Anti-Aging Kitchen Cosmetics

I’ve been getting some pushback from blog visitors who are getting annoyed with the price tag on the  products and techniques I am recommending– and they’re right.

This is no time to throw money around.  To lower  overall beauty costs, effective and super affordable personal care products  can be  made  in your own kitchen.  Natural ingredients like lemon juice, honey and oatmeal are packed with active agents including fruit acids, antioxidants and soothing colloids. 

But before you squeeze a  single lemon or crack an egg,  you need to organize your kitchen cosmetic set-up. While the basic rules of simple cooking apply to homemade skin care formulations, these freshly made products are preservative free.  This  definately lowers  our exposure to chemicals, but  it can raise  risk of bacterial contamination.  To stay safe take these prep rules seriously:

Kitchen Cosmetics Road Rules

* Wash down your work area with a disinfectant wipe and dry with a disposable paper towel.

* Wash hands with soap and water.

* Wash your work bowls, measuring spoons and cups, stirring spoons and jars for storage in  a diswasher or boil for 5 minutes in a large pot of water.

* Wash all fresh fruits and veggies in hot water before using in beauty care products.

* Store your homemade products  in clean jar with a tight lid and keep in the frig.

* Label and date all jars.

* Don’t dip your fingers in the jar.  Use a spoon or butter knife to take out what you need.

* Check the date on any product before you use it.

* Discard within a week.

Here are two of my favorite all natural skin care produts:

Creamy Milk Mask for Dry Skin

Ingredients:  1 tablespoon organic yogurt or buttermilk, 1 tablespoon powdered  milk, 4 drops of olive oil

Steps:  Combine all ingredients.  Apply to the face and  allow  masks to dry and harden for 20 minutes.  Rinse off with cool water.

The yogurt, powdered milk or buttermilk are rich in lactic  acid  that can exfoliate the top layer of dead skin cells and encourage growth of healthy  fresh skin.

Roman Nail Soak

Ingredients:  1 cup crushed organic tomates, 2 teaspoon olive oil, 2 teaspoons white wine ( but  no garlic)

Steps:  Combine all ingredients.  Divide mixture into two small bowls and soak nails for 20  minutes.  Rinse off, rubbing cuticles with a dry washcloth. 

The tomates are a great source of  lactic acid AND vitamin C  which is a powerful antioxidant and essential for healthy collagen.