My Story
Ever since I can remember, on hot days, balmy evenings, the dreaded middle of the night buzz or holidays away in the tropics, mozzies and other insects were drawn to me. The bites would itch like crazy and leave red welts that would eventually scar…not fun! I knew there were insect repellents in the market, but almost all of them smelt awful and contained synthetic chemicals like deet that would irritate my skin. At the time I just thought I had to put up with it and that I was one of the unlucky ones that mozzies and other insects loved!
Fast forward to 2016, my husband and I were taking a well-deserved holiday to Sri Lanka. It was a magical place that we fell in love with instantly. The one thing we underestimated was the volume of hungry mozzies! I was eaten alive most days and nights, and the bites were enormous. We did lots of exploring on that trip and one of things we noticed was the number of natural remedies with cinnamon oil at the heart of them. I started using some of the cinnamon based products on my bites and noticed very quick relief of the swelling and itchiness of the bites. In some instances, the bites stopped itching within 30 minutes. We spoke to the locals about this effect, and they taught us about how cinnamon is used in many Ayurvedic therapies and medicines, and that it was one of the best treatments for bite relief and a staple in their households. These results from cinnamon had us inspired to learn more about how it’s used and what it can help with.
This inspiration quickly became an obsession and upon arriving home we started researching why cinnamon was so common in the natural remedies we saw in Sri Lanka. In this research we learnt some amazing things about Cinnamon. What was most incredible about this spice was its natural antiseptic, anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties that promoted blood flow to promote healing on skin. This got us thinking….could we create an outdoor balm that also soothed existing bites?!
We began experimenting with different formulations using combinations of essential oils and carrier ingredients with the ambition to create a balm that masked and soothed bites as well as hydrate our skin. After 4 years of testing and tweaking different formulations, we landed one that worked every time and it also smelt amazing. CinnaBalm is 100% natural and contains key ingredients like Cinnamon, Beeswax and Camphor to soothe bites, key essential oils like Eucalyptus, Pine, and Citronella to mask our pesky friends from enjoying us and carrier ingredients like Almond oil to hydrate and nourish our skin with its rich natural vitamin A and vitamin E properties.
With the formulation complete, we started handing out tubs to friends and family who were then wanting more and asking for extras for their friends. It was at this point that we thought, hey, there might just be something in this. To say we were thrilled was an understatement!
From here, CinnaBalm was officially founded in 2021 and is the formula we sell today. We really hope that CinnaBalm helps others who also suffer from being loved by mozzies and other insects!
Em McCallum - Founder