I have an obsession with all things DIY thanks to Pinterst. My obsession is often kicked into high gear when it comes to making beauty products for myself, loved ones and friends. I can’t help that I thoroughly enjoy being able to provide myself and others with safe, natural alternatives to many store bought products for a fraction of the price. There’s no shame in my DIY game, so I’m going to share five of my favorite all natural and affordable DIY skin and hair care recipes!
Sweet Honey Bee Wax
I am a pretty big fan of a good wax job despite the pain that can often accompany it. Unfortunately, my skin doesn’t like it nearly as much as I do and turns into a angry red mess soon after the actual waxing is done.
After much research, I am fairly certain that the reason for my skin sensitivity is due to something in the actual wax used in the salon. I’m a problem solver by nature, so I figured it was high time I take the situation into my own hands by making my own version of wax and getting the job done at home. Goodbye red painful skin! Hello smooth, hairless skin!
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup raw honey
- 1 cup granulated raw cane sugar
- Juice from half a lemon
Directions:
- Using a glass, microwavable bowl, add honey, sugar and lemon juice and mix together. Place mixture in the microwave for 20 to 30 seconds.
- Give the mixture a stir and place back into the fridge for another 20 to 30 seconds. Warming the mixture in small spurts will keep it from blowing up in the microwave and leaving you a huge sticky mess to clean up.
- Carefully remove the bowl from the microwave and stir one last time. Allow the honey to cool to about room temperature or until you find it comfortable to touch without burning yourself. It usually takes about 20 minutes to cool enough, but may take more or less time depending on the temperature of your house.
- Now you’re ready to get waxing! You can cut strips out of some old t-shirts or even buy a yard of muslin fabric to use something similar to what’s used during a professional waxing. All you have to do now is apply a thin layer of your newly made wax in the same direction your hair is going, quickly apply your fabric, pull the surrounding skin taut and give the fabric a quick rip going against the hair grain.
- Viola! You’re now significantly less hairy and your skin is less iritated. There’s also the awesome bonus of saving some cash since you were able to skip a trip to the salon.
DIY Dry Shampoo
Let’s be honest, Ladies…We don’t want or need to wash our hair every single day! It’s actually better for it if we don’t, it saves us time when getting ready each day and messy buns are totally “in” right now! However, the downside to skipping washes is the oily unwashed hair look that always follows.
Sure, there are a ton of dry shampoo options on the market that we can try, but that means spraying our hair with a bunch of chemicals and pretty much negates the point of skipping washes. So, what if we forget the store bought junk and make out own dry shampoo?
Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp of cornstarch
- 4 tbsp of water
- 1 tbsp organic ethanol
- Essential oil of your choice for scent
- Directions:
Directions and How to Use:
- I hope your ready to work up a sweat because these directions are labor intensive! Ok, not really! All you have to do is add all of your ingredients into a bowl, give it a good stir and add the mixture to a spray bottle. Yep, that’s it!
- Give your spray bottle a good shake before each use. After you’ve brushed your hair, spray the dry shampoo onto the roots of your hair until they are damp, but not soaked. Leave it on there for a few minutes so it can do it’s magic. I usually do my make up while I wait so that I’m using my time wisely and because it’s the only way I’ll get out the door on time!
- Give your hair a good brushing, especially at the roots so that the dry shampoo is evenly dispersed throughout the rest of your hair. Grab your blow dryer and hit your roots with a bit of high heat while coming and fluffing your hair with your fingers. You can also allow your hair to air dry if you’re not pressed for time.
That’s all there is to it! Your hair is now less oily, looks like you’ve just washed it and smells greats!
Crazy for Cacao Face Mask
Two of my favorite things in life are chocolate and a good face mask. I had a light bulb moment one day after I had to wipe my face off after a chocolate binge. So, I put on my mad scientist hat and made a mask out of chocolate after reading about some of its great skin benefits thanks to all of the antioxidants it has.
I didn’t stop at just chocolate, though! Oh no, I went full gorilla and added a gaggle of other skin loving ingredients to ensure that my new face mask was the bees knees. I’m pretty sure I succeeded, too, as my skin felt smooth and looked radiant. I totally licked the mask off my fingers, too. All in the name of DIY beauty hacks, of course.
Ingredients:
- 1 medium avocado, mashed
- 3 tbsp raw cacao powder
- 2 tsp raw honey
- 1 tbsp cinnamon, freshly grated
Directions:
- Add all of your ingredients to a bowl and mix thoroughly with a fork to break up any avocado chunks.
