In addition to having a fabulous time
last Thursday, we all walked away with at least one natural beauty recipe to add to our respective repertoires.
The best part for me is beating the M-Fing system: these recipes have 30 fewer ingredients and cost probably $10 less than even their cheapo Walgreen's counterparts. I spent a total of $109.22 on what feels like a lifetime supply of all the ingredients for all of the recipes below.
RECIPE: CLEANSING LOTION
from
Natural Body Basics: Making Your Own Cosmetics by Dorie Byers
Dry skin types should avoid this as the alcohol and witch hazel would be too drying.
1/4 cup distilled water
2 1/2 tsp. witch hazel
1 tbsp rubbing alcohol
8 drops lemon, juniper, or lavender essential oils
Add essential oil to the alcohol, then add the rest of the ingredients. Store in a glass jar or bottle. Apply with cotton pads. Shake well before using.
RESULT: If you take a whiff of this straight from the jar, you are likely to lose your nerve. It smells like a bad 151 cocktail you might've over-imbibed at Spring Break in Daytona Beach. But dab it on a cotton pad, and it will effectively take off your makeup with a nice tingly hint of freshness.
RECIPE: GENTLE ALMOND FACE SCRUB
from dicey sources on the Interweb
3 tbsp ground almonds
3 tbsp medium oatmeal, put through the food processor
3 tbsp powdered milk
2 tbsp powdered rose petals
Almond oil to combine
Mix all ingredients together, using enough almond oil to create a paste-like consistency. Massage very lightly on face, then rinse and cleanse. Store the mixture in a sealed glass jar. To retain freshness, make the mixture WITHOUT the almond oil, adding it on a per-use basis.
RESULT: I would say in general that my almonds weren't finely ground enough (next time I'll use a coffee grinder instead of the food processor), but this scrub felt a little too much like sand paper. Also, the oil didn't integrate well. I think some tinkering could make the recipe work, but only for those who have rough and tumble skin.
RECIPE: OATMEAL ALMOND FACE SCRUB
from dicey sources on the Interweb
1 tsp oatmeal
1 tsp ground almonds
half tsp apple juice
1 drop geranium essential oil
Mix all the ingredients together and massage very lightly onto face. Rinse off immediately with luke warm water.
RESULT: This was the hands-down favorite of the scrubs. Alyssa took the rest home with her (because she's a genius), so she'll have to tell us about repeated use, but the first app offered up smooth, soft, glowy results. I'm going to whip up another batch for myself.
RECIPE: HONEY ALMOND FACE SCRUB
from dicey sources on the Interweb
2 tbsp honey
3 tbsp finely ground almonds
juice of half an orange
1 freshly ground mint leaf
NOTE: We used lemon juice instead of orange, and just a fraction of the amount stated.
Scrub face gently. Rinse immediately with warm water. Any unused portion may be kept for up to a week in the refrigerator.
RESULT: Aside from it
feeling yummy, we all wanted to spread this scrub on toast. I've been using the rest of the batch every day since, and I am happy to report that I like it even BETTER than its Jurlique counterpart (even with the too-big almond chunks). For the long haul, I'll either be using this scrub or the previous one to replace my Jurlique Daily Exfoliating Creme ($54/4.3 oz).
GREEN CLAY PURIFYING MASK
from
Natural Beauty Recipe Book by Gill Farrer-Halls
1 tsp apricot kernel oil
2 drops palmarosa (geranium oil)
1 tbsp green clay (Aztec Secret)
warm water
Mix the apricot oil and the palmarosa together in a small dish.
Put the green clay in a small bowl. Add the oil mixture and stir. Add just enough water to make a spreadable paste, and work the mixture thoroughly to incorporate all the ingredients.
Immediately apply the mask to a cleansed face and rest for 10-15 minutes. The mask will tighten slightly as the water evaporates.
Finally, wash off the mask with warm water. Apply a toner and moisturizer.
RESULT: There was a bit of trepidation over the mask, due either to the love of the scrubs or the fear of the clumpy green goo. (It can be difficult to eliminate all the clumps.) Rene and I are regular clay mask users, so we dove right in. In the end everybody tried it and most liked it. It's definitely a drying/tightening affair, but if you do clay masks, you know that already. Rene is going to reduce the oil when she makes it at home, but I think I'll leave the recipe as is. This mask will replace my Skinceuticals Clarifying Clay Masque ($40/2 fl oz).
TONER
from
Natural Body Basics: Making Your Own Cosmetics by Dorie Byers
Toners are similar to astringents. They temporarily close your pores and leave your skin feeling tight and refreshed. The lemon juice and rosewater have a softening effect. This can also be used as an aftershave. For normal to oily skin.
2 tbsp fresh squeezed and strained lemon juice
2 tbsp distilled water
3 tbsp rosewater
4 drops rosemary essential oil
Mix all ingredients together. Shake before using. Must be stored in the refrigerator and used within two weeks.
RESULT: Both this and the skin refresher below were exceedingly easy to make and generally enjoyed. If toning is a normal part of your skin routine, there's really no reason not to make it yourself. So cheap, so lazy! With a little net-provided knowledge of essential oils, you can tinker with the ingredients and scents as much as you like.
SKIN REFRESHER
from
Natural Body Basics: Making Your Own Cosmetics by Dorie Byers
A milder form of toner.
1 tbsp witch hazel
1 tbsp rosewater
2 tbsp distilled water
1 drop lavender essential oil
Add essential oil to witch hazel. Let sit for one hour. Add rosewater and distilled water. Shake well before use. Apply with cotton pads.
RESULTS: Sensitive skin-havers will probably be happier with this recipe.
ROSE CREAM FOR DAY USE
from
Jeanne Rose’s Kitchen Cosmetics: Using Herbs, Fruit & Flowers for Natural Body Caremakes about six ounces
3 fl oz almond oil
1 oz beeswax
1/2 heaping tsp anhydrous lanolin
1/2 tsp Borax dissolved in
2 fl oz rosewater
1 tsp zinc oxide rubbed into a smooth cream with
2 fl oz almond oil
10-20 drops of rose oil
RESULTS: I add this recipe only to tell you NOT TO TRY MAKING YOUR OWN MOISTURIZER. I'm not even going to give you the directions. The results are suitable only for weatherproofing your deck or swimming across the English Channel. If your curiosity isn't sufficiently quelled, I have a whole jar here with your name on it.
