Spring Has Sprung in Michigan
Well, kinda. I’m not saying we are done with snow, this is Michigan
after all, but its been raining for days and the brown is starting to
show some green. This is the season of mud! hee hee. I heard some Canadian
geese flying overhead today, haven’t heard them since last fall.
Some bugs have been spotted flying around on warm days too. Won’t
be too long before we can turn off our heat and put away those bulky
sweaters and coats.
I’ve been busier too, getting ready for two shows and preparing
for Ostara/ Spring Equinox. The holiday falls on one of our days at
Gibraltar so we are celebrating a bit early this week, in the midst
of my last minute preparations for the show. Add to this the normal
life stuff like grocery shopping, cleaning the house, work and you can
see that this week is crazy busy for me.
But even with all this going on, I wanted to get the newsletter out
by the dark moon on Monday. The problem is that no topic jumped into
my head. I decided a few weeks ago that I would feature patchouli as
the herb so that part was easy. Since no topic has come up, and if I
don’t send this now then I won’t get it sent, I guess I’ll
just include some announcements and the patchouli info and call it a
day.
Announcements
We already have a page on Infinite Flame’s website about the Truth
About Gel Candles that dispells those rumors about exploding candles.
I have just added a page about Gel Candles
and Magick , which exposes the truth about paraffin vs. gel vs soy.
This page also goes into detail on how we create our magickal gel candles.
Passionate About Patchouli
I realized that even tho I have been creating these newsletters for
over a year now, I have not had patchouli as the featured oil yet.
Patchouli is one of my favorite herbs and I use the oil often. I
find that people either love it or hate it, no in-between. Some call
it the hippie oil as it was used a lot in the 60’s and 70’s.
To me it smells like wet dirt with a hint of spice. It is also the scent
I think is the most witchy, I use it very often in magick. When I wash
my magickal clothes, I add a couple of drops of patchouli to the rinse
water.
But enough about my opinion for the moment, lets look at some patchouli
facts. There are about 70 species of patchouli perennials and subshrubs
which are native to India and Malaysia. The best oil comes from pogostemon
cablin (sometimes listed as pogostemon patchouli ).
Any good essential oil company will include the Latin name on its oil
labels and this is important especially because some oils, like patchouli,
are sometimes produced using various different and, in some cases, unrelated
species. Pogostemon heyneanus is an inferior oil often marketed
as Java Patchouli or Indian Patchouli. Good quality oil will be somewhat
thick and have a brownish color. Patchouli is one of the few oils that
actually improves with age, it will get thicker and darker and you will
notice a deeper smell. You might have to remove the plastic orifice
reducer from the bottle and use a glass dropper to measure out drops
of oil.
Patchouli is an astringent, antiseptic, warming herb with a
long lasting pervasive aroma. It acts as a diuretic, lowers fever,
good for colds and headaches, improves digestion, controls vomiting,
abdominal pain and diarrhea (these cures use the leaves, do
not ingest patchouli oil unless under the care of a trained herbalist).
Externally both leaves and oil are used for snake bites, fungal skin
infections, weeping eczema, psoriasis, acne, chapped skin, scalp problems
like dandruff, varicose veins, athlete’s foot, hemorrhoids, and
impetigo. It improves the condition of oily hair and skin. Cools
inflamed conditions and helps heal cracked and dry skin, sores and wounds.
Has skin regenerative properties that can help the formation
of scar tissue and encourage the replacement of skin cells. Tightens
up loose skin, especially after rapid weight loss. It is a natural
antiperspirant and deodorant (check out Kiss My Face brand
deodorants, I use their patchouli one).
I can vouch for the skin healing abilities of patchouli. Altho I
originally purchased essential oils for aromatherapy, I quickly learned
to use them to heal when I developed eczema on one leg. At first I
used horrible over-the-counter ointments to help with the redness
and constant itch. One included the ingredient coal tar, which due
to some false information, I was told was a natural cure. It is not,
and if the area you apply it to is exposed to the sun, the skin can
become discolored. It was during this time that I found that any store
bought soap, no matter how mild or soothing it was promoted to be,
irritated my skin. A wonderful lady at a health food store introduced
me to soap making and I made my first soap with patchouli, frankincense,
and sandalwood to ease my sensitive skin and eczema (I sell this
soap as Temptress).
I started experimenting with oil blends to soothe the eczema and got
much better results than I had with any over-the-counter product.
I finally created a blend that got rid of it completely. The oils
in that blend are costly but upon request I do make a soap and an
oil blend for others who suffer with eczema. Just email me if you
are interested.
Aromatherapy- wise it has both a tonic and sedative effect on the
nervous system, used for nervous exhaustion, depression, stress-related
complaints, low libido and frigidity. Both grounding and balancing.
Increases clarity and objectivity. It has a diminishing effect on
the appetite and is good for weight loss (use externally only).
The same book had both these statements: “Strengthens and stimulates
the nervous system if used in moderation but is sedative is used excessively.”
and “Patchouli is sedative in smaller amounts but stimulating
in larger amounts .” Maybe it varies by person? A misprint?
I guess experiment and if you find it sedates you and you want to be
alert, either use less or more as the case may be.
It is said to be an aphrodisiac and those that love it, like
me, might agree. I have found that when something is listed as an aphrodisiac
it follows that the person must like the smell for it to work. An example
is ylang ylang, another oil said to be an aphrodisiac. I hate the smell
of ylang ylang, it would not work on me. So if you scent your sheets
with patchouli thinking your lover will be in the mood but he/she hates
patchouli, you might just be sleeping separately until you wash the
sheets!
