I am finally posting about the Herbal Cleansers! They are wonderful cleansers for all skin types; I originally created them for my own skin and liked them so much, I decided to add them to my line! I am so excited to offer them!
The last couple years my skin’s needs have really changed. It has been balanced for years but I have always had to keep a close eye on my skin for dehydration (I am prone to dehydration because of my health issues, so I always listen to my skin and switch products when needed to keep my skin in balance). In the last two years my facial skin has been craving heavier oils (ingredients it used to only like in dilution) and now loves using elixirs (oil based serums) as much as creams. During this fall and winter it seemed to get more dehydrated than it usually gets during the cooler months. My usual winter staples were not working, so I had to formulate new products and used many different ingredients to address my dehydration and get my skin back into balance, fast! One of the things I worked on was new cleansers.
For many years (9-10 years), I have used soaps like African black soaps, New Day Aromatherapy Bar Soap or Warrior Liquid Aromatherapy Cleanser to cleanse my skin. My skin has loved using superfatted, glycerine rich soaps, since they are gentle, clean well, and (if properly superfatted, and with retained glycerine and added emollients) they clean without over stripping the skin. Using natural soap was one of the things that helped balance my skin, help clear my skin of acne many years ago, and helps keeps it clear to this day.
But during my bouts of dehydration this fall and winter, I found myself reaching more for soaps like New Day (in which I add a very high amount of organic shea butter and organic coconut milk to), and also cleansing oils a few times a week (like Sunset Cleansing Oil. In the past I only used cleaning oils very occasionally, maybe a couple times a month). I still had to follow Sunset with a soap, but my skin was definitely craving more emollient cleansers! I still loved using plain African black soaps (like Alata Samina and Northern Ghana) on my face, but my skin really loved New Day (which is African black soap in which I have added a lot of goodies). I also used very superfatted liquid soap formulations (not yet released). Although my skin still loved soap, I thought I would try some non-soap cleansers, as an alternative cleanser for the days my skin needed something more emollient.
So I began experimenting more with non-soap, herb and plant based cleansers (I have been using them on and off for years, and they were among the first products I ever made, but I only used them occasionally since my skin loves soap so much). There are a few ingredients I often recommend to others as cleansers (like oatmeal), so I experimented more with those ingredients. I also dug through my old notes (I have over 10 journals filled with my recipes, notes, and formulation ideas), and researched though my huge book collection. I used a lot of my old plant, non-soap fresh food based cleanser recipes, and I created a lot more! I experimented with a very wide range of ingredients (using ingredients mentioned in herbals or that I have gathered throughout the years). I tweaked a lot of formulations, and combined a lot of ingredients I hadn’t used in combination before. I also ‘translated’ my fresh masks into a convenient dry form. The Herbal Cleansers were the result of my endeavors 🙂
Earth Alkemie’s Herbal Cleansers are plant based cleansers that are soap free and detergent free, so they gently cleanse and do not over dry the skin–a boon for both those with dry skin and oily skin (sometimes skin get excessively oily if it is stripped of its sebum). Both of the Herbal Cleansers contain many antioxidant and nutrient rich ingredients, and are super gentle! Yet they deep cleanse the skin.
They come in a dry form, so like Earth Alkemie’s masks, the Herbal Cleansers have a long shelf life and are not made with preservatives. Since they do not contain water or fillers or emulsifiers, they are concentrated (so a jar will last you a long time).
Soothe Herbal Cleanser is a product I am very proud of. One ingredient I often recommend to cleanse the skin is oatmeal, so I sought to create a very gentle cleanser for sensitive, irritated skin, that contained many well known soothing ingredients, including oatmeal (some other ingredients, like lavender, have known anti-inflammatory properties). When I use Soothe, my skin feels clean but not stripped, and the combo of ingredients simply makes my skin glow. I used it during a bout of dehydration and it balanced my skin immediately. I sent it to a customer (during a free sample promotion I had during the winter), who could not use some types of soap on her face, and she absolutely loved it too! Another reason I love Soothe is that it is mild enough to use twice daily. Soothe is vegan.
One plant I absolutely love crafting with is coconuts. In Heaven Herbal Cleanser, I have combined many coconut ingredients (the meat, juice, sugar, and milk) creating a very emollient cleanser. Rice and a touch of kaolin clay helps remove impurities, so this is a really great cleanser for blemished skin of all skin types (oily or dry). And it smells like vanilla, yummy! (People with a very good sense of smell can probably smell the natural scent of the coconut and other ingredients too, which are back notes). The first time I used it, I was really surprised how smooth, hydrated, and matte my skin looked. 🙂
I think Heaven can be used daily by most people. Usually I don’t recommend using clay based cleansers daily, but that is usually because most of them are made with too much clay and absorb too much sebum (which is great for oily skin, but not so great for many people with dry skin). But I have used a clay that doesn’t overly absorb, and didn’t use excess amounts of it in its formulation (so I added enough to help deep cleanse, but not enough to strip the skin).
Heaven is vegetarian (but not vegan, due to the powdered coconut milk, which contains cow milk protein. I wish that a true vegan coconut milk powder was available but as far as I know there are none available on the market–even the brands I have seen suggested on vegan forums are not really vegan). If I ever find a vegan one, I will switch to using it.
Since the Herbal Cleansers are in a powdered form, the cleansers need to be made ‘fresh’ before each use (mixed with water before every use. More in depth instructions are on the directions webpage). I do not recommend pre-mixing large amounts (since these contain many food based ingredients and are perishable once water/water based ingredients are added, and I have not added any preservatives to it). But if you choose to make enough for a few days, be sure to add a broad spectrum preservative, and refrigerate it and use it up within a few days or so.
In addition I do NOT suggest storing the Herbal Cleansers (or the masks, for that matter) in the bathroom (since that increases the chance of water accidentally getting introduced into the product. In addition, temperature changes and the chance of bacterial contamination are also huge concerns).
I hope you enjoy the Herbal Cleansers and love them as much as I do! 🙂
They are also currently available in a few gift sets (for a limited time. The gift sets will be changed in a couple weeks).
