Monthly Archives: September 2013

Essential Oils — No Comments
18
Sep 13

Essential Oils, Soap and their Therapeutic Properties

essential oilsEssential oils have beneficial properties that have been used for many years in aromatherapy and skin care. At Alabu we make many different soaps with essential oils, that I believe work well for different types of skin.

I am often asked if essential oils are active in our soaps; that is to say, do they retain their therapeutic properties after going through saponification (the name for the chemical reaction between oils and lye to form soap).

In the past I always said that I don’t know for sure but thought that the essential oils are active and retain at least some of their therapeutic properties. Well now two of my favorite and well-respected authorities on essential oils and handcrafted soap have collaborated on the answer. In this article Robert Tisserand interviews Kevin Dunn to investigate the question if essentials oils are active in soaps.

Here is the summary; there is plenty of anecdotal evidence that essential oils in soap are active and therapeutic.

The heat (caused by saponification) may cause some loss of essential oil molecules through evaporation, but it should not cause any significant chemical changes. The contact with lye will cause some chemical changes, and of course that’s what Kevin describes in the interview. These changes may or may not result in an alteration of therapeutic properties. That depends on which properties you are measuring and also on which constituents (chemical compounds in the essential oil) you are talking about.  Some constituents may be altered but not all in a particular essential oil.

There isn’t a simple answer, except to say that in MOST instances essential oils do in fact retain their therapeutic action! I will be discussing in greater detail the essential oils we use here and why.

Here is the whole interview, but I warn you it is soap geek talk! What’s important is that  based on the research, that essential oils do retain their therapeutic properties in soaps.

If you would like to keep in touch with what happens on our farm and with Alabu, sign up to become an Alabu Friend.  New Friends receive a great special offer!

My Life and Family — No Comments
12
Sep 13

Dealing with a Sick Pet: Our dog Chia

Chia-webDealing with a sick pet is the WORST isn’t it? Our dog Chia has been having some issues lately. She likes to play fetch, like is a bit of an understatement, she is obsessed with it. But we noticed the other day that she cried when she tried to pick up a tennis ball. On further inspection, we could see nothing wrong, except it hurt her to open her mouth beyond a tiny bit. Of course it was a Friday night when we noticed it. We thought she maybe strained a muscle and waited until Monday morning to see if she needed to go to the vet.

Monday morning came and it was clear she was not getting better. A trip to the vet revealed that she had inflammation in the muscles that open her jaw. She was prescribed an anti-inflammatory and we thought that was that. She was feeling better after two days and started fetching apples.

Oh I did mention that she is obsessed with fetch right?

This time of year the old apple trees that are on the edge of the woods are dropping apples. Chia learned years ago that apples are a lot like a ball and make for a sweet game of fetch. When everyone gets tired of throwing it for her, it is a tasty treat. She will eat the whole thing, I’m sure she thinks if it is good enough for the horses it is good enough for her too.

So after a few days of recovery she was back to fetching apples. The problem is that brought back the inflammation worse than before, and of course this time it was a Friday night before a holiday weekend. As we waited for Tuesday to bring her back to the vet her conditioned worsened. It started affecting her eye, it was dripping and the third eyelid was red and swollen. She wasn’t her usual happy self; she had a pained look on her sweet face. We became more concerned; was this part of the same problem or was this something else and more serious? We all go through this when dealing with a sick pet, don’t we?  We didn’t think it warranted going to an emergency vet, so we waited, hoping we were doing the right thing. Each day we watched our dog get a little worse looking, in the back of our minds we worried she might not make it but neither Dean nor I voiced this to each other. By Monday morning both eyes were affected and we weren’t sure she could see.

More waiting until the vet opened for office hours that afternoon.

Finally I brought her to the vet, more waiting for our turn to see the vet.

Finally it was our turn and the vet thoroughly examines Chia once again. Then I got scolded a little for letting her chew on apples. She increased her meds and said no more chewing on apples or anything hard. So our dog is home again. With proper rest (that will be the hard part) and treatment she will be fine soon. Hopefully we will have many more years together with our furry happy friend.

If you would like to keep in touch with what happens on our farm and with Alabu, sign up to become an Alabu Friend.  New Friends receive a great special offer!

 

Observations Of A Different Kind — No Comments
11
Sep 13

Children; a better way to praise

mc9-11Children, from the day they are born, parents have the responsibility of preparing them to be the best they can be for themselves and society.  If there was something that you could immediately do to help make the world a better place for yourself and others, would you?  This man – Rabbi Joseph Telushkin – has an interesting approach  and I want to share it with you.

Will you share it too?

Here is the link to the five minute video: How To Praise Your Child.

or here is his full transcript:

There are so many things that are wrong with the world, that we by ourselves, cannot fix.  As much as we, as a society, would like to see peace brought to troubled areas corrupt government reformed, cancer cured.  There is a limited amount that any of us as individuals can do about large scale issues.  However, there is one thing that nearly all of us can do that will immediately and exponentially increase both goodness and happiness on earth.  If practiced widely, it can in just a few years’ time- morally transform the world.

Parents and all other adults, should reserve their highest praise of children when they do acts of kindness.  This is not the case at the present moment and time.  As a rule, children receive their highest compliments for one of four things.

  • Their intellectual and academic achievements
  • Their athletic abilities
  • Their artistic attainments
  • Their looks ( especially , in girls).

Children who receive their parents and other adults’ compliments in these areas are delighted; after all, everyone loves a compliment.

