New Beauty Recipes

Conditioner, Shampoo, Body Wash, Face Scrub, and Toothpaste

I make my products about once a month and sometimes I make a few changes. I have developed recipes which I really like right now. It took quite a while to develop a shampoo I like but I finally found it. I discovered aloe as a moisturizer and it also works great for shaving and hair gel to lay down those little fly away hairs. Any way here are my latest recipes.


Face Scrub

2 TBS Almond oil
½ tsp Lavender
½ tsp Tea Tree oil
½ cup Baking Soda
1 TBS Vitamin E
3 TBS Castile Soap

Mix all ingredients except castile soap. Add the castile soap last.

Body Wash

1/3 cup Castile Soap
1/3 cup Almond Oil
¾ cup Baking Soda
3 TBS Aloe Gel

Mix the oil and baking soda first then add the castile soap and aloe. Shake bottle before each use.

Shampoo

½ cup Castile Soap
½ cup Water
2 TBS Baking Soda
2 TBS Aloe Gel

Mix all ingredients. Shake bottle before each use.

For conditioner a pour a little apple cider vinegar on my hair and the rinse it out.

Toothpaste

½ cup Baking Soda
4TBS Hot Water
20 drops of essential oil for flavoring (peppermint, cinnamon)

Mix all ingredients and then place into a squeeze bottle. If the mixture becomes dry then add a small amount of water and mix.

Garden

Our garden is growing well. I hope next year to have a better plan so we have vegetables ready to pick all the time. It all takes planning and this year I just planted stuff for fun with out much thought. I am finding though that I do not have enough room for all I want to grow and I am thinking I need more garden space. In fact I think I need a whole backyard makeover especially when it comes to our patio. I was hopping to get some work done in my yard while my sister was here but so far it has been very rainy.

Natural and not so Natural

On the natural end of things I have started using apple cider vinegar as a conditioner. It works well and makes my hair softer then using nothing after shampooing. So now I have my whole beauty product line. In the morning I use my face scrub, shampoo, apple cider vinegar conditioner, and body wash. When I shave I use my body wash. After showering I use my lotion on my face and under my arm pits then I put on my everyday minerals makeup. After that I spray some apple cider vinegar on my arm pits and then brush on some of the powdered deodorant. I then use my toothpaste. At the end of the day I wash my face with a bar of castile soap and use my lotion on my face. Everything is going well and I feel so much better knowing I am not using chemicals.

Although it is not natural Emily and I got tattoos on Monday. I have always wanted one and she did too so we decided to get matching tattoos. We spent a lot of time trying to decide but we settled on two purple pink flowers. We both got them on our hips mine is on my back and Emily’s is on her front.

Experimenting with different ingredients

Today I made lotion and lip balm with my mom. She has had trouble with cocoa butter before so we decided to try using shea butter. We also could not get almond oil so we went for grapeseed oil instead. Although the lotion does not have the chocolate smell you get with cocoa butter it turned out pretty good. The lotion is a little softer then I like I think next time I will add more beeswax or less oil. The lip balm turned out very well I added peppermint oil to it for a good smell but it does not add taste. I think that if I was going to make it again with shea butter I would get an essential oil for a good smell.

I now use almost all of my own products. I love knowing exactly what I am putting on my skin and in my body. My shampoo seems to be working better this week. I found that I have to work up a good lather and scrub my scalp well and then rinse. When my hair feels dry I wash it with a little of my body wash and it adds some moisture. One not on the shampoo and body wash though is that they do separate and you have to shake it to mix them before using.

It is so hard to find real natural beauty products with out chemicals. There are a lot out there that claim to be natural but they are far from it. I get so angry every time I look at an ingredient list that claims to be natural and I see chemical names. Most companies are preying on the uneducated consumer. Do not be one of those. Look at what you are buying and do some research. Read the information on this site about good and bad ingredients.

http://www.terressentials.com/ingredientguide.html

Organic in California

As most of you all know I am currently at my parent’s house in California. I am visiting for the next month which is great because I have three other people to help care for Andon so I get a little break. Andon is having a great time watching the "gog" (dog) outside and learning new tricks from his Auntie Em. She just taught him how to show off his muscles. As soon as I get a picture of it I will post

I am currently working on helping my mom to start living more naturally. The biggest problem we have is that there are not as many organic options at the stores here. I have not checked out all the grocery stores but the ones I have seen do not have the options that I have at HEB. We have found some organic products at Safeway which is the same as Randalls but they do not have the supplies need to make beauty products. In order to get the supplies for making lotion and stuff we had to go to a natural food and vitamin store which unfortunately is more expensive then they should be. Roseville will be getting a Whole Foods soon so maybe my family can shop there although I have heard they have high prices.

