If you suffer from eczema or psoriasis, knowing the ingredients in your bar soap is essential to reducing irritation. While some ingredients irritate, others promote healing. One of these is colloidal oatmeal, which is available in our almond oatmeal bar. While oatmeal soaps and baths are not a cure, they can reduce your symptoms. Here is how colloidal oatmeal works for skin conditions.
What is colloidal oatmeal?
Colloidal oatmeal is oatmeal that has been ground into a fine powder, then suspended in liquid. This allows the oatmeal to be absorbed into the skin and soothe conditions such as bug bites, poison ivy or oak, eczema and sunburns. It is a natural anti-inflammatory, and allergies to oatmeal are very rare.
Oatmeal is also a sworn beauty treatment. It is gentle on facial skin and controls acne without excessive drying. Colloidal oatmeal is a primary ingredient in gentle baby products, as well as specialized products for skin conditions.
You can make your own colloidal oatmeal by placing one cup of oatmeal in a blender and grinding it into a fine powder. Test the powder in a glass of warm water. If it absorbs quickly into a milky liquid, the powder is fine enough. If not, keep grinding it until it achieves the correct consistency.
How do I use it?
The most common option for oatmeal treatments is a soak in your tub. You can buy oatmeal bath products or use the colloidal oatmeal you made in your blender.
This is how you prepare an oatmeal bath: Take your one cup of colloidal oatmeal and run it under lukewarm water in your bathtub. If you have a large tub, make another cup of it and run that under, too. As the tub fills, mix the oatmeal with your hand. The mixture should have a silky texture and appear milky. If it appears watered down, add more oatmeal.
It is important to avoid hot baths with this treatment. Depending on your condition, you could cause further inflammation from the heat of the water. Keep the water close to a lukewarm or cooler temperature, like that of an unheated pool on a summer day. If you are treating sunburn, you will likely want it cooler, but make the water hot enough to absorb the oatmeal.
Soak for about 10 minutes to relieve itching or inflammation. If you soak longer than that, you risk drying out your skin, which defeats the purpose of the soak in the first place. Once finished, you may feel like your skin is encased in a film. If this is bothersome, rinse off in a lukewarm shower, and once done, pat yourself dry with a towel. Do not rub, as that can cause further irritation.
If you are not a bath person, there are other options available. There are oatmeal-based shower gels, as well as lotions that work well with prescription eczema treatments. You also have the option of bar soaps, which you can buy from specialized retailers like Soaps & Scents.
Soaps & Scents offers gentle bar soaps containing oatmeal for sensitive skin. Learn more by paying a visit to our storefront in El Cajon, CA. We’d love to help you find the ideal product!
What Is Linen Spray, and How Should I Use It?
Everyone wants their surroundings to smell good—whether in your home, office, or storefront, having a clean-smelling space is a big part of productivity. Smell is an underrated sense, but science has proven time and time again that certain scents can be inextricably linked to memories—meaning that if your home goods store smells like Grandma’s home-baked cookies, your customers will associate that sense of comfort and nostalgia with your business. It’s a subtle but effective detail that goes a long way in customer outreach.
Linen spray is a great way to freshen up your environment. You might not have time to deep clean, but you can easily spray fabrics for a cleaner, fresher room fast. Made of deionized water or a neutral alcohol, plus essential oils or other perfumes, they’re designed to be sprayed over fabrics, carpets and furniture to keep them smelling great between deep cleans or washing, without staining. You can also use them for aromatherapy purposes.
At Soaps & Scents, you can find the perfect linen sprays. Come test them out! Our line of Room Fresheners is made with PureFresh™ base, which is water soluble and completely alcohol free. You can use it just about anywhere without fear of damaging fabric, clothes or carpet. Here are some of our favorite ways to use linen sprays.
Fabric Furnishings and Carpet
Spritzing your soft fabric furnishings and carpets with linen spray is a great way to keep them fresh between cleanings. Even if you own your own carpet and upholstery cleaner, lugging it out and around your home or store is a pain! On the other hand, tracking in dirt and odor is just a fact of life.
With a quick spray around your home or business, you can help ensure that your space always smells as clean as if you had spent the day scrubbing.
Air Freshener
Company’s coming—or a big client is on the schedule—and you don’t have time to air out the room. What to do? Well, you can actually apply linen sprays right into the air as an air freshener. They’ll help neutralize unpleasant odors and fill the room with your selected fragrance. Pro tip: Pick the scent to complement the reason for company! Food smells are homey and welcoming; citrus scents are uplifting and cheerful. Fresh linen scents make everything smell like cozy clean laundry. Whatever your needs, there’s a spray for that.
Clothing Freshener
Linen sprays can also be used when your clothes aren’t dirty… but they could use a little boost. Maybe you went out to a concert, a club or a bonfire and your favorite jacket now has notes of tobacco or wood smoke—eliminate those smells and save your clothes with a quick blast of linen spray.
