Warm Vanilla Sugar Scrub

This brown sugar scrub smells absolutely amazing!  It's definitely the perfect treat for skin that's begging to be pampered.  Not only is it a wonderful exfoliant, but thanks to the coconut oil included in this recipe, it's very moisturising to the skin as well.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups of brown or raw sugar

6-8 tablespoons of organic unrefined coconut oil (can use other oils if preferred such as olive, Argan, almond...)

15-20 drops of vanilla essential oil (may be substituted with vanilla fragrance)

Directions:

If your coconut oil is solid at room temperature, briefly warm just enough to aid in the melting the process.  Then in a small bowl combine your coconut oil and brown sugar, blending well enough to eliminate any lumps.  Then add your vanilla essential oil to the mixture drop by drop, being sure to blend mix after each addition.  Once mixed, scrub should be placed in an airtight container and used within six months.  Apply your scrub to pre-moistened skin, being sure to massage it in using circular motions.

Homemade Natural Fake Tan

Tried and tested I love this Recipe. Tea or coffee? nooo I'm not offering you a drink. This is the main ingredient in our fabulous fake tan recipe. The choice of which is entirely up to you. I found the coffee gave a deeper richer tan. However it also smelt very strong... the tea was more gradual. Just like our teeth our skin can be stained through the likes of tea and coffee.

Coffee is usually associated with waking people up in the morning, but it can also perk up your skin. According to Livestrong The caffeine in tea and coffee has a number of benefits for your skin, from treating redness and inflammation, to reducing the appearance of under-eye circles, to getting rid of cellulite. By incorporating caffeine into your skin care routine, you can reveal evenly toned, smooth skin all over your body.

In a 2008 study performed at the University of São Paulo, researchers found that an application of skin cream containing caffeine to cellulite reduced the size of cellulite fat cells by 17 percent. In addition, a 2007 study performed at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro found that caffeine cream applied to cellulite decreased the hip's diameter in almost 70 percent of participants. A number of anti-cellulite creams have been developed to reduce the appearance of cellulite, or you can take advantage of the power of caffeine by adding ground or instant coffee to your regular body scrub at home. or in this case applying it as a gradual tanning agent.


Now the easy way to do this is to either brew a few tea bags 4-6 or 4 heaped spoons of coffee. leave for 10-15 mins until cool enough to use. You can apply it directly to the skin...

However I've tried a far better yet slightly more complex recipe...and its amazing...

you will need...

1 carrot
4-6 tea bags or 4 -6 heaped coffee granules
oil of your choice (i used olive oil and flaxseed oil but you could use coconut, almond or any of your choice)
optional...orange rind (contains vitamin c and essential oil) and cocoa powder for darker colour.

• Start by dicing the carrot and boiling in a saucepan. let the carrots really cook so all the goodness penetrates the water. 
• Add your tea bags or coffee (be careful not to rip the tea bags.) 
• leave to simmer for 10 minutes
• add your oils
• and last add a spoonful of cocoa and some orange rind.
• sieve out the carrots, tea bags and orange rinds. 
• leave to stand for 10-15minutes

In the meantime, take a shower to ensure your skin is oil- and sweat-free. Afterwards, make sure skin is completely dry.

Stand on something you don’t mind getting dirty. If using a sponge, drench it in the mixture and wipe all over your body. If using a spray bottle, fill it with tea and spray evenly. Let skin air-dry and apply another coat for a deeper shade.

Tea and coffee will stain clothes if wet, so make sure you’re all dry before dressing. The “tan” should last 3-4 days.

And guys remember to tan responsibly you don't want to end up looking like this

Homemade Facial Scrubs

Exfoliation helps to stimulate and nourish the skin and is effective in removing dead and dull skin. There are many face scrubs available in stores, but it’s not necessary to waste money in buying them as you can easily prepare scrubs at your home by using simple stuff from your kitchen. Homemade face scrubs are cheaper, do not contains chemicals and safe to use every day. So try these recipes to prepare homemade face scrubs and get glowing and beautiful skin.

Rice flour + Baking soda scrub:

Ingredients:

• Take 3 teaspoon of rice flour
• A pinch of baking soda

Mix both the ingredients well and apply on the face in circular motion for 2 to 3 minutes. Then leave it for around 5 minutes on face and then wash with water. This scrub helps to remove dead and dull skin and adds a nice glow to your face. This face scrub is good for oily to combination skin. 

