Benefits Of African Black Soap

The benefits of African black soap make it one of the best soaps to use for healthy, moisturized skin. African black soap was one the first natural soaps I ever used and I still use it in my skin care regimen, years later. African black soap is made in West Africa, mostly in Ghana and Togo.

What is black soap and how is it made?
One of the ways african black soap is made is with, cocoa pod ash, coconut oil, shea butter, water and palm kernel oil. African black soap is made by roasting the cocoa pod, and after the roasting,

The cocoa pod is mixed with pure, unrefined, natural palm kernel oil. This process leads to the formation of the soap. No scents, preservatives, chemicals, color enhancers, dye, or fragrances are added during this mixing process. [SOURCE]


What does African Black Soap do?

African Black Soap has been known to help to relieve acne, oily skin, clear blemishes,and soothe eczema, rosacea, and psoriasis and has been used for centuries in African countries.


Though, black soap is very beneficial, it is also very strong and concentrated. Some say they experience burning or irritation when using African black soap, I've never experienced this but, as we know, everyone's skin is different. What I find works best is to not use the soap directly on the skin but, to instead dilute it. By diluting it, you make liquid black soap.

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Here is how I make liquid black soap:

1 ounce Black Soap
2 Cups Water

 Heat your water, not until boiling. Cut the soap into chunks and mix. Should take about 15 minutes to fully dissolve. Pour the liquid into an empty bottle and you're all done!

You can replace the water with vegetable glycerin and/or aloe vera juice.

After cleansing with African Black soap be sure to follow up with a great natural lotion or body butter to keep your skin from becoming dry.

Try it out and let me know what you think!

Thanks for reading!

DIY Leave In Conditioner For Natural Hair

Before I hand over the recipe, let me tell you a little about my hair. My hair is very porous, it does not hold moisture at all. I can wet me hair and the ends will be dry in 5 mins. This is due to me dying my hair in late 2012. Due to my hairs porosity, I have had very little success with leave-in conditioners. For a little while I even went without them and just co-washed my hair everyday for moisture. The only leave-in conditioners that worked on my hair were Reve Essential Moisture Milk ($10) and Giovanni Direct Leave- In ($8).

Lately, I have been battling dryness, post partum shedding and horrible tangles. I don't have time to co-wash daily and my Reve is on it's last drop. Thus, since I already make products and have all the ingredients on hand to make my own leave-in conditioner, I made my own and it is by far the best leave-in conditioner I have ever used. Hands down.

Here are the ingredients and their roles:
Water: Hydration
Aloe Vera Juice: Hydrate & Condition
BTMS 50: Conditioning Emulsifier
Olive Oil: Conditioning
Castor Oil: Humectant, draws in moisture
Shea Butter: Condition and seal in moisture
Optiphen (Preservative): Keeps Mold Away

Optiphen and BTMS can both be purchased at Bramble Berry (www.brambleberry.com)

The Recipe:
80% Liquid (water & aloe vera juice)
5% Emulsifier
2% Castor Oil
2% Shea Butter
10% Olive Oil
1% Preservative

(Usually it is suppose to equal 100% but, I rounded up on the Olive Oil for math sake)

For an 8 oz bottle:
3.2 oz. Water
3.2 oz. Aloe Vera Juice
.4 oz.   Emulsifier
.8 oz.   Olive Oil
.16 oz. Shea Butter
.16 oz. Caster Oil
.08 Preservative

1. Measure out all of your ingredients. Use a scale, a kitchen scale is about $10-15 at WalMart or Target. 
2. Sanitize all of you equipment, wipe everything down with alcohol. We don't want anything to grow mold.
3. Warm your liquids (water and aloe vera juice).
4. Combine the BTMS, shea butter and olive & castor oil, melt until liquid. Do not over heat.
5. Combine your BTMS & oils with the water and aloe vera juice. Pour the water and aloe vera juice INTO the oils and BTMS. 
6. Wisk a mad man! Wisk until the mixture becomes white and starts to thicken.This will take about 1-2 mins.
7. Let cool.
8. Weigh out preservative and add once mixture has cooled down from hot to warm. 
9. Pour into 8 oz. bottles or jars.

This may seem like a lot of work but, it took me literally 5 mins. 

Try it and tell me what you think!

*Yes, this must be preserved with a preservative, no you can't use Tea Tree Oil or Rosemary. Those are not preservatives.

Thanks for reading!
Jarmelia
Owner
Lia Naturals Bath and Body

How To Get Rid Of Blackheads Naturally

Blackheads are the worst. Absolute worst. I've battled blackheads on my nose since I was a teenager. I have tried painful strips, scratching them off my nose (ouch!), cleansing my face to death, you name it, I've tried it. I felt like everyone could see the blackheads on my nose and thought my face was dirty. No amount of washing my face would get rid of the blackheads. So, you know I was over joyed when I I found 3 solutions for the blackheads on my nose, that actually worked and are painless.

