Product Spotlight: Honey, Milk, & Banana Soap

Your skin will love this soap! Made with real bananas, coconut milk, honey, & brown sugar this soap is good enough to eat. This soap is moisturizing, and helps to improve skin texture and clarity.


Ingredients include:
shea butter - great to use for eczema, scars, blemishes, dry skin
coconut milk -moisturize the skin and relieve dry skin and rashes
cocoa butter - heals and moisturizes skin
organic bananas - helps treat eczema, acne, wrinkles, anti-inflammatory
brown sugar - helps condition and moisturize skin
rhassoul clay - improves skin clarity and texture
cocoa powder - moisturizer for glowing skin

All About Castor Oil

Also known as Palm Christi Oil, there are many uses for castor oil. Castor oil has a long history of traditional medical use dating back to ancient Egypt. Here is a short list of the many uses:

Hair growth - known as a hair growth oil, it helps stimulate hair growth and promotes thicker hair, eyebrows, eyelashes. (avoid using in areas that you do not want hair to regrow)
Healer - promotes healing of wounds and cure ailments. Contains anti-inflammatory properties that help with arthritis, sore muscles, skin infections and other skin problems such as sunburn, abrasions, acne, dry skin, boils, warts, stretch marks, stye, and scars.
Moisturizer - Acts as a humectant by attracting and retaining moisture to skin/scalp.Helps prevent wrinkles and keep the skin looking youthful.

We use castor oil in our hair oil products.

Here are some great recipes that you could use at home.

Facial cleanser (early am):
(you can adjust based on your skin type..more EVOO the drier your skin, normal skin equal amounts of both oils)

Since I have oily skin I use:
3 oz castor oil 
1 oz extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

Pour a small amount into palms of hands. Gently rub onto dry skin (do not wet or clean before). Wet a washcloth with hot water and steam the face with the washcloth for a few seconds (40-60sec). Wipe the oil off the face. Do not try to wash with a "soap" cleanser until later in the evening.

Cuticle soother/antifungal nails:
4oz warm castor oil
10 drops lavender essential oil
5 drops geranium essential oil
5 drops tea tree essential oil

Add warm castor oil to a dish, add essential oils. Soak fingernails for 5 to 10 minutes. Great to use following a manicure.

Stye Treatment
Add a small drop to stye 2 to 3 times a day

Precautions and warnings
Raw castor oil from the plant may contain deadly poisons, please be sure to buy detoxified castor oil. Most commercial castor oil had been detoxified. Castor oil is normally safe in moderation. Castor oil can induce labor in pregnant and lactating women. People with intestinal blockage, acute inflammatory intestinal disease, appendicitis, or abdominal pain should not take castor oil without their doctor's approval.

Product Spotlight: Oatmeal Soap

Our oatmeal soap is popular among our customers. Our oatmeal soap is packed with skin loving ingredients. We add colloidal oatmeal for a truly skin nourishing experience. Great for dry irritated skin including eczema, psoriasis, sunburn, sores, chicken pox, poison ivy, oak or sumac, shingles, prickly heat, and other skin rashes.It is now unscented due to customers request. Active ingredients include:

Olive oil - was often used in ancient Egypt for skin care, we use it  for it's great moisturizing qualities
Coconut oil - is great for dry skin conditions
Shea Butter - moisturizes and protects skin
Colloidal Oatmeal - soothes and calms some "itchy" skin conditions

Visit Brown Sugar Naturals to purchase.

All About Patchouli

Patchouli has been around for centuries for its healing properties. Patchouli is a plant native to Asia and is part of the mint family. Patchouli has an earthy strong aroma. This herb has many beneficial uses ranging from cosmetics to medicinal uses. Patchouli is mostly used for it's aroma in a variety of products ranging from perfumes to paper towels. Here at Brown Sugar Naturals, we use patchouli for both the aromatherapy and medicinal uses. We will explore the many different uses of Patchouli.

Medicinal Uses

antidepressant

relaxation

colds

nausea

diarrhea

abdominal pain

venomous snake bites

balance endocrine system

combat fatigue

anxiety

Cosmetic Uses

antiseptic

anti fungal

dandruff relief

dry skin relief

deodorant

athlete's foot

mild acne

eczema

conditioner for locs (dreadlocks)

Other Uses:

insect repellent

spiritual

clairvoyance

physical strength

Cautions:

Do not use Patchouli in large doses since it is a powerful sedative.

All About Black Soap

I found this article from Africa Imports and thought I would share:

African traditional black soap is one of the most healthful yet unheard of soaps you will find.

Made from dried plantain skins, palm leaves, cocoa pod powder, and kernel oil for an all-natural cleansing process. Plantains skins are largely what make this soap so effective. Plantain is a fruit that grows in Africa & South America that looks similar to a banana, except it is much larger and tastes altogether different. You can find plantains at many ethnic or international grocery stores. It is a natural source of vitamins A & E and iron. When black soap is made, the skin of the plantain is dried under the sun and then roasted in a clay oven. The heat must be constant in order to achieve the perfect brownish black color, texture & smell. Afterwards, cocoa pod powder is added. Cocoa pod is the shell of the cocoa fruit and also has natural healing properties.

The next process is very precise. The roasted plantain skin is mixed with palm and palm kernel oil to form the soap. The roasted plantains determine the color of the soap. The longer the plantains are roasted, the darker the soap.

African black soap is soft with an organic shape. It has a delicate texture and a natural, earthy smell. It is not oily, and can be used for hands, face, body and hair. It is most commonly found in Ghana, however other countries have their versions of black soap as well. Other words for black soap are Alata Samina, Anago Samina which comes from the Twi language in northern Ghana.

The benefits of black soap:
- Helps deep clean skin.
- Works on most skin types including rough and dry or sensitive skin
- Helps clear skin bumps and spots
- Helps relieve acne, oily skin & other skin problems.
- Great for removing makeup
- Works against premature facial lines and wrinkles - Can be lathered and used as a shampoo.

All information from African Imports

Also here is a great YouTube video on black soap:

Banana Facial Recipe

I was looking for a facial ideas that are great for kids also. I found a recipe for a banana facial. I tried it and loved how my skin felt afterwards. My skin felt soft and smooth and had a natural glow.

1. Mash 1 banana with 1 tsp of honey
2. Add 1 egg white to the mixture
3. Fill a bowl with freshly boiled water and sit in front of the bowl (for 5 to 10 minutes) with a towel draped over you head so that the steam from the water does not escape
4. Apply mixture to your face for another (5 to 15 minutes)
5. Rinse mixture off with warm water
6. Afterwards, you skin will feel refreshed and moisturized. You can also add jojoba oil, wheatgerm oil, oatmeal, or any skin loving natural ingredient to this recipe.