I’m impatient.
Okay, allow me to clarify. I’m impatient with some things— my skin care routine being one of them— and I first began self-proclaiming my skin-care-impatience during college. Between living the typical broke college kid life and battling perioral dermatitis (a nasty skin condition that’s quite fond of gross and toxic products), I decided right then and there during my sophomore year that I had zero tolerance for harmful mainstream products that cost a lot of money while doing little for my skin.
Lo and behold, the answer to my temperament towards mediocre skin remedies was right in front of my face the whole time: natural skin care. Why should you take care of your skin by using natural ingredients and products? Well, after my sophomore year breakup with yucky toxic products, I learned (from experience!) that natural skin care is easy, affordable, and gentle on my sensitive skin. Just like that, I was hooked on toxin-free facial care. Because I appreciate what natural skin care has done for me so much, I wanted to share 10 natural beauty tips for the face so you can learn how to take care of your face naturally too.
Use Natural Makeup Remover
You know what really grinds my gears? The awkward dry patches I’d get under my eyes after using traditional makeup remover to clean off my mascara. After determining that I didn’t find these patches to be very cute and realizing that my makeup wipes may have been irritating my perioral dermatitis, I did some research. Wow, I can’t blame my skin for getting dry and starchy after using makeup remover because many traditional makeup removers contain stuff like sulfates, fake fragrances, and formaldehyde-releasing preservatives[i] (okay, WHAT).
Thankfully, there are some up-and-coming organic makeup remover options with ingredients that I can actually understand and pronounce. That being said, I’m a gal of simplicity, so I’m all for using plain and simple fractionated coconut oil and a cotton round to gently lift my makeup and add moisture to the delicate skin under my eyes.
Balance Oil Between Washes
The importance of avoiding over-washing your face is one of the simplest and easiest facial tips out there. Washing your skin too frequently can disrupt the protective barrier your skin naturally forms[ii].
I know, if you have combination or oily skin, you’re probably wondering how on earth you’re supposed to prevent an oily buildup without washing your skin multiple times a day. By trying a natural toner or face mist, you can fight off that undesired shine while leaving your skin’s protective barrier at peace. This Citrus Face Mist recipe uses sebum-balancing citrus essential oils to even out your skin and uplift your mood.
Exfoliate Your Skin and Lips
Gently exfoliating your face once or twice a week gets rid of any stubborn dead skin that can end up clogging your pores. When it comes to natural skin care tips, natural exfoliants simplify facial care a ton. Why? Because they make the process of choosing an exfoliant that’s gentle enough for your face so much easier.
If you’re looking to exfoliate your skin, try using a ground oat (place oats in a blender or food processor) and water paste or aloe juice (which exfoliates using its salicylic acid[iii]). If you’re looking to exfoliate your lips, try this Sweet Lips Exfoliating Scrub that uses cleansing and anti-inflammatory essential oils.
DIY Face Masks
Now that you know the secret of natural face care tips for removing makeup, balancing oils between washes, and exfoliation, it’s time to talk about going the extra mile for your skin: using DIY face masks. Natural face masks give you the chance to show your skin some extra love using simple and nourishing ingredients that allow you to get creative! Mix and match the following ingredients to create a mask that’s perfect for your needs.
- Raw Honey – hydrating and antibacterial
- Juniper Berry Essential Oil – toning and antibacterial
- Plain Greek Yogurt – cooling and soothing
- Egg – Toning and softening
- Grapefruit Essential Oil – cleansing and oil-balancing
- Whole Oats – soothing and anti-inflammatory
- Copaiba Essential Oil – healing and anti-inflammatory
- Coconut Oil – moisturizing and softening
- Citrus Burst Essential Oil Blend – uplifting and mood-boosting
Understand Hydration vs. Moisture
You’ve probably heard hydrating and moisturizing used interchangeably when discussing face care tips. I was so surprised when I first learned that these two words do not mean the same thing!
Having dehydrated skin is a temporary state or condition. Dehydration is indicated by dull, tight-feeling, and wrinkly skin and requires hydrating products[iv].Hydrating products, or humectants, grab moisture from the air and hold it on your skin[v]. Examples include raw honey and aloe.
Meanwhile, having dry skin describes your overall skin type. Dry skin can be identified by its itchy, flaky, and rough feeling and needs moisturizing products[vi]. Moisturizing products create a seal over the skin that prevents water from escaping. Examples include nut and seed oils (like coconut oil) and plant oils (like jojoba oil)[vii].
