Are you, like me, tired of skin and beauty products containing harmful chemicals? I am fed up with that as well as how pricey natural and chemical free products are. So I have started making my own. Besides using safe products that also save me lots of money, the bonus is that they come with a lot less waste, so it’s good for a zero-waste lifestyle.
Makeup Removal: Forget old-fashioned makeup remover in bottles and wipes; instead, say hello to super easy DIY makeup remover. First, you can try the old trick of a wash cloth with water and some bulk soap. If that does not work, you can use homemade makeup removal pads. I use this recipe from CoconutMama.com:
- 1 4-ounce jar
- Small cloth wipes (I use cloth wipes I cut from an old t-shirt)
- 1 1/2 – 2 Tablespoons of Fractionated Coconut Oil(like this)
- 1 teaspoon of castile soap
- Distilled water
- 2-4 drops of essential oils(Optional)
Instructions:
- Place cotton pads in the glass jar.
- In a small bowl, mix the fractionated coconut oil and castile soap together.
- Pour mixture over cotton pads.
- Press down on the pads so the soap and coconut oil evenly absorb into them.
- Pour distilled water over pads, just enough to wet the pads.
- Place the lid on the jar and shake (this helps to evenly distribute the liquid over the pads).
Face Mask and Moisturizer:
Moisturizer: Coconut oil is a wonderful, light, natural moisturizer, as is shea butter and almond oil. Be sure to find organic, unrefined and fair trade products in glass jars.
Face Mask: It’s super easy to make your own face masks from things you can eat and usually have in your kitchen. Here are two of my recipes for facemasks.
DIY Facial Moisturizing:
Raw coconut butter alone is good for the face, but by adding essential oils to it, you can make a facial moisturizer that also is healing and restorative to the skin.
- ½ cup virgin coconut oil
- A few drops of essential oil
My personal favorites:
- Frankincense-Renews and supports youthful skin. Tones and tightens skin. Reduces appearances of wrinkles. It can speed skin’s healing.
- Myrrh-Smooths irritated, dry or chapped skin and can help improve skin conditions, woulds and wrinkles.
- Chamomile-Calming for irritated or sensitive skin. May reduce inflammations.
- Clary sage-Reduces wrinkles and puffiness.
DIY Lip Balm
- 3 Tablespoons Cocoa Butter, grated
- 1 Tablespoon High Quality Olive Oil
- A few drops of essential oil, like lemon, mint, lavender and tangerine (my favorites).
- 1/2-1 tsp beet powder (optional)
Over a double broiler, melt the cocoa butter until it’s liquid. Stir in the olive oil and a few drops of essential oils. Pour into tins or jars, and let cool on the counter overnight.
Avocado Face Mask—Avocado contains vitamins B and E, and amino acids, which all help soothe and moisturize your facial skin. Avocado is great for skin care, especially for dry, red, itchy and rough skin.
- ½ ripe avocado
- 1 Tbsp. honey
- ½ olive oil
With the back of a fork, mash avocado with honey and olive oil into a smooth paste. Apply to clean face and neck, and leave on for 15 minutes. Remove with warm water.
Spirulina is a green superfood, and I eat it pretty much every day to reap the benefits of all the nutrients. But spirulina can be used as a beauty product as well. Since it contains antibacterial properties, it’s great for battling acne. Because spirulina contains vitamin E or tocopherol, selenium and tyrosine (all known to be anti-aging nutrients), it’s excellent for mature skin. Basically, I love spirulina on my skin because it makes it smoother as well as softer.
I buy liquid spirulina at our local farmer’s market, and apply it directly to my skin as a facemask and my hair as a deep conditioner. But if using spirulina powder, simply mix powder with a little water and make a spreadable paste.