We will be making beauty products while I am here but we will be trying some different things. My mom has had problems with cocoa butter so we will be using Shea butter and the store was out of almond oil so we will be using grapeseed oil. We will see how it goes.

Shampoo

Well I have decided the Almond oil is not good in Shampoo. I love the original recipe for body wash and shaving gel but it was just not right for shampoo. I made a new shampoo using just baking soda and liquid castile soap and it is working much better. I use Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap which comes in many different scents so you can find the one that is right for you.

Shampoo
7 TBS Liquid Castile Soap
½ cup Baking Soda

Mix ingredients together. If too runny add more baking soda if to thick add more soap.

On another note I was thinking today as I prepare to go to CA that although I miss my family and friends back home I really like my home here. I have incredibley great friends. Andon and I are so very lucky and I am so thankful for each and everyone. So Thank you to our wonderful friends who have made being so far away from our family a wonderful experience. You are our like our second family and I love you all.

Playing in the Grass

This afternoon Andon and I went outside to play in our backyard. It was a wonderful day in the shade but very hot in the sun. Andon played with his sand table, house, and swing set happily for over an hour and a half. I even had a chance to read a magazine and weed some of the garden!

While I was out there I was thinking about the yard and the grass we were sitting in. Stephen loves to have a very green yard and I do not blame him. For the last two years we had chem-lawn coming to the house to help keep the grass looking good. It was Stephen’s special extravagant thing. This year though with Andon old enough to play in the grass and my new ambitions of living natural I wanted to cancel chem-lawn but Stephen could not give up his beautiful lawn. I did not want Andon playing in grass sprayed with a ton of chemicals even if the company said it was “safe” (we all know better then to trust a company and its advertisements). Then at The Woodlands Earth Day Festival we found a solution, a company called Soils Alive. Soils Alive is an organic lawn care company they use liquid compost to build better soil. They spray not only our lawn but our trees, flower beds, and even our potted plants. Although it costs more then chem-lawn we are getting more then just our lawn taken care of and we are making our yard a safer place for playing.

www.soilsalive.com

Going Natural is Hard

I am feeling so frustrated today. Trying to live with out harmful chemicals is very irritating. We just assume that what they sell at the store is safe but we are wrong. Many products have not been tested for safety or are known to be unsafe and yet they are still out in the market. Some days I get so angry that this is not a simpler process. Why do companies lie so much and why is there not more being done to protect people from the harmful chemicals out there? You can not trust any company or advertisement and really you have to research every product and ingredient before knowing for sure if it is ok. I read article after article and research ingredients and sometimes it just seems so overwhelming. I sort of miss the days that I was blissfully unaware of the horrible chemicals throughout my home.
There are so many things wrong in today’s world that sometimes I am just so angry and depressed. I do not know what to do to help. I just hope I can raise my children to each do a little better for this world.

The one thig that can always cheer me up.

Body Wash

I have developed a body wash I like. I have also used it to shave and it worked very well. I am currently trying it as a shampoo. The biggest thing about making your own products is that they can be different then those store bought and so you have to get use to them. I decided when I started this to give anything new a two week period before I decided if I like it or not. Changing to a natural shampoo can cause your hair to go oily for a while until your scalp gets use to not having all the chemicals. So although my hair is a little greasy now I am hoping that if I wait it out my new shampoo will work well. I will let you know how it goes. I have also revised my toothpaste recipe.

Body Wash/ Shaving Cream
5 TBS Liquid Castile Soap
2 TBS Almond Oil
½ cup Baking Soda

Mix all ingredients.

