Skincare Without Chemical Store-Bought Cosmetics:

Natural skin care, personal experience with homemade, chemical-free cosmetics

When I started going shampoo-free, I also wanted to get rid of other beauty-care products in my home. I've never been a keen user of beauty-care products, but like almost any woman, I sometimes enjoyed shopping for something "special" for myself and applying it on my skin. And, of course, I thought that this is the way to care for myself. As I got interested more and more into everything homemade, I also learnt the ugly truth of "beauty-care" industry. "Skin-care" and "beauty-care" isn't always health-care as well. In fact, the word "care" shouldn't even be there... To me it was the eye-opener: I was one of those women who put on herself creams and lotions doing more harm, than good. That simply wasn't beauty care or skincare as I thought. I was blindly following what advertising industry told me and what other women, influenced by the same enormous power of professional advertising, advised. 

It wasn't a change I made in one day. I didn't throw out those few bottles of creams, skin tonics and lotions I had. I slowly started moving to a change - away from store bought cosmetics. Since childhood I knew some natural skincare/beauty-care ways, now I had to learn more. What a wonderful world I discovered!

These are my main discoveries so far: 

Water

Yes, I guess you already knew it... I knew it as well, yet I never acknowledged that my skin felt happy with plain water. Forget about chemical skin tonics and cleansers, water does it all. Yes, I also heard many times that sink water isn't good, that water might be too hard and whatever else, so it's better to use something crafted by beauty industry. How exactly chemical packed skin cleansers are supposed to clean your skin? If you think the water that is  available to you isn't good enough, there are two very simple methods to make it better: boil or freeze. These both old methods of processing water helps improving the quality of water. Of course, depending on the season and your skin itself, it might sometimes feel too dry if you go with water only. It doesn't mean, the best way to solve the issue is running to the shop for some kind of cream! 

Skin icing

The best skin tonic ever - ice cubes. I love them on mornings. Massaging my face with an ice cube wakes me up much better than a cup of coffee, and it truly feels great. And, by the way, you can freeze coffee in ice trays as well - another great skin tonic for mornings. Coffee itself is a tonic, and icing your skin with frozen coffee cubes is like having energy drink - just a much better version of what you can buy in a shop. You can also experiment freezing different herbal infusion with skin healing properties, for example, chamomile tea. 

Essential oils

Plenty of them, each of them with many skin and health benefits, you just have to find what fits you and what you need. A huge plus - you always smell nicely using essential oils! I even mix my own essential oils to make perfume that's uniquely mine. 

Essential oils might seem costly when you just start using them, but it's a long term investment. One bottle of essential oil might last from several months to a year, of course, depending on how you use them, because you don't pour essential oils on yourself, but use just a few drops each time. 

Beeswax

Beeswax seems to be "the best kept secret" in beauty-care. A natural ingredient for making your own creams, especially beneficial for dry skin and for protecting your skin from wind, cold and even sun. Oils can be messy, but beeswax creams - never! You just have to make them: combine beeswax and any oil of your choice (almond, olive oil or any other natural oil with skin healing properties), and that's it! The softness and density of your cream depends on how much of oil you add. My usual ratio is 1:2 (beeswax:oil). Melt beeswax, add oil, stir well, pour into a container, let it cool and it's ready to use! It smells nicely without any aromatic additives, but you can also add essential oils to make your skin remedies. For example, lavender cream is a treat for skin, especially for minor sunburns and skin irritations. Taking in account that lavender essential oil is advised for headache, relaxation and stress removal, it's a great  facial cream!

With beeswax, oil and essential oils you can make creams, healing balms and solid perfume. You can also use it as a sunscreen (take in account, some people say it's too heavy for a sunscreen) and it makes the best protective lip balm (ratio 1:1, without essential oils). By the way, my bearded boyfriend who has never voluntarily used any beauty-care and skincare products, loves the nurturing beard wax with essential oils I made for him. That shiny, soft, gentle beard smells gorgeous! 

If you don't want to use beeswax, you can also use cocoa butter or coconut oil for making your own creams and balms. 

