*~~~~~~~DIY skincare recipe & discussion thread~~~~~~~~*
EDS Skin Care Forums Forum Index » Skincare Tools & Do-It-Yourself Skincare

free skin care · Fri Jul 08, 2005 7:06 am

Though not technically a recipe, I thought it would be helpful to add the other clever, "alternative product solutions" we have discovered so that all of this info is grouped together in one place....

TOOTHWHITENING: Here is a cheap, yet super-effective alternative to "GoSmile," "Crest White Stripes" and other similar home tooth-whitening products:

WHAT IT IS:
Auro Ear (Wax Removal) Drops and/or GlyOxide oral hygiene product. Both of these products contain carbamide peroxide, the same active ingredient in both GoSmile and Crest White Strips which help whiten your teeth. The Auro Ear Drops contain a 6.5% percentage of carbamide peroxide (same strength as GoSmile), while GlyOxide contains a 10% percentage (just slightly less than the percentage contained in Crest White Strips). If you have ever used those Crest White Strips, you'll find that this technique is much more convenient than having to sit around with those strips on your teeth for an hour per day. Even if you have had your teeth professionally whitened by the dentist, you can use either the ear drops or Gly Oxide every day, once per day, to maintain your results.

HOW TO USE IT:
Brush teeth with desired toothpaste as normal, then spit and rinse your mouth and/or toothbrush. Squeeze 4-5 drops of either Auro ear drops of Gly Oxide onto toothbrush and brush teeth just like you would with toothpaste, concentrating on your "smile" teeth (the ones in your mouth that appear when you smile). Hold the mixture in your mouth for 1 1/2-2 minutes or as long as you can stand (don't worry, it doesn't taste bad!).

WHERE CAN I FIND IT?
There are several different brands of ear wax removal drops, including Auro and Murine. You will find these products in the eye/ear care section (with the Visine eye drops and contact lens solution items) at your local pharmacy or supermarket. Look for "Ear Wax Removal" drops and check the label for the active ingredient "6.5% Carbamide Peroxide" (note: you do NOT want to buy "Swimmer's Ear" products as they are most definitely not the same thing!). Gly Oxide will be located in the oral hygiene aisle of your supermarket or pharmacy, along with the toothbrushes, toothpaste and mouthwash items.

WHY SHOULD I BELIEVE THAT THIS WILL WORK:
Click on these links to read "testimonials" and other helpful info from other forum members who have tried these products and experienced whiter, brighter teeth: http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=4513&highlight=auro+ear+drops , http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=6026&highlight=auro and http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=5662&highlight=auro

Sat Jul 09, 2005 9:31 pm

Hi everyone,
I hope you all had a nice holiday ( those that celebrate) I wanted to share a little find of mine. First off I have been using the Vit C serum and carekate's DH Cleanser and the ACV toner and the aspirin mask. I LOVE them all. Thank you so much. Okay I went to my local Albertsons and was looking in the section where they keep bath stuff ( it's funny because now I am reading labels like never before ) anyway I found this bottle of oil. It is called Body Essentials Massage Oil ( oooooh Very Happy

) Here are the ingredients in this order. Safflower Oil, Sunflower Oil, Tocopherol ( Vitamin E), Wheat Germ Oil, Rosemary Oil and Peppermint Oil. That's it ! It is a 8oz bottle and it was only around $5. I have used it in the carekate's cleanser and it smells just yummy. I also put just a few drops in my hand rub my hands together to warm it and put in the bottom of my hair. They only had one bottle and so far they have not gotten more. Sad

Anyway just wanted to share, maybe someone will like it. I also found that my garlic press does a wonderful job on crushing aspirin !

Have a great evening

Deb

free skin care · Sat Jul 09, 2005 11:41 pm

the oil sounds like a good find to me. Very Happy

Also brilliant idea using the garlic press, I have not got round to trying the aspirin recipe yet but I will bear your tip in mind when I do. Thanks.

free skin care · Sun Jul 10, 2005 5:36 am

Ran out of cocoa butter for my choco mocha yaya scrub bar, so I made this:

big dollop of honey
brown sugar
ground coffee
grapeseed oil (or any oil)

mix to stiffish paste and rub onto wet skin whilst in shower. Rinse off. you are soft and moisturised! your shower enclosure may look like you had a bottom explosion due to the coffee so rinse it away carefully (on the other hand if you suffer a bottom explosion, you could always say it was the scrub Laughing

)

free skin care · Mon Jul 11, 2005 4:47 am

Dry shampoos are supposed to be good to absorb oil at your crown on days when you either don’t want to, or don’t have time to, shampoo your hair:

D-I-Y DRY SHAMPOO RECIPE #1:

• 1 cup of ground oatmeal
• 1 cup of baking soda

Combine ingredients and then transfer into a clean jar.

