Essentially Soap The Elegant Art of Handmade Soap Making Scenting Coloring and Shaping
Consumers are no longer satisfied with the industrial types of soap available at the grocery store. They want specialty soaps with just the right scent, emollients, and eye-appeal. They want to pamper themselves and their loved ones with personal soaps made to suit their own tastes and preferences. Now they can get that perfect custom-made soap by making it themselves.
Bergamot Citrus Bergamia
Bergamot has a very powerful uplifting effect as well as an additional refreshing action. Bergamot also has antiseptic properties and is often used as an effective treatment for mouth and skin infections as well as sore throats. Bergamot is also commonly used to help alleviate the symptoms of bronchitis, lower fever and alleviate indigestion. Bergamot is also used as the flavouring for earl grey tea and is slightly spicy citrus oil.
Bergamot blends very well with most essences and is often used as a top note in perfumes. Bergamot is often used in Colognes much like neroli and lavender and is also used in a variety of toiletries for its refreshing and relaxing properties. Bergamot can also be used in massage but concentrations above 1% can irritate the skin and should not be used in this way.
You may already be familiar with the benefits of these three herbs in your everyday cooking. The parsley plant in particular was believed to only grow in the gardens of honest people during medieval times. It was also chewed to keep away the devil as well as the additional benefit of freshening breath. While Parsley is native to Asia Minor it is now found all over the world and common Parsley is used for both cooking and creating essential oil. Both the seeds and leaves are used for creating the essential oil however the seeds have the highest oil content. Parsley has a warm, herbaceous and spicy smell and is even used in many herbal perfumes and cosmetics.
Rosemary on the other hand was first favoured by the Egyptians but then quickly become popular with the Greeks and Romans who saw Rosemary as a symbol of life and death. During the plague it was burned in town centres because of its antiseptic properties. Rosemary has a very powerful warm and woody aroma and produces clear oil which is distilled from both the flowers and the leaves.
This is a closer look at Basil, Bay and Benzoin and their various uses as essential oils. You may recognise Basil and Bay from your own culinary expertise but it may surprise you to learn they have powerful medical applications as well. Benzoin is less commonly used but is also a valuable resource for many aromatherapists. None of these three herbs originate from Europe but many are now in common use especially Basil which is now cultivated particularly as a cooking ingredient. For further information about blending, storing and mixing essential oils like these you can read more in our article Handling Essential Oils for Aromatherapy.
Basil Ocimum Basilicum
