Organic Skincare
This time of year, we often feel more pressure to take care
of our skin. If you think about it, it
does make sense. Our skin is exposed
more this time of year than any other.
From dresses, skirts, shorts, tank tops, and even bathing suits. As important as it is to adjust your skincare
routine from season to season, not all of us can afford a drastic
makeover. I’m here to tell you that
there are items in your house or items that you most likely already buy that can
be used to help take care of your skin this summer.
Strawberries
I mentioned in a previous post
that strawberries were great to include in your diet. They are full of antioxidants and can serve
as a natural sun block. If you’re one of
those people who maybe like to buy in bulk or let some food go to the point
where you are a little hesitant to eat them ‚¬Â¦than have no fear you can still use
the strawberries. That is assuming they
are not to the point where mold is growing on them. All you need to do is take some of the
strawberries and mash them into a paste.
This will create an organic face wash using strawberries alone. The seeds from the strawberries will serve as
the exfoliant and help to clean out any clogged pores.
Honey
Honey is
another item that contains many antioxidants to help you get that “glow”. When you are looking for honey to use for you
skin, go for organic or raw honey. Stay
away from imitation honeys for both dietary and skincare reasons. Imitation honey is pack with tons of sugar
that can cause you to break out more than help you. Organic or Raw honey is as close to its form
when it was in the hive. This can serve
as a great facial mask. I usually leave
the honey mask on my face for about 10 minutes (depending on how humid it is,
be prepared for some of the honey to drip off your face). The glow from a honey mask comes not only
from the antioxidants but the stickiness of the honey helps to remove any dead
skin cells that your normal routine may have missed.
Oatmeal
Have you
ever wondered why when we have the chicken pox, our parents suggest an oatmeal
bath to help soothe the itching? This is
because oatmeal is effective in relieving dryness and inflammation for things
like insect stings, rashes, and eczema. That’s
why the FDA has approved when companies add oatmeal to moisturizers and soaps.
Here’s a
recipe that to make your own oatmeal moisturizer, and you will know every
ingredient in the moisturizer. The ingredients
needs are:
- 1/2 cup finely ground oatmeal
- 2 cups distilled water
- Saucepan with lid
- Fine strainer
- Glass or stainless steel mixing bowl
- Small saucepan
- Metal spoon
- 3/4 cup olive, almond or jojoba oil
- 2 tbsp. shea butter
- 2 tbsp. grated beeswax
- 1 tsp. grapefruit seed extract
Bring the water to a boil and add in the oatmeal. Let that simmer for 20
minutes, then strain into a mixing bowl.
(Set aside for the moment)
Next, heat
the oil, shea butter, and beeswax over low heat in a small sauce pan. You want to keep stirring until the beeswax
is melted and the ingredients are completely combined. Then remove from heat.
Pour the oil mixture that you just made into the
oatmeal/distilled water concoction. You want
to make sure you stir until the two mixtures are combined.
Finally, add the grapefruit seed extract and use the blender
to blend the mixture until it is thick and creamy.
Sunscreen
My final
tip for taking care of your skin is REMEMBER TO APPLY SUNSCREEN. It is important when it comes to aging,
wrinkles, sunburn, etc. to make sure that you always apply sunscreen. Not just when you are at the beach or by the
pool but even on the cloudiest of days.
To make things easier, companies are now making a CC Cream with that
added SPF so that you don’t have to worry about adding yet another element to
your skincare routine.