Herbal Beauty

I love herbs, essential oils, wild-crafting herbs, and studying natural/herbal medicine. I especially love making my own little beauty recipes! Here are some of them:

CORNMEAL FACIAL SCRUB:

1/4 cup stone ground cornmeal
1-2 teas honey
2-3 drops Essential Oil ~ Rose, Lavender or Ylang-Ylang is nice. I use Aura Cacia essential oils, as they are 100% essential oil, unless otherwise stated on the label.
A dash of Lemon Juice
Enough water to make a nice paste

Mix altogether and store in a baby food jar. Keep refrigerated for longer storage. You can also add fresh, finely chopped, gathered (or bought) herbs such as red clover blossoms, wild rose petals, pineapple weed blossoms, or yarrow leaves (do not use Yarrow if your skin is sensitive to it).

Wet your face and lightly massage scrub into your face in circular motions, especially around nose and hairline. Rinse with warm water, dry your skin well, and follow up with a Bentonite Clay Mask.

BENTONITE CLAY MASK:

Bentonite is volcanic ash. Taken internally, it absorbs heavy metals, toxins, etc and is expelled out the body. Used on the skin, it attracts toxins through the pores and binds them to itself. If you have trouble with acne, you can use it to pull the toxins closer to the skin, faster than if you were to let them come up on their own. I love Bentonite Clay. I have trouble with hormonal acne and use this mask recipe every month to ease the pain caused by it.

I don't have an exact recipe for it...I just put the ingredients into a bowl and add little bits of water until it is perfect for a mask!

About 1/4 cup Bentonite Clay Powder
Water
A dash of Grapeseed Oil...I buy it from the health food store. It is very cheap. You can also use Sweet Almond Oil or Jojoba Oil.
A dash of Lemon Juice
1/2 teas or so of honey
2-3 drops Essential Oil...I like Rose or Clary Sage

Mix, adding water until it is a thick paste. Store in the fridge for longer storage. Spread on your face after you have washed and dried it, and let dry until just crinkly. Rinse with warm water. Your face will feel lovely. Do not use Bentonite more than 3 times a week if you do not make it with some sort of oil added like I mentioned above. It is a bit too drying for the face without a high quality skin oil.

I love to put about 2 Tablespoons Grapeseed oil into my evening bath water and 5-6 drops rose essential oil (my favorite). Use less of other essential oils. Most Rose essential oil is only 1/5 rose and 4/5 Jojoba Oil. Pure Rose Essential oil is $50.00 for 4 ounces!!! :[ So, if you can afford that, use only one or two drops! :) Anyway, after soaking awhile, I wash my face and skin with the cornmeal scrub, rinse and then dry my face well, and spread the Bentonite Mask on nice and thin and rub it in for 2-3 minutes. It will not dry, as your face will sweat some in the tub! :) I just rub it in good and rinse! You will feel like you have been to the spa! :)

That is my evening pampering bath! :) I love it....and a good devotional book and a few candles makes it especially nice! You can use any essential oil that you like in bath water! I have Ylang-Ylang, Rose, Clary Sage, Lavender, and I have used Orange and Eucalyptus when I am sick! Your local Health Food Store should carry a good variety of oils! Some are expensive, such as Pure Rose and Sandalwood. Others are more affordable! A good book that my husband bought me is The Essential Oils Book- Creating Personal Blends For Mind and Body, by Colleen K. Dodt

There are also other books in this series that I want...The Herbal Home Spa, The Natural Soap Book, etc. They are by Storey Publishing, and have a variety of other books by different authors!