Do-it-yourself shampoo

I've had several people ask about sharing our homemade shampoo ideas.  We have been making our own shampoo for several years and won't go back to buying it from the store.  Even the best organic natural shampoo may contain ingredients we don't want to put on our skin, not to mention that it's expensive. 

There are a few do-it-yourself shampoo options using ingredients you have in your kitchen - and all of these shampoos do not need to be used more than once or twice a week (it's a misconception that we need to wash our hair more often than that).  Give your hair a week or so to adjust to these new methods, as the natural oils needs to rebalance, but you will be amazed by the great results and shiny clean hair you get from these simple recipes:

1) Baking soda - yes, it can be as simple as this.  1/4 cup baking soda, mixed with 1 cup water.  Pour over your hair, massage gently, then rinse well for 2 minutes with cold water.  Occasionally follow with an apple cider vinegar rinse as a conditioner (1/4 cup apple cider vinegar mixed with 1 cup water).

2) Herbal liquid shampoo - 1/4 cup strong herbal infusion (chamomile for light hair, rosemary or sage for dark hair); plus 1/4 cup castile soap, and 1/2 tsp light oil (sweet almond oil).  Optional, adding a few drops of pure essential oil for scent and healing properties.  Pour small amount into your hand, lather and apply to hair.  Rinse well.

3) Herbal shampoo soap bars - there are some great recipes for making your own shampoo soap bars such as this one from Mother Earth News.  These bars are more portable if you are traveling, make nice gifts, and lather well if they are made using jojoba or castor oil.  They are made the cold-process soap method so you will need to learn to make soap first.  You can add herbal infusions or pure essential oils for additional healing properties.  Making shampoo soap bars is labour intensive and involves the most ingredients, but once you have made a batch you will have shampoo soap for a long time.  These bars last, and you only need a small amount per use.  Lather in your hand as you would a bar of soap, apply this to your hair and massage gently.  Then rinse well.

New soaps - and soap classes

Since our holiday sale in December our soap stock has been seriously depleted.  I haven't had time to make new batches of soap until this past week, and was so happy to get my hands back into it.  I love making soaps - it's relaxing, creative, scientific, beautiful, and unique and slightly unpredictable every time.   Best of all, in making your own soap you know exactly what will be going on your skin.  Soaps can be modified to suit all skin types, also providing healing properties as well as good cleansing.  You can use local ingredients, herbs grown in your own garden, etc.  So, finally the soap batches are curing on our shelves again - including some of our old favourites (lavender-goatmilk, patchouli-cedar-sage, rosemary-lemongrass), loads of new shampoo bars, some wedding soaps I'm making for an early summer wedding, as well as soaps for our shop.  The new favourite as pictured below - a refreshing peppermint soap that is marbled with natural indigo.  So pretty! 

For those who have been asking, yes!  I'll be offering 3 soap workshops coming up this winter-spring: one in Feb, March and April.  This is the traditional cold process soap method, using lye, pure vegetable oils, and pure essential oils and botanicals.  Details (dates and registration) will be posted later this week - here on our blog and the website.  Sign up quickly if you want to take part - these soap classes fill up fast!

Soap Making Classes added for Oct & Nov

Now comes the season of crafting, making and doing...

In that spirit, we've added three new soap making classes to our fall schedule of events.  They are each an "intro to natural soap making", where participants will make their own batch of earth-friendly soap from scratch using lye, oils, organic botanicals, and pure essential oils using the traditional cold process method.   Workshop dates (Oct 13, Nov 10, Nov 17) and registrations are listed on our website.   Learn to make beautiful natural soap just in time for holiday gift giving...

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Neighbourhood Art Walk & Soap Making Classes this fall

We are excited to be taking part in the Central Art Walk later this fall.  It seems so far away to think of festivals in the fall, but the planning and organizing starts months ahead.  Look for it October 20-21 if you live in the area and want to experience a unique walking tour of numerous local artists and crafters living right in our neighbourhood!  Here at Little City Farm we'll have handmade soaps, artisan wood-fired bread, and another friend offering her gorgeous pottery.  More details to come later in the fall on this blog and our website.

Soap Making Classes - Here are a few of the latest soap photos using calendula, lavender and rosemary from our garden.  I love using herbs I've grown myself, and try to incorporate at least some herbs or herbal oils we've made into each batch for colour, fragrance, texture, and of course medicinal healing value.  The soaps are made from scratch using the traditional cold-process method and all natural ingredients, pure essential oils and organic herbs.  Although I long to make more soap right now, there's just not the time for it during the busy summer months (let alone offering workshops).  However, we'll be offering several soap classes again starting in September and the dates and registration will be posted on our website in a few weeks time. 

Soapmaking Workshops in the new year

Who doesn't love a beautiful bar of handmade natural soap?  And to learn to make your own, well the possibilities are endless and soapmaking is definitely an addictive kind of craft.  I am constantly trying new batches with different essential oil combinations, clays, natural pigments, sea salts, herbal infusions, medicinal oil infusions, botanicals and more, because I just can't stick to a set of standard recipes.  It's more of an artform for me, with the benefit of a very functional, versatile, healthful and biodegradeable end product.  I get many requests to teach soapmaking classes, and will be offering several sessions again in the new year.  Little City Farm's updated schedule of 2011 "sustainable living" workshops will be posted on our website and this blog within the next few weeks, and soapmaking will definitely be on the list.  At this point, I'll be offering two small group sessions on introductory soapmaking - one in mid-January, and one in mid-November.  For those who can't make it to these soapmaking dates here at Little City Farm, there will be two other options:
* Get a group of 4-6 friends together, and I will lead a custom soapmaking course for you!
* Join me at the Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery on March 12, for an intro to soapmaking workshop!