When you’re looking for linen sprays, be sure to stop by Soaps & Scents. Our handmade products are made by real people—not machines—in small batches to ensure the highest quality natural ingredients and attention to detail. Contact us today to check out our selection!
Get Eczema Relief from Your Bar Soap
If you suffer from eczema or psoriasis, knowing the ingredients in your bar soap is essential to reducing irritation. While some ingredients irritate, others promote healing. One of these is colloidal oatmeal, which is available in our almond oatmeal bar. While oatmeal soaps and baths are not a cure, they can reduce your symptoms. Here is how colloidal oatmeal works for skin conditions.
What is colloidal oatmeal?
Colloidal oatmeal is oatmeal that has been ground into a fine powder, then suspended in liquid. This allows the oatmeal to be absorbed into the skin and soothe conditions such as bug bites, poison ivy or oak, eczema and sunburns. It is a natural anti-inflammatory, and allergies to oatmeal are very rare.
Oatmeal is also a sworn beauty treatment. It is gentle on facial skin and controls acne without excessive drying. Colloidal oatmeal is a primary ingredient in gentle baby products, as well as specialized products for skin conditions.
You can make your own colloidal oatmeal by placing one cup of oatmeal in a blender and grinding it into a fine powder. Test the powder in a glass of warm water. If it absorbs quickly into a milky liquid, the powder is fine enough. If not, keep grinding it until it achieves the correct consistency.
How do I use it?
The most common option for oatmeal treatments is a soak in your tub. You can buy oatmeal bath products or use the colloidal oatmeal you made in your blender.
This is how you prepare an oatmeal bath: Take your one cup of colloidal oatmeal and run it under lukewarm water in your bathtub. If you have a large tub, make another cup of it and run that under, too. As the tub fills, mix the oatmeal with your hand. The mixture should have a silky texture and appear milky. If it appears watered down, add more oatmeal.
It is important to avoid hot baths with this treatment. Depending on your condition, you could cause further inflammation from the heat of the water. Keep the water close to a lukewarm or cooler temperature, like that of an unheated pool on a summer day. If you are treating sunburn, you will likely want it cooler, but make the water hot enough to absorb the oatmeal.
Soak for about 10 minutes to relieve itching or inflammation. If you soak longer than that, you risk drying out your skin, which defeats the purpose of the soak in the first place. Once finished, you may feel like your skin is encased in a film. If this is bothersome, rinse off in a lukewarm shower, and once done, pat yourself dry with a towel. Do not rub, as that can cause further irritation.
If you are not a bath person, there are other options available. There are oatmeal-based shower gels, as well as lotions that work well with prescription eczema treatments. You also have the option of bar soaps, which you can buy from specialized retailers like Soaps & Scents.
Soaps & Scents offers gentle bar soaps containing oatmeal for sensitive skin. Learn more by paying a visit to our storefront in El Cajon, CA. We’d love to help you find the ideal product!
Celebrate National Ice Cream Month with Your Favorite Fragrances
Did you know that July is National Ice Cream Month? What better time to enjoy your favorite summer treats! And now you can breathe in those amazing treats as well as taste them. Our soap store is offering a variety of fragrances that please the senses in celebration of your favorite ice cream flavors.
Don’t miss out on these delights! Soak them up while you can. Our current offerings include the following incredible selection:
National Ice Cream Month
Are you wondering how all this got started? Your local soap store did not initiate this celebration—it is truly a national event. In 1984, President Ronald Reagan designated the third Sunday of July as National Ice Cream Day and the month of July as National Ice Cream Month. He encouraged all Americans to observe these celebrations with “appropriate ceremonies and activities.” We believe soaps and candles qualify!
Join the Ranks
Of course, ice cream in its many forms has not always been available like it is today. Still, this summertime favorite has quite a lengthy history. Famous figures through the ages as early as the Roman emperor Nero are known to have enjoyed ice-cream-like treats. Nero collected ice or snow and flavored it with honey. Alexander the Great is reported to have enjoyed icy drinks with honey flavor as well.
Ice cream is first mentioned in American history in a letter dated 1744. Not long after, in 1790, George Washington is on record for spending $200 on ice cream. Thomas Jefferson made his own ice cream recipe, and Dolly Madison served ice cream at her husband’s second inaugural ball.
It was in 1843 that ice cream became available for the common folk, when Nancy Johnson patented the hand crank ice cream maker. Today, with modern freezers and ice cream factories, we can all enjoy this delicious treat any time, in a variety of forms—and National Ice Cream Month is the perfect opportunity!
Celebrate with Spectacular Aromas
Are you ready to join in the celebration of National Ice Cream Month? Dip into your favorite flavors in a new way with soaps, candles and wax melts from Soaps & Scents. Our soap store has everything you need to make your July smell great.