January 1, 2012: Homemade Scrub Recipes

Happy New Year!

Here we are, in a completely new year. And if you believe some theories, the whole world is going to end in December, per the Mayan calendar. Personally, I don’t believe that (as my pastor says, the Bible doesn’t give a date!).

To ring in the new year, why not slough off some of your old, dead skin? These simple recipes, printed in The Arizona Republic, use ingredients you can easily find around the house. Have a spa day at home and be ready to face the new work week in this new year with a fresh and glowing complexion.

Tea Bags

If you’re like me, this is the time of year when you drink a lot of hot tea. But rather than throw away those used tea bags, why not use them to refresh yourself? Cooled, caffeinated tea bags are great to place over your eyelids while lying down and help reduce swelling and dark circles (which you might have if you partied too much the night before).

Use cooled green tea as a facial toner. Simply wipe it on your face with a cotton ball after cleansing.

Coffee Grounds

Use the leftover grounds from your morning pot of coffee to gently scrub your face and body; they exfoliate nicely but be careful not to use too much force and irritate your skin.

Honey and Brown Sugar

Forget those expensive facial scrubs you find in the bed and bath stores. Combine one part brown sugar with two parts honey and a vanilla bean pod broken in half (optional). Gently rub the mixture over your facial skin and rinse away to reveal glowing skin.

September 15, 2011: Home Spa Facial and Foot Soak Recipes

I’ve shared several recipes in the past for home beauty treatments. Here’s a couple more I found in the latest issue of Spry magazine. For a relaxing “spa day” at home, brush on the facial mask while you’re soaking your feet, then follow with a nice, hot bubble bath!

Avocado and Honey Facial Mask

2 ounces mashed ripe avocado (about 1/3 of an avocado)

1 t. honey

1 t. molasses

2 T. orange juice

Few drops of chamomile essential oil

Combine all ingredients. Apply to face (using a soft paintbrush works well). Leave on for 30 minutes, then remove with a damp washcloth.

The avocado adds moisture to your skin while the honey and molasses pull out toxins. The orange juice is a very mild astringent while the chamomile oil is soothing.

Minty Margarita Foot Soak

1 T. Epsom salts

1 T. sea salt

Juice of half a lime

Half a lime, sliced thinly

Handful of fresh (or half as much dried) mint leaves

Fill a basin with very warm water and add all ingredients. Soak your feet for 10 minutes then gently towel dry.

The Epsom salts soothe aches while the sea salt acts as a scrub. The lime is a mild astringent and the mint is soothing and smells good – aromatherapy!

July 26, 2011: Flower, Herb and Vegetable Garden Recipes

Now that July is almost over, your garden is sure to be producing lots of wonderful veggies and hopefully your flowering plants are just as happily producing! Here are a few recipes I’ve taken from a new book I got on my Kindle, Natural and Herbal Family Remedies: Storey's Country Wisdom Bulletin A-168 (Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin). I haven’t tried them all yet but I’m planning on doing so. Hope you can take advantage of your garden bounty with some or all of these, too.

Rose Water

1 cup fresh rose petals, chopped
2 cups cold water

Add rose petals to the water in a jar. Cover the jar and let it sit overnight. The next morning, strain the petals from the liquid and store the rose water in a clean jar in the refrigerator. To use: Moisten a cotton ball with the rose water and apply to your face. It is very refreshing and soothing, particularly on one of those hot, sultry days sure to come at the end of summer.

Sachets

Don’t toss away flower petals when you are dead heading your plants! Fill a square of open-weave fabric with dried flowers and herbs such as lavender, rose, basil, lemon balm, mint, rosemary, geraniums, sage – any plant that smells good! Gather the corners and secure the bundle with a pretty ribbon. Hang throughout the house or toss into drawers.

Fruit/Vegetable Flour

This is a great way to use up an excess of vegetables from your garden! According to the author, any type of vegetable flour can be used in place of a half cup of white flour called for in a recipe (and makes the dish much healthier).

The process is pretty simple; you just slice the vegetables and then steam vegetables until partially cooked (anywhere from 2 to 10 minutes depending on the density of the vegetable). Place the slices on a cookie sheet and put in an oven set to the lowest temperature. When thoroughly dried (which takes anywhere from 6 to 10 hours), grind the vegetables.

I haven’t tried it but I’m thinking you could cover the pan and dry the vegetables outside on a warm day.

Vegetables suggested for making into flour include tomatoes, carrots, spinach leaves, sweet potatoes, apples or pears.

Vegetable Broth

Here’s another way to use up an excess of fresh produce – make a vegetable broth you can freeze and use in winter soups and sauces. Simply chop or mince a variety of vegetables and herbs and add them to about 4 cups of water in a stock pot. Let it simmer until all the vegetables are tender, then strain.

Suggested ingredients: tomatoes, greens, celery, carrots, onion, garlic, peas, green beans, parsley, thyme, mint, basil, rosemary, sage.

June 15, 2011: Kitchen Hair Fix Recipes

Summertime and the livin’ is easy – or so goes the classic old Gershwin tune. Indeed it should be easy – dinner can be made on the grill with a minimum of fuss and paper plates are a great way to eat without having to clean up afterward. Summer is also a great time to forgo your usual hair and makeup routines in favor of something more relaxed and less “fixed”. But not all of us were blessed with beautiful skin, hair that don’t need any coaxing to do what we want. For sisters like me, here’s some quick hair and skin fixes that use common kitchen ingredients.

Hair Volumizer

Put carbonated lemon-lime soda or ginger ale in a spray bottle. Spray onto damp hair at the roots. The sugar texturizes your hair and adds volume.

Hair Color Fixes

Just dyed your hair and hate the hue? Maybe your blonde turned green from swimming pool chlorine? Try adding a bit of dishwashing liquid (dish soap) to your shampoo; it’s very harsh and will strip some of the color from your hair. Follow up with a deep conditioning treatment.

