Honey I'm home, remedy me!

Google image from spar.co.uk

Now who would have thought honey could be your new best friend.   
Well it is amazing when you think about all the things that are right under our noses at the supermarket that can do wonders for our skin including apple cider vinegar which aids absorption and glycerin, which moisturises and cleanses.  I will touch on these again no doubt along the way in this blog, but first lets take a look at honey. 

Many of us love adding honey to our foods, just the idea of honey being drizzled over your porridge or your yoghurt, it sounds all so nice, makes you feel all warm inside.   
I personally used to struggle when my mum would try to give me a spoonful a day, I found it so hard to swallow because I didnt like the taste, it made me cough and splutter as if I just had a hot chilli. 
But I figured I can put it to better use anyway. 
Using honey on your skin or taking a bath in honey is known to heal dry skin.

Honey is a natural antioxidant and anti-microbial (kills or inhibits the growth of micro-organisms such as bacteria and fungi), which help to protect the skin from the damage of the sun's rays, supports the skin's ability to rejuvenate and refreshes the skin leaving it feeling silky soft.Honey also offers incredible antiseptic and cleansing properties for our body and health. It also tightens the skin which helps to fight wrinkles.
One of the most common natural skin care benefits with honey is related to the treatment of minor acne which may be caused by hormonal changes.

Dry skin or 'xeroderma' as it is called is such a common issue for us all especially now coming into the winter time where the hot indoor air and the cold air outside causing our skin to peel, crack and itch because of the loss of moisture.  
Also overshowering can worsen this problem and using harsh skincare does not help.
Well here are some quick whip ups for you to play around with and that I love experimenting with.

 Honey scrub for every type of skin:

Ingredients:
* 1/2 tablespoon of honey
* 1/2 tablespoon of sugar or sea salt
Instructions:
Mix the ingredients and scrub your face for 2 minutes. Then rinse off.

Honey scrub for dry skin:

Ingredients:
* 1/2 tablespoon of honey
* 1 tablespoon of milk
* 1 tablespoon of oats/ ground hazelnuts/coffee grounds/sugar
* Olive oil/ sweet almond oil
Instructions:
Mix all the ingredients and scrub your face approximately for 2 minutes. Then rinse off.

Honey scrub for combination skin:

Ingredients:
* 1/2 tablespoon of honey
* 1/2 tablespoon of milk powder/rice flour/baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon of sea salts or sugar
* You can add some drops of an oil like jojoba, olive or sweet almond oil.
Instructions:
Mix all the ingredients and carefully massage your face for 2 minutes. Then rinse off.

 Honey scrub for oily skin:

Ingredients:

*  1/2 tablespoon of honey
*  1/2 tablespoon of rice flour/baking soda
Instructions:
Warm up 1/2 tablespoon of honey and mix it with rice flour/baking soda. Add some water if it becomes too dry.


There is definitely plenty more where that came from. I'll be telling you along the way about other healthy cheap homemade alternatives to your skincare regime with experiments that I play around with or hear about. 

Also there are honey massage treatments out there too.  Here is one video I watched that demonstrates with the honey.  It can look quite strange at times but it is quite good for the skin and I love the relaxing music in this video too, have a look,

Well what did you think of that? Will you be whipping out the jar of honey tonight to get your other half to throw lashings of it on your skin, hmm...a glorified mess for the glorified skin, sounds all good to me!

 Before I go I thought I would mention Manuka honey.
Manuka honey is the common choice these days due to its powerful. medicinal properties as an anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-oxidant, anti-septic, anti-inflammatory and anti-fungal.   Read more about the benefits of manuka honey and important things to note when buying it.
Basically the higher the + number on the jar, the more beneficial it is for you. (16-24+ reap the greatest benefits)   Order some today from Holland and Barrett, as well as manuka skincare products.

Have a good day and let me know how it goes with any honey experiments.

D.I.Y on the fly!

So have you got all your little skini minis on the ready for your weekends away, overnights and popped nicely in your bag on the go?! I love mini skincare bottles, so I decided to call them all skini minis!
Ever think of making up your own quick mixtures too?  You can make some up either as you go- one mix fixes- or make up a decent amount and pop them in the small containers usually available at Boots and Superdrug.

I will give you some ideas in some of my posts and touch on some tips/utensils to get you started today.

Skini minis are great, whether they are your own mixtures in bottles or versions of the popular products on the market, I love them all, especially as some of these big bottles drive me mad at times cos by the time I'm half way through, I spot some other new products on the market or come across a natural gem that I want to start using straight away. 
Then I end up with sooo many products in the bathroom cupboard as all the old ones get left aside.
This is why I love the minis because not only are they ideal size but also good for sampling or if you dont want a huge bottle of something. 

For instance, I had been getting large bottles of Head & Shoulders recently but then I wanted to use up some of the older products I had in my cupboard like Tresemme and Herbal Essence, so I didnt buy another bottle of Head & Shoulders once I had finished with it. 
I like that brand because it keeps dandruff away and so then I decided to just get the mini version of it and use it maybe once or twice a week.

I find it handy too for skincare products like I bought the mini version of Aveeno cream and I keep it in my handbag all the time and I fill it up from the bigger bottle when it gets low.

Well right now the skincare industry is flying and more and more natural products are available for us and ready to take over.  But also the trend now has some of us having a go at making our own, and you can betya I am one of them!  It is so satisfying to have your own creations, lots of fun and without a doubt more control over what I am putting on my skin!

It is easy to get started especially if you are just having a bit of fun and whipping up something for yourself and your family.

Basically I just grabbed some basic utensils from Asda and off I went mixing household foods and oils.
I also got some butters at an exhibition to use or you can source butters and oils online like jojoba oil (well this one can be more expensive than others so I get grapeseed oil or almond oil) and shea butter.
It's as easy as that for you to have control over what you are putting on your skin. 

Here are the few things I picked up at Asda,

These items were very cheap, under 5 pound as far as I remember and they are very handy for keeping track of exact measurements.

I also got the measuring jug and spatula for heating up some butters briefly in the microwave, literally 10 secs. 
Initially I had bought a cheap saucepan too to heat up butters on the hob so I could keep a better eye on them so they wouldnt melt too much.  But because the saucepan was cheap, I didnt want any small particles from the bottom mixing with my creations.   So that is when I started using the measuring jug and it is quicker and easier to clean.


 I got the sterilising fluid with the idea of steeping all the utensils in it before using them all, for extra cleanliness and knowing that they had been sterilised.

I really enjoy playing around with different combinations of carrier oils like sweet almond oil and butters and even foods, like strawberries, bananas, honey and avocado to make quick interesting masks or moisturisers.

 Stay tuned for some easy skincare recipes soon!!