A Feast for the Senses – Homemade Skincare
One of my favourite pastimes is just pottering around my garden. As well as appreciating how beautiful it looks, I love to breathe in the scent of the flowers, listen to the bees buzzing around and feel the cool breeze on my face. And I might treat myself to a quick taste of honey from a hive while I wander around.
Your senses work so well together to heighten an experience. Would you enjoy chocolate quite as much if it didn’t smell so lovely, or feel so good when it melts in your mouth?
I do think skincare should be a treat for your senses – it should look luxurious, feel heavenly to apply, and, ideally, smell good too. Because it’s not just about the end result – you want to enjoy the experience of using it.
I always try to make sure our creams and lotions feel lovely when you’re massaging them into your skin. And, if I think a product would benefit from fragrance, I’ll add essential oil, such as neroli. (As I’m sure you can guess, I much prefer natural scents to artificial perfumes.)
If you fancy making your own feast for the senses skincare, these recipes are a great starting point. They only need a handful of ingredients and are really easy to make:
Homemade Strawberry Face Mask
- 4 or 5 ripe strawberries, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon of natural yoghurt
- 1 tablespoon of honey
- 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
Mash the strawberries up with a fork and mix them with the other ingredients. Massage the mixture into your face and relax for 10 minutes, before removing the mask with a damp muslin cloth. This is a great homemade mask for giving your skin a brighter appearance and leaving it feeling softer.
Homemade Coconut and Oat Face Scrub
- 2 tablespoons of oatmeal
- 1 tablespoon of coconut oil, melted
- 1 tablespoon of honey
Mix the ingredients together and massage them into your skin, before removing with a damp muslin cloth. You can also leave the mixture on your face for a few minutes, to act as a face mask and scrub in one. It keeps for a couple of weeks, so you could make a larger batch and store it in an airtight jar.
Homemade Sugar Body Scrub
- ½ cup of brown sugar
- ¼ cup of olive oil or coconut oil at room temperature
- 3 or 4 drops of essential oil
Mix a little of the olive or coconut oil into the sugar at a time, until you get the consistency you want. Add the essential oil. Lavender is good if you’re likely to apply the scrub near to bedtime, or try something like geranium, bergamot or mandarin to give you a boost in the morning. This scrub is lovely to massage in during a shower, and it should keep for at least a week in an airtight jar.
If you give any of these a go, I’d love to hear how you get on. Leave a comment below or find me on Twitter @NaryndaSkincare or Facebook.
