Oil Cleansing Method (OCM)::::

I've been doing an experiment some months and I've been loving the results so far!

I have a very dear-to-my-heart friend, Mandi. Go check out her blog...you will learn cool crunchy hippy things.

Mandi is a kindred spirit. She also has glowing, radiant, beautiful skin- and striking green eyes (but that is besides the point...back to the skin).

Upon one of our many conversations- me learning and she enlightening me- I asked her what she "washed" her face with.

Much to my surprise, she told me about how she cleanses her face with oil. Gasp!

Instantly my brain thinks through how this would NOT work for me because I have oily acne-prone skin. I would be committing skin suicide if I put oil on my skin, right???

I had bought "oil-free" everything my whole entire life per the costly dermatologists requests.

There lies the problem.

For the majority of my life since I've been old enough to have pimples and bad skin (which most likely dates back to the ripe ole' age of 7.......not really, I tend to exagerate. It just seems that long.) I've struggled with skin issues.

I won't deny that a lot of my skin issues in the past have been hormonally related (PCOS), dietary related (the SAD diet), and an imbalance of good vs. bad bacteria in my stomach.

That whole statement above really irks me! What is the first thing a dermatologist prescribes for someone with acne?

Birth control and antibiotics??? Ding, ding, ding! That's right! And then they tell you to lay off the chocolate. Much to my surprise, chocolate was the least of my worries.

Well, I don't know that a dermo can technically "prescribe" birth control, but I know it was suggested that I use it to help with my acne and so I went to the "other" doctor to get on the pill- who highly recommended the pill for acne. Do you see the cycle?

Okay...I need to focus. I can't get into all of that right now because I don't want to bore you to tears with a reaction chain of all-things-wrong.

We're about solutions around here.

A large part of my problem has been what I've put on my skin on a daily basis.

From the www.oilcleansingmethod.com:

"The reasons we have so much trouble with mainstream skin care products are numerous, but two reasons, in particular, lead the pack. These products strip the oil out of our skin, leaving our largest organ trying to repair itself by replacing the oil stripped away. This leaves us in a cycle of being tight and dry followed by the inevitable oil slick. Each time we strip the oil away, our skin over-compensates for the lack of moisture by creating more oil. On top of the drying effects, these products are highly-scented. Fragrance is one of the top skin irritants and strangely enough, even the so-called "unscented" products usually contain fragrance. See for yourself and check the labels. Dry, irritated skin replaced by oily skin, inflamed and trapping debris."

After talking to Mandi and reading that paragraph above, I had a light-bulb moment. I love those!

I had no idea that taking care of my skin could really be this easy.

I'm not claiming that I have perfectly spotless skin, but during "a time" when my skin is usually the worst.....it looks pretty good I must say.

And on "normal" days, my skin glows like it never has and looks better than it has in years. I do attribute this to the oil since my eating habits have mostly been on track and I've changed my cosmetics over the years.

I really noticed the most improvement when I switched to the Oil Cleansing Method.

I have normally oily skin. When I'm done oil cleansing, my skin feels balanced and soft. Not squeaky clean and not overly oily.

I've noticed a big decrease in blackheads. I can't tell you how many times I've declared war on those suckers.

I cleanse my face with oil at night to wash off my make-up. In the morning when I wake up, I just rinse my face off with water as a good refresher.

Side note.....Another light-bulb moment for me was when I realized that I was washing my face every morning after only sleeping on a newly washed face before I went to bed. How dirty can your face get sleeping??? Not very I don't think.

I will never use soap on my face again. Never! And I will never spend another dime towards expensive cleansers, moisturizers, or toners claiming to be awesome. They are not awesome.

I noticed a HUGE drastic improvement of the "feel" of my skin in just a few days of doing this.

Here is a post on The Oil Cleansing Method website with recipes and information.

Here is a post on Mandi's blog with her great recipe.

I made some modifications for my facial oil based on my skin type. I do have oily skin naturally (my momma says I'll be thankful when I'm older) so I use a little more castor oil than normally balanced skin people should use.

Some people like to use Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) in place of the Sunflower Oil.

