Wednesday, February 27th - more sunshine ahead

It's a chilly -14' this morning but once that sunshine breaks through we'll have another beautiful sunny day to enjoy - the third in a row! It's hovered just around the freezing point the last couple of days and with the sunshine, it's wonderful weather -  for February.
Not much going on right now. I did finally get around to making some marmalade. I had come across a recipe in a magazine for a simple marmalade made with only clementines, a bit of lemon and some sugar. I've always liked the sweet but tart flavour so thought I'd give it a try. What a treat! It's quite fresh tasting and I really like it. I made one batch using the original recipe and then tried a second batch with the variation of adding a few hot chilli pepper flakes. That one also turned out great. I'll be sure to keep that recipe.
Brenda very kindly picked up the package I had at the post office and delivered it last night. I wanting to try some lip balm and hand creams using beeswax. I've found a couple of simple recipes for basic things but needed the beeswax. I found a piece in a health food store in Nova Scotia on one of our day trips around the area. Yesterday I found the coconut oil and vitamin E tablets I needed so I can get started. One of the things in the package were little jars to put creams and balms in so I'm going to give that a go. I did a tiny batch of what was meant to be hand cream last night but it's quite firm. It does seem to work although it's quite oily when you rub it onto your hands. I'm going to try it on my heels, which tend to be quite dry, in the evenings before bed time and see if it improves them any. I know there will be lots of trial and error but that's the fun part.
The other thing I came across when looking for supplies is an item called Soap Nuts. I'd never heard of them before and it seems they are the dried fruit of a tree found in Nepal and India. They are hard round pieces about the size of an acorn. You put 4 or 5 into a muslin bag and put them into your wash instead of soap. Apparently they clean, deodorize and soften your clothes - no soaps or fabric softeners required. They've been used for thousands of years. When the wash is done, you take the little bag out and reuse it 4 or 5 times before you can compost the nuts. I'm really keen to give it a try and I actually found a place in town that sells them so I won't have to buy them online anymore if I like them. I'm anxious to give them a try tonight. I'm really liking the fact that they are totally chemical free.They're perfect for use by people with sensitive skin or sensitivities to fragrances. I'll get back to you on the results! Here's the proper info on them:

What Are Soap Nuts?

Soap nuts aren't technically nuts. They're fruit, taken from the soapberry tree (Sapindus mukorrosi). In appearance, they're similar to the lychee nut, yet they're not grown for consumption. Thanks to their high concentration of foaming "saponin," soap nuts are used throughout the world as cleaning agents.

Harvested in India and Nepal, soap nuts have been used for centuries in Southeast Asia and for decades in Europe. In the past decade, it has made its way to North America, where it has been recognized as a natural, potent cleaning alternative to the harsh chemicals common to detergents and household cleaners.

What Is Saponin? Saponin is the chemical compound that makes soap nuts "sud." When met with an aqueous solution, the naturally-occurring saponin produces a foam-like substance -- the same kind of reaction detergents aim to create with their lab-created surfactants. This solution can be applied to most any purpose, but most commonly, it is used for laundry. Indeed, soap nuts and their dose of saponin have emerged a legitimate green alternative to commercial detergents.

Who knew?