Swathy and Sky

Are we the modern India? {Women Stuff}

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Today I am in no mood for writing a beauty post. Somehow, the inspiration is still elusive 🙁 I have so long a list of things to accomplish and I feel so lazy to do anything! Anyways, leaving my rantings aside, I would like to talk about a friend of mine who is going through a bit of rough patch.
No, I am not going to reveal any personal details but what she is going through resonates so deeply with the so-called traditions and all blah blah that it makes me wonder what traditions really are? So, without further ado, lemme start her story.
Her marriage got fixed with a guy whom her parents selected. She and the guy liked each other and before formal affirmation, they had spent a lot of time on phone calls and met without informing the family. That is all ok. And, small small incidents happen in every family!

But, the highlight came when the MIL went with her daughters to a boutique and totally negated the reception dress designs already instructed by the bride. And, without informing anyone!!

Then, she went to the bride’s house and asked to be shown all the jewellery bought by her. And, expressed her frank opinions and if you haven’t got the drift, she was bluntly rude! For which, my friend could not control her anger and blasted back!
Whatever followed was not really pleasant and my friend received some warnings from her future MIL akin to the saas-bahu sagas made famous by Ekta Kapoor. I just was wondering why is the concept of arranged marriages and dowry and status and what not, given so much importance in front of the girl and her nature and her education and her values!
Is not the girl a human being who should be treated with respect instead of a prize or an item to be displayed? What was my friend’s fault? She just wanted to buy things and wear things which she likes without being judged for everything! Why is it that the bride is always looked with so much curiosity and unless she is mindblowingly beautiful, is judged for whatever small step she takes!
Or, is it just the chemistry of IL’s and the bride which shall never improve on Earth? Why is not a girl allowed to get married without any stress and tensions? As it is, marriage is a life-altering decision and its not like she is gonna be married ever again so why not leave everything on her?
Its just sad to see how stressed my friend looks and its no where near the glowing-bride rosy picture! I wish people from the older generation realize that ultimately marriage is a joining of two people and happiness should be the ultimate outcome.
What do you say? Have you seen anyone going through almost same scenario or have you been through one? Do you think its the bride’s fault or should the MIL’s be more restrained?
PS: Ok, don’t hate me for the cartoons! They were just too good to be ignored 😀
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Mom’s Oil {DIY}

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I remember talking about this oil sometime last year and many of you had asked me the recipe for this. I did not really talk about the DIY since then because I did not have the recipe and I was not sure how good it really was.
But, this time when I went home, I made sure that I get the recipe from mum and also try out the oil so that I can actually share it with you with its amazing benefits!! And, it has been ages since I have done any DIY and I am really glad to do it.
First, I am sorry I do not have any pic. But, the oil is very pretty red in color thanks to one of the herbs! Anyways, let me speak about the results first. I have kept the oil only for 2 hours at max before washing it off.

