Natural Beauty/DIY Tips Commentary Part 1

Woodlands Bride asked me to write some DIY beauty tips and recipes for them because their readers were interested this and requested more information.  You can view those articles here and here.

I must confess that I am squeamish and the mere thought of putting mashed up food on my face or body makes my face contort.  (In fact, I feel my face muscles are tightening right now as I think & write about it - it is an involuntary action!)

I would classify myself as a novice when it comes to DIY beauty regimens and I am thankful for manufactured cosmetic products and the controversial preservatives (I wrote about those here) that keep my cleansers, moisturizers and many other beauty products free from growing hazardous bacteria.  

However, there are a few natural beauty tips that I have tried in the past that don't make me squirm and that I really do like.

Olive oil is supposed to be good to soften your cuticles.  I am not very disciplined with the treatment, so I can't say I've had overwhelming success with it, but it does feel good and a very little bit goes a long way.  I am not sure how often the treatment needs to be used, but I do believe it can keep your cuticles soft.

On our trip to Hawaii, (you can read more from that trip here), we purchased Kukui Oil.  Kukui is a nut native to Hawaii and it is used been by the Hawaiins for years in their beauty regimens.  I have also tried to use this for my hands and cuticles and even feet.  Again I believe it requires regular & consistent use to be successful.

I read that lemons are a great natural alpha hydroxy, so I sliced a lemon in half and rubbed it on my face.  This of course smells wonderful and is very refreshing on the face.  (The ones out of the refrigerator were too cold and refreshing for me, but some of you might enjoy a cold and refreshing lemon treatment more.)

The lemons are powerful and the acid does itch/tingle, so I wash the lemon residue off my face after 45-60 seconds (maybe I can stand it a little longer than a minute, but I know it's a short period of time), but I love the immediate results from the lemon treatment!  My skin looks brighter after every use.  It is also really soft and smooth!  I would recommend this once or twice a week, but you MUST follow up by applying a moisturizer with SPF, because lemons can make you sensative to the sun.  I have found myself reaching for the lemons on more than one occasion - when my skin seemed to need a lift.

I suspect you can get the same skin refreshing benefits from limes, oranges or grapefruit, but I personally haven't tried it yet.

I will continue to share my DIY experiences with you, but I'd really like to know what your thoughts are about using kitchen pantry ingredients for your beauty products and what you like or don't like!  Please feel free to leave a comment here or on my FB page!