BrooklynBath.com

To read about The American Revolution in Brooklyn: www.flickr.com/photos/silkbowl/3393535403/sizes/o/

Special thanks to my favorite photographer William Ruderman

grapeseed oil

One of the things that I love about Nature is it many uses.  Of them is grapeseed oil.  Although many prefer to eat the seedless kind, bare in mind that the seeds are very beneficial for everyday use.

Grapeseed oil is a vegetable oil and that is taken from the seeds of the grape plant.  The extracted oil is used in salads for its nutty taste but is also widely used in skin-care.  It is a lightweight oil and the skin can absorb it rather quickly.

I love using this oil mainly because how it feels on my skin once it dries and it is great for oily skin (which I have).  It is extensively used as a massage oil base and it is noted for its skin-repairing capabilities for the skin around the eyes.  I love to use grapeseed oil in bath bomb and lotion recipes and I find it to be a great alternative to sweet almond oil.

You can easily find grapeseed oil in the ‘oils’ section of the supermarket or online from skin-care suppliers.

For those of you who are lucky to find a laptop/notebook sleeve for an average sized- laptop you are lucky!

My new laptop is a Dell 15.6 inches, and it’s wider than the average 15″ notebook sleeves you can purchase at any retail store.  Any sleeve that I did find was just over my budget.

So I decided to get crafty and become my own designer!

With pen and paper handy to write my measurements down, I measured the area of my laptop and added a 1″ allowance.  Not only this enabled me to pull my laptop out of the sleeve but it allowed me to insert it back with ease.

I picked the fabric I wanted and according to my measurements cut two panels.  I cheated a little and used the padding from my old laptop sleeve since I couldn’t use it anymore (My old sleeve was made for 13 inch laptops).  I sewed the padding onto the inside of my panels and completed the project by adding the velcro band.

I love the way my new laptop sleeve came out!

The Reveal

You can visit eHow website for detailed instructions at

http://www.ehow.com/how_4965527_design-own-laptop-sleeve.html

Home Made Carpet Powder

What to do when company is arriving in less than half hour and you have no carpet powder to freshen up the living room carpet?

If you have these two household products sitting in your pantry closet then you’re in luck! You can whip up some homemade carpet powder in less than 5 minutes and makes a great conversation piece!

Recipe – Homemade Carpet Powder

• Large mixing container
• Baking soda
• Borax
• Choice of fragrance oil or essential oil
  
• Aluminum foil and tape
  

Using foil and a toothpick makes magic!

In a large mixing container combine equal parts baking soda and borax (We only needed enough for our living room and foyer so we just used one cup of baking soda and one cup borax). Mix well.

You can add your preference of scent (In our case we added 3-4 drops of lavender fragrance oil).

Time was of the essence so we just covered the container with aluminum foil and taped around the container. We poked various small holes into the foil and voila! you now have our own makeshift powder shaker.

I’ve seen this fragrance oil on the display before many times and have bypassed it each time. Learning from the old adage, “don’t judge a book by it’s cover” – or in this case by its name”, so I finally took the plunge and unscrewed that cap and fell in love – with Plumeria!

For those that are scientifically-inclined it goes by the name of Frangipani but you wouldn’t know that considering that it is used most often by the Pacific Islands to make leis.

Considering that I prefer floral and fruity notes I wasn’t sure how I never gave this bad boy a chance. It’s tropical scent is heaven to my nose. A sniff of this scent and I’m imagining I am laying down in a bed of lilacs and that something else. And it’s sweet scent is not at all like those dessert smelly kinds either that you find in commercially-made products.

You can grab your fragrance on-line or at apothecaries. I bought mine from Bridge Apothecary on Jay St and Front St in the Dumbo area of Brooklyn. They carry a variety of fragrance oils from Wellington Fragrances. So of course, I picked up like 9 different scents!

So whenever you’re sitting down at work and feeling down, grab your Plumeria and indulge in the tropical and heady scent. But remember to come back to earth and attend those emails!

Enjoy!

I made this glycerin-based soap creating about 10 individual layers.  It is scented with luscious lime fragrance -

My Margarita Soap

Consumers Warned Not to Use Clarcon Skin Products

Risk of bacterial contamination has led the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to warn consumers to not use any products made by Clarcon Biological Chemistry Laboratory Inc.

The Roy, Utah, firm voluntarily recalled some skin sanitizers and skin protectants sold under a variety of brand names after a recent FDA inspection found that the products contained high levels of disease-causing bacteria.

What products are consumers being warned not to use?

Consumers should not use any Clarcon products. Examples of these products include

• Citrushield Lotion

• Dermasentials DermaBarrier

• Dermassentials by Clarcon Antimicrobial Hand Sanitizer

• Iron Fist Barrier Hand Treatment

• Skin Shield Restaurant

• Skin Shield Industrial

• Skin Shield Beauty Salon Lotion

• Total Skin Care Beauty

• Total Skin Care Work

What should consumers do with these products if the have them?

Stop using them immediately and throw them away in household refuse.

What specific concerns does FDA have about these products?

Analyses of several samples of over-the-counter topical antimicrobial skin sanitizer and hand protectant products revealed high levels of various bacteria, including some associated with unsanitary conditions.

Some of these bacteria can cause opportunistic infections of the skin and underlying tissues. Such infections may need medical or surgical attention, and may result in permanent damage.

FDA finds the inspection results particularly concerning because the products are promoted as antimicrobial agents that claim to treat open wounds, damaged skin, and protect against various infectious diseases.

The inspection uncovered serious deviations from FDA’s requirements.

How can consumers report adverse events resulting from these products?

Health care professionals and consumers may report serious adverse events (side effects) or product quality problems with the use of this product to the FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program.

This article appears on FDA’s Consumer Updates page, which features the latest on all FDA-regulated products.

Date Posted: June 8, 2009

I love fizzy bath bombs. They guarantee me the best “Me” time ever. It means that I can fill up the tub all the way, light up some candles and drop a bath bomb and watch it fizz up the tub. It leaves behind not only a chock-full of great scent either with fragrance or essential oils but also moisturizing oils.

Bath bombs are made with some nourishing ingredients such as baking soda, epsom salt or cornstarch leaving your skin smooth.  Some days I make them with coconut oil and scent it with hyacinth and other days I make them with grapeseed oil and jasmine scent.

Here’s the basic recipe to making a good bath bomb.  Color and scent are optional of course.

Bath Bomb Recipe

• 2 cups baking soda

• 1/4 cup epsom salt

• 1/4 cup citric acid

• personal choice of color

• personal choice of fragrance or essential oil

• witch hazel

• acrylic ball mold (the christmas ornament kind works)

Sift really well the baking soda and citric acid in bowl.

If using color and scent remember adding a little bit of time is best to the dry mixture.  You can always add more if you desire a stronger scent or brighter color.

Wearing non-latex gloves, work color and scent through dry mixture.

The consistency to aim for is that of barely-wet sand.  Grab a handful of the mixture and clamp in hand.  If the mixture sticks then it’s good to go.  If it doesn’t you may spritz witch hazel to the dry mixture.  Spritz one at a time.  Too many spritzes and your mixture will fizz over –

Stuff your mixture in your mold and press very firmly.  Turn over and gently tap on the mold.  Your bath bomb will release itself.

Dry for at least 3 days on a hard surface.  A great place to find bath bomb recipes can be found on http://www.teachsoap.com

Enjoy!