLE Personal inhalers, as well as the sealed vials we currently stock. Early next week (perhaps by Wednesday 4/11?) we hope to offer the refillable inhalers again. They are en route, but not in time to list yet. Check our new and special page next week.
Combination Skin?
We’ve been experimenting and testing (and enjoying) a new suite of skincare products designed to care for “combination” skin. After much thought, we’ve arrived at the name of the product line – “Harmony” – for when your skin or your life is out of balance. Christi created the synergy, designed to bring balance to your skin, and, perhaps, to the emotions. We have been testing a gentle cleanser, another version of the creme masque mentioned above, a facial lotion, and a gentle facial exfoliant. Christi has been raving about the various components. Ginger who probably packed your last order wrote the following:
Ginger’s thoughts on the Harmony products:
Masque: This was my favorite! It moisturizes and calms the skin without leaving any greasy residue behind. I tried it plain for a few days and then with a drop or two of Harmony mixed in. I liked it both ways, but better with the Harmony added.
Gentle Milk Cleanser: I loved this cleanser. I just felt like it did a really thorough job. It left my skin feeling clean, but not dried out. I felt like my skin could really breathe afterward. I put a little bit of Harmony in this too and it definitely helped.
Exfoliant: This stuff is great! It’s gentle, but effective. I tried this plain for a few days and then with Harmony. It’s great plain, but even better with the Harmony added. It’s good stuff.
Lotion: I really liked this. It’s a nice, light moisturizer that isn’t greasy at all. It absorbs nicely and evenly into your skin. I prefer it with the Harmony added, but the plain was nice too.
Whoever discovered that Harmony was good for combination skin really knew what they were talking about!
Coming next month to a website near you!
Charity of the Quarter:
Midwives on Missions of Service travel to the poorest parts of the world to share information on safer pregnancies and birthing methods, to help improve the lives of women and children.
from their website:
MOMS is a non-profit, non-denominational organization whose purpose is to improve maternal health through education and service.
How we fulfill our mission:
Prepare women to educate and support their communities, especially the pregnant women in those communities
Train women in the skills and knowledge they need to support local women in normal birth
Promote effective maternity care to all women
Our Philosophy of Mission:
We serve marginalized women. We have a vision of improving women’s and children’s lives by helping provide excellent maternity care. We stay focused on serving women and preparing them to support their communities skillfully. With our experience in effective management, we also think creatively. We act responsibly with the trust our donors and clients have given us. We like to have fun, not taking ourselves too seriously, while taking MOMS’ work very seriously.
Aromatic Quote of the Month
In 1002 AD, in The Pillow Book, Lady Shonagon writes the following passage.
“To wash one’s hair, make one’s toilet, and to put on scented robes; even if not a
soul sees one; these preparations still produce an inner pleasure.”
And in 2012, there’s still truth in the process!
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