I thought I would try making some homemade hand sanitiser because it is very topical and useful in these COVID19 days. I love making things myself just to see what is involved in doing so, understanding what the ingredients are, and of course for the satisfaction of thinking 'I made that'. It turns out to be very simple: using ethanol (or isopropyl alcohol) and aloe vera gel along with your favourite essential oils. This recipe is courtesy of Go Native New Zealand. Homemade Hand Sanitizer340g … [Read more...]
Jojoba, Rosehip and Lavender Face Oil Recipe
Jojoba, Rosehip and Lavender Face Oil is my favourite evening moisturizer for face and decolletage (particularly for more mature skins) and it is so easy to make for yourself that I thought I'd share the 'recipe'. All of these oils can be put directly on the skin and have wonderfully healing properties: Jojoba is a fabulous oil that closely resembles human sebum, an oily skin moisturiser produced by the sebaceous glands, and penetrates the skin extremely well. Jojoba comes from the … [Read more...]
Chocolate Body Butter
This Chocolate Body Butter Recipe is very easy to make and gives a soft, fluffy cream that melts easily onto your skin and is perfect for nourishing dry skin. I wanted to make some body butter for gifts and had an unsuccessful attempt at trying a more complicated recipe for Rich Rose Geranium Body Butter, so I decided to make a quick and easy variation of the Mango Body Butter Recipe I had made previously. As I’m trying out different recipes for various natural skin and hair care products, … [Read more...]
Rich Rose Geranium Body Butter Recipe
I've previously tried other cosmetic products with simpler recipes such as Mango Body Butter but Rich Rose Geranium Body Butter was my first attempt at making a more complicated cosmetics recipe that involved combining various phases at different temperatures. It was not particularly successful but I thought I'd share my learnings with you: The hardest part was trying to coordinate the temperatures of the different phases so that they reached the desired temperature at the same time. The … [Read more...]
Natural Calendula Antiseptic Cream Recipe
This recipe for a Natural Calendula Antiseptic Cream uses more natural ingredients than the simple Calendula Cream recipe made with Vaseline petroleum jelly that I described in an earlier post. You can make little jars for kids so that they can put "Owie Cream" on their cuts and scrapes or to tuck into your day pack if you are heading out into the Great Outdoors or travelling. It would make a great gift for the travellers or hikers in your life. Calendula flowers have bee used by many ancient … [Read more...]
Solid Shampoo and Conditioner Bars
In an earlier post I wrote about the simple recipe I had found for a solid moisturiser stick that was perfect for travel. After the success of that, I had to try making solid shampoo and conditioner bars for travelling too. They will be great for cutting down volume and weight, and they're not liquids or gels so you can take them on the plane with you as well if you want. The recipes are from Go Native (I have their permission to reproduce them on my blog) and you can buy all the ingredients … [Read more...]
Mango Body Butter Recipe
This Mango Body Butter Recipe gives a soft, fluffy cream that melts easily onto your skin and is perfect for nourishing dry skin. It is also very easy to make which is good as I haven't yet picked up the courage to try any of the more complicated sounding recipes. As I'm trying out different recipes for various natural skin and hair care products, I'm starting to learn the difference between creams, balms, and butters. Balms and butters differ from creams in that they don't have any water added … [Read more...]
Summer Hair Repair and Mask
I've always liked the idea of making my own natural health and beauty products, and have been spurred on to try some of them. So far these have turned out to be very easy but many of the creams and lotions have daunted me with recipes requiring you to create different phases at different temperatures and combining them at different times. I've been easing myself in gradually by making some of the simpler recipes to start with. See list at the end of the post for other simple recipes to … [Read more...]
Calendula Antiseptic Cream
Since I started planting lots more herbs and flowers in my garden to attract the bees, I have been getting a lot more interested in what else you can do with them (see bottom of page for some of my earlier posts). When my friend Steph told me that she makes an antiseptic cream using calendula flowers from her garden, I just had to give it a try. Calendula flowers have bee used by many ancient cultures for their healing powers and natural abilities to soothe dry and irritated skin. … [Read more...]
Making Sugar Scrubs
When I was making lavender and other flavoured sugars and syrups, I was reminded that too much sugar is bad for us. But this recipe is a use for sugar that really is good for you! You can make a luxurious and beneficial skin treatment that is used in top end spas - and for a fraction of the price. A sugar scrub is a body treatment designed to exfoliate the skin, removing the outermost layer of dead skin cells and leaving your skin softer and smoother. It is one of the gentlest of all the … [Read more...]