If the sun is giving your hair light highlights you don’t care for, take them away with a coffee rinse. Brew a really strong cup of coffee and pour over your hair after shampooing and conditioning. Leave on for 10 minutes before rinsing out.

Freezer Fixes for Skin and Eyes

To tone down facial puffiness, place a sheet of foil in the freezer for a few minutes. Remove and place over your face (make sure you have a hole to breathe through!). Lie down for a little while and let the coolness work its magic to get rid of swelling.

Summer heat tends to soften and even melt our makeup. Keep your eyeliner in the freezer in order to make fine lines along the base of your eyelashes. You might also want to keep your liquid foundation and eye shadow in the refrigerator, too. Not only does this keep it from becoming too runny, it feels really refreshing when you apply it to your face!

May 23, 2011: At Home Spa Treatment Recipes

With the long Memorial Day holiday weekend coming up soon, you may want to indulge yourself with an “at home spa” day. This is a great way to refresh yourself, if you don’t have any travel plans, and get ready for the busy upcoming summer season. Here’s a few recipes sure to relax and rejuvenate you!

Body Scrub

¼ cup coffee grounds (go ahead and use the ones from this morning’s coffee)
¼ cup Epsom salts or Kosher salt
1 ripe avocado, mashed
¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
Almond oil

Mix all ingredients; add just enough oil to make a smooth paste. While in the shower, use this in place of soap. Just rinse off and towel dry.

Recipe (slightly modified by me!) courtesy of Redbook magazine.

Cornflower Eye Refresher

2 T. dried cornflowers
½ cup water

Make a tea with the cornflowers in boiling water. Cool. Dip two cotton balls into the cooled mixture and place over your closed eyelids for 15 minutes. On a really hot day, ice down the cornflower tea before using.

Tip: To find cornflowers, look at your local health food store. They’re easy to grow so you may want to include them in your garden this year.

Use either of the following rinses as a final rinse for your hair (don’t rinse it out), then sit out in the sun and let your hair dry naturally. Each of these formulas is mean to enhance your particular hair color.

Chamomile Hair Rinse (for fair hair)

3 ½ cups water
2 ounces chamomile flowers
2/3 cup cider vinegar
5 drops lemongrass oil

Make a tea by boiling the water and adding the chamomile flowers. Let it steep for half an hour, then strain and add the vinegar and oil.

Rosemary Hair Rinse (for dark hair)

Same recipe as above except substitute 2 ounces rosemary sprigs and 5 drops oil of bergamot.

The above 3 recipes are courtesy of The Country Store by Stephanie Donaldson and published by Lorenz Books.

These recipes should get your at home spa day started. You may also want to do a mani/pedi and rub some yummy scented lotion over your body after you step out of the shower. Enjoy!

February 25, 2011: Facial Mask Recipes

Right about now is probably when your facial skin is looking its worst – pasty white from being indoors and dried out from being subjected daily to a heated environment. Ick! What’s a girl to do to get a nice, healthy glow back to her cheeks?

The answer is an at-home facial made from natural products you have around the house.

I’m going to give you several alternatives so you can make a recipe appropriate for any skin type with anything you have on hand.

For Aging Skin:

Protein Scrub Mask

1 egg yolk
1 T. oil (the recipe calls for castor oil but you could also use melted coconut oil or even olive oil)
2 T. salt
1 t. lemon juice

Blend all ingredients and spread on face; leave on your skin for 20 minutes before rinsing with warm water. Use a washing motion as you scrub it off but do so very gently as the salt in this recipe is very abrasive.

Honey Almond Scrub Mask
¼ cup honey
2 T. pulverized almonds (a coffee grinder works great for pulverizing)

Mix together and use as the Protein Scrub Mask.

For Acne-Prone Skin:

Almond Oat Scrub Mask

3 T. pulverized oatmeal (not the instant variety)
1 T. shaved castile bar soap
1 T. water
1 T. almond extract

Add shaved soap to the pulverized oatmeal; mix in water a little bit at a time until a paste is formed. Add the almond extract. Apply to face and use the same as the Protein Scrub Mask above.

Herb Protein Mask

1 egg yolk
1 ½ t. dried sage
1 ½ t. dried mint
1 ½ t. dried thyme

Whip the yolk until pale yellow and thick. Add the herbs. Apply to face and leave for 20 minutes; remove with a rinse of warm water.

For Oily Skin:

Lemon Oat Scrub

3 – 4 T. oatmeal (not the instant kind)
Juice of one lemon

Pulverize the oatmeal in a blender or coffee grinder. Strain lemon juice and add to oatmeal, a little at a time, until it forms a paste. Use the same as the Protein Scrub mask above.

For Dry Skin:

Avocado Mask

½ avocado, mashed.

Mayonnaise or Sour Cream Mask

Simply spread a scoop of mayo or sour cream over your face and remove with warm, then cool splashes of water.

Butter Almond Scrub

3 – 4 T. finely pulverized almonds
2 T. margarine

Melt the margarine. Add a little bit at a time to the pulverized almonds until the mixture forms a paste. Use the same as the Protein Scrub Mask above.

Simple, single ingredient masks for any skin type:

• Whipped egg yolk
• Whipped egg white
• Honey

For the full at-home spa treatment, follow these steps:

1. Cleanse your face
2. Steam (see February 12, 2011 post for steam facial recipes)
3. Apply freshener or toner (see February 18, 2011 post for freshener recipes)
4. Apply mask
5. Remove mask and rinse thoroughly
6. Apply freshener again (for oily or acne-prone skin)
7. Apply moisturizer

That’s it! At the end of your treatment, your skin should feel smooth and have a renewed glow.