Salt Scrubs

Epsom Salts

photo source: http://www.ecoerth.com/relieve-sore-muscles-and-more-with-epsom-salt/

I made up batches of Salt Scrubs to give away as holiday gifts.  Selfishly I am keeping some for my Solstice gift to self.  I just love them. 

I use them in my shower. I scoop out small handfulls and gently rub them on my skin. It cleanses/rebalances the aura and makes my skin smooth. I have very dry skin so the mineral oil, though not absorbed by the skin, creates a protective layer that holds in the moisture.  I use the scrubs sporadically … not with every shower.  When you towel dry the slick feeling disappears. 

You can make these up using other oils, such as hazelnut or almond. The scent will be a tad less pure but still yummy. These types of oil can become rancid, so it is best to use and/or refrigerate them to prolong their life.

If I don’t have a scented version on hand I just use plain epsom salts as a scrub.  I also scatter epsom salts on the floor of the shower and stand on them if I’m feeling particularly psychically/emotionally icky.

Frankincense Salt Scrub 1 cup epsom salt¼ cup desert salt ¼ cup sea salt 6 tablespoons mineral oil ½ – 1 teaspoons essential oil	Amber Salt Scrub 1 ¼ cup epsom salt¼ cup desert salt ¼ cup sea salt 6 tablespoons mineral oil ½ – 1 teaspoons essential oil
Rose Salt Scrub 1 ¼ cup epsom salt¼ cup desert salt ¼ cup sea salt 6 tablespoons mineral oil ½ – 1 teaspoons essential oil	Eucalyptus Salt Scrub 1 ¼ cup epsom salt¼ cup desert salt ¼ cup sea salt 6 tablespoons mineral oil ½ – 1 teaspoons essential oil
Musk Salt Scrub 1 ¼ cup epsom salt¼ cup desert salt ¼ cup sea salt 6 tablespoons mineral oil ½ – 1 teaspoons essential oil	Clean Cotton Salt Scrub 1 ¼ cup epsom salt¼ cup desert salt ¼ cup sea salt 6 tablespoons mineral oil ½ – 1 teaspoons essential oil
Vanilla Salt Scrub 1 ¼ cup epsom salt¼ cup desert salt ¼ cup sea salt 6 tablespoons mineral oil ½ – 1 teaspoons essential oil	Raspberry Salt Scrub 1 ¼ cup epsom salt¼ cup desert salt ¼ cup sea salt 6 tablespoons mineral oil ½ – 1 teaspoons essential oil

 

This a macro made of some very large Maldon Sea Salt crystals.

photo by micon@chello.nl source: http://www.ifood.tv/blog/salt

Fire

Over on The Forest Witch’s page http://theforestwitch.wordpress.com/2010/11/08/elemental-magick-fire/ is a lovely post about Fire and it’s associations.  

To me the element of fire is generative, creative, life giving.  Fire is a metaphor for life, death and rebirth.   Forest fires char trees which are then reintegrated into the soil as life giving nutrients.  In Idaho the omnipresent lodgepole pine tree cones open when kissed by the heat of flame. Then new trees can arise from the ashes of the old.  I love bringing the Fire element into my rituals when I need power, vitality, energy and/or creativity, and of course I use lodgepole pinecones as a symbol for Fire.

Stone associations differ but a little.  Miaerowyn lists the red stones and the hot stones.  I’d like to add all igneous rocks to Fire be they extrusive (solidifying on the surface) such as basalt, obsidian, tuff, scoria, rhyolite, etc., or intrusive (solidfying in the earth) such as granite, diorite, grandiorite, etc.  Certain metamorphic rocks that are created under intense heat and pressure could also be used for Fire, particularly those shists that include garnet.  In truth though, I believe that it is the mind of the witch that matters most when making connections for elemental representations. 

I love that she has Horses listed as a Fire element.  Years ago there was a movie named Krull and in it there actually was a depiction (bad) of fire horses.  I loved the concept.  To me, horses are Fire personified.  As a teenager I was lucky enough to have horses.  One (a palamino pony named Sandy) was a creative and gifted escape artist.  I’d come home from school and he would be out and about munching on the lawn or my mom’s vegetable garden.  To figure out what was going on, I’d put him back in his corral and then watch from the house.  It took a lot of watching.  Once one escape path was fixed he’d wait a few months and come up with another one.  These are my three favorites…

Escape path 1. Open the Gate – this maneuver had him leaning over the gate, grabbing the twine in his teeth and literally opening the gate.

Escape path 2. Under the Fence – our fences were constructed with upright posts and then a top post crossing the upright posts and then wire grid fencing was strung between.  He found the one post where the staples securing the grid had worked themselves out.  He could then get on his knees, lift up the wire grid and crawl through. 

Escape path 3. Toss the Electric – one boundary of the corral was an electrified wire that ran along the  creek boundary.  The humans making the fence needed to get around a very large tree. The wire was run through a protective tube/sleeve around the tree. The tree wasn’t harmed and the horse couldn’t go through the tree.  After much spying I finally caught him escaping.  He had moved the protective sleeve to one side of the tree. He would then lift it up with his head and dash through. 

Fire; destructive, creative, motivating, heat giving, a marvelous element to ponder on this cold, wet, windy November morning.

Chintz & China

Just finished the first four of a total of five books in the series. It is written by Yasmine Galenorn. Check out her website about the books here: http://www.galenorn.com/Mysteries/.

The series is set in a small town outside of Bellingham Washington. She must live nearby because the plants, animals, weather, environs all ring true.  So the setting is very well done.  These books fit within the cozy genre, in that nothing truly horrific occurs, though scary things do happen.  There’s romance, mystery, ghosts, and spells.  While the heroine is a tarot reader, she rarely does readings in the books.    The characters are admirable and make mistakes and are human. I’d love to meet them.  Magic, relationships, the spirit world, and compassion are real themes in the book. A spell or charm is included at the  end of each novel.  I really enjoyed the series so far and look forward to the fifth and last book.