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http://www.mayanpigments.com/ Mayan Blue is a 2000-year-old, lustrous turquoise blue that can be seen in ancient Mayan ruins, even to this day. Until relatively recently, no one knew how they made such a vivid paint so resistant to weather, extremes of pH, chemical solvents and biodegradation. Research conducted largely by PhD student Lori Polette revealed why the mix of organic dye from the indigo plant and inorganic clay is so long-lasting. The clay has a fibrous channel-containing structure. Normally, these channels hold water. What the Mayans did was heat the clay in order to remove the water in the channels. They then mixed it with the indigo. The newly-emptied channels filled themselves with indigo and the result was a paint made from clay which was supersaturated with blue dye. Nano-technology in action, thousands of years ago! Our "hero" Lori Polette took her discoveries and, with the help of angel investors, founded a new company, Mayan Pigments Inc. Polette's pa

Japan offers an innovation to tooth brushing, with a 31 flavor set of novelty toothpastes for $9 per flavor or $160 for a full set. The toothpastes use only all-natural and plant-derived ingredients and is being imported by entreprenuer Tracy Holland at her website www.breathpalette.com What happend was she was travelling in Tokyo and she ran across them in the store. The clerk told her the products were so popular they could not keep them in stock! According to Tracy, the best selling flavors so far include: white peach, cola, and bitter chocolate. In Japan, they are rose, white peach and Kyoto tea. Here's the complete list of 31 flavors: Amajio, Tropical Pineapple, Peppermint, Freshness Yogurt, Green Tea, Rose, Monkey Banana, Honey, Kiwi, Cafe au Lait, Plum, Apple, Vanilla, Curry, Strawberry, Orange, Kyoto Green Tea, White Peach, Ume, Lavender, Darjeeling Tea, Cinnamon, Kyube, Lemon, Bitter Chocolate, Blueberry, Caramel, Espresso, Grapefruit, Pumpkin, and Cola. There is also a fl

Ever wonder what neat name to give your most recent blend of brown micas? How about Electric Mud? Or Moondance, or Coppertunity, or Currant or Jolt? If your brain needs a jumpstart on color names and color trends, check out The Color Marketing Group (CMG). Every year, this trade association gets together and goes through a five-step process to come up with the palettes of the future. Fortune 500's and others eagerly await CMG's forecasts for what colors will be hot for the next one to three years. Not just for cosmetics, but for everything retail such as furniture, clothing, consumer electronics . . . Remember 2005? Here is their predicted color directions for that year: The spa experience is adding a spiritual nature to color, resulting in a fresh, rejuvenating and clean palette. In fashion, the resulting color palette included Clay Pot (spice brown), Good Earth (rock red), Thistle Bloom (dusky purple), Late Night Blue (dark blue) and Sulpher (neutral khaki). And . . . what

I'm always attracted to news stories about people who start up a boutique paint company. Maybe because in my heart of hearts, I'd love to do the same! This month, there was an article in the San Francisco Chronicle which showcased two Portland, Oregon women who started out as a "Custom Finishes" company (the kind of people who come in and paint your interiors in interesting ways) and ended up making their own line of paints. You can visit their website at www.yolocolorhouse.com to read more about their mission, their products, and their prices. Reading the article reminded me of 2004, when I got it in my head to write a book about natural paints, and so promptly tore through the house testing out ideas. My family was very patient as I painted my bedroom using a natural paint made from curdled milk. This required gallons of milk and bags of lemons. The result was very close to exactly what I wanted: a completely flat wall finish, with a soft yellow/beige/coral hue tha

What are Organic Colorants? . . . How about I start by explaining what they are NOT. I get lots of queries from well-meaning customers who want to make their products with only organic ingredients. They want to make sure they only purchase natural, organic pigments from TKB Trading! "No," I explain to them "You really don't!" The confusion comes from the use of the word "organic". In the natural products world, "organic" refers to agricultural products (like fruits, veggies, oils, etc), which have been produced in a sustainable system of farming without the use of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. (here is a hyperlink which defines organic: http://www.organic-ingredients.com/Organic/faq.html#faq1 ) Agricultural products can definitely be used to color things (example: blackberry juice is great at staining your shirt), so you could definitely use certified-organic color additives in non-cosmetic products such as soap or potpourri. Howeve