But what about the children who don’t excel in academics, or who isn’t a gifted athlete or dancer? Or the girl who isn’t particularly pretty.

What will their parents praise them for?  The most flattering remark that the parents will tell others will be “She/he is a really good kid”.  From which it can be inferred generally speaking that being a “good Kid” is not a big deal that – from the parents’ perspective, the child is probably not very good at anything really worth talking about.

Now, I want to make clear that I am not suggesting that parents stop complimenting their children for their accomplishments in other areas. All children want to know that their parents have respect for their accomplishments. And girls, even more than boys, also need to feel that they’re physically attractive.

But, and this is a big But- what I am suggesting is this:

The traits that we most often emphasize and praise – doing well in school, athletic and artistic achievements, and professional success are all important only if being a good person is placed at the top of the list.

Now, what do I mean when I speak about young people being good?  Let me share a few examples:

  • Speaking out against and confronting a school bully
  • Befriending a nice kid at school who isn’t popular
  • Finding a wallet or cell phone and making every effort to locate the owner instead of keeping it.
  • Offering ones seat on a bus to an older person
  • Treating your siblings decently
  • Not cheating on tests

Note:  I did not list in my examples going on a 10k walk for a good cause like cancer research.  That is, of course, a very worthwhile thing for a young person to do, but it isn’t the point I am trying to make. I am trying to impose one-on-one acts of kindness and goodness; having integrity.

Parents need to give their children praise for kindness and integrity, it will have a powerful impact.

Children will ultimately identify feeling good about themselves about being kind and a good person and use that as they grow up to act nobly.  Or in other words, their self-esteem, will come from goodness and kindness than anything else.

If this proposal were to catch on, we will raise a generation of people who most like themselves when they are doing good.
Think about this for a moment.
What a world that would be!
And the best news about this proposal is that you can start doing it immediately, and I don’t mean tomorrow. I mean now.

I’m Joseph Telushkin, for Prager University.

My Life and Family — No Comments
05
Sep 13

Just a Country Girl: What About You?

Country-or-city-webI’m just a country girl, as you have probably guessed. I grew up on a tiny family farm in what passes for the country in New Jersey. I suppose if I grew up in the city I would feel differently about it. On my recent trip to the NYC, although I was excited to take in all the sites, I can’t imagine living in or having an extended visit to a big city. I have to admit this country girl feels a little lost and claustrophobic when I see the skyscrapers towering over me instead of tall trees and blue skies. I feel a kind of sad when I see so many people, with their eyes set on their destination (or their phones) and not seeing people or what goes on around them.

You can always tell the visitors like me, they are the ones looking all around and especially looking up and taking in the vast skyline. In the late afternoon after I was finished with business I was out and about and looked for parks(surprise that this country girl wanted some green!). I needed something more familiar to my senses; a break from the loud noises and hard lines of the architecture around me. I do appreciate all the beautiful buildings to see but I need the renewal that my spirit gets from trees and grass and living things. The old abandoned looking buildings look so depressing. Not at all like the country houses in disrepair that usually keep or even gain some of the country charm that makes you want to buy them and give them the TLC they need to bring that back to life.

I think I would get awfully depressed if I couldn’t see the sunrise everyday and wake up with the sound of birds singing. I get renewal every morning when I see the sunrise in the morning. I am a bit of a sunrise junkie and go through withdrawal if I go too long with out it. I’m told there are so many advantages to living in the city.  I know there are lots of people who love and thrive living in the city. I just know I’m not one of them. I’m more comfortable out in the country.

What about you?

For those of you that do not get a chance to see the country, we do a monthly letter that has lots of pictures and talks about our life on the farm.  Check it out, you will truly enjoy it.

Spotlight — No Comments
04
Sep 13

Robert Tisserand and the Science of Essential Oils

Robert-Tisserand-web

I had the pleasure of taking a trip to NYC and taking a seminar taught by Robert Tisserand. He is the foremost expert on essential oils and aromatherapy. If you are interested in aromatherapy or essential oils and you ever have the opportunity, I would highly recommend Robert Tisserand and his work. What I appreciate most about his approach is the science behind his teaching. He doesn’t take anything at face value; he finds research to back it up. If there haven’t been studies and trials to prove the theory it is just someone’s opinion, not science. Too often people believe something they have heard about an essential oil and it turns out to be a myth, even though they may have read it in a book.

Robert Tisserand doesn’t just educate about the properties a particular oil might have, he educates how it works on the skin or olfactory systems. It’s a holistic approach backed up by science. No scare tactics, just the facts as they are known. Sometimes there is so much information given that it is hard to keep up, but his warm approachable style makes it comfortable to ask questions or further explain. He is a humble teacher, even though he is of international acclaim in his area of expertise. Robert is eager to impart what he knows. He laughs easily and jokes with his students. I admire how he can teach a group of people (mostly women) with mixed experience and knowledge base of essential oils, from complete beginner to advanced practitioners. I’m sure everyone came away with new understandings and respect of the role essential oils can play in helping skin stay healthy.

I am hoping to make some new products for Alabu with what I have learned and try using some of the costlier oils that I have shied away from using. As an added benefit we were privileged to make and take home several formulations that smelled wonderful.

I took advantage of what we made in class on the train ride home from NYC. I didn’t much like smelling the diesel of the train, so I used some of the Dry Skin Lotion we made in class and smelled the dreamy fragrances of Rose, Sandalwood and Lemon. Thank you Robert Tisserand for the educational seminar and the much more comfortable train ride home!

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