Rosemary Infused Olive Oil

Olive oil is used in MANY things. From deep conditioning treatments, to body scrubs, to soaps. Rosemary is not only aromatic but it also helps your skin and hair. Rosemary can help to stimulate hair growth and increase blood circulation in your skin. So why not infuse your olive oil with rosemary and use THAT in your products?

Rosemary infused olive oil is actually very easy to make. All you need is:
- Olive oil
- Rosemary
- Pot
- Glass bottle/jar for storage
- Spoon
- (You may also want a funnel if you're using a bottle for storage)

Step 1 -- heat your oil. Do NOT make it very hot. You aren't trying to make deep fat fried rosemary here! Just warm enough so that you can touch it but if you left your finger in too long then it would start to burn. Probably about 105 - 110 F is good.

Step 2 -- chop your rosemary. Don't chop it TOO fine because then you'll get little rosemary chunks in your oil that are hard to remove.

Step 3 - add your rosemary to the oil and stir it well. Let it sit on the heat for a minute or two and then move it from the heat.

Step 4 - after about 5 minutes of steeping, add the oil AND the rosemary to your container. You could use it right away but it's better if you let it infuse for a day or two.

Use it in your soaps, on your hair, and on your skin!
Enjoy! :-)

The Importance of Natural Beauty

When breaking into natural beauty you are often confronted with questions and statements of doubt. Some of these are from peers but a lot of them are also in your own head. Stuff like:

 "Why not save money and just buy the generic XYZ?"

 "Commercial products haven't really been shown to cause major issues, right? Why not be easier on yourself and use those?"

 "That takes so much time... why not just buy it?" 

"I just feel like the commercial stuff works better for me..."

 And so on and so forth.
Here are my answers to some of those.

 As for the money issue. Yes, in SOME cases it will be a higher initial investment that just buying the cheap shit at Wal-Mart. HOWEVER!!

- If you use extremely high-end salong quality products then going DIY will save you a ton of money. I calculated that making my own conditioner cost about 18 cents an ounce whereas salon quality conditioner could be as much as $2 an ounce. What the hell, right!?

- Sometimes DIY is actually cheaper even than the generic brands. Using the 97cent baby oil and baby shampoo travel bottles and using a little old conditioner to make a DIY shaving gel? You can get months of gel for just a $2!

- It's a lifelong investment. Yeah it may be a little more money now, but think of the money you'll save when you have kids or get older and have avoided all those expensive health issues that come from chemicals? 

That brings me to the next issue. Health. A lot of people try and say that commercial, chemical filled products are usually safe and don't cause issues. Here's the thing though. They don't cause any super OBVIOUS issues like rashes or hair falling out. But they have been linked to various health issues.

 Don't believe me? Here are just a few sources for proof. And I only use reliable sources, mind you. No opinion blogs or anything.

Hair dye could cause cancer.

More facts about things like hair straighteners and UV nail lights.

A list of toxic and harmful ingredients and why you should avoid them.

Things that may be in your shampoo that could mess you up bad.

These are only a few of the more definite things. Also, think about this: There is currently an allergy epidemic in the world. More and more people are getting allergies as well as chronic issues like asthma. Some doctors have attributed this to more exposure to chemicals both in the environment and in the products we use and consume. I myself have severe allergies as so my brothers and many of my friends. I would like to limit my own exposure to iffy chemicals so that I decrease the risk of my children having such issues. If you're expecting a baby in your future (EVEN IF YOU'RE THE DAD!) then remember that what you use on your skin matters! A lot of stuff is absorbed through your skin and as a result absorbed by your growing little one (or your sperm even.)

So we know why it's economically better and why it's crucial for your health. But what about time? DIY takes time right? This is the one question that shouldn't be too hard though. If you're like me then you love crafty things like this and it will become a fun hobby. If that's the case then who cares about the time!? :-)

If you enjoy it then it shouldn't be a huge concern. But if you AREN'T the DIY crafty person, or if you simply don't have the time to devote, then fear not! You don't have to do it all DIY in order for it to be natural. You can also buy organic and all natural products from your health food store or online. Just check the ingredients first!! Also, check places like Etsy for smaller companies that sell homemade products.

Last but not least -- the argument that "natural products just don't do it for me."
Okay so... I'm sorry but this is the lamest excuse I've ever heard. It makes me mad when people say this. Your hair and your body is natural. How can your hair or skin just magically NEED commercial products with chemicals? How did people ever manage without chemicals back before the 20th century? Huh?

The thing about most of the people who say this is that they have never even given natural alternatives a shot. They just assume that the chemical versions are better. Or, if they have tried natural alternatives then they likely didn't give it much of a shot. As my last all-text post stated -- you have to have patience in natural beauty. If your body is used to the commercial chemical products then it will likely take AT LEAST a week before your body can adjust and regulate. It's like when you've had a bunch of fatty, sugary foods and you get a breakout. Even if you start eating well again, the breakout will take a while to go away. You can't switch to natural products overnight.

Another thing to keep in mind -- just as with commercial products, you have to play around until you find what suits you. Say your friend LOVES using coconut oil facial scrubs but it just made your skin worse. That doesn't mean "natural products don't work for me." That means "coconut oil isn't good for my face." You just try something else. There IS something out that for everyone. Don't let one or two failed attempts make you write off everything natural. Keep trying!

Hopefully I've helped convinced you to try all natural alternatives. Or, if you're already an all-natural junkie then hopefully these facts and tid-bits have helped you think of responses to some of the questions your peers and family may ask you.

Thanks for reading! :-)

Lessons I've Learned About Natural Beauty

LESS IS MORE
One of the most important things I've learned about natural beauty is that usually less it more. Your body naturally cares for its skin and hair and nails. You only need to help nudge it in the right direction or help it along the way. You don't need 500 face products to have perfect skin. If anything, that may make your skin WORSE because it's being bombarded with crap. Usually you just need to find those few products (sometime one is enough!!) to help your skin find the perfect balance between hydration and cleanliness.

