Wednesday 30 December 2009

HELPING HAND

This year has flown by and as we close the last chapters of 2009, I just wanted to thank you for all your support and bring you up to date with our helping hand programme.

2009 saw us adopting a shea co-op in Gumu - Northern Ghana. We set a target to raise enough funds for this co-op on 8th October and managed to hit the target (100.2%) by 8th December. Thanks to your support and a very kind donation, the total amount raised so far is 120.7% of our target.

These are some photos showing progress:

 

We hope to purchase their first shea production early next year.

Vele is a young disabled boy from Swaziland who we support through education and recently received these photos including his school report. We are very proud of him.

After waiting for what seemed eternal, I finally signed documents for the formation of our Ghanaian based company [NGO/Charity]. This will be to help meet the psychosocial needs of disadvantaged and vulnerable children.
 
As we say in Ghana, mi daasi paa. Thank you very very much.

Monday 7 December 2009

ON THE R A D I O!!!

WOW, I am so grateful for answering a phone call last week even though it was "outside" my working hours. I had a lady on the phone inviting me to be her first guest.

You are cordially invited to a radio interview on 8th December 2009 at blogtalkradio.com/africanwomenineurope
Tune in at:
20:30 Western Europe GMT +0:00 (UK, Ireland, Portugal)
21:30 Central Europe GMT +1:00; Malta, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, The Netherlands
23:30 Eastern Europe GMT +2:00; Latvia, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Lithuania, Moldova, Romania, Turkey, Ukraine.

Wednesday 11 November 2009

EMPOWERMENT

2 days ago, I received some pictures and just wanted to share the story behind these with you.
As some of you may recall, my rather hectic trip to Ghana in October 2008 included a soapmaking class for members of the shea co-op that I am very proud to support for the last 6 years and will continue to do so. Well, after so many phone calls with ideas being shared, I finally got a glimpse of the fruits of our labour. I am so proud to be a Ghanaian and even proud to learn that everything [mould, stamp, etc] used in the production is made in Ghana. I also received a picture of a recently erected shed. This was from the donation we made in addition to the money being raised through our shea butter fundraising campaign:
So don't think I am being cheeky next time you see me grinning like a Cheshire cat - I am so proud of these women and of course the men who help to make the tools.
We believe in empowerment
We believe in quality
We believe in ethical trading
We believe in communities.

Friday 6 November 2009

NOVEMBER NOVEMBER

November is a great month. Not only is Cioccolatina 7 years old this month, it also good to see a little bit of sun shining through the silver clouds with russet leaves falling down. Well, we are on the lookout for Cioccolatina's biggest fan :) Let your voice be heard and you could win yourself a £10 gift certificate.

Don't be harsh on your skin this winter! What will be in your survival kit? Well, 2 products jump out to the rescue:

1. Karité soap : packed with more than 70% of pure unrefined non-deodorised fair trade shea butter.

2. Whipped shea : just pure 100% unrefined non-deodorised fair trade shea butter.

As an independent ethical business and direct importer, we are very proud to support a lovely co-op in Ghana who have continued to supply is for the last 6 years with quality unrefined sheabutter: * with less than 1% moisture content
* with characteristic natural scent
* with excellent low free fatty acid
* with no presence of lead nor mercury
* with a very good peroxide level
* with a very high amount of vitamin A
* with a high amount of nonsaponifiable fraction compared to refined shea
We believe in empowerment, we believe in quality, we believe in ethical trading, we believe in communities.

If you fancy sending these lovely products as a gift, then have a look at what we can offer.

Tuesday 6 October 2009

A PICTURE SAYS A THOUSAND WORDS .....

Firstly, I would like to thank you all for the shea love you have shown for the past 6 years. We have been very proud to support the same shea co-op back in Ghana all this time as we believe in loyalty and quality. It is amazing how time has flown by and continue with our loyalty.

We have now adopted a new shea co-op in Gumu. The co-op is currently made up of 40 women - sorry no men involved. We believe in equality and empowering men & women. However, it is a tradition that women look after the children through education, etc.