Makeup

Only 11 percent of ingredients found in personal-care products have been screened for safety.
I use my homemade toothpaste, lotion, lip balm, face scrub, and deodorant. I am looking for body wash, shampoo, and conditioner I have tried a few things but I am still on the search for the best thing for me (easy and cheap). I have found a makeup I like.
I have started using Everyday Minerals. http://www.everydayminerals.com/

The makeup here is good, natural, and inexpensive. Now from what I have heard no make up is perfectly safe and you should really go without but who can actually do that all the time? I need my makeup to make me feel and look better. So I wanted to go with a mineral makeup because there would be none of those nasty chemicals and they are better for the environment. Everyday minerals are only available online but their prices are amazing especially if you buy a custom kit. To start with tough you can get a free kit of foundation, blush, and concealer you just pay shipping about 3-4 dollars. Read through all their information it can help you choose the colors that are right for your skin.

Andon’s favorite lunch

Lunch is always a big decision I get tired of grilled cheese and I want to be sure I am making something healthy and giving Andon variety. So I found a recipe to try and after adjusting it to my taste I have a good lunch recipe both Andon and I like.

Veggie Nuggets

1 cup chopped fresh or frozen veggies (we like carrots and broccoli)
1 cup shredded cheese
3 slices whole wheat bread
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon water

Heat oven to 375° F. Cut up the bread into very small pieces. Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Form the mixture into nuggets and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 20-25 min.
Let cool and enjoy with some ranch for dipping.

Organic eating

Eating organic is one of my biggest goals this year. As I started researching natural living I discovered how many pesticides and chemicals are in the food we eat. Eating organic is not just for your body but the environment as well. Organic food is made without chemicals so there are no chemicals washing into the ground and rivers. Plus there are no chemicals entering your body.

I really thought we were eating healthy. We always ate fresh fruits and veggies and I made sure we had lots of protein and grains in our diet. I would always get comments at work about the good food I brought. Rarely did I eat a TV dinner or go out for fast food. I guess in the large scale of how many Americans eat I was eating healthy but in reality I was not doing all I could do eat well.

When you realize you are shaping someone’s eating habits for the rest of their life you began to really look carefully at what you are doing. I decided we would have no more junk food sitting around the house. Although Stephen was not too pleased I stopped buying cookies and sugary snacks. Once we ate what we had it was gone and I was not going to buy more. If I really wanted cookies then I would make them at least then I knew what was going in to them and I could control the ingredients.

With our new budget eating out many times a week has ended. We now eat out about 2-3 times a month and other then that I cook dinner. This does not mean that I am spending hours everyday cooking. When we do have a frozen pizza or boxed pasta I make sure I have bought something with natural and organic ingredients. I do spend a lot of time now looking at the ingredients on packages and if I can not pronounce or I do not know what an ingredient is I tend to think again before buying it.

I am far from perfect and sometimes it is hard to find organic products so not everything we eat is organic. I do my best and I am lucky to have HEB which has a lot of organic products. Some things are more important to buy organic then others. I put dairy products (especially milk and eggs), fruits and vegetables, and baking supplies at the top of my list. Yes it can be more expensive to buy organic but the benefits are well worth it.
You do not have to change everything at once. I was way overwhelmed in January and February until I decided to give myself a year to go natural now I love every step because I do not feel rushed or forced. So I am asking you to try something little switch one or two things to organic and go from there. If we spend our money on organic products companies will began to understand that we do not want the chemical products in our body.

Lotion, Lip Balm, and Face Scrub

Lotion
Since your body absorbs what you put on your skin I decided I wanted to take a closer look at my lotion. I found there were chemicals I would never think of eating yet I was placing them on my body and therefore in my body everyday. I made this lotion and love it. I use it for my body and face as well as my arm pits to make everything nice and soft. With beeswax I grate it first with a micro grater.
Lotion
½ TBS Beeswax
3 TBS Cocoa Butter
2 TBS Almond oil
½ TBS Cornstarch
½ TBS Vitamin E

Melt beeswax and coco butter in a double broiler. Take off of heat. Add almond oil and mix well. Add cornstarch and mix until smooth. Add the E last. Place the lotion in a container and let cool in the fridge.

