Going Through The Herbal & Organic Craze

Going organic is a slow transition. The cost is a huge factor coz you know it can easily cost twice as much as their non organic counter parts. Even now, I'm not near 50% there. The organic stuff I buy are mostly supplements & never fresh food items. Sad to say, organic food is still not readily available in Singapore probably becoz of the poor market here. Majority of the people still believe in costs & quantity instead of quality.

Herbal wise, I'm using it mainly for making soups & liang teh. Right now, I can only do it over the weekend coz it takes a few hours before the soup is ready. I get home around 6.30 pm on weekdays & I can't possibly do it coz I sleep early (around 10 pm). The average cooking time is 3 to 4 hours. The water takes about 2 hours to bring to a boil in the slow cooker on high heat. I usually let it boil a while more before switching to low heat for another 30 mins. Finally, I turn it to warm & it's ready to serve.

I remember trying to hunt down bigger organic shops. I went to the warehouse for Top's & also to an organic shop in an ulu part of Orchard. This was a few months back, before we even moved. It was around the same time that I discovered the organic soaps. It ain't cheap & I wasn't working so I didn't make the investment. Subsequently, I started working at this new job & forgot all about it coz I didn't go back to the organic shop I patronise in Yishun. That is, until I read about it from Iris's blog.

I bought 4 bars of the soap, 1 packet of lavender & 1 packet of chamomile. It set me back some $66 after 10% discount. Unfortunately, they do not sell rosemary so I had to get it from NTUC. After doing some reading on the net, I made my own conditioner for the dogs which I'm going to try in a short while. I think it'll make their fur drier than using commercial shampoo & conditioner. If that happens, I'll probably make oatmeal conditioner for them followed by the final rinse of the rosemary conditioner the next time round. Hopefully it helps in Ton Ton's brown spots outbreak.

My own mixture of organic supplement, to replace the dogs' commercial ones. It looks like soil from the picture but it's not. I take it everyday with my oatmeal for lunch.

In the picture, from left to right:

1. Liquorice Hair Soap - Inhibits bacteria growth & inflammation, fights seborrhea & dandruff & useful in reversing the process of balding. For Jeff coz he's dropping a scary amount of hair & his scalp is fast becoming more & more visible.

2. Eucalyptus Soap - Good for skin, athelete's foot, insect bites, rashes & clogged pores. Relieve stress & interrupted sleep. For Jeff as well to help in his allergic rhinitis aka sensitive nose or sinus.

3. Cypress Soap - For acne, nappy rash, bed sores, erythema, sebaceous secretions, skin inflammation & allergic skin. Kills bacteria, stops itching, heals wounds. For the dogs.

4. Lemon Soap (below the Liquorice & Eucalyptus soap) - Removes old skin cells & oily skin, lightens pigmentation & tightens pores, giving a beautiful shine to the complexion. For my terrible skin.