DIY Recipes - safe home made cosmetics

Conditioner

Ingredients:
1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
3/4 cup lukewarm water

Instructions:
Beat the egg yolk until it's thick and white. Add the oil and mix well. Then add the water into the egg mixture and mix well. Massage into clean, damp hair. Rinse with plenty of warm water after about 10 minutes.

Protein-Rich, Nourishing Conditioner

Ingredients:
1 egg white
5 tablespoons plain yogurt

Instructions:
Beat the egg white until foamy. Gently fold in the plain yogurt. Apply to your hair and let it soak in for 10 to 15 minutes. Rinse with plenty of warm water. Style as usual.

Watercress Treatment for Oily Hair

Watercress appears to work on oily hair because it is rich in iron and phosphorus as well as vitamins A, C and E.

Ingredients:
1-2 large handfuls of fresh watercress
1 cup water

Blend watercress and water in a blender or food processor until well blended. If you have long hair you may need to use 2 full handfuls of watercress. Heat mixture and boil for 10 minutes. Strain watercress, keeping only the liquid. Let the liquid cool and apply carefully to newly shampooed hair (try to get as much excess water out of the hair as possible first). Leave on for 20 minutes.

Hair Gel

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
1 cup warm water

Instructions:
Dissolve 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of unflavored gelatin in 1 cup warm water. Keep refrigerated and use as you would a purchased gel.

Hair Spray

Ingredients:
1 or 2 citrus fruits (lemon or orange)
2 cups water

Instructions:
Chop 1 lemon (or orange for dry hair). Place in a pot and cover with 2 cups of hot water. Boil until only half remains. Cool and strain. Add more water if needed. Refrigerate in a spray bottle.

Face Paint and Halloween Makeup

To avoid heavy metals and other potentially harmful unknown ingredients in traditional Halloween face paint, try making your own using food-based ingredients. Remember, foods can cause allergies in some kids: always test your concoctions on a small patch of skin and read up on natural food colorings before sending your little ghouls out for a night of painted fun. And don’t forget that some foods can stain skin and clothes.


Face Paint Made with Natural Food Coloring

Natural food coloring is available at health food stores and typically derived from foods and spices. We recommend reading up about natural food colorings and potential allergies first. Do not substitute conventional food coloring, which may contain synthetic chemical ingredients.

Ingredients:
-Base of safe, unscented lotion (search Skin Deep for safe options) OR pure cocoa butter (available at health food stores) OR safe, fluoride-free toothpaste (search Skin Deep; avoid mint flavors, as they can make skin tingly)
-Natural food coloring (see note above)

Instructions:
Mix a few drops of natural food coloring into the base ingredient of your choice. Test on a small patch of skin before applying to face or body.

Face Paint Made with Food

Make sure young children understand they can’t eat these paints unless you make them without the base. Test a small patch of skin first to make sure your child isn’t allergic to the food you’re using.

Ingredients:
-Base of safe, unscented lotion (search Skin Deep for safe options) OR pure cocoa butter (available at health food stores) OR safe, fluoride-free toothpaste (search Skin Deep; avoid mint flavors, as they can make skin tingly)
-Turmeric, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, beets, avocado, spirulina, cocoa, chocolate sauce, squid ink or other colorful foods, juices, herbs and spices

Instructions:
Yellow: Add 1/4 tsp. and a large pinch of stale turmeric to base.

Pink: Using a sieve, mash the juice from 3 fresh or thawed frozen raspberries, blackberries or beets directly into the base. Or, use a deeply colored berry juice or puree.

Mint green: With a fork, mash 1/4 of a small avocado until creamy. Mix this into your base.

Emerald green: Add small amount spirulina or bright green chlorophyll to base.

Purple: Using a sieve, mash the juice from several fresh or frozen blueberries into the base. Or, use blueberry juice.

Brown: Add cocoa powder or chocolate sauce to base.

Black: Use a small amount of squid ink in base for true black.

White: Mix powdered sugar and water.

Other Resources for Cosmetics Recipes

There are also many books with recipes for natural, healthy, homemade beauty products that are widely available, including:

Natural Beauty at Home, More Than 250 Easy to Use Recipes for Body, Bath, and Hair, by Janice Cox

Natural Beauty From The Garden: More Than 200 Do-It-Yourself Beauty Recipes & Garden Ideas, by Janice Cox

Natural Beauty Basics: Create Your Own Cosmetics and Body Care Products, by Dories Byers

Herbal Body Book: The Herbal Way to Natural Beauty & Health for Men & Women, by Jeanne Rose