How to use:

Massage a little into the oiliest parts of your hair and allow the mixture to absorb the oil.. To remove, brush and then shake the hair.

D-I-Y DRY SHAMPOO RECIPE #2:

• 2 tablespoons cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon ground almonds
• 1 tablespoon orris root

Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl. Massage 1 teaspoon of the dry shampoo mixture into the scalp and then brush it out thoroughly. If your hair still feels greasy, repeat the procedure at least once.

D-I-Y DRY SHAMPOO RECIPE #3:

• ½ cup cornmeal or other flour
• ½ cup almond meal or other nut meal (nuts ground in a blender will do)

Combine the ingredients in a glass jar. Shake to blend. Dust the hair with the shampoo, massage it gently and lightly into the scalp, then brush out.

free skin care · Mon Jul 11, 2005 9:02 pm

Carrie,
Just curious...have you tried any of these dry shampoo recipes? How did you like them?

Tue Jul 12, 2005 2:07 am

I've tried dry shampoos before but have always had the same problem with them. If you have dark hair, the powder seems to make it look greish and dull. Years ago I saw some *colored* dry shampoos but haven't seen them since.

free skin care · Tue Jul 12, 2005 10:10 am

i've never used a dry shampoo, per se, but i've started to use body powder (dr h's - not diy, but one of these days i'll get around to it...baking soda, arrowroot powder, clay, etc., i'm thinking) around my crown to combat the oilies. now, i have black hair, and the trick i've found is to use a brush, like a large makeup powder brush. i pour some powder on, and tamp it down so the powder gets down into the brush and i don't get big white spots as the powder kinda gets distributed slowly by the brush (think of applying loose minerals).

lamicuz.

free skin care · Tue Jul 12, 2005 1:31 pm

I don't know...I know people use those dry shampoos, but I'd rather just wash my hair! I would think they would make your hair look more dirty. Especially the one recipe with the flour in it. Oil+flour=roux! I would think it would just get gummy. I don't know...when someone else tries it, review it & let us know! Laughing

free skin care · Thu Jul 14, 2005 4:14 am

pbsadhaka wrote:

Carrie,
Just curious...have you tried any of these dry shampoo recipes? How did you like them?

I haven’t tried them myself, simply because I like to shampoo my hair every day or my scalp gets all itchy (although I don’t have the dandruff that typically accompanies an itchy scalp!), but I do know someone who has used the dry shampoo recipes:

My mom takes care of my 90-something year old grandmother, and the last time she was hospitalized (had to get three toes amputated due to complications from diabetes) so was obviously not ambulatory so my mom had to give her sponge baths in bed and used the dry shampoo on Mimi every day for about a week, until my grandmother was able to hobble on her walker and get into the walk-in shower.

The dry shampoo did it’s job, which is to say that it kept my grandmother’s oily scalp under control until she was able to bathe and wash her hair the normal way, but – IMHO – there is nothing that can take the place of actually shampooing your hair with water and (liquid) shampoo. The dry shampoo is a good solution in emergency situations when you can’t get to the shower but I certainly wouldn’t use it otherwise....

free skin care · Thu Jul 14, 2005 4:19 pm

huh! That's interesting Carrie! Thanks! Smile

I've heard of dry shampoos before, but never knew anyone who actually used it.

free skin care · Thu Jul 14, 2005 8:41 pm

Mabsy wrote:

I've tried dry shampoos before but have always had the same problem with them. If you have dark hair, the powder seems to make it look greish and dull. Years ago I saw some *colored* dry shampoos but haven't seen them since.

Bumble and Bumble has coloured dry shampoos, I have the red one and I've used a couple times to add volume, not to clean it or absorb oil. I have an extremely dry scalp even though my skin is rather oily.

I think it's mosly cornstarch with colour and a fragrance. Plus, a cool dispenser that helps get it into the hair without making much of a mess.

It's in the Styling->Specialty section atwww.bumbleandbumble.com Smile

Fri Jul 15, 2005 4:14 am

Lolli wrote:

Bumble and Bumble has coloured dry shampoos, I have the red one and I've used a couple times to add volume, not to clean it or absorb oil. I have an extremely dry scalp even though my skin is rather oily.

Cool! The brown one sounds good. I don't like the sound of "coat hair evenly with light layer of styling wax" to make the product adhere though. I think the last thing I want to do is add wax to oily hair. I believe that it would make the powder stick and make the hair matte but I don't know if the hair/scalp would feel to nice after that... Do you use the wax to make it stick or do you just use it by itself?

free skin care · Fri Jul 15, 2005 7:59 am

Mabsy wrote:

Cool! The brown one sounds good. I don't like the sound of "coat hair evenly with light layer of styling wax" to make the product adhere though. I think the last thing I want to do is add wax to oily hair. I believe that it would make the powder stick and make the hair matte but I don't know if the hair/scalp would feel to nice after that... Do you use the wax to make it stick or do you just use it by itself?