Walnut and apple cider vinegar scrub:

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon organic honey organic Honey
• 1 teaspoon finely ground Almonds
• 1 teaspoon finely ground walnuts
• ½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice)

Mix all the ingredients and apply on face for 10 min, then by gently scrubbing it wash your face with water. This face scrub helps to deliver lustrous to dry and dull skin.

Sea Salt face scrub:

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon of sea salt
• ½ tablespoon of any nourishing cream (or almond oil)

Mix both the ingredients and apply on face and gently massage in upward circular motion to exfoliate the dead skin and then leave it for 2 minutes on face, then rinse off with water. This scrub is good for dry to normal skin.

Aspirin face scrub:

Ingredients:

• 4-5 un-coated aspirin
• 2 teaspoon raw honey

Crush aspirin(it contains salicylic acid removes dead skin) and add honey in to it and make a paste; if required add some water. Apply the paste on face and then gently massage in circular motion, then leave the paste for 10-15 minutes on face and then wash with water. This face scrub is for oily to combination skin. Moisturize the skin well after scrubbing.

Oatmeal + Cinnamon face scrub:

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon dark Brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon Oatmeal flour
• 1 tablespoon  milk
• 1/2 teaspoon Almond oil
• Pinch of cinnamon

Mix all the ingredients and make a paste; massage it gently in circular motions onto your clean face. Leave it for 10 minutes and then wash your face with cold water.  Moisturize the skin well after scrubbing. For all skin types.

Wheat flour + Extra verging olive oil face scrub:

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon of wheat floor
• ½ teaspoon of turmeric
• 1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil (or sesame oil or any other oil of your choice)
• ½ teaspoon of lemon juice

Make a paste of all these ingredients and gently massage this paste on face, then leave it for 8-10 min and when it start drying out then gently scrub away the paste and wash with cold water. It adds removes the dull skin and add a nice glow. For all skin types.

Sea Salt + Lemon + Honey Scrub:

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoon of sea salt
• 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon of honey

Take all the ingredients and make paste and then apply it on the clean face by gently massaging in circular for 2-3 minutes and then leave it on face for 5-10 min and then wash with water. Suits all skin type.

Green Tea face scrub:

Ingredients:

• 3 teaspoon green tea
• 2 teaspoon of brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon of nourishing cream

Mix all these ingredients and then apply on face leave it for 10-12 minutes and then by gently scrubbing it in circular motion remove all paste and then wash with cold water. Good for dry to normal skin and combination skin.

Almond face scrub for dry to normal skin:

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoon  finely ground Almonds
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh milk cream (or Shea butter)

Mix all ingredients and apply a paste by gently massaging in circular motion for 2-3 minutes and then leave it for 10 minutes after that rinse with cold water. This face scrub works wonders for dry and normal skin and leaves skin clean and soft.

Epsom salt face scrub:

Ingredients:

• 3 teaspoon of Epsom salt
• 4 teaspoon of almond oil (or jojoba, avocado or sesame oil or any other oil which suits your skin)
• ½ teaspoon of lavender oil (or any other aromatic oil)

Add Epsom salt in to almond oil, add lavender oil for aroma, leave the infusion for 10 minutes or until all the salt gets completely dissolve in to the oil. Gently apply the infusion on your face and do massage the scrub for 4 minutes and then leave it for 2-4 minutes and then wash with water. Epsom salt face scrub gives great looking and glowing skin.

Sunflower seed face scrub for dry skin:

Ingredients:

• 3 teaspoon sunflower seed, finely crushed
• 1 teaspoon of avocado oil
• 1 teaspoon of hot mineral water

Mix all the ingredients and then gently apply it on face and when it begins to dry, gently start massaging in upward circular motion and then wash with water. Nourish your skin well after scrubbing. This face scrub works great for dry skin.

Brown sugar + Honey face scrub:

Ingredients:

• 3 teaspoon of brown sugar
• 2 teaspoon of honey

Mix all the ingredients well and then apply it on face by gently massaging and then left it on your face for 8-10 minutes. Wash off the face with water. It is simple yet effective face scrub to make at home. For all skin types.