Central Art Walk & Studio Tour, coming Oct 23-24!

For those of you who are local, don't forget to check out the Central Neighbourhood Art Walk & Studio Tour, taking place next weekend Oct 23-24.  There are about 30 artists participating, with a wide range of arts/crafts for sale - pottery, wood work, sewing, chocolates, baked goods, soaps, stained glass, jewelery, painting.

Come visit us at Little City Farm, for freshly baked organic bread, yummy pies, delectable vegan sweets - plus our handmade soaps and herbal products, and a few more surprises.  We are hoping to turn our place into a mini tea house/cafe for the weekend, serving up delicious treats for people who stop in...

New Soaps! Shampoo bars and "gentleman farmer"...

I seem to always need some new soaps to work on - there are just so many ideas and variations out there to try, including marbling, french-milling, layering, infusing teas with botanicals, infusing oils for medicinal value...

1. Peppermint Poppyseed - The first soap pictured here is one of our favourites, peppermint poppyseed - back in stock!

2. Gentleman Farmer - I worked on a new soap for the "gentleman farmer" in my life - this is a men's bar, with earthy woodsy scent of pure lemongrass, cedar and bay essential oils.  It has bentonite clay (so can be used for shaving, as clay gives slip to the soap), fullers earth and ground oats.  Very nice.

3. Shampoo Bars - Here at our place we've been testing out shampoo soap bars for the last few months - and finally I have one we all use and absolutely LOVE!  Thanks to the friends and family members who have also been testing shampoo bar recipes for us!  This one lathers really well, leaves hair very soft and also doesn't require the usual apple cider vinegar rinse that many other shampoo bars seem to (for washing off soap residue).  Say goodbye to plastic shampoo bottles!

Check out my etsy store for more photos and details!

For the local people, we will have more soapmaking workshops (beginning classes in traditional cold-process soapmaking method) coming up here at Little City Farm in early 2011, so if you are interested in learning to make your own soap, please check our website for workshop details.

Soaps for LOFT Market

We had a very special custom order for more than 100 guest soaps this week! It was for LOFT Market - which stands for "local organics fairly traded". LOFT Market, (not to be confused with LOFT, which is a producer co-operative of local farmers who supply LOFT Market), offers a large-scale local organic food box program here in the area, with 10 depot/pick up locations (Cambridge, Guelph, New Hamburg, Waterloo and Kitchener). We were so pleased to be asked to contribute soaps for their last winter box! They were interested in our soaps because we are a small local business that uses local organic ingredients - like herbs from our gardens, local oats & honey, local goatmilk, and even local beer & egg for our shampoo bar. We provided bars made with medicinal herbs, including chamomile, rosemary, lavender, calendula, and sage. We wish LOFT Market, and their farmers, well for the new 2010 season ahead!

Check out LOFT Market - to become a member or find out more go to:
http://loftmarket.ca/

New! Wedding Soaps

I just finished another custom soap order - wedding soap favours, which are "hotel" guest bar sized. These soaps will add a lovely natural touch and make a very nice gift to guests at this summer wedding being held on a nearby farm.

Wedding soaps from Homestead Herbals are available in any of the many varieties of soap I make - the minimum order is 50 guest sized bars of one variety - and they come with individual custom labels printed on recycled paper. Please check my etsy store for more details.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/homesteadherbal

Lavender & Oatmeal Goatmilk Soap - Winter Helper

New batches of soap were also created this week! I am so pleased with the new Lavender & Oatmeal Goatmilk soap - it's beautiful, creamy, smells wonderful, and has the added benefits of organic goat milk. Goat milk has the same ph level as our own skin, so greatly can benefit our skin - it's gentle and extremely moisturizing. Lavender is healing, antiseptic and offers aromatherapeutic properties; and oatmeal has been renowned for thousands of years for it's skin soothing and moisturizing benefits. This is going to be my soap of choice for these cold and drying winter months!

Soap Workshops & Soap Curing Rack

The last two weekends we've had a full house with a series of soapmaking workshops. A big part of the goal of our urban homestead project is education - teaching homesteading practices and knowledge to other urbanites - in the hopes that these skills will not be lost, to inspire simple living and self-reliance, and to bring community members together in an informal learning environment. Soapmaking has, not surprisingly, turned out to be one of the more popular workshops, and we offer several courses each year that always fill up quickly. As it's nearing holiday season, many workshop participants were thinking of simple handmade gift ideas, with beautiful soaps made the traditional cold-process method will be perfect.

Cold-process (as opposed to hot process or french milled) soap involves making soap from scratch, using a combination of oils that are heated, and then mixed with a lye-water solution. Then additives like botanicals, pure essential oils, or clays are added, the soap is poured into wooden molds and cured for at least 4 weeks. The result is hard, stable, richly lathering bars that are long-lasting, mild, and nicely moisturizing to the skin. This is my preferred method of soapmaking as it is a traditional process that has been used by soapmakers for many generations. Advanced techniques can include marbling or layering the soap for additional effects.

It's a busy soapmaking time for Little City Farm too, as many of our holiday orders are coming in, as well as another craft fair this weekend. Here are a few photos of my latest soaps on the curing rack. Each variety uses at least one herb grown & harvested from our own garden. We are working on an online store linked to our website, hopefully up and running by early December. All soaps are also available on our etsy site: www.homesteadherbal.etsy.com