INGREDIENTS
Arnica (Arnica cordifolia)
The active constituents of arnica stimulate and dilate the blood vessels near the surface on the skin. This, in turn, improves circulation to the injured area and promotes the healing of bruises, sprains, strains, muscular inflammation, aches, pains, rheumatic joint pain, inflammation from an insect bite, and swelling due to fractures.
Balsam Root (Balsamorhiza sagittata)
The leaf in salve will stimulate healing of mild burns and chronic skin sores and ulcerations. The whole plant is an effective first aid for skin infections, and the root is practical antifungal for skin tineas, from cradle crap to athlete’s foot. Used as a liniment it also lends itself well to sore muscles and can also be used to disinfect wounds or kill fungi living on the skin.
Calendula (Calendula officinalis)
Calendula is great for dry skin and for severely chapped or split skin. It soothes the area and reduces the pain. It can be used for inflammations, can treat skin issues like eczema, psoriasis or dermatitis and can help speed up healing of wounds and minor cuts, and also benefit insect bites, acne, and bed sores. The oil from calendula helps relief diaper rashes on babies.
Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)
Fir needles can be taken to treat sore muscles, aches, and pains; open cuts to help heal the wounds. The smell of fir is very uplifting and can help people struggling with fatigue. The boughs can be used in a sauna, steam bath, or placed in a pot of water on a wood stove.
Ginger (Zingiber officinale)
Ginger contains around 40 antioxidant compounds that protect against aging. It improves the appearance of your skin by removing toxins and stimulating circulation, resulting in delivery of more nutrients to the skin. Being a powerful antiseptic and cleansing agent, ginger helps to keep the skin clean, smooth and free of blemishes. It is also the best natural acne fighting a weapon as it minimizes the rate of acne formation and eruption by killing and clearing the acne-causing bacteria.
Juniper (Juniperus communis)
Juniper needles have long been used as a favorite in traditional saunas because of their antimicrobial actions. Juniper’s anti-inflammatory properties can help to ease the pain, of rheumatic conditions sore painful joints, arthritis, sore muscles, gout, and nerve pain caused by sciatica. Juniper berries warm and aromatic qualities aid digestion, expel gas, ease stomach cramps, indigestion, and stimulate the appetite. Juniper needles can be used as a wash for dry, dandruff-prone scalps or to help clear acne. The juniper berries can be used in a bath or added to a scrub to help diminish cellulite.
Lavender (Lavendula angustifolia)
Lavender is great for the skin, helps to reduce scarring, treating cuts, wounds, burns, rashes, sunburns, athlete’s foot, scrapes or insect bites and speeds healing. The essential oil is also an anti-inflammatory and circulatory stimulant. When inflammation is reduced there is less skin redness and blotchiness of the complexion. You will find it useful too for treating acne, psoriasis, eczema, and even wrinkles.
Mint (Mentha arvensis)
Wild mint is a wonderful addition to facial steams and foot soaks. Mint helps stimulate sluggish, oily skin and is great when added to facial masks. Mint act as a natural insect repellent.
Nettle (Urtica dioica)
Chlorophyll-rich nettle strengthens and supports the whole body, specifically the digestive, respiratory, urinary, and glandular system. Nettle leaf tea is also an effective spring tonic and cleansing herb because it acts as a blood purifier. It helps the efficiency of the kidney and liver. Nettle insight in calcium, magnesium, chlorophyll, iron, vitamin A, C and D, zinc, potassium, chromium, cobalt, niacin, phosphorus, manganese, and silica. Nettle is used to control dandruff and keep hair healthy and shiny.
Rose (Rosa acicularis)
Rose petals have a humectant effect and help retain moisture in on and on the skin. This makes rose excellent for dry, mature, and dull skin. Cosmetically, many varieties of rose have been used as a prized beauty treatment throughout the ages. Rosewater controls and balances sebum production, making it useful for both dry and oily skin. It can balance and restore the skin’s pH and helps tighten pores. Its antibacterial properties help fight acne, giving troubled skin a gentle, rather than a harsh treatment. It’s reputed to be useful in the treatment of all sorts of dermatitis.
Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata)
Sagebrush is the traditional plant used for the sweat lodge and ritual purification, with the smoke being used to clear the air of bad spirits and influences. Sagebrush kills bacteria, inhibits free radicals, and has anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic actions, and so is most useful as a cleaning first aid wash for disinfecting wounds and skin irritations. Sagebrush is a popular smudge herb, burned in a tied bundle or as a dried powder. It cleanses and purifies both metaphysically and physically with its antimicrobial smoke.
Spruce (picea glauca – white spruce, picea mariana – black spruce)
The fresh spruce tips can be used in the bath and as a facial steam for oily skin. Because of the tree’s antimicrobial and antiseptic properties, it can help conditions like cuts, abrasions, eczema, boils, and acne.
Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Because of yarrow’s anti-inflammatory and astringent properties, it’s an excellent plant to use for inflamed skin. Yarrow can reduce inflammation and unclog congested pores. Yarrow is a powerful topical wound healer and can stop bleeding immediately. Its analgesic properties will help with pain relief, and its antiseptic, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory properties help keep the wound free of infection. It can also be used for insect bites.
Almond Sweet oil (Prunus dulcis)
The organic sweet almond oil is a fantastic carrier oil and also makes a superb addition to body care products. It contains fatty acids as well as vitamins A and E and penetrates easily into the skin. It is quite an effective emollient for softening and conditioning the skin and hair.
Argan oil (Argania spinosa)
This rare and exquisite oil is meticulously pressed from the fruit kernels of the Moroccan argan tree. Alive with skin-loving nutrients, argan oil helps to heal and is said to protect from the signs of. Argan oil is light and easily absorbed into the skin. Contains tocopherols and phenols, carotenes, squalene and fatty acids, making it a truly luxurious oil. It is often used in skin, nail and hair treatments to deliver deep hydration, strengthen brittle hair and nails and to prevent blemishes.
Apricot Kernel oil (Prunus armeniaca)
Apricot Kernel oil is well suited for skin care products because it is a mild, moisturizing oil and is readily absorbed into the skin without leaving a residue behind. It is recommended for mature skin, sensitive skin and skin that is inflamed, irritated or dry. Apricot kernel oil is a wonderful oil for sensitive and prematurely aged skin. High Gamma Linoleic Acid (GLA), it enables your skin to maintain its moisture balance, tone, and firm up your skin. Vitamin A and E help to slow down the signs of aging. Since this oil contains anti-inflammatory properties, it can be used to soothe minor skin conditions, like eczema.
Castor oil (Ricinus communis)
This hard and shiny oil can be found in most cosmetics and acts as a barrier agent and protective medium against harsh conditions and extremes. Castor oil, when applied to the skin, penetrates deep and stimulates the production of collagen and elastin and it’s very soothing. This, in turn, helps soften and hydrate our skin. It delays the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines, making the skin smoother, softer and younger. Castor oil promotes hair growth and hence helps thicken your eyebrows and eyelashes.
Coconut oil (Cocos nucifera)
Organic coconut oil has many uses. It is great for hair, skin and for cooking. It contains fatty acids which have strong disinfectant and antimicrobial properties. As a result, when applied to the skin, coconut oil protects from microbial infections that can get into open wounds or even enter the body through the pores. Great for dry, itching and sensitive skin.
Evening Primrose oil (Oenothera biennis)
This 100% pure evening primrose seed is prized for its abundant food, health, cosmetic, and medicinal benefits. Evening primrose is a common wildflower found in North America, Europe, and parts of Asia. The yellow flowers only open in the evening, hence their common name. Evening Primrose Oil contains a high concentration of a fatty acid called GLA and it is this fatty acid that is largely responsible for the remarkable healing properties of the plant. The gamma-linoleic acid and other nutrients in this oil are essential for cell structure and improve the elasticity of the skin. Specifically, evening primrose oil may help to ease the joint pain and swelling of rheumatoid arthritis, reduce the symptoms of eczema, help treat acne and rosacea, and nourish nails, scalp, and hair.
