Natural Beauty Ingredients That Work Wonders

We have been programmed from birth it seems by TV commercials and magazine advertisements to think that beauty comes in a bottle. We become convinced that beauty products can only come from laboratories and people with doctor’s initials behind their name.

There are many products that will help you remove those unwanted wrinkles and make you look younger and healthier – there is no doubt about this and we talk about those products on this site. But there are alternatives to the great skin products that are available.

In fact nature has provided us with many beauty ingredients that are safe and effective. Many of them can be found in our pantry because we already buy them on a regular basis for other things. You don’t need any special training to make your own skincare and beauty products at home using pure and natural ingredients. Here are a few of the ingredients you may need:

Honey – Not only is it a tasty and healthy sweetener, it is good for your skin. Honey is great for skin rashes and dry spots. It is especially yummy to use in lip balms for dry and chapped lips. Honey can even be use on wounds because of its natural anti-bacterial qualities so it can aid in healing your skin as well. It makes a great healing, facial mask that you can apply as is or add to a homemade cream.

Baking Soda – This versatile ingredient can be used to make ant-bacterial facial scrubs. It is safe and mildly abrasive making it a good clean cleanser for all skin types including acne prone skin. Baking soda is also great for brushing your teeth.

Ginger – This flavorful staple of Chinese cuisine has analgesic and anti-bacterial properties. It promotes good circulation and is a good ingredient in creams and shampoos. It also smells heavenly.

Lavender – This herb is wonderfully soothing to inflamed and acne prone skin because it is antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. It is commonly diluted in rose water or witch hazel to make an astringent for the face. It also repels bug and soothes insect bites and even helps you get to sleep.

Milk – This ingredient is commonly used in baths to soothe and exfoliate. The lactic acid in milk helps to slough off dead skin cells so that new ones can emerge. Milk can also be used to make facial masks as well.

Carrots – Carrots are very high in vitamin A and are a source of vitamin C, folacin and potassium. Just cook them lightly and blend with a bit of honey to make a great facial mask.

Oats- They are more than just breakfast food. Oats can be very soothing and anti-inflammatory and make great additions to a baths perhaps after a bad sunburn.

Beets – Beetroots contain powerful anti-oxidants and they have a red pigment that makes them a great ingredient for making liquid blushes and lip color. You can’t get make-up more natural than that!

Green Tea – This powerful tea has long been held in high esteem for its healing properties. It has a soothing and calming affect on skin and is a wonderful ingredient for sunscreens, moisturizers, and toners. It is especially helpful for rosacea and acne.

Nature has provided a wondrous array of natural beauty products that work great – especially if you are tight on a budget.

Natural Skin Care Remedies

Taking care of your skin is so important.  It is the only skin you’ll ever have.  You determine how well it will look now, and in the future.  Therefore you want to be certain that the products or other items that you are using to care for your skin are the best possible.  This is why it may be advantageous to create your own natural skin care products rather than chancing it with the items you buy in the store.  These products are often filled with harsh chemicals and other mysterious ingredients that you would not want to put on your skin if you really understood what they were. When you make your own
products, you know exactly what goes into them. You can also save money, and even
give away your products as gifts!

Did you know that you have many great items already in your home that can be used to create your natural skin care products?  Everything from fruit to honey, oatmeal to eggs can be used to creative skin lifting products, moisturizing products, and more natural skin care remedies. 

It can be as simple as creating a natural face lift with two egg yolks and a teaspoon of sugar, or a bit more complicated such as this bath milk recipe. 

Cleopatra’s Bath Milk

• 2 cups powdered milk
• 1 Tablespoon Jojoba or Sweet Almond Oil
• 2 Tablespoons dried rose petals (can be obtained at large health food stores)
• 1/2 cup ground oatmeal (grind oats finely in your blender)
• 10 drops lavender essential oil or other favorite oil

Mix all ingredients well and keep in a glass jar in the refrigerator. To use, put as much as you like into your bath under running water. You can also buy reusable muslin tea bags at the health food store and place the mixture in these. To use, just drop one in the bath water.

Natural Skin Care for Winter

The cold and blustery winter months are upon us and for many that means problems with their skin. Whether you suffer from dry skin all the time, or your skin becomes chapped from being outdoors in the wind or from forced indoor heating, or any other number of skin issues, I’m sure you wished there was a cure for what ails you. 

