Tag: calendula

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Make your own – Hair Shine Treatment

I don’t know about you but the miserable winter we’ve been having has left my hair in a complete mess. Luckily, this super easy to make hair shine treatment is great for split ends, brittle hair or even just a bit of a pick me up on a girly night in.

Ingredients:

10g rosemary leaves

10g dried chamomile flowers

100ml fractionated coconut oil

This makes enough for one treatment for very long hair or several if you’re rocking a pixie cut! You’ll have to make it up a bit in advance – just pop all of the ingredients into a jar or bottle and leave to infuse (I only left it overnight but if you can manage a week then even better). When you’re ready to use it, strain through a sieve to get rid of the herbs and work the oil into your scalp and hair. Wrap your hair in clingfilm (or a hot towel if you’re feeling fancy) and leave for a minimum of 30 minutes. If your hair is particularly dry then it can be left in overnight, but be warned – this is not a good idea if your hair leans toward being greasy! Wash the oil out with shampoo; you might need to do this a couple of times to get all of the oil out. Voila! Enjoy your soft, shiny, revived hair. If you’d like to know more about why this works, check out this article about the benefits of coconut oil for your hair.

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Make your own – Bath Milk Bag

So it seems summer is over (what little we had of it!) and autumn is swiftly taking over. My cure all for those end of summer blues has always been a good long soak in the bath! This fantastic recipe for easy peasy bath milk has been a godsend for me – perfect to help you unwind.

Ingredients:

100g milk powder

5 – 10g dried flowers (I used calendula, the colour seemed fitting for autumn!)

2-4 drops essential oil (orange for me, but you can use anything that will help you relax)

muslin bags or squares of muslin and a length of thin ribbon

bath-milk-step-1

Method:

 

In a bowl, add the essential oil to the milk powder and stir thoroughly. It’s important to make sure that the essential oil is completely mixed in, with no clumpy bits.

bath-milk-step-2

Then add your flowers and once again mix thoroughly.

bath-milk-step-3

That’s really all there is to it! Pop your bath milk into a muslin bag, or if using muslin squares then place a tablespoon of mixture in the middle, bring the four corners together to form a pouch and then seal with the thin ribbon. Leave a loop of ribbon to tie the bag below the tap while you run your bath, so that the water runs through the mixture.

bath-milk-bag

Enjoy your soak in milky, aromatic goodness!

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Make Your Own – Face Cleanser

Looking after your skin can be expensive and time consuming, but often the products we use are unnecessary.  We at St Kitts believe skin care should be simple, easy and uncomplicated – no need for special beads dug from an ancient burial sight somewhere far across the galaxy that guarantee to leave your skin feeling ‘just delightful!’ and your pocket decidedly empty. The staple of every skin care routine, as far as I’m concerned, is a great cleanser. This easy recipe for fantastic cleansing oil is both a versatile and cheap way of achieving glowing skin.

bottles-for-cleanser

Ingredients:

80mls coconut oil

10mls jojoba oil

10mls calendula oil

This mixture of oils forms the perfect addition to your routine, softening and moisturising your skin. Coconut oil is hydrating for the skin, it contains mild anti-bacterial properties and naturally clears dirt and dead skin cells that can clog pores and lead to blemishes. As well as soothing and softening the skin, calendula oil is a great anti-inflammatory, meaning it is fantastic for acne, ulcers, rashes and eczema amongst other skin issues. Jojoba oil is actually a liquid wax, known to be the ‘oil’ that most closely resembles sebum (which is produced by the skin naturally). This makes it fantastic for helping to regulate the production of sebum, thereby reducing the likelihood of oily skin.  As with the coconut and calendula oils, jojoba is also hydrating and moisturizing, making the three a perfect combination for clearing pores and freshening tired skin. Best used at night, this is a ‘one size fits all’ product. It is also virtually scentless, so those of you with a sensitive nose can still benefit! It also works as a great base for more specialised cleansers – if you suffer from acne or blemishes, try adding a drop of lavender (also great for relaxing before bed!), for oily skin add a drop of geranium for its skin balancing properties and for dry skin give a drop of frankincense a try. This product will fast become your go to, we promise!

 

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Herb of the week – Calendula

Calendula Officinalis - English Marigold.
Calendula Officinalis – English Marigold.

Calendula officinalis is an annual, reasonably frost hardy plant with medicinal and culinary uses.  It likes well drained soil in a sunny position but will tolerate partial shade.  Growing to a height of approximately 50cms it has vivid orange blooms throughout the growing season, cut these back as the petals die to encourage new growth.  The seedheads of this plant are fabulous, reminiscent of little sea creatures.

The flowers of Calendula are edible and make a pretty addition to salads, they can also add colour to rice dishes and be used as a garnish for fruit.    Or boil them to create a pale dye.

Petals can be added directly to baths, or used to make into simple balms.  The easiest way to use would be to make an infused oil – take a handful of petals and place in a clean sealable jar (such as a kilner jar).  Cover with a neutral smelling oil, sunflower or grapeseed are best, and leave in a warm place.  Change the petals after a week and leave again.  Do this two or three times until the oil has an orange tinge, then strain through muslin and pour into an airtight container.  Store in a cool dry place and use within 6 months.

Calendula is good for dry skin, we use it to make our Heel and Corn Oil, and it is great for gardeners hands.

Some say Calendula makes for the best love potions!
Some say Calendula makes for the best love potions!

In the language of flowers Calendula is a symbol of devotion and is used by some cultures to decorate wedding feasts and outfits.  Dreams of this plant are said to signify happiness in love or marriage.  Indeed love potions have been made from its flowers and leaves!

 

St Kitts Herbery products with Calendula:

 

Calendula Cream 30g, 120g, 500g

Calendula Oil 100ml

Heel and Corn Oil 100ml

Spiced Lime Shaving Oil 50ml