As I get older and wiser, I’ve realized that making your own skin care products really is beneficial. Today I want to share a few homemade skin care tips and routines with you.
Grab your coffee or wine (or tequila), and let’s get started…
(this post does contain affiliate links, so if you make a purchase, I make a small commission-affiliate disclosure here)
**Disclaimer: Before we get started on this blog post, I should probably tell you that we all have very different and unique skin types, so your skincare regime and homemade skin care cream or potions will be unique to you. My skin type is slightly oil, with no dry patches, age spots, acne scarring, wrinkles, or enlarged pores. With that said everything I’ve used is safe for my skin type.
If you have really sensitive skin or dry skin, please do some research to see what essential oils and other natural ingredients are safe for your skin. Though I was in cosmetology for over 25 years, my expertise is with hair, not skin. I have some knowledge of this, but I am not a certified esthetician or skin care expert.
I’ve had to test, test, and test some more to see what worked for me and what didn’t. You will have to do that as well.**
What my skin care routine used to be
I have had bad skin my entire life. I can’t ever remember a time when I had glowing or clear skin. It never happened to me. I always had zits, and I was a constant face picker, so I always had scars.
To be honest, my skin is a mess.
Now, at 60, I’m desperately trying to reverse all these years of damage. I keep trying and keep believing there’s hope for my skin. I actually think there is, to be honest!
What I used to do to take care of my skin was whatever the latest teen magazine told me to do. If they told me to put butt cream or Pepto Bismol on my face, you can bet I was going to. I would wash my face with acne soap and put on whatever cream I thought I should.
Then one day I read toothpaste worked so of course that went on my face. Then they said to make scrubs with baking soda and cooking oil. Ok. The end result was always me putting on a ton of foundation to cover up all my zits and scars.
Does anyone else go through all that, too?
Every decade it was a new thing. I had a love/hate relationship with the skin care aisle at Shopper’s Drug Mart. There are so many products for skin like mine. They all claimed to do miraculous things at ridiculous prices.
But none of them worked.
I had troubled skin. Ooph. Did I ever. And then I started aging. I threw in the towel on drug store products and started digging deeper into homemade skin care.
Moving on to anti-aging skin care
I was no longer troubled by the zits that I still get. But the wrinkles, scars, and age spots were starting to get bad. Real bad. I have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that I’m not 25 anymore.
I’m not into plastic surgery or other cosmetic procedures.
Oh, I tried them. Botox once. A filler once. Hated them both. The results weren’t that great, and I wasted all that money on those treatments when I could have bought more tequila.
Lesson learned.
Moving into my 60s, I’m really starting to take better care of myself. Honestly, it’s been more so this past year.
I’m eating better, I quit smoking on Christmas Day of 2020 (YAY me!), went back to the gym and just really trying to heal more naturally and getting into homemade skin care more among many other healthy things.
I’ve become obsessed with watching YouTube videos about Face Yoga (ya, that’s a thing) and other super cool homemade skin care videos. I even made a couple myself! This is a fun one you might like where I tried a Turmeric Face Mask.
pssst-don’t forget to hit the subscribe button while you’re there!
All natural ingredients for DIY skin care
So I’ve been experimenting an awful lot lately. Everything I use is natural! Even the essential oils. And let’s talk about those for one minute: essential oils.
In case you didn’t know, you can actually use them on your skin, yes, your face, albeit very carefully.
Many essential oils for the skin, like Tea Tree Oil and Eucalyptus Oil, are super strong, so you have to dilute them with another oil. I use either almond or flaxseed oil to dilute mine.
side note: things you read will tell you coconut oil is great for the skin, but that’s not entirely true. Check your skin type. It might not be the best for you. It wasn’t for mine
Use what works best for your skin type. I’m also going to start testing other oils. I meant to try Jojoba Oil, and I just noticed that you can buy it in the small town I live in. It’s pretty pricy, but whatever.
Here is a small list of essential oils and carrier oils (to dilute with) that are safe to use on your skin.
5 Best Carrier Oils for your DIY skin care:
While most carrier oils can be found right in your very own grocery or health food store, Amazon also has a nice little collection. Here are five that are good for all skin types and can be used not only for your homemade skincare routine but for many other health benefits.
Jojoba Oil – healing and moisturizing, good for all skin types
Coconut Oil – is rich in Vitamin E and, a great hydrator
Avocado Oil – good for dry skin, fights fine lines
Grapeseed Oil– loaded with antioxidants, great for acne, restores collagen
Rosehip Oil – good for dry skin
While I’ve only listed five carrier oils, there really are so many more. This blog will give you more information on carrier oils.
Best Essential Oils for Homemade Face Moisturizer
If you don’t already have essential oils at home, Amazon has an amazing collection of them. Click the link here to get yours today. This set has 20 of the best essential oils for the skin.
If you have never used essential oils for anything other than a diffuser, you don’t know what you’re missing. I even use a couple of oils to help with migraines. I’ll tell you which two later!
In no order of importance or health benefits, here is a list of the best essential oils for homemade skin care
Tea Tree Oil – anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial-very strong, only a couple of drops needed
Lavender Oil – helps fight acne and reduce wrinkles (great for migraines!!)
Peppermint Oil – great for tightening pores and fighting acne
Eucalyptus Oil – anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory-good for wrinkles
Rosemary Oil – anti-inflammatory, good for enlarged pores (great for migraines!)