Did you know there are actually many ways that you can care for your skin, naturally without having to purchase anything from your local drug or department store?  That’s right, you have the ability to do your own skin care regimen at home for pennies, because most likely you already have everything that you need right in your own home.

Some ways that you can care for your winter skin naturally include:

Exfoliating:  Especially if you have dry skin, exfoliating that old, dead skin can help allow moisture which you need to get into your pores once you have ridden them of those dead, flaky skin cells.  To exfoliate you will need a physical agent like ground walnuts or apricot hulls, or an enzyme, which basically eats dead skin cells.  There are even foods that are rich in enzymes which you can use to create your own at home mask to use in the process of exfoliation.  These foods include pineapple and papaya. Milk also has fatty acids that mildly exfoliate. This is why the traditional milk bath has been so popular.

To create an easy inexpensive natural exfoliant, mix sea salt with olive oil. Smoothe in on in the tub and rub your skin gently, then rinse in the shower. You can do the same with sugar – not so great to eat, but awesome for your skin! Add a drop of your favorite essential oil to make it a spa treatment and relax you.

Eating:  Yes, something that you already do on a regular basis if done correctly can change your skin. For example to help dry skin, include foods in your diet that are rich in fatty acids.  Some of these foods include salmon, olive and coconut oils, avocado, and nuts.  Incorporate these into your daily diet to see what a difference they can make. What may look like dry skin may even be eczema or a rash caused by food allergies, so be alert to that possibility too.

Make Your Own Treatments:  You can also make your own at home masks and treatments to treat other skin issues.   Some common combinations are oatmeal, honey and water to create a mask, or  avocado and honey.  Smear these on your skin, allow to dry and then rinse them off. 

A simple honey treatment to moisturize your skin and make it glow? Pat two drops of honey on your face after cleansing, while still damp. Your skin won’t be sticky with such a small amount.

Skin care is important to the health of your skin as well as your appearance. It’s best to care for your skin as naturally as possible, so why not try these options for caring for your dry winter skin.

Dry Brushing for Skin Health

Have you ever heard of dry brushing? It is a centuries old practice of massaging and exfoliating the skin to improve its health and appearance. Your skin is the biggest organ you have and it constantly regenerates itself by eliminating toxic and dead skin cells. Your skin can eliminate as much as two pounds of this waste material each day. Your skin needs to renew itself and breath for it to look its best and dry brushing can help. When your skin is clogged with dead skin cells and toxins that cannot be eliminated by perspiration, then your skin will suffer. Your skin needs air and sunlight so getting rid of excess waste through exfoliation is vital. Most people already know that they need to exfoliate their faces but in reality your whole body can benefit from exfoliation.

Dry brushing involves talking a soft bristled brush, similar to what you use on your hair except with a long handle, and brushing it across your whole body in a massage like fashion. Some people also use special gloves to dry brush. Your skin is dry when you do this and the best time is usually before you shower. Our bodies form a new top layer of skin every 24 hours or so. Dry brushing helps to slough off that topmost layer allowing the softer, smoother, skin below to surface and breath.

In addition to exfoliating your dead skin cells and removing barriers to toxin excretion, dry brushing is also wonderful for lymph vessels and capillaries. Dry brushing should be done using strokes that go towards the heart, aiding in the body’s blood circulation. This is why many dry brushing enthusiasts feel so refreshed and invigorated after a brushing session, because their circulation improves. Starting out gently is advised and then as you get used to the practice you can brush more vigorously. Dry brushing also massages the lymph nodes and gets them functioning as well. Our lymph nodes are responsible for filtering and removing invading organisms and abnormal cells as part of our immune system. Massaging them to encourage better functionality can have a big impact on our health and our ability to keep from getting sick.

When starting a dry brushing routine it is good to keep in mind the following tips:

- Start our softly at first to avoid soreness and gradually apply more pressure over time.
- Be careful not to brush over open wounds and cuts or rashes.
- Use brush strokes that go towards the heart. The exception to this is when you are brushing over the stomach, when you should brush in a clockwise fashion to aid digestion.
- Wash your dry brush after every use to wash off dead skin cells.
- Brush when the skin is dry and then shower afterwards to wash off any remaining dead skin cells.
- Use natural bristles if possible and brushes made with sustainable materials such as ethically harvested wood or bamboo.
- If your skin is dry, rub in natural oils like Jojoba afterwards. It will soften the skin and it won’t clog pores.