Re: How to Dry / Store / Save

[Guest guest]

Christi,

Here is my file from about two years ago on coloring with herbs:

Special thanks to Nora, Cat and all the other ladies that gave of their

advice and experience:

Green

seaweeds (spirulina)

sage (powdered)

chlorophyll

Super Blue Green Algae

Orange

to seeds

Paprika

Turmeric

curry powder

Purple

alkanet root

Red/Pink

Paprika

Cinnamon (leans to brown)

hibiscus

St. 's Wort flowers

Yellow

to seeds

Turmeric

Ginger root

ground mustard seed

Curry powder

Coloring with Herbs

Orange: Turmeric to get an orange color. Sometimes I mix it with a

little

bit of gold mica to make it brighter. You need to mix the turmeric into

small dish of soap first, rather than just dumping it into your main

bowl,

since it has a tendency to clump up.

Orange-Yellow: Carrot juice, 1 teaspoon por libra.

Orange : pansy herb tea

Yellow : Black-eyed susan petals mixed in the lye solution. Added some

at

trace and it was pretty.

Butter yellow: agrimony (flowering tops)-

Creamy yellow : horsetail (fresh sterile stems)-

Golden yellow : annatto seed

Golden yellow : annatto seed

Bright yellow : turmeric

Golden :I use 2 1/2 teaspoons turmeric in the lye after I mix it, let

it

steep in the hot lye. don't strain add it to your oils.

Golden: I used 1.5 teaspoons of turmeric in a 4.5 pound batch

warm yellow color : ground safron petals

Green : heather (fresh branches) ; sage ; chlorophyl

green pea soup: Alfalfa powder and I used 6 tsp in a 4.4 lb. batch, and

got

a deep, use 2 tsp for paler green on same amount of lbs.

Soft pink-brown: Alkanet (root)

Rich tomato red : madder (root)-

Coral pink : lady's bedstraw (root)

Soft pink: sorrel (roots)-

Salmon: Paprika , Tumeric 1 teaspoon per 3lbs. of soap and to add at

trace

Blue : woad (leaves)-

Purple : red sandalwood , 11-12 pound batch, using about 3 tablespoons

to

color 1/2 of the mix. Then we swirl

Lavender- Alkanet root

I *believe* that alkanet root will provide pink to purple, depending on the

amount used. I've not used it yet, but want to order some. Glenbrook Farms

carries it.

Alkanet root works great.Infuse it in oil for a few days. Pour out some of

the oil to use.Then pour more oil in jar and you can use it again. Keeps

getting lighter as you use it.~Barbara

I infuse a quart jar of olive oil with a cup or two of alkanet. Stir a

couple of times a day for several days. Before you use the infusion you

must strain well (of course) and then just replace a portion of the olive

oil in your recipe with the infused alkanet oil. I usually use about 1 1/2

cups per 10lbs of soap. Alkanet is like a natural pH meter so if your soap

is alkaline ( pH of 8 or higher) the end color will be a shade of purple

depending on how much you add. If your soap is acidic ( below 8) the end

color will be some shade of blue. Some people don't like the unpredictable

nature of this colorant, but I always like a little suprise.

Orange

orange: turmeric

orange yellow: carrot juice

orange: pansy herb tea

yellow: black eyed susan petals mixed in with lye solution

butter yellow: agrimony( flowering tops)

creamy yellow: horsetail( fresh sterile stems)

golden yellow: annatto seed

bright yellow: turmeric

warm yellow: ground saffron petals

Lemongrass

I use a blend of lemongrass eo, lime eo and ginger eo. Smells really bright

and citrus like with alittle zest to it from the ginger.

I also used the lemongrass EO and lemongrass herb in a bath tea along with

mint and lavender. A very refreshing bath tea.

I love lemongrass EO. I used it along with Rose Geranium EO for a wonderful

bar of soap. Lots of Cocoa butter & Shea butter. I used Litsea Cubea to hold

the Lemongrass EO, months later this soap is still wonderful. I hate to get

out of the shower. Ummmmm

Gardeners Scrub

I love lemongrass scent and find it is uplifting. I

have blended it with cedarwood in a gardeners soap and

used cornmeal for the scrub.

Insomnia Blend with vetiver

In India, Vetiver is called the oil of tranqulity. You have to blend it with

something else and a little goes a long way. I used 1 Tablespoon in an 8 oz.

bottle and it's still somewhat overpowering.

YlangYlang

You could try that mixed with ylang or lavender. I mixed it with lots of

ylang and some sweet orange. But the real thing is very very somber and

traquilizing.

ylang ylang

eo, 4 drops rose fo, 8 drops oakmoss eo, and drops vetiver eo

More Colorings

Cayenne powder - salmon

Cinnamon powder - beige to brown

Cocoa powder - dark brown

Curry powder - yellowish peach

Paprika powder - peach

Turmeric powder - golden yellow

Chlorophyll - green

Madder root - red

Lady's Bedstraw - coral pink

Sorrel root - soft pink

Agrimony <the flower tops only> - butter yellow

Horsetail <fresh sterile stems> - creamy yellow

Woad <leaves> - blue

They're best if infused first in your base oil and not added directly to the

lye/water mixture in its natural form.

lynn in valencia

lavender bluffs bath and body

" A little touch of heaven in your bath "

[Guest guest]

WOW! Ask and you shall receive! Thanks so much! Christi in Dallas

Re: How to Dry / Store / Save

Christi,

Here is my file from about two years ago on coloring with herbs:

Special thanks to Nora, Cat and all the other ladies that gave of their

advice and experience:

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 11/27/01 8:51:06 PM Pacific Standard Time,

christi@... writes:

> Here are a few that I am specifically interested in:

> a.. Any & All Citrus Peels

> b.. Beet Juice - Steeped and reduced, then frozen??

> c.. Parsley - Would the stems do any good? Steeped and reduced, then

> frozen??

> d.. Spinach - Save cooking liquid, steep, reduce, freeze?

>

>

Hi Christi,

I have not tried all that you mention and don't know for sure what kind of

applications you are interested in, but here are a couple of thoughts:

1) dried citrus peels in potpourri

2) dried parsley, plantain, rosemary, mint, lavender, or chamomile

(powdered/ground) in cp soap at trace---parsley, plantain, and mint will

provide a gray/green that lasts pretty well, but does fade some over time.

You can let these botanicals dry naturally in a closet or other dry area in

your home. In a pinch, I have dried parsley, rosemary, mint, plantain in my

microwave between paper towels. Try small amounts of time--like 30 seconds

and check periodically until dried.

3) calendula petals in cp soap provide lovely texture and a light, yellow

color.

4) for a " natural " green color, you can purchase chlorophyl at your local

health food store. You may be able to get the same results with the spinach

infusion that you mention.

Hope this helps.

Angie

The Herbarie

at Stoney Hill Farm

www.theherbarie.com

[Guest guest]

>Horsetail <fresh sterile stems> - creamy yellow

how do you tell? our property is covered with horsetail and I love creamy

yellow!

And regarding alkanet root... I made a Christmas Plum soap (goat's milk)

using the alkanet root for the coloring but it didn't turn out very purple,

more of a tan/grey color. So I grated it down, and rebatched with more olive

oil/alkanet root. Was able to get closer to a pretty plum color this way.

Just an FYI for anyone using it with GM. )

Blessings~

Tammy

Gladheart Acres

Palmer Alaska

[Guest guest]

Thanks to Lynn for posting the list on colorings! Very helpful.

Cate