New health tendencies that push us into making more responsible and sustainable choices have now reached into all the areas of our lives. Natural skin care has been on the up and up lately, especially in sectors such as homemade cosmetics.
We will have a look at what natural cosmetic is, what benefits it has, we will look at the most famous cosmetic brands available on the market and lastly, we will list five recipes for homemade facial masks and creams.
What is natural skin care?
Natural skin care refers to products made exclusively from 100% natural ingredients, as indicated on the ingredient list or quality seals.
To achieve this, natural skin care products have to meet specifications not only in the manufacturing process but also in terms of packaging.
Ecologic cosmetics do not use either petroleum derivates such as parabens and silicones, or chemically produced derivates. No genetically modified organisms (GMOs) or animal testing are allowed in the process for the eco standards to be met.
Finally, the process of packaging cosmetic products needs to be contaminant-free, done with recyclable products. ECOCERT is an organic certification organization, founded in France in 1991. It is based in Europe but conducts inspections in over 80 countries, making it one of the largest organic certification organizations in the world.
Ecological vs. organic vs. natural
There are various terms used to refer to this segment of cosmetics: green, organic, natural. When 95% of the ingredients used originate from ecological agriculture, then we are dealing with eco cosmetics - which is also organic cosmetic (cosmétique biologique in French).
Natural skin care products come in many different forms and have a variety of uses: from natural body lotion, facial and foot creams, to facial scrubs, natural masks, tonics, including make-up and accessories such as brushes. The market is also ripe with natural perfumes, natural antiaging cremes and acne treatments such as tea tree oil.
Natural cosmetic brands
Although certain companies claim to have natural skin care products, most of the time they use synthetic ingredients such as mineral oils and silicones, mix them with natural extracts and then pass them off as natural cosmetic.
The Body Shop, Yves Rocher, Lush or Rituals. Nevertheless, some of them do have cosmetic lines that comply with Bio standards.
The Good Trade has compiled a list of natural and organic make-up products that you can find here.
What about homemade cosmetics?
If, however, you believe these brands are out of your price range or difficult to obtain, there are options of making your own natural skin care products. The Coconut Mama has an excellent array of recipes for homemade beauty products and many of them include virgin coconut oil, shea butter, lavender, or honey.
Five homemade facial masks and creams
If you have decided to try your hand at making your own natural creams, we have five easy-to-make recipes waiting for you to test them out.
1. Homemade blackhead removal cream
This purifying and exfoliant face mask helps with blackhead removal. The friendly shell charcoal used is natural charcoal made from 100% coconut shells and bound with natural cornstarch. To make this mask, you will need the following:
15 ml distilled water
0,1 g Algin
6 g activated coconut shell charcoal
In a medium-sized bowl, mix the distilled water and the algin and stir until it becomes a gel. Next, add the charcoal and mix until you reach a homogenous paste.
Apply for 20 minutes on the face and rinse off with warm water afterward.
2. Homemade acne cream
When making homemade acne creams, we need to use antibacterial and healing ingredients that can help fight against acne and moisturize the skin at the same time. You will need the following parts:
4 tbs. beeswax
10 drops lavender essential oil
10 drops tea tree essential oil
2 tbs. jojoba oil
2 tbs. coconut oil
2 tbs. aloe vera gel
10 drops lemon juice
First, melt the beeswax and coconut oil (in case they're solid) and then add the aloe vera, the lemon juice, and jojoba oil. Mix well and then remove from fire.
Pour the mixture in a tinted mason jar and add the rest of the ingredients. Use daily and store in the fridge.
3. Homemade hand moisturizer
If you're in search of the best hand and feet homemade cream you're in the right spot. You will need the following ingredients
500 g shea butter
10 ml of rice oil
10 ml of avocado oil
4 ml aromatic essence
First, pour the oils and the aromatic essence in a bowl and mix. In a different bowl, add the shea butter and pour the oils on top and mix well. Put the cream in a separate container and apply as you see fit.
4. Homemade wrinkle cream
This 3-ingredient homemade wrinkle cream is ideal for moisturizing your skin as well as eliminating those fine lines. You will need the following:
1 egg white
½ banana
½ avocado
Wash your face before applying the mask, leave on for 20 minutes and then rinse off with warm water.
5. Homemade eye cream
This homemade cream is perfect for hydrating the area around the eyes, you will only need two ingredients:
2 pieces of fresh cucumber
200 g vaseline
Simply chop the cucumber in small bits and mix them with the vaseline until you have a homogenous paste.
Refrigerate for a few minutes and then apply and leave on for 10 minutes - preferably in the morning or before bedtime.
Check out the original article: Cosmética natural: beneficios, marcas y cómo hacer cremas y mascarillas caseras at viviendolasalud.com
References:
Aburjai, T., & Natsheh, F. M. (2003). Plants used in cosmetics. Phytotherapy Research: An International Journal Devoted to Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluation of Natural Product Derivatives, 17(9): 987-1000.
Dayan, N., & Kromidas, L. (Eds.). (2011). Formulating, packaging, and marketing of natural cosmetic products. John Wiley & Sons.