But, this is where I like to have a little fun.

The recipe on The Oil Cleansing Method website suggest only Castor Oil, and Sunflower Oil. I suppose you could do that. But, there isn't a whole lot of fun in that now is there?

So, like Mandi, I added Neroli and some essential oils for fragrance. Many many many essential oils are so great for the skin. At the top of the list is orange oil. Not only does it smell scrumptious, it does wonderful things to your skin.

The main thing is to keep it simple and do some experimentation on what works best for your skin.

Try and use medicinal or therapeutic grade (organic is possible) essential oils if you choose to add them.

Before you spend another dime on a bottle of "the next big thing", try going simple and back to basics of skin cleansing. I think we tend to over-complicate things in this world of ours.

Cleansing your skin can really be as simple as using two ingredients (or 4 in my case) and not a list of ingredients the length of your hand with a million words you've never heard of claiming to do things they were never intended to do in the first place.

If you give this a whirl or have used it, give me a shout out and let me know!

Homemade Lip Balm and Sugar Scrub

For some Christmas gifts the last few years, I've made homemade lip balm and sugar scrub to give to various people.

The lip balm I've found to be somewhat addicting and extremely moisturizing. Bottom line....it works.

A lot of lip balms and lipsticks out there sold in stores contain petroleum.

I've adopted a good rule of thumb over the years in regards to what I put on my body as well. If you can't drink it or eat it (as in, not die from it....who would enjoy eating lip balm??), it's probably not safe.

A good resource to look up the toxicity level in the products that you use on your body is the Skin Deep: Cosmetic Safety Database. You can look up virtually any product that is out there for hair, face, body, and baby. You will be amazed at the things you learn about common products you use every single day.

Did you know that your body absorbs 60% of what you put on your skin? That is a crazy number. If you put a clove of garlic between your toes, you would taste the garlic in your mouth in just a few short minutes.

The recipe I used for the lip balm was surprisingly found on Martha Stewart's website. I liked all of the ingredients that were used so I decided to give it a go.


Homemade Lip Balm:

3 teaspoons of grated unbleached beeswax (ordered mine from Majestic Mountain Sage)
5 teaspoons of carrier oil (sunflower, avocado, jojoba) I used avocado oil...has a longer shelf life and doesn't go rancid easily (see link below for a carrier oil resource)
6 drops of essential oil (I was going for "minty" so I used peppermint oil from Young Living)
1 teaspoon of honey

Melt the beeswax and carrier oil in the top of a double boiler. This is basically a metal bowl sitting on top of a saucepan with water boiling in the saucepan underneath the bowl. Stir really good so that the two combine. Remove from heat and add the remaining ingredients. Pour the balm into your container to cool. It will solidify back again once its cooled. I also purchased my containers from Majestic Mountain Sage.

For a good article that explains carrier oils and their shelf life along with storage, CLICK HERE.


The sugar scrub is also wonderful!

Cane sugar naturally contains glycolic acid which is a natural alphy hyrdroxy acid that exfoliates the skin.

Farmer Jason uses this stuff on his hands and it cleans all the dirt out the nooks and crannies leaving his skin smoother....not smooth, just smoother because he has really rough hands. I love em' though.

I adapted my recipe from this one and added a few things I knew that were good to moisturize and heal the skin.

Sugar Scrub- pictured above

50 % turbinado sugar or sugar in the raw (love the bigger sugar granules)
50 % vegetable glycerin (this can be bought at a pharmacy, I didn't have this so I used avocado oil)
small amount of aloe vera gel
7 drops of lavender essential oil
7 drops of neroli essential oil (rejuvenates the skin and has calming effects)

Mix everything together in a bowl, and put in a jar. How simple is that???? Really!

Some Favorites

I am a product junkie.

What I mean by this is that I love to try new products in hopes I will find the perfect one I've been looking for all along. And once I find the perfect product, I like to stick with it. This makes my life much easier. Unless I find something even better, in which case, I now have a new favorite product.

