Edgewater Soaps
Hand Crafted. Naturally Good.

Do It Yourself Skin Care Recipes

Making your own is easier than you think!

DIY Bath Bombs

Fun to make, and even more fun to use! We researched a lot of recipes before we settled on this one, and we think it's the best. Here's how to make it.

1 cup baking soda (sifted, if lumpy)
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup citric acid
1/4 cup epsom salt (optional)
2 1/2 tbsps. sweet almond, jojoba or apricot kernel oil
3/4 tsp. water
2 tsps. essential or fragrance oil
small spray bottle of witch hazel

Combine and whisk dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Combine liquid ingredients in a separate small bowl. Drizzle and simultaneously whisk liquid ingredients into dry ingredients. As the oils are lighter than the water, that's what you'll be whisking in first. When you get to the point that you're adding water to the mixture, whisk a little more vigorously: the water will start to react with the baking soda and citric acid, and you want to make sure the fizzing is promptly smothered so it doesn't get out of hand. Toss the entire mixture several times by hand to make sure everything is thoroughly incorporated. Pack firmly into molds and tap out onto a sheet of waxed or freezer paper. Very lightly mist the tops of the bombs with witch hazel for a nice hard outer crust. Let sit 8 hours or overnight. Turn bombs over and lightly mist the bottoms with witch hazel. Let sit 4-6 hours or overnight, and you're done!

Tips and suggestions. Rounded molds are easiest to use because the bombs will tap out easily. An old tea cup will work nicely. There are lots of fun things you can add for color, if desired. 1/4 tsp. of tumeric, for example, will give you a nice bright yellow, or you could try adding food coloring to the liquid ingredients. Instead of epsom salt, you could use 1/4 cup powdered milk or oat flour for extra skin conditioning. Have fun, experiment! If you want to get the bath bomb ingredients ready before you actually plan to make them, you can combine all the liquid ingredients in the small bowl and all the dry ingredients except the citric acid in the large bowl. Add the citric acid only when you are ready to make the bombs. And last, if you have any scrapes or cuts on your hands, wear rubber or latex gloves when handling the bomb ingredients. The citric acid will sting a bit if it comes in contact with broken skin.

And if that's not helpful enough, you can watch my totally hilarious bath bomb making video!

Note: every ingredient except the citric acid can easily be obtained at grocery and health food stores. Citric acid is hard to find retail (and expensive when you do find it), but it's readily available and economical to buy online.

DIY Seaweed Facial Mask back to top

As I have "more mature" skin, the biggest skin problem I have is dryness. Most of my body needs to be well-moisturized.

My face is another matter, however. I have combination facial skin. Oily in the center and normal-to-dry everywhere else. Until now, I've never found a satisfactory way to address both conditions with a single treatment.

But I've been experimenting with a widely-used spa treatment that really seems to do the trick. Seaweed facial masks can be beneficial for all skin types, and are claimed to help detoxify, nourish, and rejuvenate the skin. It leaves my skin looking and feeling great. Clean and clear with a healthy glow; smooth and toned, not tight or dry. Here's the simple do-it-yourself recipe I adapted from a number of other recipes I researched. The ingredients are easily available from any health food store, and it makes enough for three or four masks. Recipe can be halved if desired.

2 tbsps. sea kelp powder
1 tbsp. aloe vera gel
1 tbsp. honey
water or other liquid as needed
essential oil if desired

Directions. Combine sea kelp, aloe vera gel, and honey in small bowl and stir with a fork to combine. (Tip: adding the aloe vera gel before the honey leaves a coating of aloe vera on the spoon that enables the honey to slip off easily.) Add water about a teaspoonful at at time, stirring well after each addition to break up any clumps and achieve the consistency of a smooth thick paste. If you'd like to use something other than water, you might try milk. Or carrot juice. Or aloe vera juice. Although essential oil is not necessary, it helps neutralize the scent of the sea kelp. I use a few drops of tea tree oil for its natural antiseptic properties.

Apply the mask mixture to your face. Wait 15-20 minutes, then rinse off with lukewarm water and enjoy how healthy and fresh your skin looks! And a special note to the men: the mask is great as a pre- or post-shave skin conditioner. Use before shaving and your shaver or razor will glide easily and smoothly across your skin. Use after shaving for maximum skin conditioning benefit.

Et voila! The creature from the black lagoon is transformed! It doesn't get rid of wrinkles, but it sure does make me feel good. Clean, toned, relaxed, and radiant!

DIY Hand Sanitizer back to top

With the cold and flu season upon us and the extra concern about swine flu this year, little but critical precautions such as regular hand washing are especially important. The Mayo Clinic recommends plain soap (not antibacterial soap!) and alcohol-based hand sanitizer for situations where soap may not be available.

Making your own is easy. All you need is aloe vera gel, grain alcohol, and tea tree essential oil.

Mix together 1/4 cup of aloe vera gel and 1/4 cup plus one tablespoon of grain alcohol. (It's important that the solution is at least 60 percent grain alcohol.)
Stir in five or six drops of tea tree essential oil.
If you don't care for the scent of the tea tree oil, add the same amount of an essential oil you like to counterbalance it. We suggest lemongrass, orange, or lavender as essential oils that are readily available and blend nicely with tea tree.

Then just pour the solution into a little spray bottle that will fit inside your purse, briefcase, book bag or backpack, and you've got your own personal hand sanitizer for convenient use whenever you're out and about.

Fun Stuff