February 04, 2006

"The White House Cookbook": Toilet Recipes, Items, Part One

Those of you who enjoy fiddling with the essential oils display at The Body Shop will want to take the jump for ideas. (Yes, Mr. H. That means you.)

COLOGNE WATER (Superior)

Oil of lavender, two drachms, oil of rosemary one drachm and a half, orange, lemon and bergamot, one drachm each of the oil; also two drachms of the essence of musk, attar of rose ten drops, and a pint of proof spirit. Shake all together thoroughly three times a day for a week.

JOCKEY CLUB BOUQUET

Mix one pint extract of rose, one pint extract of tuberose, half a pint of extract of cassia, four ounces extract of jasmine, and three ounces tincture of civet. Filter the mixture.

ROSE-WATER

Preferable to the distilled for a perfume, or for culinary purposes. Attar of rose, twelve drops; rub it up with half an ounce of white sugar and two drachms carbonate magnesia; then add gradually one quart of water and two ounces of proof spirit, and filter through paper.

BAY RUM

French proof spirit one gallon, extract bay six ounces. Mix and color with caramel; needs no filtering.

LAVENDER WATER

Oil of lavender two ounces, orris root half an ounce, spirits of wine one pint. Mix and keep two or three weeks. It may then be strained through two thicknesses of blotting paper and is ready for use.

CREAM OF LILIES

Best white castor oil; pour in a little strong solution of sal tartar in water, and shake it until it looks thick and white. Perfume with lavender.

CREAM OF ROSES

Olive oil one pound, attar of roses fifty drops, oil of rosemary twenty-five drops; mix, and color it with alkanet root

COLD CREAM

Melt one ounce oil of almonds, half ounce spermaceti, one drachm white wax and then add two ounces of rose water, and stir it constantly until cold.

LIP-SALVE

Melt one ounce white wax, one ounce sweet oil, one drachm spermaceti, and throw in a piece of alkanet root to color it, and when cooling, perfume it with oil rose, and then pour it into small white jars or boxes.

FOR DANDRUFF

Take glycerine four ounces, tincture of cantharides five ounces, bay rum four ounces, water two ounces. Mix, and apply once a day and rub well down the scalp.

HAIR INVIGORATOR

Bay rum two pints, alcohol one pint, castor oil one ounce, carb. ammonia half an ounce, tincture of cantharides one ounce. Mix them well. This compound will promote the growth of hair and prevent it from falling out.

MACASSAR OIL FOR THE HAIR

Renowned for the past fifty years, is as follows: Take a quarter of an ounce of the chippings of alkanet root, tie this in a bit of coarse muslin and put it in a bottle containing eight ounces of sweet oil; cover it to keep out the dust; let it stand several days; add to this sixty drops of tincture of cantharides, ten drops of oil of rose, neroli and lemon each sixty drops; let it stand one week and you will have one of the most powerful stimulants for the growth of the hair ever known.

Another:-To a pint of strong sage tea, a pint of bay rum and a quarter of an ounce of the tincture of cantharides, add an ounce of castor oil and a teaspoonful of rose or other perfume. Shake well before applying to the hair, as the oil will not mix.

PHALON'S INSTANTANEOUS HAIR DYE

To one ounce of crystallized nitrate of silver, dissolved in one ounce of concentrated aqua ammonia, add one ounce of gum arabic and six ounces of soft water. Keep in the dark. Remember to remove all grease from the hair before applying the dye.

There is danger in some of the patent hair dyes and hence the Scientific American offter swhat is known as the walnut hair dye. The simplest form is the expressed juice fo the bark or shell of green walnuts. To preserve the juice a little alcohol is commonly added to it with a few bruised cloves, and the whole digested together, with occasional agitation, for a week or fortnight, when the clear portion is decanted, and, if necessary, filtered. Sometimes a little common salt is added with the same intention. It should be kept in a cool place. The most convenient way of application is by means of a sponge.

Posted by Kathy at February 4, 2006 11:15 AM | TrackBack
Comments

Cripes!

Silver nitrate for a hair treatment!!

OMG!

I guess they did NOT use those little aluminum foil things or KABOOM!

It also stains the skin black one exposed to the sun!

Cripes!!

Posted by: Chrissy at February 5, 2006 08:35 PM
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