Ugh, I wouldn't add wax before hand either, Mabsy. I just used it on my blow dried hair with nothing else. And I keep it away from my scalp because my powder is bright red. I work it in and sort of mess it up, it adds texture and a bit of volume. I don't like how my hair feels afterward but it looks cool. Laughing

free skin care · Thu Jul 21, 2005 11:35 pm

back tracking quite a bit. All the Brits that are having trouble getting hold of distilled water, I have found the perfect thing. I got myself a cheap veg steamer from Tesco £12.99 and when steaming veg in it noticed that the steamed (distilled) water collects in a tray. So ding went my brain and I am going to clean it up and make myself some pure distilled water. Much cheaper than buying online or buying one of those proper machines. I have a water filtered tap on my sink anyway, so I think I should have pretty pure water at the end of the day. Bad Grin

free skin care · Sat Jul 23, 2005 10:12 pm

I was wondering if you could mix L-Ascorbic Acid crystals in with your moisturizer or serum just like Philosphy's Hope and a Prayer Vitamin C powder? Any one know if there is anything else to Hope and a Prayer apart from vitamin c?

free skin care · Mon Jul 25, 2005 4:34 am

Or do you think it's possible to mix Vit C crystals with Dr Hauschka Normalising Day Oil? Think

Mon Jul 25, 2005 7:09 am

Hi

I just came across this forum and am really impressed with what you all have come up with. I was wondering if anyone knows a DIY recipe for those expensive exfoliating creams I blaze through?

Scrubs are great but I find unless I use exfoliating cream my skin is flaky in places.

You rub on the cream let it sit briefly then rub it off and your dead skin just rolls off. I love them but may have to get a second mortgage to support my habit Embarassed

Thanks Voodoo

free skin care · Mon Jul 25, 2005 7:42 am

Voodoo wrote:

Hi

I just came across this forum and am really impressed with what you all have come up with. I was wondering if anyone knows a DIY recipe for those expensive exfoliating creams I blaze through?

Scrubs are great but I find unless I use exfoliating cream my skin is flaky in places.

You rub on the cream let it sit briefly then rub it off and your dead skin just rolls off. I love them but may have to get a second mortgage to support my habit Embarassed

Thanks Voodoo

It sounds like you are talking about some enzymatic masks. Can you provide the names of some of the products you are talking about and we can see if any of us can post a recipe for you? One possibility is the homemade version of Dr. Hauschka’s Cleansing Cream and the recipe can be found on pg 1 of this thread.

Mon Jul 25, 2005 8:34 am

Hello

Carekate I have just read hundreds of posts on different threads here and for some reason your name keeps registering in my head as "Carrot Cake" Laughing

. I knew good advice would come everytime I "saw" Carrot Cake. Sorry!

What I use currently is Adrian Arpels Vegetable Peel. It's a small container that's about $25-$30 depending on if you can catch a promotional sale, etc. On my legs I used a similar cream when sugaring my legs to ward off ingrown hairs by Alexandria.

Enzyme masks? It's not really a mask just a cream that you rub off quite quickly but I'd be interested to know recipes for anything like this, including masks.I will re-investigate the recipe you mentioned as well.

Thanks again!

free skin care · Wed Jul 27, 2005 8:50 am

I was on ebay and saw this homemade chemical peels and thought wow I wonder what it is. So I paid the dollar and received this information. So now I am sharing with everyone else being that once I started surfing the info was also on several websites such as http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/109 http://www.chardanbeauty.com/natural_skin_peels
http://www.smartskincare.com/nocostcare/diyhome.html www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/109

Enjoy!!

Alpha hydroxy acid Home Remedies

Alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) skin care products are easy to make at home because they are made of fruit and other ingredients we may have in the frig or kitchen cupboards.

Fruit acids are great for the skin because they loosen the glue between dead skin cells, and the cells fall away, leaving the face very smooth and soft. You'll be amazed at how easy it is to produce fabulous results for your skin that you would imagine only the most expensive and sophisticated products you could buy could do. Not only that, but AHA’s are found in fruit and vegetables you may already have in your kitchen or growing in your garden, so you don’t need to worry about any synthetic chemicals that may cause harm. The famed beauty Cleopatra unknowingly used the benefit of AHA’s on her skin when she bathed in milk.

Alpha Hydroxy Skin Peel Recipe
Note: when using this peel for the first time, keep for only 1-2 minutes to make sure there is no skin irritation.

