Almonds: Perfect Recipe For Dry Skin

Almonds: Perfect Recipe For Dry Skin

In some recent experimentation, I tried some Dr. Bonner's Almond castile soap along with sweet almond oil in a shower gel, and the results were great, particularly for dry skin. Depending on your skin type, you may not even need to use a moisturizer after your shower.

Although I added just a few drops of lemon and grapefruit essential oil to the mix, the overall scent was almondy, so I would suggest you add more than a few drops to smell those citrus notes. If you like the almond scent and decide to save your essential oils for an occasion when they will be better appreciated I suggest you forego the grapefruit because the lemon still acts as a preservative, extending the shelf-life of your shower gel.

The following non-toxic biodegradable ingredients can all be found at your local health food store:


Shower Gel
1/4 cup (125 ml) of Almond liquid castile soap
1/4 cup (125 ml) of aloe vera gel. If you like a thicker consistency add more aloe vera.
1 teaspoon of glycerin
1/4 cup (125 ml) of sweet almond oil
Several drops of lemon essential oil (Preservative)
Several drops of grapefruit essential oil (Anti-oxidant)

Mix it all together and put it in a sterilized squeeze bottle. This recipe should give you enough shower gel to last about a month. If there is a noticeable change in the scent then your gel has surpassed its best before date and should be discarded.

Related posts:
Lucie's Zesty Tester
Update: DIY Cosmetics
DIY: Moisturizer and Shampoo
Cosmetics: the Dirty Dozen
DIY: Home Spa Salt Scrub
Dirty Dozen in my Personal Care Products
Living Downstream by Sandra Steingraber
Airing our Dirty Laundry
The Mile End Buzz around Beekeeping


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Recipe for Dirty Dozen Toxin-Free Detangler

Recipe for Dirty Dozen Toxin-Free Detangler

What you'll need

Reading the Birth House had me thinking about home remedies again. Sitting behind my kids a few nights ago, I was astounded by the knots in their fine hair. They've both been sick with a cough and spent the better part of the week in their pyjamas and bed. The winter heating and cold weather make everyone's hair extra dry in January and February.

There are a number of spray-in hair detanglers on the market, some which work and some which don't. I gave up on them last fall when I read the list of ingredients on the brand we once used. It contained at least 7 dirty dozen ingredients, which included carcinogens, and because it was something I used daily on my kids' hair, I decided to give it the heave-ho.

This week, I tried a new recipe that worked almost as well as the previous toxic brand. Another great point, it costs next to nothing to make.

I took the dirty-dozen free Oneka hair conditioner and squeezed in enough to cover the bottom of a 750ml clear plastic spray bottle that I bought for a buck at the dollar store. I filled the spray bottle up to the top with water, shook the mixture until there was no more conditioner on the bottom, and my detangler was ready.

My daughter was my guinea pig. I found the centre of the knots, sprayed on some detangler and let it sit for 10 minutes. Then I combed her hair through. Of course, whether it worked or not depends on how it looked when it dried. I was afraid it would stick together and feel greasy, but it was smooth and dry to the touch.

My son, as you can see, has been harder to pin down to try out our new product.

BTW, Lucie finished her lemon and ylang ylang shower gel and said that it added enough moisturizer that she didn't have to use as much body lotion after her shower (recipe in first link under Other related posts). I also had two other people sign up as guinea pigs. One is trying out a lavender and grapefruit shower gel and to date, she seems to be enjoying it.

Other related posts
Lucie's Zesty Tester
Update: DIY Cosmetics
DIY: Moisturizer and Shampoo
Cosmetics: the Dirty Dozen
DIY: Home Spa Salt Scrub
Dirty Dozen in my Personal Care Products
Living Downstream by Sandra Steingraber
Airing our Dirty Laundry
The Mile End Buzz around Beekeeping


.

Read more »