How to use powdered botanicals

If you know anything about botanicals, you’ll know that their uses are far-reaching. From dietary supplements to pleasantly smelling soaps – whether it be smell, taste or nutritional benefit, botanicals aid us in a variety of ways. There are many ways to use powdered botanicals; this article will help highlight a few.

Beauty

Powdered botanical extracts enable formulators to utilise herbal ingredients into their products efficiently. These products can be lotions, toners, rinses, conditioners or any other that is water based; with each powdered botanical being concentrated and soluble there’s a level of ease attributed in its use.

The Natural Beauty Workshop reveal that to incorporate a powdered extract into a lotion, you could determine the amount you’d need to add by using the following method:

For example, if you were making 480 grams (or 1 lb.) of lotion, and wanted to add 5% Dried Red Rose Petals using Red Rose Petal Powder, you would determine the amount to add by the following method:

Determine 5% of your total weight. (5% of 480 grams = 24 grams)

Divide the 5% by the strength of the Extract. If the extract were four times as strong as a plain extract, you would divide it by 4. (24 grams / 4 = 6 grams)

In this instance, the conclusion is that you would add 6 grams of Rose Petal Extract.

Ingredients

Even though the majority of interest seems to circulate the use of botanical ingredients in gin – fresh, dried and powdered botanical ingredients have been used for many years around the world in a vast number of dishes. They can add wonderful aroma and flavour to dishes giving them that extra bit of sensual appeal.

Their use is a great way to incorporate unique sweetness into a dish that cannot be emulated by anything else. The Spice People tell us that popular blends such as Moroccan Ras el Hanout use Rose Petals, and Herbs de Provence use Lavender.

Soap

Natural soap manufacturers make use of herbs and flowers to add texture, colour and decoration to their creations. Of course, they can also add therapeutic properties as well as a tantalising scent.

For example, the use of powdered cardamom pods, will add a hint of spice to your cleanser in addition to its antibacterial and antioxidant properties that are attributed to aiding some skin allergies.

The dried herbs added to your soap bar will give it a speckled, darkened, effect. Lovely Greens recommend that if you’re looking to get that spotted effect use dried herbs that are finely pulsed — think of the consistency of ground coffee. Add about a 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of dried herbs to every pound (454g) of soap in your recipe. Sprinkle it on your soap at ‘Trace’ and then stir it in. Pure, dried herbs can bleed a little into your soap as it cures, leaving a warm halo effect around each speckle.

Whatever your wholesale botanical needs, here at Joseph Flach & Sons, we’ve unrivalled experience in ethical sourcing and shipping to the UK and worldwide. If you’re looking for a variety of different botanical products, tinctures or oils then get in contact with us today – we’re happy to help.