Walnut + Yogurt face scrub for glowing skin:

Ingredients:

• 3 teaspoon of powdered walnut
• 2 teaspoon of yogurt
• ½ teaspoon of lemon juice

Add yogurt in crushed walnut and then add lemon juice, apply it on face for 10-15 min and then washed off. This scrub wills your skin glow.

Exfoliation is a very essential part of our skin care routine, it helps to get us rid of dead and dull looking skin and adds a nice glow to the skin; but over doing anything is always harmful. After all this is our skin and we have to live it our whole life, so we should be very cautious while setting the frequency of face scrub.  Also always avoid scrubbing the sensitive skin under eyes. So, try these recipes of homemade face scrubs and flaunt the glowing skin.

 http://www.makeupbeautyetc.com/index.php/makeup-and-beauty/beauty-secrets/skin-care/item/126-homemade-face-scrubs.html

Homemade Lip and Cheek Tint

To make this you will need:

• Rose water
• Red food colouring (powder form – available in all good supermarkets)
• An easily sealable tub – ideally a travel shampoo bottle or similar       

    

You start with the rose water, about 15ml of it is a good start, then you simply add as much food colouring as you need – that’s basically it!  Obviously start very gradually, with a pin prick amount.  A little of the food colouring goes a very long way with this. 

For the full tint effect you need add the colouring until you achieve deep, blood red colour. 

                 

Now you may be thinking, how can I put food colouring on my face?  

My view is, if it’s good enough to put inside your body, surely it should be good enough to put on your skin.  And no, you won’t be stained for life.  

But like most tints it won’t be washed away with water alone, you need to get the cleanser or makeup remover on it.  

 To me this is a good thing, as often blusher is the first thing to slide off your face when you’re having a makeup meltdown.        

  

The trick with this is to apply really sparingly.  While most tints advise you to use three brush strokes, the homemade version only requires one dot of colour.  Anymore, and you may look like a Punch and Judy puppet!    

The beauty of keeping the homemade tint in a flip top bottle (the one I used contained a shampoo), is that you can control how much or little you use by applying gradually.

Overall, the homemade tint has exactly the same effect as the original versions, Benetint made by benefit sets you back around £23.  This handy mixture has the same deep colour as Benefit’s version, and lasts just as long.  Also, like Benetint, you’re left with a lovely finger stain after using!        

I would definitely recommend giving this a try, you’ll be impressed with the results. 

Coconut oil...You need this in your life

Health Benefits of Coconut Oil

I was introduced to the benefits of coconut oil in 2012 via Pintrest. It was love at first use and I've since religiously used coconut oil day in and day out for a variety of things. It leaves my skin smooth and soft and smells divine. My hair has never been in better condition and I've waved good bye to those dreaded split ends. I also use it in the kitchen as an alternative to butter and oil. Needless to stay I'm in love with the stuff. In the article below you will be able to read in further depth the beauty and health benefits of raw unrefined coconut oil. Enjoy...

The health benefits of coconut oil include hair care, skin care, stress relief, maintaining cholesterol levels, weight loss, increased immunity, proper digestion and metabolism, relief from kidney problems, heart diseases, high blood pressure, diabetes, HIV and cancer, dental care, and bone strength. These benefits of oil can be attributed to the presence of lauric acid, capric acid and caprylic acid, and its properties such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, antifungal, antibacterial and soothing properties.

Coconut oil is used extensively in tropical countries especially India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Phillipines etc, which have a good production of coconut oil. The oil was also once popular in western countries such asUnited States and Canada; however, there was a strong propaganda in 1970s spread by the corn oil and soy oil industry against coconut oil. Coconut oil was considered harmful for the human body due to its high saturated fat content till the last decade (2000s) when people started questioning this. Let us get into some details of how coconut oil works for our body.  

How is Lauric Acid used by our body?

The human body converts lauric acid into monolaurin which is claimed to help in dealing with viruses and bacteria causing diseases such as herpes, influenza, cytomegalovirus, and even HIV. It helps in fighting harmful bacteria such as listeria monocytogenes and helicobacter pylori, and harmful protozoa such as giardia lamblia. As a result of these various health benefits of coconut oil, though its exact mechanism of action was unknown, it has been extensively used in Ayurveda, the traditional Indian medicinal system. The Coconut Research Center has compiled various benefits in both traditional and modern medicine.

