Facing the face

About a month and a half ago I stopped using traditional products of any kind on my face.  This is an area I have always struggled in.  I have combination skin that even estheticians comment on and, while not as bad as in high school, prone to breakouts.  I figured that I had nothing to lose when I came up with the idea for my green tea, honey, and apple cider vinegar (acv) face wash.  I do not know exactly where the idea came from other than all my reading.  You can only see the same things recommended over and over until you start to think that maybe there is something to it.  So I started combining.

I knew honey was good for your skin.  Cleopatra anyone? I had also been reading up on the pros of acv on the skin.  My thinking was maybe I could mix them together to clean my skin.  I then had the thought that it might be too much straight vinegar and my raw local honey is very, very think so I needed something to thin them out with.  Why use just water when maybe there was something that would work and add something of its own, but what?  Maybe green tea would be good.  It is good for you if drink it.  What if you put it on your skin?  Let's see what the land of Google has to say about it.  It turns out I was on to something so on to the lab, I mean kitchen, I go.

I also started using an acv/water mix as my toner that I got from here and a baking soda scrub that I got from here.  I have not found a need to moisturize but I do put some avocado oil around my eyes. Chalk one up for vanity.

How did it work?  Pretty darn well if I do say so myself.  I have had very few breakouts, even hormonal shifty ones.  The few I have had have been different.  They do not hurt, are smaller and heal more quickly than previous ones.  Well as long as I do not pick.  My face seems to be less oily and not as dry all at the same time too.

The recipes

Face wash

1 part acv
2 parts honey
2 parts green tea

I just used the green tea I had in my cupboard, brewed a cup and mixed everything in a shaker bottle.  My tea was still warm when I put the honey in because I needed to help melt it.  It is ok if you need to do this but let the tea cool as much as you can and it still work.  If the tea is too hot is will kill off the good stuff in the honey.  If this happens you can still use it but you will lose some of the benefit from the honey.

Toner

1 part water
1 part acv

Scrub

1-2 tbsp baking soda
just enough water to moisten


The process

Morning

In the shower I pour wash into my hand and splash it on my face then use a washing motion with my hands.  It normally takes two splashes for me to feel like the job is done.  You could also pour some on a damp wash cloth and rub it around your face.  There is no right way so find what works for you.

This is the point I scrub if needed.  I intend to scrub twice a week but it never happens that often.  All I do is put the baking soda in a little dish, your hand would work too, and the drip in just enough water to  get it wet  Then I gently scrub it all over my face and neck. You should treat your neck the same way you do your face.

After the shower I put some toner on a cotton ball and wipe it all over my face and neck.  When I remember I also put one to two drops of avocado oil on my finger tips and rub it around my eyes, even the lids.  You can use any moisturizing oil such as sweet almond, grape seed, or olive, yep the stuff you buy at the grocery store.  There are many options.

Night

All I do here is wipe my face and neck off with a warm, wet wash cloth and then wipe down with a toner laced cotton ball.


Special

I will experiment with masks from time to time as well.  So far my favorite is a simple honey and yogurt mask.  All you need is a little honey and some real unflavored yogurt.  I do not measure this.  I just go with small amounts that looks right.  You may need to melt the honey just a bit to get it to mix.  If so try putting it in a heat proof bowl over a a small pan of boiling water, stirring until it melts just enough to mix with the yogurt.  Apply a thin layer to your face and leave on as long as you like.


I hope this gives you some ideas to try for yourself.  As always if you try something out let me know what you think, be it good, bad or ugly.