Natural Beauty Recipes - Part I
Taking care of yourself means making healthy choices.
After doing some personal research and experimenting with natural ingredients and essential oils, I have come up with many simple recipes. You can make them with little effort. It can be a very satisfying activity to make your own body care products.
Salt Body Scrub: The salt not only helps to draw impurities from your body but the coarse texture helps to scrub away dead skin cells, leaving your skin fresh and glowing.
*1 cup coarsely ground sea salt *1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Stir the olive oil into the sea salt. Standing in the tub or shower, massage 1-2 tbsp of the scrub over your skin at a time until you have used all the mixture. Rinse your skin with warm, then cool water.
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Body Refresher Spray: Finish off your bath or shower with this recipe. It smells good and makes your skin feel so refreshed.
*2 cups distilled water *1/4 cup pure grain alcohol *10 drops essential oils (See the following ides, or make up your own combination.)
Place the pure grain alcohol or vodka in a glass measuring cup. Add the essential oils. Cover the cup and set aside for 1 hour. After the hour has passed, add the distilled water and mix well. Put the refresher in spray bottles. (This recipe will fill several 4 ounce containers.) To use, spray on your body.
Possible essential oil combinations for Body Refresher Spray:
Orange Blossom: 8 drops neroli essential oil, 1 drop tangerine essential oil, 1 drop patchouli essential oil.
Lavender-Lemon: 8 drops lavender essential oil, 2 drops lemon essential oil
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Bedtime Bath: Need to wind down before bedtime? Use this mixture for a relaxing end to your day.
*1/4 cup finely ground sea salts *6 drops lavender essential oil *2 drops clary sage essential oil *1 drop German chamomile essential oil
Mix the essential oils into the sea salt thoroughly. Pour the mixture into warm running bath water directly under the faucet. Soak for 15 minutes.
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Olive Oil Hair Treatment: Mediterranean people have known the benefits of olive oil for centuries. When using olive oil in skin treatments, always choose the highest-quality oil you can find. Use only olive oil that is labeled “extra virgin.” This guarantees that the oil has been cold pressed from freshly harvested olives and does not contain chemicals. Oil that is green in color is of a higher quality than golden-yellow oil.
*1 tbsp olive oil *1/2 cup apple cider vinegar *2 shower caps or a hot, wet towel
Warm the olive oil. Gently massage into your scalp and hair, covering your entire head. Wrap head with two plastic shower caps or a hot, wet towel, turban style. Wait 15 to 20 minutes, and then wash hair with an herbal shampoo. Apply the shampoo before wetting hair to cut down on the oil. Rinse with apple cider vinegar, then water.
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Baking Soda - Peppermint Tooth Cleaner: Fresh and delicious tasting.
*1/4 tsp salt *1/4 tsp baking soda *1 drop peppermint essential oil
Mix all the ingredients together. Dampen toothbrush with water, dip into the tooth cleaner and brush your teeth.