Urban Herbalism: Simple Facial Care in Pretty Jars

I happen to have the most sensitive and confused Irish skin imaginable. By sensitive, I mean it has reacted to things as benign as organic lotion, it has gotten sunburn in March, it regularly gets rashes from things I only smell and never touch.... see? By confused I mean it is oily and dry, dry and then oily, then pimply, then oily.... ah, this life of confusion.

So with its resistance to products, and my resistance to over-branding my life, but its definite neediness I endeavored to create beauty products that would work for me, using herbs I know work mixed with home products I already have. Since using these, I have noticed (when I actually do use them) that my skin is clearer, my mouth feels so clean, and my stenchiness is in general less noticable. Give it a try.

Here's the process:

Step One! Find the coolest possible jars.
These are vintage jars from farmer friends in Iowa.

Step Two! Fill with herbs for what you need. Mine has:
Lavender- for the scent and antibiotic properties
Tea Leaves- for it is where tea tree oil comes
Chamomile- also a mild disinfectant
Echinacea- you see where this is going right?
I did this for three jars.
To another three I added peppermint to the mix.
You can use the essential oils too, but I love handling actual herbs.

Step Three! Fill various jars with various other things.
Baking soda creates an exfoliant.
In peppermint, its a literal tooth paste.
Vinegar makes a lovely astringent. (ACV)
Whiskey and water w. peppermint is mouthwash.
Cornstarch and baking soda make a great deodorant/powder/dry shampoo.
Jojoba oils makes a moisturizer.
Sea Salt or Epsom Salt is a bath salt- add jojoba and its a bath scrub.
Then shake em for a week or two.
Next step is usage!