Before we move on to the benefits of coconut oil in detail, let us understand its composition.

Composition of Coconut Oil:

Coconut oil consists of more than ninety percent of saturated fats (Don’t panic! First read to the last word. Your opinion may change), with traces of few unsaturated fatty acids, such as monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Virgin coconut oil is no different from this. Let us have a bit detailed study of this..

• Saturated fatty acids: Most of them are medium chain triglycerides, which are supposed to assimilate well. Lauric acid is the chief contributor, with more than forty percent of the share, followed by capric acid, caprylic acid, myristic acid and palmitic.
• Polyunsaturated fatty acids: Linoleic acid.
• Monounsaturated fatty acids: Oleic acid.
• Poly-phenols: Coconut contains gallic acid, which is phenolic acid. These poly-phenols are supposed to be responsible for the fragrance and the taste of coconut oil and Virgin Coconut Oil is rich in these poly-phenols.
• Certain derivatives of fatty acid like betaines, ethanolamide, ethoxylates, fatty esters, fatty polysorbates, monoglycerides and polyol esters.
• Fatty chlorides, fatty alcohol sulphate and fatty alcohol ether sulphate, all of which are derivatives of fatty alcohols.
• Vitamin-E and Vitamin K and minerals such as Iron.

Health Benefits of Coconut Oil

Let us now explore the benefits of coconut oil in detail:

Hair Care:

Coconut oil is one of the best natural nutrition for hair. It helps in healthy growth of hair providing them a shiny complexion. It is effective in reducing the protein loss for damaged and undamaged hair.

Coconut oil is extensively used in the Indian sub-continent for hair care. Most of the people in these countries apply coconut oil on their hair daily after bath. It is an excellent conditioner and helps in the re-growth of damaged hair. It also provides the essential proteins required for nourishing damaged hair. Research study indicates that coconut oil provides better protection to hair from damage caused by hygral fatigue.

Regular head massage with coconut oil ensures that your scalp is free of dandruff, even if your scalp is dry. It also helps in keeping hair and scalp free from lice and lice eggs.

It is therefore used as hair care oil and used in manufacturing various conditioners, and dandruff relief creams. Coconut oil is normally applied topically for hair care.

Skin Care:

Coconut oil is excellent massage oil for the skin as well. It acts as an effective moisturizer on all types of skins including dry skin. The benefit of coconut oil on the skin is comparable to that of mineral oil. Further, unlike mineral oil, there is no chance of having any adverse side effects on the skin with the application of coconut oil. Coconut oil therefore is a safe solution for preventing dryness and flaking of skin. It also delays wrinkles, and sagging of skin which normally become prominent with age. Coconut oil also helps in treating various skin problems including psoriasis, dermatitis, eczema and other skin infections. Therefore coconut oil forms the basic ingredient of various body care products such as soaps, lotions, creams, etc., used for skin care. Coconut oil also helps in preventing premature ageing and degenerative diseases due to its antioxidant properties.

Heart Diseases:

There is a misconception spread among many people that coconut oil is not good for the heart. This is because it contains a large quantity of saturated fats. However, coconut oil is beneficial for the heart. It contains about 50% lauric acid, which helps in preventing various heart problems including high cholesterol levels and high blood pressure. The saturated fats present in coconut oil are not harmful as it happens in case of other vegetables oils. It does not lead to increase in LDL levels. It also reduces the incidence of injury in arteries and therefore helps in preventing atherosclerosis.

Weight Loss

Coconut oil is very useful in reducing weight. It contains short and medium-chain fatty acids that help in taking off excessive weight. It is also easy to digest and it helps in healthy functioning of the thyroid and enzymes systems. Further, it increases the body metabolism by removing stress on pancreases, thereby burning out more energy and helping obese and overweight people reduce their weight. Hence, people living in tropical coastal areas, who eat coconut oil daily as their primary cooking oil, are normally not fat, obese or overweight.

Digestion

Internal use of coconut oil occurs primarily as cooking oil. Coconut oil helps in improving the digestive system and thus prevents various stomach and digestion related problems including irritable bowel syndrome. The saturated fats present in coconut oil have anti microbial properties and help in dealing with various bacteria, fungi, parasites, etc., that cause indigestion. Coconut oil also helps in absorption of other nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and amino acids.