So, it makes my hair more shiny and really really soft (unbelievably so!). I am missing the softness. Hair is also better hydrated but one has to apply the oil once in 2 days. I guess this part applies to all oils. The oil gets washed off pretty easily. It nourishes the scalp as well, thanks to all kinds of herbs put into it. I have not seen any hair fall with the oil and neither did my mom. That is interesting because my mom actually faces hair fall quite a lot! So, that is quite a small list of amazing results. But, I have used the oil only a few times.
Anyways lets check out the Ingredients.
Base Oil – Refined Oil. I was completely against it but my mom does not really listen to me 😀 Now, she is going to use sesame oil. I would suggest any cold-pressed organic oil like coconut, almond, sesame.
Herbs:
– dried fenugreek seeds (methi)
– dried Tulsi leaves (basil or sage)
– Dhaniya (coriander seeds)
– Jeera (cumin seeds)
– Black pepper (kali mirch)
– Green tea
– Cinnamon stick (dal chini)
– Laung (cloves)
– dried kari patta (curry leaves)
– dried Rose petals
– Sesame seeds (til)
– Mustard seeds
– groundnut
– badam (almonds)
– walnuts (akhrot)
– ratanjot (this is an interesting herb)
– Bhringraj
– Brahmi
– Amla (if not using triphala otherwise only triphala)
– Triphala
– dried Hibiscus leaves and flowers
– dried Neem leaves (margosa)
– Dried ginger (sounth)
– dry jasmine flowers
– dried marigold petals
– dried paan patta (betel leaves)
– dried mango leaves
Yeah, a long list of ingredients and I have no idea if she forgot some of the other ingredients! Anyways, let us talk about Ratanjot herb.
This is the one which gives the lovely red color to the oil. It is basically a red dye which is used in oils like dabur lal tail. It is actually a rare herb which might not be available everywhere. If you live in Himachal or Jammu, you can still get it in ayurvedic shops but I have not idea if you can get in normal shops.
Rest of all the ingredients are known pretty widely. I have no idea what some of the herbs actually do to hair like mango leaves or paan patta. And, I am not googling it right away. Ok, how to use these herbs. First of all, the herbs should be air-dried in shade but not in direct sunlight.
Once they are all dry, powder all the ingredients together. Take a two heaped tablespoons of the powder and put it in a bottle or a jar of 200-300 ml. Pour the oil in the jar till it is full. Adjust the quantity of herbs according to the quantity of oil you are going to use. Generally, one tablespoon is enough for 100ml.
Leave the jar aside for a month. Keep stirring the oil in between. And, try to keep the in direct sunlight for sometime. Read about how to infuse oil with herbs for more specific instructions. There is another way to infuse as well but the temperature of the oil should be carefully controlled so that it is not burned. That damages the hydrogen bonds in the oil which can destroy the properties of the oil.
Once the infusion process is over, oil is ready for use so filter the oil and pour in a glass bottle, preferably! Happy using in case you are going to give it a try 🙂

What do you say about the DIY?

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Himani Navratna Oil {Product Review}

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Navratan hair oil product review at perfect skin care for you indian beauty blog
I have been suffering from headaches since time immemorial! And, then comes summers when the need for a cooling oil increases multi-fold so I finally took the plunge and got a small bottle of this oil to try out. Before that, I had taken two opinions – one from mom and other from a friend.
One said it burns the eyes like after you apply amrutanjan and one said it feels like you have put ice on your head. Well, neither really held true in my case so I guess the oil feels different for different body types!!
Pros
relieves stress and anxiety
helps in sleeping peacefully
feels really cool on the scalp

Day 1 – I took only a few drops of oil and massaged with finger tips on the scalp. It really felt cool after a few seconds and it was an awesome feeling! It was peak summers in Hyderabad and I do get a lot drained in summers. The oil relieved the tiredness to an extent and lulled me to sleep.
Navratan hair oil product review at perfect skin care for you indian beauty blog
Other Uses – I have to say not all uses were same for me. Every time, it was different. Sometimes, I did feel cool on the scalp and sometimes not! I used it during headaches and it was a bit soothing. Oiling hair is good during headaches as it increases blood circulation and if you have something cool to compensate for the throbbing, what better than that?
Cons
smell might not be to everyone’s liking though it is not exactly very strong! it smells herbally and does not go soon enough!
Today’s Use (as and when the post is being written) – I had a headache due to combined effects of lack of fluids, improper diet and sleep and roaming in mid-afternoon sun and when I came back, the first thing I did was make myself a hot cup of tea and take a really hot bath and pop a pill and sleep! When I woke up, it was time for dinner so I fortified myself by which time I was feeling a lot better but hangover was still there. So, I oiled my hair with this and in half hour, I was decidedly awake thanks to the pill, sleep and oil. And, now I am typing away the review at the stroke of midnight without a wink of sleep in my eyes.
So, after all the rants, you would have got an idea whether I like the oil or not, right? Well, in my opinion, yes! The oil is great if you are looking to relieve yourself of headaches and anxiety and stress and lack of sleep. Bte, I have to add a word here that it might be helpful for dandruff though I am not very sure!
Price: Rs 30 for 50ml
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