This is especially true if you start to find your skin issues getting worse. I used to think that more products meant better results, so when my skin got iffy I just used more and more things on my face. This is NOT how you do it. I've backed down to just a few products (facial wash, a rice-bran and papaya enzyme scrub, and the occasional med) and my face is doing great! I do the occasional milk and honey mask but those are rare. So just keep that in mind. Less really is more, at least in the world of natural beauty!

PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE
One of the things that you have to accept when you're doing DIY and natural beauty is that it WILL take longer (at least initially) than just buying something from the store. Henna, for example, takes 5 - 6 hours!! Getting your hair colored at a salon or doing an at-home hair dye kit takes less than half that time. For making deep conditioning treatments you have to let the mix sit on your hair longer. That that isn't counting the actual process of making it! Soaps take a MONTH to be set properly. Talk about having to plan ahead. 

At first this was really really hard for me because I am NOT a patient person. But I've come to learn that the wait is more than worth it and doing it yourself can also feel a lot more fun! Just telling people about how you use homemade conditioner on your hair or have your own homemade soaps can motivate you to keep on with the long process. It can also help you learn to appreciate the lesson that waiting often has its rewards, and I feel like in this day and age that is a lesson that all of us can benefit from.

NATURAL DOESN'T ALWAYS MEAN HEALTHY
There is a dangerous misconception out there that natural products are automatically good for you. This is not only the case for beauty products but food. (Cause those deep fried organic potato chips are so healthy...amirite?) This may be an extreme example but think of poison ivy. It's all natural! But I would NEVER want that on my skin. There are other things like that which are not as extreme and obviously dangerous as poison ivy, so be on your guard. If you see a recipe for a product that uses an ingredient (oil, extract, whatever) that you have never heard of before then research it first. Also, if you have sensitive skin or have allergies, then do a test of the ingredient before you have at it.

 KNOW WHEN TO STOP
Okay if you're anything like me then once you find something new that you LOVE you tend to stampede full force into it. That's great for some things. NOT for something like DIY beauty. Especially if you have a limited work space (I'm in a 1 bedroom apt. with my hubby-to-be.) You don't want this stuff consuming your entire living space. Take is slowly. Try something new every week or two. Don't try and make soap, body scrubs, lotion, deodorant, conditioner, and the lot all in the same week!! That will be a HUGE project to undergo and it will end up being less fun because you'll be surrounded by a crazy mess. Besides, if you stretch it out then it's more fun cause you can look forward to something new every new week!

 I also would like to talk about WHY you should start up the natural beauty method but that will make this post ungodly long so I'll save it for another day. :-)

 Hope these lessons help you! Enjoy your natural beauty adventures!

Coffee and Brown Sugar Pre-Shave scrub

Exfoliation before shaving is very crucial. When you clean an exfoliate your skin before shaving, you remove the dead skin cells and oils that are covering your hairs. This dead skin and oil keeps you from getting as close of a shave, which means more shaving per week.

That being said, here is my recipe for a pre-shave exfoliating scrub. It's specifically a pre-shave scrub because there are NO oils and there is a small amount of soap to help with stripping the oils from your skin.

What you need:
- Instant coffee crystals (you can also use coffee grounds for a rougher exfoliation but they are messier in the shower so I just use the instant coffee.)*
- Baby shampoo (or another shampoo if you'd like)
- Brown sugar
- Honey (honey helps mosturize, heal scars, and it's naturally lightly antibacterial)
- A small amount of water

* So why have coffee at all if I'm not using one that exfoliates? -- The caffeine in coffee can help your skin cells dramatically! It has been shown to help prevent skin cancer, remove cellulite, and make skin firmer and healthier looking.

Step 1 - Add your honey to the coffee. Mix it well.

Step 2 - Dissolve your coffee crystals and honey in some water. If you are using fresh ground coffee then heat this water so that it can help the caffeine release more effectively.

Step 3 - Add the baby shampoo and stir. Be sure to stir gently so you don't cause foam.

Step 4 - Lastly add your brown sugar RIGHT before you use it. If you want a good exfoliation then add it as late as possible so that it doesn't start to break down in the coffee-water. Mine was a little juicy but you can add as much sugar as you want. Mine works fine but if you want extra exfoliation then add more sugar.

Step 5 - Apply and then rinse or wash off. I always use this in conjunction with my DIY shaving lather!

Enjoy! :-)

DIY Shaving Lather

So I found an interesting recipe for a DIY shaving gel/lather on Pinterest and I decided to give it a shot. I altered the recipe slightly for my own devices though so I'm putting it up on here.

Here's the recipe and the tools you'll need
- Small shampoo squirt bottle
- Baby oil
- Baby shampoo
- Conditioner (I used the old stuff I still had from when I switched from commercial to DIY and organic)
- Other shampoo if you'd like -- I used some of the old shampoo from when I made the transition to organic shampoo. I decided I should find SOME way to use it up.

Step 1 - Put your shampoos into the bottle FIRST. I filled the shampoo bottle up about half way with the shampoos.

Step 2 - Add your conditioner and then shake well. I did about two squirts of the conditioner but it was a thin mix so I may do three next time.

Step 3 - Add some oil. I only added a small amount of the oil. I estimate it was about a tablespoon's worth. You don't want to add TOO much oil because excessive oil on your skin will prevent the razor from getting the closest shave possible.

Step 4 - Shake very well and then test it on your skin to make sure it's a nice consistency. I like this recipe a lot because it's thin and light but still coats my legs well and leaves a delicate lather.

Enjoy! :-)