Good health tips - Homemade Skin Recipes and Masks

Beauty products can claim that they are organic or natural on the bottles but be not totally truthful. The actual natural products can comprise a small part of the cream, oil, or shampoo. The fillers and other preservatives in the products could be irritating to even the healthiest of faces. Natural beauty recipes use vegetables, herbs, fruits, and flowers as their base.

- Lemons : They are tart but true to your skin. Lemons can ease a sore throat and also lighten dark spots on the skin. As a natural astringent, it pulls impurities out of the skin leaving it smooth and beautiful. Half a lemon is all you need to rub away many skin problems. Mix a bit of reduced lemon juice with water for a naturally lemon scented hair spray.
- Roses : Red, white, yellow, or pink, they are all fragrant and beautiful. Rose petals are soft and when added to a hot bath, transfer that fragrance to your body. You can create your own all natural rose water by steeping roses and adding a bit of coconut milk.
- Strawberries : They make the best shortcake and fruit glazes. The seeds are murder on your bridgework but great for removing dead skin. Combined with coarse salt and olive oil, strawberries and their seeds make a perfect natural exfoliate for the body.
- Bananas : Cream one and use it as a beauty treatment. Bananas contain an important electrolyte in the body - potassium. Restore the moisture balance in your skin with a facial mask made from banana. Mix your creamed bananas with egg white and yogurt to create the mask.
- Honey : Honey contains a wealth of antibacterial properties for a healthy body. Those properties can be transferred to the skin with a honey facial mask. For dry skin, mix some natural honey with cooked oatmeal. Oily skin requires an astringent like vinegar in combination with the honey. Splash your face with warm water to open pores and then apply the all natural mask.

- Aphrodite Apple Mask :
* 1 T Applesauce
* 1 T Wheat Germ
To Make: Purée apple in a blender or add applesauce to a small bowl. Mix in the wheat germ to form a paste.
To Use: Apply to washed, scrubbed, and steamed face. Allow mask to set for 10-15 minutes. Tone then moisturize.

- Avocado Carrot Cream Mask :
This mask combines avocados, which are rich in Vitamin E, with carrots, which are high in beta-carotene and antioxidants, and cream, which is high in calcium and protein. These ingredients will rebuild skin collagen, improve tone and texture, and fade age spots.
* 1 avocado, mashed
* 1 carrot, cooked and mashed
* 1/2 cup heavy cream
* 1 egg, beaten
* 3 tablespoons honey
Combine all ingredients in a bowl until smooth. Spread gently over your face and neck, and leave in place 10-15 minutes. Rinse with cool water and follow with your favorite toner.

- Cucumber Honey Toner :
* 1 medium Cucumber, peeled and cut up into pieces
* 2 tsp. Honey
Puree cucumber in a blender. Line a sieve with cheesecloth and set the sieve over a glass bowl or measuring cup. Pour the cucumber puree through the sieve and let it stand for 15 minutes for the juices to drip into the bowl. Pour the clear juice into a clean bottle and add honey.
To use, shake the bottle and saturate a cotton pad with the lotion. Sweep over face, neck and chest morning and night, and let it air dry (about 3 to 4 minutes). Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Makes about 1/2 cup.

- Ginger Skin Creme :
Ginger invigorates, and oil soothes. Try this double dose for dry skin.
* 2-inch piece of fresh ginger
* 2 teaspoons light sesame oil
* 2 teaspoons apricot kernel oil
* 2 teaspoons vitamin E oil
* ½ cup cocoa butter
Preheat oven on lowest setting. Finely grate the ginger just enough so that you have about an 1/8 teaspoon of ginger "juice." To obtain the juice, squeeze the freshly grated ginger over a small bowl. Place the ingredients (including the ginger) in a glass container and heat just until the cocoa butter is melted and the oils are blended. Pour into a clean, dry container and store in a cool dry place. You can add a few drops of orange or other essential oil for a nice twist.

- Kiwi Facial Cleanser (for dry or oily skin) :
* 1 kiwi fruit
* 2 tablespoons of plain yogurt
* 1 tablespoon orange water
* 1 tablespoon apricot or almond oil
* 1 tablespoon honey
* 1 teaspoon finely ground almonds
* 2 drops orange (or your favorite citrus) essential oil
Puree the kiwi fruit in a food processor until liquid. During processing, add yogurt, orange water, almond or apricot oil, and ground almonds. Process until thick and cream like. Add essential and stir to mix. To apply, massage gently over neck, face and décolleté to cleanse. Rinse well. Makes one application.

- Peach Lotion (for dry or normal skin)
* 1 Peach
* 4 drops tincture of Benzoin (known to be STRONG sensitizer)
* 2 oz. coconut or sweet almond oil
* 1 1/2 oz. orange flower water and 1 or 2 drops orange oil
Wash, drain, mash, and then strain the juice from 1 peach through muslin or cheesecloth. Add to it 4 drops of tincture of benzoin, 2 oz. coconut or sweet almond oil, 1 1/2 oz. orange flower water and 1 or 2 drops orange oil. Beat together until it is fluffy and pour into a clean 4 oz container. It will keep for a longer period if you store it in the refrigerator. Use the lotion to moisturize your skin whenever it feels dry.

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