Happy Birthday to Natural Beautee!
Thursday, January 13, 2011 at 9:16PM 
Photo courtesy of Techpatio.com
I feel like a proud mother. Last month Natural Beautee turned 1 year old! My baby is finally starting to walk! And what a year it was. My hair had its ups (highlights at Aveda) and its downs (Herbatint debacle). I thought hard and clarified what “natural beauty” means to me. And now I am within months instead of years of qualifying as an aromatherapist! What has meant the most to me about this first year of my blog is the willingness of readers to interact, ask questions, and give advice about their own experiences and expertise. I have to give a special shout out to Ken Winston Caine of Mind.Body.Spirit Journal who actually came up with his own natural deodorant recipe in response to my Lavilin Underarm Deodorant Cream review. Ken, I’ve been meaning to ask you can I substitute sandalwood for patchouli? I really don’t like patchouli.
Big thanks to all my readers! Keep those great questions/comments coming!
Reader Comments (1)
Katherine:
Substitute any essential oil(s) you like.
Two provisos:
1. Different natural oil scents react differently with different people's body chemistries. So thin a drop or two out first with some rubbing alcohol and rub it on a spot on your forearm and wear it for a day and sniff-test often. Make sure it gives the pleasing scent you are going for.
2. If using multiple oils, make sure they work well with each other, as well as with your body chemistry. So: Same test as described in #1, but this time, with a mix of the multiple oils.
3. Certain natural oils have strong anti-bacterial and/or anti-fungal properties, which enhances the effectivness of the deodorant. Patchouli was not one of those. Although sage oil is.
4. Patchouli by itself can be quite overwhelming. But using it sparingly, such as in a 1:4 - 1:10 ratio with other natural scents, can provide some surprisingly pleasing results.
5. Experiment. That's what makes life fun. And rewarding.
Hope that helps.
Best,
ken winston caine
http://www.mindbodyspiritjournal.com