What are blackheads? Blackheads are clogged hair follicles. Usually, the "clog" comes from skin debris, excess oil/sebum, and bacteria.

Here are the 3 ways that worked for me to get rid of the blackheads on my nose. These tips may also work for blackheads in other areas of your body.

Activated Charcoal- I started using handmade soap made with charcoal and the charcoal sucked the excess oil and dirt right out of my pores. You want the soap to be gentle, especially on sensitive skin and can be used daily. Charcoal soap usually costs $6-8.

Bentonite Clay Masks- Bentonite clay is a must have in any skin care regimen. Bentonite clay provides a deep pore cleansing, you can feel the mask tighten on your face and suck out all the dirt. It isn't as gentle as the charcoal soap but, it gets the job done and done well. You can purchase bentonite clay for about $8-10 a jar (1 lb.) on Amazon.

Facial mask Recipe:
4-5 Tablespoons Bentonite Clay
1/4 Teaspoon Charcoal Powder
2-3 Tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar (if your skin is extremely sensitive, use water)

Mix into a paste, add more water if needed. Add liquid little by little until paste is the consistency of pancake batter.

Rub mixture over entire face and let sit for 15-20 minutes.

Rinse off carefully. Do not rub or peel of the mask, unless you want bright red irritated face.

So with washing my face everyday with charcoal soap and using the bentonite clay mask once a week, I have been able to completely rid my nose of blackheads!

Do you have blackheads? What have you tried that works?

How Often Should You Exfoliate Your Body?

Exfoliating your body is very important to maintain clear, glowing, acne free skin. How often should you exfoliate your body, what should you use to exfoliate your body, what the benefits are to exfoliating your body are all questions that will be answered below and have you running to your bathtub to exfoliate! 

What are the benefits to exfoliating your body? 

First, most body scrubs are all natural. You exfoliate your body to remove dead skin cells, unclog and prevent clogged pores, avoid ingrown hairs, even out your skin tone and hydrate dry skin damaged skin. 

How often should you exfoliate your body?

You should exfoliate 1-3 times a week. Your skin sheds an average of 50,000 cells per minute. Not all of those cells fall off on their own. Sometimes you will notice the heels of your feet feeling a little rough, or black heads around your nose, you want to exfoliate BEFORE these things become noticeable. If your skin is sensitive, once a week will suffice. You will also want to use a great facial cleanser to prevent buildup in between exfoliating. 

What should you use to exfoliate?

To exfoliate, you can use a simple scrub that consists of oil, sugar and/ or salt. Depending on your skin type, you may have to modify your recipe or use liquid soap in the place of the oil for a cleansing effect. You can also use exfoliating gloves paired with your usual body soap. 

When exfoliating remember, you only want to remove the DEAD skin cells, not the healthy ones. Over exfoliating can lead to skin irritation and can cause your skin to over produce oils. If a scrub feels too rough, discontinue use. It doesn't take much to remove dead skin cells. Also, if you have recently shaved, using a scrub with lemon or salt can be irritating.

Exfoliating takes less than 5 minutes to do and can be done in the shower or bath. If you don't currently do it, add it to your regimen, asap. Your skin will thank you for it! 

Do you exfoliate your body? What do you like to use? How often do you exfoliate?

3 Benefits Of Coconut Oil For Hair

The benefits of coconut oil for hair are endless. Coconut oil is great for both hair and skin care and can be found at your local grocery store for $5-7. Coconut oil benefits hair because it contains Vitamin E, restores hair protein and is said to reinforce weak strands making them stronger. Here are 3 benefits of coconut for hair care.

1. Can Prevent Dry Hair: Coconut oil can be used as a sealant to help seal in moisture. Apply coconut oil to damp hair and work through strands. This will seal in moisture and also add a nice shine to your hair. Since coconut oil is light it does not weigh your strands down. 

2. Can Be Used For Oil Rinsing: After shampooing and conditioning your hair, apply a nice amount of coconut oil to your strands and light rinse your hair. Use a t-shirt to "plop" your hair, this will reduce frizz. This is great for those with curly hair. Oil rinsing with coconut oil provides extra moisture, shine and definition to natural hair. 

3. Can Be Used As A Hot Oil Treatment: Warm jar of coconut oil in a bowl of warm water. Once the oil is warm, apply the oil to your hair. Place hair into a shower cap. Leave in for 20 mins. and rinse. You can shampoo and condition your hair after this and make the coconut oil treatment a "pre-poo". 

Coconut oil can be mixed with your rinse out conditioner, you can add ayurvedic herbs/powders, the ways you can use coconut on your hair virtually endless. It is worth a try, especially since it costs so little and can be found at your local grocery store. 

Do you use coconut oil? Do you like it? Leave some suggestions in the comments below!