Ingredients: 1 cup fresh pineapple; half-a-cup fresh papaya; 2 tablespoons honey.

This gentle peel is based on active substances found in two tropical fruits, pineapple and papaya. Pineapple contains bromelain and papaya contains papain. Both are proteases, natural enzymes that can break up proteins. When applied to the skin in small amounts (i.e. the amounts naturally found in pineapple and papaya), these enzymes help gently remove dead cells from skin surface producing mild peeling effect. Pineapple and papaya also contain alpha-hydroxy acids that provide additional benefits. Honey is added to increase moisturizing effect of the treatment.

Preparation: Puree pineapple and papaya in a blender or otherwise. Add honey and mix thoroughly.

Usage: Wash your face, and then apply the mixture to your skin, avoiding the eye area. Leave on for no more than 5 minutes (less if you have sensitive skin), then rinse with cool water. When done, apply a moisturizer. Don't use more than once a week.

More ingredients that can be used as remedies:

Try any of the following fruit acids, but always take care to avoid your eyes. Avoid using these homemade peels if your skin is sunburned, and before going into the sun.

Malic acid: Apples, vinegar, applesauce, cider.

Lactic acid: Buttermilk, yogurt, powdered skim milk, sour cream, blackberries, tomatoes

Tartaric Acid: Grapes, grape juice, wine, cream of tartar

Citric Acid: Citrus fruits such as lemons, limes, grapefruit, and orange

Glycolic acid: Sugar cane

All you need is about one half a teaspoon of liquid per face cleansing. You can freshly squeeze the juice of one lemon, for example, and refrigerate the leftovers for the rest of the week. Just dab some of the juice onto your fingers and pat on your face. Leave on for 10 minutes or so before rinsing. If you are in a rush, just cut a grape or strawberry in half-whatever you happen to have on hand-and rub it over your skin; let the juice set for a few minutes, and then rinse.

Additional Recipes containing Alpha Hydroxy Acid

Yogurt & Oatmeal mask

Ingredients: 2 tbsp. plain yogurt; 1 tbsp. oatmeal; 1 tbsp honey

Yogurt contains lactic acid (an alpha-hydroxy acid) and a number of nutrients that may mildly stimulate collagen production in the skin. Oatmeal and honey act as moisturizers.

Preparation: Simply mix ingredients together to form a paste. To avoid clumps, you may grind oatmeal into a powder (using a coffee grinder, for instance) before mixing it with other ingredients.

Usage: Wash your face. Massage face with the paste in a circular motion. Keep on for a minute or two then rinse off

Yogurt and aloe healing mask

Ingredients: 1/2 cup plain yogurt; 2 tbsp aloe gel (or a fresh aloe leaf)

Yogurt contains lactic acid (an alpha-hydroxy acid) and a number of nutrients that may mildly stimulate collagen production in the skin. Aloe is a good moisturizer, and contains anti-inflammatory substances. This masque is good for irritated, sensitive skin.

Preparation: Simply mix ingredients together to form a paste. (Aloe gel can be purchased in a health food store. Alternatively, you can take a fresh aloe leaf, remove the skin and mash the pulp.

Usage: Wash your face. Massage face with the paste in a circular motion. Keep on for a minute or two then rinse off

free skin care · Wed Jul 27, 2005 9:01 am

All these are great, queenbluebee!! Thank you Smile

free skin care · Wed Jul 27, 2005 9:01 am

Oooh, thanks QueenBlueBee – those sound great! And I think those are exactly the type of “exfoliating creams” that new member Voodoo was asking about so I’m sure that she and her credit card/checkbook will be grateful for all the money you’ve saved her! Smile

free skin care · Wed Jul 27, 2005 9:05 am

No problem ladies--I'm glad my buck was worth it. Laughing

free skin care · Wed Jul 27, 2005 9:54 am

Lemon Toner
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 cup distilled water
2/3 cup witch hazel

Combine all ingredients. Pour into a clean bottle or decorative cosmetics container. Shake well before using. Apply with a clean cotton ball. ( hmm

m, my favorite)

Pine Toner

2 cups fresh pine needles
1 cup distilled water
1/2 cup witch hazel

Place pine needles in small saucepan with distilled water. Bring water to boil. Allow water to cool completely then strain and discard pine needles. Add witch hazel and stir well. Pour into a clean bottle or decorative capped container. Apply to skin with a cotton ball. Store in a cool dark place.

(mom's favorite and she used to make pine needle tea when we were sick YUCK!)

Rose Water & Glycerine Astringent

1/2 pint olive oil
1 ounce rose water
a few drops of glycerin
1 ounce vodka
**For those with dry skin)

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