Immunity:

Coconut oil is also good for the immune system. It strengthens the immune system as it contains antimicrobial lipids, lauric acid, capric acid and caprylic acid which have antifungal, antibacterial and antiviral properties. The human body converts lauric acid into monolaurin which is claimed to help in dealing with viruses and bacteria causing diseases such as herpes, influenza, cytomegalovirus, and even HIV. It helps in fighting harmful bacteria such as listeria monocytogenes and heliobacter pylori, and harmful protozoa such as giardia lamblia.

Healing and Infections

When applied on infections, it forms a chemical layer which protects the infected body part from externaldust, air, fungi, bacteria and virus. Coconut oil is most effective on bruises as it speeds up the healing process by repairing damaged tissues.

Infections: Coconut oil is very effective against a variety of infections due to its antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial properties. According to the Coconut Research Center, coconut oil kills viruses that cause influenza, measles, hepatitis, herpes, SARS, etc. It also kills bacteria that cause ulcers, throat infections, urinary tract infections, pneumonia, and gonorrhoea  etc. Coconut oil is also effective on fungi and yeast that cause candidiasis, ringworm, athlete's foot, thrush, diaper rash, etc.

Other:

Coconut oil is strongly recommended for other benefits which are given below. Usage of coconut oils mildly helps for the following:

Liver: The presence of medium chain triglycerides and fatty acids helps in preventing liver diseases as they substances are easily converted into energy when they reach the liver, thus reducing work load on the liver and also preventing accumulation of fat.

Kidney: Coconut oil helps in preventing kidney and gall bladder diseases. It also helps in dissolving kidney stones.

Pancreatitis: Coconut oil is also believed to be useful in treating pancreatitis.

Stress Relief: Coconut oil is very soothing and hence it helps in removing stress. Applying coconut oil to the head followed with a gentle massage helps in removing mental fatigue.

Diabetes: Coconut oil helps in controlling blood sugar, and improves the secretion of insulin. It also helps in effective utilization of blood glucose, thereby preventing and treating diabetes.

Bones: As mentioned earlier, coconut oil improves the ability of our body to absorb important minerals. These include calcium and 

magnesium which are necessary for development of bones. Thus coconut oil is very useful to women who are prone to osteoporosis after middle age.

Dental Care: Calcium is an important element present in teeth. Since coconut oil facilitates absorption of calcium by the body, it helps in getting strong teeth. Coconut oil also stops tooth decay.

HIV and Cancer: It is believed that coconut oil plays an instrumental role in reducing viral susceptibility of HIV and cancer patients. Preliminary research has shown indications of the effect of coconut oil on reducing the viral load of HIV patients (Reference).

Finally, coconut oil is often preferred by athletes and body builders and by those who are dieting. The reason behind this being that coconut oil contains lesser calories than other oils, its fat content is easily converted into energy and it does not lead to accumulation of fat in the heart and arteries. Coconut oil helps in boosting energy and endurance, and enhances the performance of athletes.

Coconut Oil and Alzheimer's Disease: There are reports of  research conducted by Dr. Newport stating that coconut oil is useful for treating Alzheimer's disease. Apart from this there is no scientific evidence or traditional knowledge or coconut oil being used for treating Alzheimer's. It was also not known traditionally that coconut oil helps in the brain function. 

Why is Coconut Oil Solid?: Unlike most other oils, coconut oil has a high melting point - about 24 to 25 degrees Celsius or 76-78 Fahrenheit  Therefore it is solid at room temperature and melts only when the temperatures go high. Hence, if you buy a bottle of coconut oil and find it solid, don't think that there is some problem with it. Coconut oil is like this only. And of course, don't keep it in your refrigerator.

How to Use Coconut Oil?: If you are using coconut oil for topical purposes, especially hair care, just melt the oil (if it is solid) by keeping the bottle in the sun or warm water. You can also take some coconut oil out and put it in a small bowl and heat the bowl over a flame (do not use microwave). Then take the oil on your palm and apply it to your hair. If you want to use it for internal consumption, simply replace butter or vegetable oils with coconut oil in your recipes. Remember, you need not switch to coconut oil completely, as you will miss the benefits of other oils and dairy products.

http://www.organicfacts.net/organic-oils/organic-coconut-oil/health-benefits-of-coconut-oil.html