Lip Balm
Even more then lotion lip balm enters your body whenever you put it on. Through my research I also found just how bad Vaseline and petroleum based products are for your skin. So I came up with a lip balm I love. Sometimes I add peppermint essential oil for taste and smell.
Lip Balm
2 ½ tsp Beeswax
3 tsp Cocoa Butter
2 tsp Almond oil
1 tsp Vitamin E

Melt beeswax and coco butter in a double broiler. Take off of heat. Add almond oil and mix well. Add the E last. Place the lotion in a container and let cool in the fridge.

Face Scrub
I needed something to clean and scrub my face in the morning. I tried baking soda and water but it dried my face out too much. I developed this mixture which I really like and Stephen even uses it. I use a bar of castile soap to wash my face at night. and this in the morning in the shower.
Face Scrub
2 TBS Almond oil
1 tsp Lavender
1 tsp Tea Tree oil
½ cup Baking Soda
1 TBS Vitamin E
2 TBS Liquid Castile soap

Mix all ingredients except castile soap. Add the castile soap last.

Toothpaste and Deodorant

Toothpaste
Did you know one of the ingredients in most toothpaste can actually cause canker sores? Well I use to get lots of those little guys in my mouth and they are painful. So when I learned about the chemical sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate Floride is a crock also. It is way more dangerous then good for you. I decided I would try making my own toothpaste. Well after a few trials I came up with a recipe I love. The best part is since I started using it in February I have not had one canker sore!!! Another bonus is that I use only food grade ingredients therefore it is safe for Andon. He loves it and when I started using it on his toothbrush he actually let me brush his teeth.

Toothpaste
8 TBS Baking Soda
4 TBS Hot Water
20 drops of essential oil for flavoring (peppermint, cinnamon)

Mix all ingredients and then place into a squeeze bottle.

Deodorant
Ok I have always sweated a lot no matter what I use so I thought going natural really could not be worse. I found through research antiperspirant that clogs your pores and stops sweat is all chemicals and there really is no natural remedy. I decided I would try an easy natural recipe first and see what happens.
I read that Apple Cider Vinegar is great at keeping you from smelling. The vinegar kills the bacteria that makes you smell. Vinegar is very cheep so I decided to try it. It worked so well I was amazed. I then started brushing on a mixture of baking soda and cornstarch to help absorb sweat. Together the two work well but my arm pits were becoming rough and dry. Now after showering I rub on a little lotion then spray with the apple cider vinegar and last I brush on my baking soda mixture. I still sweat sometimes but no more then I did with chemical deodorant in fact I think I am sweating less now then before.

Liquid Deodorant
Apple Cider Vinegar
A few drops of an antibacterial essential oil such as lavender
Place ingredients in a spray bottle. Shake to blend.

Deodorant Powder
Equal parts of baking soda and cornstarch
Place the ingredients in a jar and shake to blend.

Spray the liquid deodorant to underarm. Allow a few minutes to dry and then dust on deodorant powder with a makeup brush.

Beauty products

One of the first things I really changed when going natural was my beauty products.
First off you can not believe advertising. Most things you see that say natural really are not. There are no regulations as to what can be called natural in the beauty world. I looked at a lot of products and there are a few which are actually natural and some at ok prices. I decided though to try my hand at making some products in order to hopefully save money and make something I would feel safe using not only on myself but also on Andon

The internet has been my friend through this. I have spent a ton of time looking up recipes for different beauty products. I was looking for things that were easy to make with ingredients I could find at my local grocery store (HEB). Well I came up with some things I love and some even Stephen will use. Sometimes I think of switching things up with different oils or Shea Butter but everything is working well and I do not have the money to spend on experimenting. If you try one of my recipes let me know how it goes and feel free to change anything you want. I will post my recipes as I organize and get them written up.

Mast Cell Disease

According to the dermatologist Andon has Urticaria pigmentosa a form of Mast Cell Disease. Basically he is fine he just has brown spots on his tummy, back, neck, and face. We are lucky because they do not seem to bother him.
http://www.skinsite.com/info_urticaria_pigmentosa.htm
http://skin-care.health-cares.net/urticaria-pigmentosa.php

It is amazing though because some of the triggers that can make it worse are perfumes, dyes, and other unnatural things. It is a good thing we are living more natural maybe it will help. You can see the spots on his forehead in this picture. (as well as his runny nose)