Ingredient Spotlight: Calendula

There's so much to love about Calendula! Calendula is a bright cheery plant loved for the medicinal properties of its vibrant orange or yellow flowers. The calendula flower is a skincare powerhouse. It has antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties. It is gentle enough for all skin types but especially for damaged or irritated skin. The oil made from the petals is also a favorite in infant and child skin care products. You can make your own calendula-infused oil by grinding the dried flowers and steeping them in a carrier oil of your choice. 

BTW Calendula is also called marigold but this is NOT the same as the ornamental marigolds of the Tagets genus that you buy at the garden store. If you want to grow this great medicinal plant, make sure the genus is Calendula.

Ingredient Spotlight: Aloe

I love using Aloe in our products, especially our Aloe Chamomile Moisturizing Cream. This wonderful plant originated in Africa but is found in most tropical and subtropical regions of the world. The juice from the plant is fantastic for first aid for burns, rough or irritated skin, and also wounds. And also a moisturizer that firms and tones the skin. Be sure that when you're buying Aloe Vera Gel to make sure it has no carrageenan, which is sometimes used as a thickener but it's a possible carcinogen and gastrointestinal irritant. Carrageenan is creepy stuff. Watercolor painting by our own Maggie.