The group is currently led by Madam Memunatu and we will be encouraging them to produce shea soap naturally, neem oil and baobab oil.

We will be posting updates on our facebook fanpage

Friday 2 October 2009

Tuesday 8 September 2009

HOW DO YOU LIKE YOUR COCOA?

The best cup of cocoa is the one that is stirred gently with lots and lots of warmed cocoa to enable you enjoy the lovely aroma.
Most of you know how I like to sing praises of my beloved shea butter but did you also know that I love cocoa butter. I love chocolates and the best cocoa is grown in Ghana [not being biased here]. :)
Just for your bathing pleasure, I would like to introduce you to 3 new products as part of our Cioccolatina range of handmade natural toiletries:

Sunday 6 September 2009

L'ARABICA "RE-LAUNCH"

Keep your lips moisturised with l'arabica lip balm.
A gorgeous little pot with rich refreshing aromatic coffee butter brimming with delicate flavours of virgin organic coconut oil and Ghananaian premium unrefined cocoa butter.
A touch of vanilla absolute compliments this silky lip balm - just don't lick your lips!
Fancy a freebie of this pot? Then you have up to the 11th of September 2009 to join our facebook fan page and leave a comment on this photo

Monday 24 August 2009

THE AFRICAN CONTINENT WE LOVE

.... but most people don't see.


Africa is a beautiful CONTINENT of more than 50 countries from Algeria to Zimbabwe. Unfortunately, most people [even in the 21st century] still refer to it as 1 COUNTRY?!?!?

The African continent is awash with colourful attires, languages, dialect, flora & fauna and there is more to it than swatting flies.



Plan your next trip to one of these countries:
Algeria
Botswana
Cameroon
Djibouti
Equatorial Guinea
Ghana
Kenya
Lesotho
Morocco
Namibia
Rwanda
Swaziland
Tanzania
Uganda
Zimbabwe

....................we all look forward to welcoming you with our warm hospitality.

Monday 10 August 2009

REFRESHED WITH A FRENCH TAN!

Setting off early in the morning, we arrived at Dover at 05:30 ready for a bit of French air. Sailing was smooth and we finally made it to Calais at 08:25 local time. Exit from Calais was very quick.
After a 6-hour drive, we decided to stop at La Chapelle St Laud.

I am really impressed with these spots ("Aire-de") as they allow you to enjoy the countryside without necessarily stopping at service stations to spend a penny.

After paying €42.1Euros in toll fees and a 15-hour drive, we finally arrived at the lovely campsite. Set in 14 hectares of tranquil land, the campsite has a swimming pool and enough space to lay your weary head. Although it does not offer disabled facilities, it is very easy to move around in a wheelchair and the showers are pretty decent.

With 2 rascals in tow and a mum who does not swim, we decided to visit Le Chateau des Aventuriers.

This is a very lovely adventure park - ideal for families who prefer a bit of history, nature and fun without the stomach churning rides. The adventure park is about 1 mile from the campsite but you need very comfortable footwear for the 3 hours of fun!

Down the road is La Rochelle - a very historic old town with a marina and very expensive shops. I almost wet myself when I had to drive the family to this place.

Further down the coast is Les Sables d'Olonne with a beautiful sandy beach. A very very lively place with lots of places to eat.

We could not travel all the way to France without a trip to Paris. With this in mind, we left La Vendée for the 6hour drive. With temperatures around 25°C, I was not in a good mood when we had to queue at a toll booth (about 60km from Paris) for an hour!!!!! It was very chaotic and expensive as well at €25.20Euros.

Although I have visited France on several occasions, this was a first trip with a disabled "teenage" daughter. One thing I noticed was the constant stare which was sometimes uncomfortable.

Saturday 1 August 2009

AU REVOIR

It is always stressful when you have to organise a trip, pay and then pack everything minus the kitchen sink - but there is some relief to know that the destination is a castle.
Ehm, well, it used to be a castle.
Whichever way, I am sooooooooo ready to feel like a queen even if it means sleeping under canvas!!!
The time is almost here.

