Just Don't Eat It!

On my first trip to Lush (awesome natural bath supplies/cosmetic store), I couldn't help but notice how almost everything there looked edible. The whole place smelled wonderful and between names like "Honey-Bee Toffee Bath Bomb" and "I Love Juicy Shampoo", I walked out of there hungry. And it's not just Lush. The trend for making body care items look and smell like food is everywhere. From cupcake soaps to "juiced berry" perfume, people seem oppressed with making themselves feel and smell delicious. But what is it about these items that lures people in? One possible explanation is that if an item resembles food, then subconsciously a person could believe that it is safe to use. We don't often stop to think about all of the chemicals required to produce that "perfect berry smell'. Just like the food industry is often messing with our food and adding potentially harmful ingredients, so is the hair and body care industry.One of the more common preservatives used in soaps and shampoos in paraben, which mimics estrogen receptors in the body and can cause both reproductive issues and cancer. We need to be aware of harmful chemicals in our soaps and take care to read labels carefully and not be fooled by the harmless look of products.

If anyone is interested in making their own products, below are some recipes. Most of these are my variation of recipes that I found.

Moisturizers and Lotions: 

Coconut Body Scrub
Ingredients: 1-1/2 cups epsom salt8 drops of essential oil
1/3 cup of liquid coconut oil

Coconut Lotion
Ingredients: 1 cup of steeped chamomile tea8 drops of essential oil
1/3 cup of coconut oil

Instructions: 
Melt coconut oil in a small pot. Add other ingredients and mix. Pour into a container to cool.

Soaps and Scrubs:

Simplest Soap Recipe
Ingredients: 
1 cup glycerin soap
8 drops of essential oil
assorted herbs for visual effect

Grapefruit Sugar Scrub 
Ingredients: 1-1/2 cups white table sugar 8 drops grapefruit essential oil 1/4 cup jojoba oil 1/4 cup liquid castile soap 

Garden Mind Soap 
Ingredients: 4 ounces avocado oil
24 ounces coconut oil
28 ounces live oil
4 ounces castor oil
9 ounces lye
20 ounces steeped mint tea
8 drops grapefruit essential oil 1/4 cup jojoba oil 1/4 cup liquid castile soap 

Bath Bombs 

This recipe makes 4 to 6 bath bombs. You can buy molds in craft stores or online. Do not oil the molds beforehand; just make sure they are clean and dry. 

Dry Ingredients: 
1 cup baking soda 
1/2 cup citric acid (do not substitute ascorbic acid) 
1/2 cup corn starch 
1/3 cup Epsom salts or coarse sea salt 

Wet Ingredients: 
2 1/2 tablespoons sunflower or other light oil (like sweet almond oil) 
3/4 tablespoon water or rosewater (be careful not to start the fizzing action by adding too much water) 
1/4 – 1 teaspoon essential oils 
1/4 teaspoon borax as an emulsifier 
vegetable or other natural colorant (optional) 

Instructions: 
Sieve the dry ingredients together until they are well blended. Measure and combine all the wet ingredients and borax in a clean jar. Cover tightly and shake vigorously. Slowly drizzle the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, gently stirring to prevent the reaction from starting. Make sure you mix in all of the wet ingredients. Afterward, you’ll find that the mixture is dry and crumbly and has to be packed in the molds quite firmly to keep shape. The mixture should just start to hold together when pressed in your hand, like slightly moist fine sand. You can unmold the bombs after 30 minutes, and let them dry for a few days before using them. Store them in a dry place


Shampoos:

Baking Soda Shampoo 
Ingredients: 
1/2 cup baking soda
5 cups of boiling water
10 drops of essential oil

Vinegar Shampoo 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

There are millions of more recipes out there to make your own, natural beauty products. Enjoy!