Experimenting with individual natural ingredients from these two categories allow you to easily pinpoint your skin’s needs without the clutter of additives and unnecessary toxins.
Relieve Redness
Redness of any degree or size generally isn’t something you’re overly excited about on your face. Because perioral dermatitis is a condition that causes your skin to blaze with bright red bumps, I’ve learned a thing or two about managing redness and irritation.
If you’re struggling with a few stand-alone pimples that need to just chill out, mix three drops of Juniper Berry Essential Oil with one teaspoon of raw honey. Apply the mixture to your pesky blemishes before bed and cover those little stinkers with a band-aid while you sleep. Rinse the area the next morning and repeat the process as needed to calm crazed pimples.
If you’re dealing with skin that has large areas of irritation or inflammation, combine six drops of Copaiba Essential Oil with two teaspoons of plain greek yogurt. Coat your face with an even layer of your mixture and rinse your skin after 30 minutes to an hour to soothe the angriest of skin.
Nourish Your Lips
I put down my usual commercial lip balms and petroleum jelly after I heard that fake fragrances and parabens can aggravate my perioral dermatitis, and I was shocked by my lips’ reaction. Like most things in life, quitting a bad habit comes with consequences… and my lips went on a cracking and peeling frenzy after I said goodbye to non-natural lip balms.
This reaction opened my eyes to the vicious cycle of using toxic lip balms: because they’re full of fake fragrances and alcohols that can actually irritate and dry your delicate skin[viii], mainstream lip balms encourage frequent application that further exasperates your poor skin.
After my lips settled down from their initial temper tantrum, my skin quickly grew to love natural lip balms. Using safe and simple options, like this Sweet Citrus Lip Balm, nourish and restore your lips so they’re not constantly craving a quick fix.
Value Relaxation
Yes, yes your skin can be directly affected by your stress levels. Your body, when it finds a problem within itself, uses its immune system to send out inflammation-causing chemicals to fight and protect injury…and this very process can occur when you’re under extreme stress[ix].
This means that triggerable conditions like psoriasis and hives can flare up due to stress. Your alert and confused immune system can also let acne-inducing bacteria and oils fall through the cracks and flourish during times of stress[x].
To fight the aforementioned issues, identify specific ways you can unwind every single week. Promise yourself that you’ll walk or read every other day or start each morning with an uplifting diffuser like this Citrus Summer Diffuser Blend. Find tools, like the Radiate Joy Roll On, that help you remain positive in stressful situations.
Calm Your Eyes
Even the best stress management isn’t foolproof, and adequate sleep can sometimes be a tricky thing to come by. With this in mind, we all know what it’s like to wake up with big ol’ dark circles under our eyes.
For good reason, cucumbers are behind most eye-related natural skin care tips. These superfruits are full of vitamin C, which encourages new cell growth, and folic acid, which support antioxidants that kick inflammation-causing toxins to the curb[xi].
When your eyes feel tired and puffy, turn to this natural Cucumber Soothing Eye Mask for gentle, cooling relief.
Stick to the Basics
Last but not least, remember that “less is more” when creating your natural skin care routine. Using simple products and ingredients for your DIY skin care is important and sensible for a couple different reasons:
- If your skin is irritated, fewer ingredients make it easier to identify a problematic product
- When determining what your skin responds well to, fewer ingredients make it easier to identify your success
- Instead of searching high and low for expensive commercial products, you probably have effective natural skin care ingredients in your own kitchen (for more info, check out this blog post).
Please note: This post is a compilation of suggestions made by those that have extensively used essential oils and has not been verified scientifically with clinical tests nor reviewed by medical experts. It is anecdotal information and should be treated as such. For serious medical concerns, please consult your doctor.
Are You Hooked on Natural Skin Care?
This is pretty exciting stuff, right!? There’s nothing like supporting your natural beauty with natural face care. If you have some natural beauty tips on how to take care of your face naturally tucked up your sleeve, go ahead and share them on social media with @fromsimplyearth or comment below.
If you’re looking to use natural ingredients in more parts of your life and home, check out our Simply Earth Essential Oil Recipe Box. In each monthly box, you’ll get four full-size bottles of pure essential oils, six easy and fun recipes, and all the ingredients you need to create them. You’ll also get a FREE Big Bonus Box when you first subscribe. All of these essential oil goodies are delivered right to your door for just $44.99/month.
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