Grapeseed oil (Vitis vinifera)
Grapeseed is especially useful for skin types that do not absorb oils well, and it does not leave a greasy feeling. Wonderful for those with skin sensitivities because of its natural non-allergenic properties. Grapeseed oil appears to assist with skin repair, as it has mildly astringent and antiseptic qualities. Grapeseed oil contains a fatty acid, so it can be a good solution to improve or cure various skin conditions such as acne. Grapeseed helps to minimize skin aging because contains the antioxidant pycnogenol and grapeseed can be also used as a skin moisturizer.
Olive oil (Olea europaea)
Olive oil is by far the universal oils used for a multitude of purposes including cosmetics, as a carrier oil, for hair care solutions, and in cooking. Olive oil contains three major antioxidants: vitamin E, polyphenols, and phytosterols. Antioxidants, when topically applied, may help protect the skin from premature skin aging. Vitamin E partly accounts for the anti-aging benefits of olive oil because it helps restore skin smoothness and protects against ultraviolet light.
Rosehip Seed Oil (Rosa canina)
Rosehip seed oil is high in fatty acids and rich in vitamins. Is excellent for dry, scaly fissured skin, dull acne skin, eczema, psoriasis, over pigmented skin and ulcerated veins. This unique oil is extremely high in essential fatty acids and has carried much respect amongst professional journals and organizations as being a great agent in the fight against the dry, weathered, and dehydrated skin. It works wonders on scars and is the predominant oil used for treating wrinkles and premature aging.
A Little About Commercial Cosmetics
Commercial cosmetics may be cheap, but what do they contain? There is a high probability that your commercial cream can contain a handful of chemicals, many of which are being absorbed into the body. Many of these synthetic chemicals (as parabens, synthetic colors, synthetic fragrance, phthalates, petrolatum, sodium lauryl, silicones,..) are skin irritants, skin penetrators, endocrine disrupters and are carcinogenic and are an unnecessary burden on the environment. It’s not very tempting, right?
Be aware of what you spread on your skin!
But why do they put chemicals into our lotions and creams? Well, more or less, they are preservatives and emulsifiers that allow products to last for a loooong time while being less expensive than their natural counterparts. For a quick price comparison: 2oz of Paraben Du – which is a mixture of three chemical preservatives (propylparaben, methylparaben and Diazolidinyl urea) costs $5.80 and can provide a shelf-life of multiple years when used in commercial products. 2oz of Rosemary antioxidant, a chemical-free preservative costs about $25.00. That’s why natural, healthy cosmetics are often more expensive than commercial products.
Small Batches and Small Packaging
Now we’re not going to lie here – because we use all natural preservatives and emulsifiers, we’re not able to put multi-year shelf lives on these products. If you take away the chemical stabilizers, the bond between oil and water will degrade over time and will eventually separate as nature intends.
With this in mind, we produce small batches of products and sell them seasonally, while they are fresh. Similarly, our jars and packaging will typically come in smaller quantities so that you can use one product within a few months of its creation date and then order another.
Over time, some of our products will separate. Of course there are things you can do such as keeping them in a cool place and out of sunlight that will help (see care instructions in FAQ). We’re constantly exploring new ways of improving the texture and shelf life of these products, but of course not at the expense of introducing chemical stabilizers.
Cosmetics and Liver Health?
At first glance, it doesn’t appear that these things should go together. But they are intertwined perhaps more than most people realize. The skin is the largest organ we have and it is our protective, filtering barrier that separates what’s going on inside from what’s going on outside.
It is an active organ and permeable, meaning that things that our skin comes in contact with are absorbed and enter the bloodstream. We all know this intuitively – you wouldn’t marinate your hand in a bucket of gasoline because of the perceived dangers.
