It's been a while since I posted in English. Last year was quite of a challenge for me so next to reading 40 books, writing my bachelor research thesis and communicating every day in English without visiting Serbia for almost two years, somehow I felt this is my only connection with anything Serbian at all. Next to that, one of the main reasons I started blogging in Serbian in the first place was a duty I felt towards general public in my country to present accurate and up-to-date information about handmade soaps, natural cosmetics and ingredients in general, so I also push myself to post informative, creative and hopefully inspiring posts in my own language. Well, I feel that the time has come to spice up this space with some posts in English as well. This is also my way of thanking my international readers and fellow crafters. Thank you for visiting, commenting and returning to this blog, and above all, thank you for not being intimidated by the quirky Cyrillic script.
My soapmaking craze started a whole new chapter in my handy skills and open the door to my never ending curiosity and imagination. Soon after I made my first batch of CP soap I started dreaming how would it be like to make other bath & body products from scratch as well. Over the years I documented here various projects I have been passionate about and shared many DIY recipes that had brought quite a fateful following from my lovely Serbian readers. After numerous batches of bath bombs, bath creamers, bath milks, lip balms and most recently All Natural Lavender Vanilla Body Powder, next on my to do list was a nourishing stick.
I mused for a while about the scent and use options - shall I make it scent-free, or all natural with essential oils, shall I make it with a more salve-like texture and usage intention, or more urban, multipurpose product for variety of possible users?
My soapmaking craze started a whole new chapter in my handy skills and open the door to my never ending curiosity and imagination. Soon after I made my first batch of CP soap I started dreaming how would it be like to make other bath & body products from scratch as well. Over the years I documented here various projects I have been passionate about and shared many DIY recipes that had brought quite a fateful following from my lovely Serbian readers. After numerous batches of bath bombs, bath creamers, bath milks, lip balms and most recently All Natural Lavender Vanilla Body Powder, next on my to do list was a nourishing stick.
I mused for a while about the scent and use options - shall I make it scent-free, or all natural with essential oils, shall I make it with a more salve-like texture and usage intention, or more urban, multipurpose product for variety of possible users?
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| Shimmering Body Glow Stick |
I have to admit that one crazy sunny March day made me decide to go for a shimmery glow stick with a tropical twist. I just felt so overwhelmingly positive so I thought what would be a better way to try to preserve the warm & cozy feeling of sun rays on skin surface than to try to capture it in a juicy tropical island punch delight for skin?
This product is ideal for highlighting various parts of the body and I have to add here that it looks like especially appealing on legs. It also works great for adding that extra oomph on the shoulder area and/or cheekbones.
The ingredient list is somewhat lengthy but I feel like I hit the jack pot with this formula. It is so silky, easily glides over skin, with nourishing oils and shea butter and just the right amount of pale gold mica to make it interesting. I used the combination of three waxes - beeswax, mimosa and candelilla wax. I am a big fan of beeswax as in my opinion there isn't a plant based wax that can give the same elasticity and slip to anhydrous products. But when used in abundance, it also can give to much of a waxy feeling and the potent scent can overpower other ingredients. That is why I decided to combine it with mimosa wax that I find divine! I used it previously in one test batch of CP soap, but I have to say that I prefer it in a leave-on product. Candelillla wax is a staple in my lip balms, but it is a delicate business to adapt just the right concentration of it in a product formulation, as it can be too brittle when used in a slightly higher percentage.
As with all of my products, the emphasis is on the unity of quality ingredients, design innovation and utility comfort. Shea butter, golden jojoba oil and sweet almond oil all add the extra nourishing properties to this chubby baby. I decided to go with a pale gold mica as it gives the shimmering reflection that IMO resembles closely to the sun reflection on human skin. But do not be afraid you definitely won't get the glowing light bulb look, but rather refined, sparkly and natural shine as you can see on the swatch photo bellow. Please disregard my extreme pale forearm, it is literately impassible to get any tan in the Dutch weather.
Somehow I imagine this little fellah to be ideal for summer days and going out with friends at the beach bar in sunset when you wish to highlight that gorgeous new sun-kissed skin so I make sure to pair it up with a suggesting fragrance that I am currently totally in love with! It is a mix of Plumeria flowers, freshly drained coconut water, and sliced star fruit and papaya salad. Need I say more?
When I thought about the name Aloha somehow came self-imposed. A couple of more options came later on, but none of them struck me as appropriate. So aloha it is. Hello summer, hello sun!
Suggested Mode of Use
The product comes sealed in this handy-dandly little push up tube so you only need to push the bottom a bit to expose the stick surface and apply it gently on skin in the way you would use a deodorant. A little goes a loooong way so you might even opt to rub it in manually after applying. Use it on your body, hair and face freely but avoid eye area and do not apply on the lips.
Keep it away from source of direct light and keep the lid on. For external use only.
