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Homemade alum roll-on deodorant

One day I received a roll-on deodorant from my good friend who is doing all her cosmetics home-made. Using it was not any different from an usual one bought from a supermarket. Maybe the scent was more intense although that was not a bad thing. Efficiency was however great.
In the meantime I have tried my own recipes, but not on roll-on. I have tried a solid one based on sodium bicarbonate that work fine for 12 hours with only the drawback that was staining the clothes. It was washable but it wasn't very appealing during the day to wear it.
Of course I have remembered my good old friend and put my hand on the phone. She provided me this recipe, I've tried it and used it for some weeks already and I can only say that this is the ONE. The one that I a going to do and use from now on. I'll never again be back on bought deodorants from supermarkets and that is a decision I made long time ago. Of course there are alternatives that I also appreciated over time, like buying the ones proposed in bio shops or alum stones but they are expensive.
I remember my first impression when I have seen the recipe: where on Earth I am going to find these ingredients? They are not very common and you can find them here in Belgium mainly in specialized shops for DIY cosmetics. Internationally, I found some interesting online shops that can help.
Let's take them one by one and see what these weird ingredients are for.
The xanthan gum is a thickener. That gives a jelly texture to the deodorant.
The alum powder fights against multiplication of bacteria so also the unpleasant smell. It is 100% natural and can be used also by people with allergic reactions or sensitive skin.
The sage essential oil has multiple roles. It serves as a preservative, it protects against microbes and it provides a lovely aroma.
The mint essential oil comes with antiseptic and antimicrobial properties.
The cosgard is only used for preservation. This ingredient allows your deodorant to be kept for 3 months without other unwanted bacteria to be developed.

Now that we understand why these ingredients are crucial for our recipe, just have a look on the directions bellow and ...  That's it! You have your own home-made deodorant!

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Cocoa cake


This recipe has its roots in my childhood and I can call it THE CAKE. Almost for every anniversary or birthday, my mother was making a variation of this cake. I have deeply in my mind the moist texture of the cake in rum syrup and the chocolate taste of the filling. The nuts on the top were crunchy and adding an extra taste. Later, when I grew up, I was kind of bored of the same old cake. Since then, I have tried and loved other recipes but none of them reached the popularity of this cake and it was like something was missing.
Recently, of course with the occasion of an anniversary, the memories of that cake were suddenly invading my mind. I put my hand on the phone and called my mother. She recalled of course the famous cake but she was not recalling the recipe. I was astonished. That cake recipe hat was so popular and done dozens of times, my mother didn't know it by heart. It is probably the thinking of a child considering her mother as a superhero. Or it was just that when the cake was not so regularly done the recipe was forgotten. Nevertheless, she recalled very well her red notebook that was her bible in the kitchen and she has found back the recipe for me.
I did the recipe and found that was not at all the most simple I've seen but not that complicated either. Doing the recipe was like returning those years of my childhood. I felt something like a fear in doing it. I was afraid that doing it and tasting it afterwards could have destroy my sweet memories in case it was not the same. I had to follow the recipe line by line, gram by gram to be sure I was getting the same as my mother's.
The first occasion of this cake was the name day of my husband when we were expecting some friends to come over. Another reason why my cake couldn't have failed. Since then, I have redone this cake for the New Year. In both cases, although the cake was successful, I have found that the taste was not as I remembered. The power of memories is impressive. I can bet that if it would be possible to taste back the cake my mother was doing during my childhood it would taste the same as mine. But in my mind, the taste was much stronger then it really was. However, it is impressive that with just a bite of cake you travel through time and relive a moment of your childhood.


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