Who we are... Simmons Naturals

What our soap shop looks like today, 2/29/12

Somehow life's whirlwind  has kept me preoccupied & I've neglected this blog.
In the spirit of a new beginning, I wish to start here with the story of our business, as that is pretty much the story of my life right now...

Here at Simmons Natural Bodycare it is our mission to provide for the basic needs of our skin and bodies in the best possible way. We strive to create luscious soaps and basic skin care that will Make EveryDay Special.

Since 1979, when we first began crafting soaps for our own family, we have always chosen the purest, highest quality oils & other botanical ingredients for their simple natural benefits. The basic care we provide works by assisting the natural processes of renewal and protection that keep us healthy and beautiful; care for everyday needs as well as for special needs such as dry, chapped skin, skin irritation, allergies, or congestion.

However, at Simmons Natural Bodycare, what we make is only half of the story.

We believe, practice, and promote a philosophy of sustainiblility. This encompasses the use of renewable energy sources and ingredients to create our products, and doing it in a way which does not degrade the environment or cause harm to us and its other inhabitants.
It is not so much the idea of 'doing the right thing', but simply that it is the right thing to do.

Our soaps

This is why we use minimal packaging incorporating as much recycled and recyclable materials as possible.. Even the beautiful handmade Thai papers that wrap our soaps are from trees harvested in a sustainable manner, limbed, so the tree keeps growing. And this is why our ingredients are biodegradable, renewable, and mostly organic, and why we do not test on animals.

Simmons Natural Bodycare is part of a self-sufficient family homestead in the rural mountains of far northern California.

The electricity for our home and business is self generated using solar (PV) panels, a 1kw wind turbine, and a small hydro-power system. Our goal is to live and run our business with as little impact on the planet as possible. The business began by crafting natural, nontoxic, soaps & body care products to ensure the mildness needed for our own family's sensitive skin. It now provides for our family as part of a working homestead in conjunction with our large organic vegetable garden, orchard, and poultry.

Our Solar PV Array

We contribute to our local community and the world community through volunteer work and donations. We have donated 2% of the sales of our bars soaps to Heifer International since 2004 and support other small businesses through our website. Since 2006 we have been 100% Carbon Neutral as we planted enough trees worldwide to offset our carbon emissions through Trees for the Future. In addition, we double our offsets annually by donating to CarbonFund.org to support renewable energy and energy conservation projects, and we continue to plant trees, 1 for every 12 of our 4 oz. bar soaps sold, over 4500 to date.

Please visit our online store and see what we have. 
You can take a short photo tour of our soap shop here.

And Now it Begins...

2012, A New Year, an election year and, some would believe, the last year.

Grist for the Mill...

Bale's Mill

 We were recently down in the Napa - Sonoma area of California, and driving from Calistoga to St. Helena spotted this enormous wooden waterwheel through the trees. I've driven this route many time and never seen this before! We just HAD to investigate.

It turned out to be the Old Bale Mill, a grain mill powered by a 36 foot tall overshot water wheel, newly restored and functioning. Amazing and beautiful to a fan of old technology, such as myself.

I don't know, maybe I'm weird, but I find incredible visual beauty in old machinery. Rugged and utilitarian, but always with a great deal of craftsmanship, the peak of the technology of its time.

Here is a short pictorial of that visit.

Built in the 1840's, when these lush valleys were full of wheat fields, the mill is now the centerpiece of a small State Historic Park. Restoration began in the 1980's and was only finished this year. They run the mill on weekends, and you can purchase milled grains at the gift shop after watching how they were ground at the site. You can read the about the history of Bale's Mill here.

Belt driven power

One can appreciate the incredible engineering to develop this machinery. Belt driven grain elevators and wonderful, wonderful gears.

In the day when the mill ran full time, the air would be full of flammable grain dust - so no light other than what came through the windows was permissible, being as electric light did not exist here then, and a lantern flame would prove disastrous. The same would be true of any sparks, therefore metal to metal gears were too dangerous. The solution? The cogs on one set of any two meeting gears had to be made of wood.

Water power - the source for much pre-industrial revolution machinery. The simple energy of moving, or falling, water amplified by gears to do large jobs.

At its peak this mill could turn out 100's of pounds of flour an hour!

Gears, metal to wood

gears turning

This separates dirt from the grain

The little cups on the belt are to carry grain up

within the vat are the mill stones, delicately balanced

How does a grist mill work?
Here is an animation of the technique.

grain hopper

If you want to visit, information & directions can be found here.

Some of the old millstones. The grooves funneled the flour out to the edges

The wheel. The power comes from falling water turning this massive wheel

Farmers brought grain to the mill where it was placed into the boot of an elevator to be mechanically transported upstairs where it was cleaned by various types of equipment. The slow turning of the old grind stones and the dampness of the mill's site gave the meal a special quality for making cornbread, yellowbread, shortening bread and spoon bread.
As old timers put it, "When meal comes to you that way, like the heated underside of a settin' hen, it bakes bread that makes city bread taste like cardboard."

I believe it. If you are ever in the Calistoga area, be sure to check it out. 

Solar Power - it's simple!

You may have seen our previous posts describing how our business and home are powered by on site, self-generated and renewable energy sources (see: Power in the Storm and Earth Day Every Day ).
Wind & water power are pretty obvious: the wind spins a propeller which turns a rotor inside an alternator which creates electricity; water turns a water wheel which does the same thing.

Solar power comes from Photovoltaic panels which work in mysterious ways.
Be mystified no more - here is a simple explanation of how they work:

Living on the River

Van Duzen River

We live on the Van Duzen river. Literally. It runs through the middle of our property.
A small stream in this dry end of summer, it becomes a fast moving torrent during the winter rains. Wild & free, it is but a small tributary into the larger Eel River. Part of the Eel River Watershed.

Van Duzen River

Our fresh water is one of the most important resources. Not only to sustain life, but these rivers are the nursery for several species of ocean-going fish, notably Salmon and Steelhead. For many years these fisheries have been dwindling. This year, after stricter rules and moratoriums on Salmon fishing the numbers have rebounded.

The Eel River by Fortuna, Ca

An amazing local artist, Michael Guerriero, has been working with elementary school children to educate them about these fisheries as well as doing art. He has a project going to Celebrate the 2010 Eel River Salmon Run that needs funding.



It is being funded through Kickstarter and the time to donate runs out on Sept 30. Please join us in supporting this wonderful project!