As previously admitted, I love potions.
I come from a long line of potion lovers. My mom’s bathroom counter has long been a source a fascination given the numerous little bottles you can dip your fingers into.
But the more one reads, the more one learns, the more one wants to spend money on travelling and not products, one starts to wonder what the hell is all this stuff we are putting on ourselves … and why are we doing it? Never mind the ingredient lists that I can’t pronounce and that span the length of the bottle, but each of these potions come in plastic … from far far away.
So last year I started trying to find EASY, FOOLPROOF, and FUN alternatives. I found:
https://saltandritual.com/
Last year, this was “just” a blog and a Facebook group and a lovely founder (Kate Bello) who created a 21 day challenge. She emailed us recipes every week and we mixed and experimented in our bathrooms to our own delights. She’s expanded big time now and seems to be selling her own line of products. I haven’t tried any of them but I can attest that her homemade recipes she shared with us were great.
As usual, not every recipe is going to work for every skin type, but here’s what I’ve kept up for myself:
Face wash: Just plain old honey. Full stop. I tried the suggestions of adding essential oils and I loved the scent of Frankincense and Geranium, but ultimately I wondered if they irritated my skin a bit. I might try them again just in smaller amounts and smaller batches because the smell was truly divine. But for now, plain old honey it is. I love to use a local, creamed honey. You just wet your face slightly, grab some honey out of a jar with your two slightly wet fingers, rub it all around, maybe lick your lips, and then rinse off as you please.
I was gifted a large pot of creamed, lemon honey from these wonderful people …. it is magic.
https://www.flickr.com/people/cardinalcreekhoney/?rb=1
Moisturizer: I keep two 1oz glass bottles with droppers on my countertop. One full of Aloe Vera (I ordered mine from Mountain Rose Herbs but you could likely find it at any health food store, Whole Foods, etc., or juice your own!) and one full of Jojoba oil. For a moisturizer, i use about 3/4 dropper full of aloe vera and 2-3 drops of Jojoba oil. I squirt aloe into my palm, then drop oil on top, mix with fingers from other hand and rub all over face.
Many recommend Argan oil for this instead of Jojoba, however I tried this and it caused breakouts. They quickly went away when I changed, so don’t be afraid of some trial and error. I’ve also read that Rosehip seed oil is a good one to try.
If you want face scrubs and masks, I recommend checking out Salt & Ritual! The ones I still use that the lovely Kate Bello turned me onto are:
Scrub – combine about a 1-2 tsp of brown sugar, 1-2tsp of honey, 1tsp of coconut oil in a little jar, mix up and gently rub on face. Cleanse with honey 1-2 times after and rinse.
Mask – 1tsp of activated charcoal, a dash of water, apply thin layer around face. Let dry then use above scrub and then honey. Watch out … if you are a ‘virgin’ charcoal user … this is messy and dicey. Only use a thin layer! Be prepared to feel like your sink/tub/shower/face will be black forever … it won’t! It is fabulous entertainment for your kids. Don’t do too often as charcoal can have skin lightening effects. But it leaves your skin beautifully radiant in the end.
Now get out there and glow, naturally.
