Thirding oatmeal! I use poppy seeds a lot, too. They feel nice and I don't find them irritating since they're so smooth. Can't say if they do that much exfoliating though.
There's an international jade marketplace on Facebook that you might want to check out. I'm also extremely curious where people are getting these rare crassulas. It seems like a lot of people are growing and selling in Eastern Europe, but not so much in the US π€·πΌ
Mine are doing pretty well! I also notice that I need to water more, but I appreciate not having to worry about overwatering. Baby roots seem really robust too! I've also been using Bonsai Jacks Succulent mix, and the two seem interchangeable to me. Going forward, I think will probably stick with the gritty mix and a touch of standard cactus mix -- seems like the best of both worlds. Doesn't seem like adding a bit of conventional soil could hurt? My jades survived for years in that stuff, so it must not be terrible!
50% orange 10x and 50% lavender is my all-time favorite EO blend. I soak my clay in the EOs before soaping too... No idea if this helps, but I'd use the clay anyway, so I figure it can't hurt. This blend lasts as well as any other fragrance or EO blend I've tried!
Also interested in this!
This is one of the most sensible things I've read on this subreddit.
This is probably a bit of a hot taje, but I was SO disappointed by Bramble Barry's White Tea & Ginger, not because it's a terrible fragrance, but because it smells nothing like the description. To me, it's just a generic, clean detergent scent.
I'm totally not an expert, but this sort of looks like it's turning into a Gimli!
Hello, fellow marroon. π
Why are people so gatekeepy about what is and isn't blond? I was a toe head as a kid and now my hair is about the same as OP. My hair will never have the same tone as a true brunette, even though it's on the darker end of the blond spectrum. Honestly think how weird people get about dark blond hair is a little low-key white supremacy policing.
I think this needs to be studied more extensively before anyone can say for sure whether or not lavender is a hormone disruptor, and at what quantities. In the low concentrations used for soap, a wash off product, it's probably safe.
I've heard great things about this essential oil blend: Gentleman's Lavender.
Thank you so much! The key is really keeping the soap batter as fluid as possible! I also recommend using a slab mold, rather than a loaf mold -- sturdy shoe boxes or usps boxes taped up and lined with freezer paper work well. This was an in-the-mold swirl.
I drizzled the remaining charcoal batter on top and used a chopstick to make linear swirls (straight, back and forth lines across the mold), followed by random loops and swirls. I recommend watching as many swirly youtube tutorials as possible. I learned a lot just by watching others work!
The more I soap, the less fussy I get about keeping everything separate -- with the exception of things that touch essential oils.
I would give it some time. I pruned some very young plants like this one earlier this Spring and I kind of regret it now β they look kinda naked and didn't bounce back the way I had hoped. Let it keep growing for another year or so, then you can give it a little snip.
I mix my clay with my essential oils and let it sit while I prepare everything else. My fragrance tends to stick around pretty well, so it might be helping! Not hard science though, just a guess.
Recently made this batch of palm free soap using olive oil, coconut oil, cocoa butter, avocado oil, and castor oil. I've been slowly getting used to working without palm, and this is the first time my batch stayed fluid enough to make some swirls. Pretty jazzed and hope the finished soap turns out well.
The answer is Chicago or Philadelphia.
Probably not chemist approved, but I just use a little extra distilled water to disperse my additives. I'd rather have a lower concentration of lye than accidentally have too high a concentration, you know? That said, I do use a 35 - 40% lye concentration, so a few tablespoons of extra water aren't a big deal.
Also suggesting a grow light! I don't get the best light in my apartment, and they'v really helped my jades thrive when indoors.
I am a graduate and this doesn't offend me! I would even say you are, in fact, a student. Sure, being a a Graham School student isn't the same as being an undergraduate or graduate student, but your affiliation is no less valid -- just different.
Am I a student?
uchicago