As more people are in the trend for clean eating, they also start questioning whether there is a way of being healthier in their beauty choices. DIY beauty is huge, and if you browse through Pinterest or search using Google, you will be inundated with homemade recipes. However, before bringing clean beauty into your daily skincare regime, you need to make sure your DIY recipes or formulas are safe.
It is important to keep yourself and your DIY skincare portions safe. There are a few things you will need to take note before you get started whisking up your skincare and haircare using what available in your kitchen.
1. Unpreserved Beauty Products Have A Short Shelf Life
Without the chemical preservatives that are found in store-bought beauty items, our homemade beauty products are at risk for growing bacteria. It is entirely fine to make your own, own beauty products without preservatives, but you need to know these homemade beauty products have a very short shelf life, usually a couple of days. Any unpreserved water or plant-based DIY recipe does not have a shelf life of more than two days. Make sure you do not keep water or plant-based DIY beauty products any longer than that, as they will attract microbial growth. Make a single or small batch, not more than what you can finish.
2. Avoid Using Water Or Plant-Based DIY Recipe If You Want To Go For Preservatives Free
DIY recipes using water or plant-based includes recipes made with flower waters, teas, herbal infusions and aloe vera gel. Any product that contains water NEED preservatives. Anhydrous products (or non-aqueous products, i.e., those that don’t contain water) are not susceptible to microbiological proliferation so are more preferred choices as they do not provide conditions under which bacteria, yeast, and fungus will breed and therefore in most circumstances they do not need a preservative. These are oil based products made of vegetable oils, butter and waxes, i.e., body and facial oils, massage oil, balms, salves, oil-based body butter, lotion bars and massage bars.
3. It is Best To Refrigerate Your Unpreserved DIY Beauty Products
The commercial beauty products have preservatives and can store safely at room temperature. But this is not the case for DIY beauty products, especially the recipes involved using food. These homemade beauty products need to be kept fresh and cool, much like fresh food. The risk of using preservatives in your products is far less than the risk of not using them. You need to know Vitamin E, rosemary extract, tincture of benzoin and grapefruit seed extract are NOT preservatives. Without preservatives, refrigerator storage is recommended, and it is best to finish using in a single batch or not longer than a couple of days. If anything smells funny, it is best to stop using and discard.
4. Be Careful With Essential Oils
You can easily find hundreds of aromatherapy skincare recipes online. Essential oils are amazing ingredients to use and add to your daily skincare regime or homemade skincare. However, essentials oils contain potent chemical compounds in plants so when using essential oils; you need to be extra cautious. Never attempt to use them neat on the skin as they can cause sensation and irritation when they are not diluted. Always dilute your essential oils in a carrier oil also known as vegetable oil, e.g., olive oil, almond oil, etc. Make sure you do your research to ensure it is safe if you are using a high percentage of essential oils in any recipes. Certain essential oils are photosensitive which can make your skin more sensitive or burn under the sun when exposure to sum after application.
5. It Is A Bad Idea To DIY Sun Protection
Do not try to make your own suncare or sunscreen as it is difficult to achieve a good verifiable Sun Protection Factor (SPF) with a DIY recipe. It is challenging and complicated making your sunscreen as a common ingredient such as zinc oxide tends to clump, this means that you may not even achieve any sunscreen lotion that contains enough SPF or too little which may not shield you from harmful UV rays. It also a common misunderstanding that certain plant oils or essential oils provide some SPF. You can end up causing damage to your skin trying to make your sun care. More importantly, a sunscreen requires rigorous, and consumer testing so in an attempt of trying to make your own is not a good idea.
6. Keep Your DIY Beauty Clean And Avoid Light
Bacteria love the wet environment, so when DIY-ing your skincare products make sure you mix your ingredients in a dry, and clean environment. Avoid direct sunlight, heat, moisture, and bacteria from your fingers. You can minimize contamination by choosing your packaging carefully, for instance, dispensing bottles are better than open mouth jars. Keep your products in the dark containers or in dark cabinets to avoid light.
Even you are passionate about creating natural, effective and safe products; you need to educate yourself. Therefore, it is essential to know the fundamentals and important facts when creating your homemade natural skin care products.
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Making Your Own Foaming Facial Wash
Beauty Facial Masks You Can Make At Home
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