Consider this post a review of sorts- a review of all-natural beauty products with good ingredients. If you can wear it, bathe with it, scrub with it, or brush with it, you bet I've tried at least 20 different varieties of it.

I would like to step up on my soap box for just a second. You must be careful when you buy a product that is labeled 'All-Natural' or 'Organic Ingredients'. Although your intentions may be good, I have seriously felt cheated on more than a few occasions when I actually found out what was in a product that I purchased. Just because it says this, doesn't make it so. Sprite says 'All-Natural' on the label.

Its a good idea to be educated on the ingredients to steer clear of. There are several products out on the market now that aren't entirely what they say. Since the buzz words that are mentioned above are now all over the place, companies are taking advantage of uninformed well-meaning customers.

Okay, I'm stepping down from my box.

DEODORANT:

Let's start with deodorant. You better believe that Jason and I have tried almost every natural deodorant out there. We've even tried a few homemade essential oil combinations.

Alvera Deodorant is BY FAR the best that we've found. Its works awesome for both of us and the Almond & Aloe scent is lovely. Now, we still perspire a little bit since this is a natural function of the body. But, we most definitely never smell. I can't say the same thing for other natural deodorants that are out there. I've tried at least a dozen to find the right one for us. I even buy this deodorant for one of Jason's fellow fire fighters because he loves it so much.

This deodorant has Grapefruit Seed Extract, Witch Hazel, Aloe Vera, Oat Protein, Herb Water, and a few other ingredients. Its worth trying out. I purchased this initially at the HEB in College Station, but have since found an online store for me to buy from that will be listed below as well.


MAKE-UP:

This has been a sore subject for me for a while. Mostly because I would LOVE to not wear any make-up. But, as hormones would have it, this simply cannot be the case for me. It AIN'T pretty people.

I know that wearing make-up in and of itself isn't even considered 'natural' to some out there, but I just knew I could find a good make-up for my skin and still feel perfectly confident.

I have heard of mineral make-up for a long time, but never fully understood the benefits of it. The biggest thing with mineral make-up is that is contains no chemicals and the minerals are actually good for you skin. I've struggled with skin problems my whole life so this was a huge factor for me.

I looked up make-up with the lowest toxin rating in the COSMETIC SAFETY DATABASE (skin deep) and came across Everyday Minerals. I was looking for an inexpensive, neatly packaged, user friendly mineral make-up and found this company. The added bonus was that it was in Austin, TX!!! Local and non-toxic- two thumbs up from me!

I bought the mini-sampler kit for $18 and received 6 different varieties of make-up including eye shadow, bronzer, foundations, concealer, etc. This kit lasted me 1 1/2 months and I wear make-up mostly every single day.

I was a little apprehensive about the coverage since this is a big factor for my problem skin. But, I was more than pleased with the coverage. You can apply the desired covered you want and not feel like you are wearing a pound of make-up.

I bought a different brand of make-up every single time I ran out of my 'whatever'. But, after using Everyday Minerals, I won't by anything else. I ran out not too long ago and I could tell the difference in my skin when I had to go and buy something from the store to get me through.


BODY WASH:

The label creeps me out, but I have fallen in love with the Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps.

They are pure castile soaps and can be used all over. The directions say that this can even be used as a mouthwash. I proved this concept to be false after one swish of this stuff in mouth. It was the most terrible taste I've ever experienced.

I also love Dr. Bronner's soaps because we can wash with it and I can use it to make my homemade cleaning products so it serves as a dual purpose. Jason loves the Almond scent and has to be in mood for the Peppermint. The Peppermint makes you tingle. I'm not even kidding. You should try it. Its refreshing!



As for the website I mentioned above, I love Vitacost.com. The thing to know is that not everything that you can buy on this site is considered 'natural'. But, they have tons of varieties of products and they have AMAZING prices and shipping. I have been really pleased with them. The other thing I love about this site is it gives reviews of the products from customers so that is very helpful. Especially if you are a product junkie like me.

I'm still on my quest for naturally wonderful products. I will keep you posted as I discover them.

But, in the meantime, what are some of your favorite products? I'm still on the hunt for a good shampoo & conditioner.