Recent content by Tourmaline

@Misschief (excellent screenname btw!): Oh, that makes sense! I never thought to add the acids last. No matter how hard I try, I can't seem to get everything incorporated with my hands. I think I'll start looking at the local thrift shops for an electric mixer, I saw a YouTube tutorial for cocoa...

I've been using this bath bomb recipe, and I love how it moisturizes my skin. I live in Colorado and it is dry, dry, dry here! Especially in winter. The bath bombs harden well, fizz nicely, even float. But I'm having trouble getting the oil & butter mixture to incorporate fully. I always end up...

@Saponificarian - Ahh, budget, foe of our fragrant dreams. Thanks for the recs, I'll make a note of them.

@dndlyon - Samples are my crack. Indie perfumes, EOs, FOs, bath & body products, I will buy ALL the samples. Eden and Elements know what's up. Nature's Garden, Tibetan Amber. I'll have to try that one! I'm not a fan of baby powder ambers, I like them richer and more resinous.

I think lotion bars should sink in pretty quickly since most people want to use them and get on with life. Massage bars should be the opposite, they should have oils like olive or coconut that take a while to sink in so the person doing the massage doesn't have to reapply all the time.

@Saponificarian - Haha, I hear you! I have a bunch of FO samples coming with my order from Elements Bath & Body. I'm giving some of my bath & body stuff to my best friend who is sensitive to many synthetic fragrances, hence the EOs. FOs are way more budget friendly. Another amber fan! Got any...

I didn't know they made cheap labdanum! Let me know if you find any, I'd love to experiment with it but I have yet to find any that I can afford.

Hi, fellow EO fans! I just received an order from Eden Botanicals, I'm bored, and I can't start making my bath & body Christmas gifts because a bunch of my materials are still in transit. So you get EO reviews. First, the company. I've ordered from them twice now and had a good experience both...

@Millie - That's so weird, I just received a bottle of copaiba balsam in the mail and I can barely smell it! What I can smell is kind of like balsamic vinegar, but without the tartness. Noses are weird. Also, are you still looking for labdanum? Eden Botanicals has the smaller sizes of labdanum...

@Isg - Good to know that WSP's sandalwood FO is an accurate one! I adore sandalwood but can't afford the real thing.

I love frankincense, these all sound lovely! Especially the one with patchouli and ylang ylang, mmm. Maybe someday, if I can ever afford real frankincense EO...

@Dawni: Wow, it's great to hear about all the things the Philippines is doing to combat plastic waste! Makes my environmentalist heart go pitter-pat. :) Colorado really needs to get onto this train. Denver has decent recycling programs but the rest of the state? Not so much. My mom and I have to...

I've seen glassine bags at WSP, they are fully biodegradable and should be okay for lotion bars. DeeAnna has a good idea for soaps, if you don't have pretty rags or scrap fabric handy you could also browse the remnant bins at your local fabric store. Tie up your soaps like little bento boxes. Or...

Wow, lots of replies today! Dawni: Ooh, that sounds delicious! Unfortunately I don't think my gift recipients will appreciate the beauty of patchouli. I'll try that blend for personal use though. geniash: I know... but I love cinnamon-type scents so much and I can't afford real cinnamon bark...

Yes, benzoin smells almost identical to vanilla. If I concentrate I can get a very slight spicy aroma from my bottle alongside the vanilla-y sweetness, but if someone did a blind sniff test with benzoin absolute and vanilla extract? I'm not sure if I could tell the difference. I can't afford...