Body Scrubs

I already wrote about them here: 

Guide to Home-made Body Scrubs: create your own body scrubs (and masks) that meet your needs and abilities!

Facial masks

From oats to Aloe Vera leaves, from massaging your face with a slice of cucumber to applying fresh, mashed strawberries. Less ingredients, makes it easier to understand what's for you and what you should avoid. 

Herbal Infusions

Stinging nettle - for allergy irritated skin, chamomile - to soothe and calm your skin, peppermint - for refreshment and so on. Brew some tea, let it cool and wash your face with it or spray it on your skin and let it stay there, or soak a cloth in the liquid and enjoy facial mask. 

If you want to use natural cosmetics and start making your own, remember, less is more! Don't put everything you know together. I try to mix together not more than 3 ingredients, with an exception for making body scrubs where I love adding abrasive substances that make the body scrubs look nicely (for example, oatmeal, oil, honey, sugar, poppy seeds and a few drops of essential oil - all together). Sometimes the leaf of Aloe Vera is all you need. Homemade skincare and beauty care products don't need long lists of ingredients. Keep it simple! 

Another thing to remember: your skin needs cleanliness every day, but it doesn't need creams and "deep-cleansing" every day. To get the best results, you actually have to pay attention to how your skin feels, because it tells what it needs. And, yes, your skin knows what it needs much better than any beauty magazine. You don't have to put a cream on your face several times per day just because a friend says that's what you should do. What works for one person, doesn't work for another one. The food you eat affects your whole body, including your skin. The weather, your activities and your lifestyle affects your skin. When you start observing and really feeling your skin, you will learn what it needs. After a few months without chemical cosmetics I discovered that my skin has been pretty numb - I just didn't feel many things I'm able to feel now. For example, as your skin gets alive and smarter, you can easily tell the difference between natural cream and the one with chemical additives   - apply just a little bit of it and your skin gives a clear signal. Honestly, I didn't know it's possible. Just like clearly distinguishing between chemical and natural aromatic agents in cosmetics - you feel it. 

Warning!!!

Oh, and at the end, I want to warn you - it's not just roses (although rosewater is a really great skincare product you can make!). Well, the stinky part is dealing with people who think that natural skin and beauty care is the wrong way to go, unfortunately, those usually are other women. In fact, I never really speak about my skincare and beauty-care, if someone doesn't bring up the topic. I'm not the one who would preach that my way of doing things is the only right way. The problem is that sometimes women love chatting about their new-cool-products and they want you to check-out and try-on their products and products samples, and I refuse doing it. That's where I have to explain that I prefer simple, natural cosmetics. 

Firstly, they ask: "How do you know what's good for you? Aren't you afraid to experiment on your own body?" 

Excuse me, but how do you know that some specific cream is good for your skin and health just walking into a store and choosing without understanding what's written on the labels or relying on sales assistant's opinion? Aren't you experimenting with your body desperately trying to ignore the fact that these creams are often packed with harmful chemicals? 

I do experiment with what I know won't harm me. Can you eat your store bought lotion? Why do you think it is good to put on your skin something that might cause health issues if you ate it? Why is that more acceptable to you than using natural beauty care products you can make on your own? Why knowing all ingredients seems scarier than not knowing at all what you put on your skin? If I can put it in my mouth without worries, I  can put it on my face as well. 

Secondly, I get to hear this: "You have to take care of your skin. You have to nurture your skin. A woman has to take care of herself!" 

Well, what can I say... I just don't see packing myself with harmful chemicals a way of caring for myself. Caring for myself for me is listening to my body, learning from it and for it. Being aware of myself and the natural world I live in. I guess, it's a lifelong learning process and I want to keep walking this path. 

I hope this somehow helps you! Le me know in the comments your experiences and advises related to natural, home-made  skincare products! 

P.s. For me the next step is discovering natural decorative cosmetics and, of course, making them at home! I'm already on that way, but not ready to speak yet. From times to times, I love applying red lipstick, but my efforts making it at home so far have been unsuccessful. Well, I guess I just have to find the right substance to combine with beeswax and oils. I'm on a lookout! :)