- Wash your hands very well. Scoop the mask mixture up with your fingers and give your face a good massage. You can even rub it into your neck if you’re feeling adventurous! Leave the mask on for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Once the time is up, you can rinse your skin with warm water or wipe clean with a damp washcloth. Feel free to chow down on the remaining mixture, too!
Whipped Coconut Butter Balm
I have a love/hate relationship with lotion. I love how it hydrates, smooths and makes my skin smell. I hate the chemicals and the oily residue some lotions leave behind. The lotion struggle is real!
I decided to take matters into my own hands by making my own version of a lotion that does everything that I want it to do without any ingredients I don’t want to have. With this little concoction, I’ve been able to turn my lotion relationship from love/hate to love/love and then some.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup virgin coconut oil
- 2 tbsp sweet almond oil (any carrier oil of your preference will work)
- 1 tbsp all natural glycerin (vegetable glycerin works, too)
- 5 to 10 drops of essential oil (I personally love lavender)
- Soap color or small amount of natural fruit syrup for color (optional)
Directions:
- Place a large pot of water on medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Before the water gets too hot, place a metal or heat resistant glass boil slightly wider than the pot on top with the solid coconut oil in it. You’re creating a double boiler to safely melt the coconut butter.
- Once the oil is melted, turn off the heat, remove the boil with the melted coconut oil and set it aside to cool for roughly 30 minutes. Don’t discard the water you boiled just yet! You’ll utilize it in a few minutes since it’s already been sterilized by the boiling.
- Add the sweet almond oil to the cooled coconut oil. Whisk together until the two oils are combined. Place your bowl in the refrigerator for 25 minutes to allow the oils to solidify a bit.
- Remove the bowl from the fridge once the time is up and test the texture of the oils. Ideally, it should be hard, but soft enough for you to leave a finger indent.
- Using a hand mixer, stand mixer or immersion blender, whip the mixture into a thick, fluffy cream. Now add your glycerin, essential oil and cooled water from your pot. You may add your soap colorant or berry syrup now if you want to add some color. Whip everything up again until you’ve created a lovely coconut butter balm that looks like whipped cream.
You can use store your balm in a glass jar with a light lid, plastic lotion containers or even add it to a spray bottle with one part balm to one part water for a leave in hair conditioner!
Perfectly Peppermint Lip Balm
If you’re anything like me, you probably have 1,000 lipsticks, lip balms, chap-sticks, lip glosses and lip treatments floating around your purse, desk drawer, glove box and make up container. This is another beauty project that is often loaded with a list of less than desirable ingredients that often do little to hydrate and sooth our lips.
I’ll be honest, I never paid much attention to this particular issue until I had daughters who are obsessed with these little colorful tubes of chemicals and one lip balm away from Bonnie Belle rehab! I knew I didn’t have much choice but to find (or make in this case) a lip balm substitute quickly for my not-so-delicate little ladies.
Ingredients:
- 8 to 10 drops of peppermint essential oil (get the good stuff if you can)
- 2 tbsp sweet almond oil
- 1 tbsp beeswax pellets
- Lipstick shavings or homemade fruit syrup for color (optional)
Directions:
- Place a small pot of water on medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Place a medium sized mason jar in the pot before the water becomes too hot. Add the sweet almond oil and beeswax pellets to the jar closing the lid tightly. Leave the jar in the pot with the water boiling until all of the beeswax is melted.
- Carefully remove the mason from the pot. This part can be tricky if your accident prone like I am, so do this slowly to avoid burning yourself. Remove the lid and give the melted mixture a good stir.
- Now you may add your peppermint essential oil a few drops at a time, stirring frequently. Definitely take it easy on the oil here! All it takes is a drop or two too many to take your lip balm from a pleasant tingle to full on burn.
- If you’re going to add some color to your lip balm, now is the time. You can control the color by adding more or less shaving or syrup. Have fun with it and make some in a few different colors if you’d like.
- Lastly, pour the lip balm mixture into the container(s) of your choice. I like to use little lidded pots that I found in the bead isle of the craft store. The container options are limitless, though! You can use small Altoids containers, empty chap-stick tubes, lids to baby food jars or buy special lip balm containers.
There you have it, folks! You now you’ve got a pretty good start when the time comes to fill your medicine cabinet with natural and chemical free beauty products. Have fun with the rest of your mission to become a DIY beauty guru!