À bientôt.

Monday 27 July 2009

HEAVENLÏ

I am always like a kid in a candy shop whenever I receive my order of heavenlï Monoï de Tahiti. Well, this morning was no exception. Get a bottle of this lovelï oil and pamper your hair and body

Thursday 16 July 2009

ENJOY YOUR WASH

I know what you are thinking, "but I can't use neem - it is pungent". Yes, neem is pungent but look beyond the scent and you have an amazing natural ingredient for your hair/skin.
To make this lovely soap, I decided to use more than 50% of fair trade unrefined non-deodorised ingredients - in fact, all the oils and fats used in this product have been purchased directly from Ghana as part of our fair trade policy.
This bar is ideal for dry itchy flaky skin. Get one for your next wash

Monday 13 July 2009

ANOTHER FREEBIE!!!

I am passionate about unrefined shea butter from Ghana - especially the creamy-non deodorised-fair trade-luxurious butter we import directly.

I might be biased but I just love Ghanaian unrefined butters & oils in soaps. Do you want to see what the fuss is all about? then why not pop over to our site and start shopping. You will get a free bar of our sankofa soap.

Monday 6 July 2009

CELEBRATING YUMMY UNREFINED GHANAIAN COCOA BUTTER

Every day is a celebration at Sheabutter Cottage. I have been staring at these little hearts for too long and at last, you the customer can stare at them too for FREE.

Saturday 13 June 2009

GREEN HAIR MONSTER

I have a very simple "KISS beauty" regime which is basically, keep it simple and short.
With the rascals out of the way this morning, I decided to treat my crowning glory to adwengo. Adwengo is unrefined palm kernel oil in my native language. I love the nutty caramel oil which is fantastic in hair products.
Here is the recipe I made up:
45g melted unrefined palm kernel oil (PKO)
25g Jamaican Black castor oil (JBCO)
12g fresh root ginger
5g fresh garlic
2g nettles
1 medium egg yolk - I was in a hurry to separate this that I forgot to weigh it :(

1. Blend the garlic and ginger together
2. Add the nettle - blend
3. Add the JBCO - blend
4. Add the PKO - blend
5. Add the egg yolk - blend till smooth


Love your hair

The texture was just how I wanted it - not too thick, not too runny.
I used my fingers to scoop this concoction and massaged it onto my dry afro hair (not pre-washed) making sure that each strand as well as my scalp was covered.

I used a shower cap to help retain heat on the scalp whilst I went about my housework. The concoction was left on the hair for 1 hour. However, for the last 15 minutes, I decided to have a facial steam (as I have been nursing a nasty cold). I rinsed the concoction out before cleansing the hair with rhassoul shampoo bar. I did not need to apply any conditioner or any butter afterwards.

As with most afro nappturals, I have very thick hair but "suffer" the shrunken afro after wash. My hair measures 5½" when stretched and this was ideal amount for me.


Nice and thick hair
Try it and let me know how you get on with it. This recipe is ideal for all types of hair. The ginger tingles the scalp without any burning sensation but everyone's scalp is different.

You can add essential oils to the mix but I don't mind the scent of this mixture.

Wednesday 10 June 2009

DON'T PANIC... JUST HIT THE DELETE BUTTON

My fingers seem to be used to the delete button these days with the rise of scam e-mails aka spam. There was no exception though when I received this e-mail. I know it looks so official and you would panic if you thought someone was trying to register a similar name to your business. I would advise that you "Google" the e-mail address before responding to any such e-mails.

This is the end bit of the e-mail: Tel: +852-2297-9279
Fax: +852-2297-9209
Email: Aaron@eworld.hk.cn
Email: Aaron.Lee@eworld.hk
Website: http://www.eworld.hk
2009-06-10

..... and whilst editing this post, I received another e-mail which also gets the delete button treatment:

I know we all want to sell but if you have managed to get my details, why don't you bother check the website. The funny thing about the above e-mail is that the whoever is sending it is in India and not Australia - ehm!