Frankincense Oil – good for acne and reducing fine lines
Neroli Oil- helps fight sebum
Lemongrass Oil – great for acne
Myrrh Oil – rich in antioxidants
Clary Sage Oil – reduces the appearance of fine lines
Now that we got some of our natural ingredients for our homemade skin care out of the way, let’s get to some recipes that I’ve whipped up and love. I think you’ll love them too. In any of these masks, you can add a couple of drops of your favorite essential oil or a drop of each of your favorites.
Careful, though, not too much. Some essential oils are super strong.
I also gotta tell you that I’ve even started adding a couple of drops of essential oils to my body moisturizer (which isn’t homemade, by the way). I love the lavender and sweet orange.
A word of warning if you are thinking of doing this. As much as I love lemongrass essential oil, it doesn’t mix well with body moisturizer, and you end up smelling like a walking can of Pledge furniture polish.
Ooph. One more lesson learned!
Recipe One for Homemade Face Cleanser
Now keep in mind these are the ingredients I’ve used that work well for me and I love. I love not only the way they smell but also the way my skin feels after I wash it off. I use this one every second day. Right after I rinse off my homemade face cleanser, I apply aloe vera that is super light and airy, so I don’t bother rinsing that off.
Aloe Vera has amazing healing properties for every skin type and every ailment under the sun. Do a test to see if your skin is too sensitive for it.
Using aloe vera on the face can help moisturize skin. Regularly applying a small amount of aloe vera to the face can help treat various skin conditions, including acne, eczema, and sunburn. A person can use the gel directly from an aloe vera plant or buy a bottled variety from a health store.
Source: Medical News Today
Homemade skin care recipe 1:
2 tablespoons plain all-natural yogurt (0 sugar or additives)
1 tablespoon Turmeric powder (great for skin lightening)
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon ground coffee (not instant)
1 small leaf from an aloe vera plant (two teaspoons aloe vera gel)
1 or 2 drops of tea tree oil and peppermint oil
Mix all ingredients in a blender and blend as fine as you can. The coffee may still be slightly granular to give an exfoliating cleanse. Apply a thick layer to your skin and let it sit and dry (up to 30 minutes), then wash it off.
You can store this in the fridge for up to two weeks.
Homemade skin care recipe 2:
2 tablespoons regular oatmeal –exfoliating
1 teaspoon honey- antibacterial
2 tablespoons plain all-natural yogurt-moisturizes
half cup mashed avocado-increase collagen
1 or 2 drops of your favorite oil
You want this to be creamy, not runny, and not too thick, so you can easily apply it to your face, so play with measurements a bit here. These are measurement suggestions. These recipes can be stored in the fridge for up to two weeks, so adjust the amounts accordingly.
Homemade Skin Care Recipe 3:
This is a quick boost and the easiest one ever!
Half a cup of mashed papaya
1 tablespoon of honey
Mix these two together and leave on your face for up to 20 minutes. Rinse off completely with cool water and voila!
The kitchen is a gold mine for super powerful and amazing ingredients to make your own homemade skin care. Items like:
- bananas
- papaya
- olive oil
- tomatoes
- egg whites
- lemons
- apple cider vinegar
And this is a small list!!
What goes in comes out
Now I don’t mean like when you go to the bathroom…haha! I mean, what you eat and drink daily will show up on the surface, in your skin. If you have a crappy diet, don’t expect glowing, beautiful skin. If you drink and smoke, well, expect even more skin damage.
I’m not judging you. That’s a fact.
I recently revamped my diet, started intermittent fasting, and have completely cut out sugar (lord Geezus, help me). I also don’t eat bread or pasta anymore (my Nonna is rolling in her grave). I drink at least eight glasses of water daily,, and the results have truly been amazing.
I have more energy during the day. Instead of my usual 3-5 cups of coffee a day I have one and a half in the morning and then the rest of the day is water or cold jimaica tea it’s a Guatemala thing but it’s like rose or flower leaves).
Now don’t get me wrong.
I cheat. Oh, yes, I do.
Every now and then, I fall off the ‘look at me I’m so healthy’ wagon and have French fries or chocolate glazed donuts. I’m still, and always will be, a junk food junkie. I just have to learn to curb it now. And I do. And yes, it’s hard. Really hard. But I manage.
Learning to take care of all of you
It’s important to take care of yourself, inside and out, especially as we get older. Our bones, muscles, skin, and everything else about us is getting weaker each day. It’s up to us to make them stronger and stay healthy. Inside and out.
But not just physically. Emotionally, mentally, and spiritually, too (no, that doesn’t mean becoming a religious fanatic). Some of the things we haven’t healed from emotionally will manifest physically—back pain, headaches, stress, etc.
Try to remove all toxic negative things, people, and habits from your life and have a more optimistic and loving look at life and the things around you.
If you’re still battling demons from your past and trying to let go or deal with pain from your past, you might want to check out my mini self-help eBooks. Click here or the image below to see if there’s a book for you (I’m sure there will be!) and download your copy today.
Summary of homemade skin care and other tips
I hope you enjoyed this post and you got some great ideas from it. Remember to Google natural ingredients for your skin type. If you are making a creamier homemade skin face cleanser, feel free to use it daily. I cleanse daily with grapeseed oil and one drop of tea tree oil.
Make sure you use fresh ingredients and that the essential oils you purchase are 100% pure and natural. The link above is a good one!
Drop your results, or your own recipes, down below, and let’s see what you got brewing in your kitchen!
mad love
ox iva ox