For some reason, though, the same concept seems to get lost when we talk about smaller quantities of things, like a dollop of lotion. If you take a minute to read the label of any common commercial cosmetic, well, you may find it takes more than a minute. These are things we wouldn’t eat in large quantities – they can even be toxic! But they still go on our skin and still enter our bloodstream, no different than if we ate them. (don’t get us started on bug sprays 🙁 )
At the end of the day, it’s our liver that is left to deal with these chemicals. Our filtration device, it will have to identify and deal with these complex, man-made compounds. Many times it can’t and these compounds turn into free radicals which drift through our bloodstream, causing allergies, and skin rashes. How counterintuitive is that?
We believe it making things easy for our livers; they work hard enough as is it so we want them to kick their feet up and relax because our liver’s health is directly related to our overall health. Utilizing herbal cosmetics can be one an easy way to eliminate the amount of external toxins entering our system and a small part of maintaining a healthy lifestyle with a happy liver.
'Wildcrafted'
A term you might see tossed around the site is ‘wildcrafted’ – you may notice that I’ve highlighted ingredients as wildcrafted or used this term in relation to the harvesting techniques. Wildcrafted refers to collecting and harvesting plants that have grown naturally, without human intervention, as nature fully intended them to do.
My wildcrafted plants usually come from remote areas and collection outings are usually a great excuse for camping missions, hiking trips, and getting out into the nearby mountains. The areas where these plants are collected are far from roads, which could be subject to consistent exhaust fumes, and removed from any heavily polluted areas.
Inherit with wildcrafting also comes a level of care and respect for the plant communities. Every bud, root, leaf, and stem we collect will have an effect on the specific plant and plant community it came from and it’s important that we are conscious of this effect when harvesting.
Do it Yourself
An ‘action’ as it pertains to herbs refers to the qualities or medicinal properties that a certain plant may be known to elicit. In the idea of Western medicine, it is easy to look for ‘cures’ for specific ailments – i.e. to take ‘this’ to solve ‘that’. While herbs do have identifying qualities that may help to characterize their uses, they are a bit broader in their uses and may subtly aim to assist in the body’s natural healing process, which is already inherit in each of us.
While many herbs may have several uses and offer several effects, it is also useful to have some means for determining which herbs may be useful for us in our current situation. The following tab breaks down a few of the more common actions as they pertain to Moji Herbals products…
Adaptogen
An action concept unique to herbal therapeutics. Adaptogenic or home modulating action increases the body’s resistance and endurance to a wide variety of adverse influences from physical, chemical, and biological stressors, assisting the body’s ability to cope and adapt.
Anodyne, analgesic
Relieves pain when administered orally or externally
Anti-inflammatory
Combats extensive or too-painful occurrence of inflammation. A degree of inflammation is a necessary process in healing.
Anti-microbial (anti-bacterial, anti-viral)
Helps the body’s immune system destroy or resist the proliferation of pathogenic micro-organisms.
Antiseptic
Prevents or eliminates sepsis (infectious destructive condition of tissue)
Aphrodisiac
Emollient
Applied to the skin to soften, soothe, and protect
Sedative
Calms the nervous system by reducing stress and nervous irritation throughout the body
Vulnerary
Asssists the body to heal wounds. this action is used externally.
“So, side by side my friends, let’s row our boats
gently down the stream…
creating everything we want,
making life full with all that we can dream…
we live in a child’s garden, you know…
where it is always good to have fun
romping joyfully with the weeds…
pursuing the passion of our dance…
helping care for the garden’s beings…
appreciating the grand diversity of us all…
And remember always,
Earth companions and co-creators,
be very, very good to yourselves…
and life will flow delightfully
with no resistance at all…
Our joy will illuminate the heavens…our youthful giggles tickling the moon
and the brightness of our spirits
will twinkle back to the shimmering stars…
The gifts of life are joy…that we are each beautiful and forever free…
have fun growing with all this herbal stuff…affectionately…”
Shared, with great respect and gratitude, from James Green’s “The Herbal Medicine-Maker’s Handbook”