Natural Ingredients for Skin Care

This is no where near extensive but a small list of the most common used and available skin care ingredients for creating your own personal care products or using alone in your skin care regimen.

• Almond, sweet - great for all skin types as an acting emollient and is best known for its ability to soften, soothe, and re-condition the skin

• Apricot kernal - light emollient excellent for most skin types as well as for sensitive and prematurely aged skin.

• Avocado - contains high amounts of Vitamin A, B1, B2, D, and E; also contains amino acids, sterols, pantothenic acid, lecithin, and other essential fatty acids; perfect for those with skin problems such as eczema, psoriasis, and other skin ailments.

• Coconut - this is my favorite oil and will be getting its own post in the future but for skin care this oil is anti-bacterial and anti-fungal which makes it great for treating skin infections and can hold its own as a deodorant (applied several times a day mind you). Coconut oil is extremely nourishing and conditioning for all skin types and is also wonderful for hair. *Coconut oil is hard at room temperature, don't get it confused with the refined liquid oil.

• Grapeseed - makes a great massage and bath oil because it is light and non-greasy, because of it's "non-oily" properties it is quickly absorbed into the skin and leaves no residue or odor; also emollient, nonallergenic and good for mature skin, delicate eye and throat areas as well as blemished skin.

• Lanolin - because this is the protective oil found on the wool of sheep, it is most like our own skin and therefore one of the best moisturizers for human skin; because lanolin is very rich and thick only a small amount is needed for results.

• Olive - this is the universal oil that can be used for body care, hair care and the kitchen; has a great conditioning effect in body care recipes and one of my favorites due to its stable nature, allowing for a longer shelf life than the other oils.

• Jojoba - excellent conditioner for hair, scalp, skin and nails; good for all skin types.

• Rose hip seed oil - high in fatty acids, ideal for mature skin, prevents and softens wrinkles, rejuvenates, softens, and heal skin damaged by stretch marks, scars and weather. Not for use on oily or acne prone skin.

For a more extensive list of oils, their properties and where you can purchase them visit Mountain Rose Herbs oil page.

• Cocoa - adds a rich, creamy and thick consistency to body care products that reduces dryness and improves skin elasticity, if that's not enough it smells just like a dark chocolate bar, mmmm.

• Mango - from the seed kernel of the Mango tree, has beneficial moisturizing properties for lotions and acts as a mild lubricant for the skin, very similar in color and texture as cocoa butter but without the cocoa smell; great source of essential fatty acids.

• Shea - derived from the shea nut found inside the karite tree; great moisturizing properties that are also know to improve the appearance of scars, stretch marks, burns and rashes; a soft butter, easily spoonable unlike the other butters that need to be cut or chipped away at.

• Kokum butter - derived from the garcinia tree; a thick and rich butter that is dry and flaky so best used with other butters and oils to create rich skin care products. I like to use it in heel balm for thicker, tougher skin areas.

This list could go on forever but these are the most well known and used food products for skin care.

• Almonds (almond meal) - rich in protein, zinc, potassium, iron, B vitamins, and magnesium; emollient, bleaching and exfoliant; almonds are great for acne prone skin.

• Carrots - these can be taken internally and used externally for radiant skin; the high level of beta-carotene acts as an antioxidant to cell damage and slows down the aging of cells; beta-carotene converts to vitamin A when taken internally which protects the skin from sun damage; deficiencies of vitamin A cause dryness to the skin, hair and nails, vitamin A prevents premature wrinkling, acne, dry skin, pigmentation, blemishes, and uneven skin tone.

• Cornmeal - natural exfoliant

• Cucumber - mildly astringent, soothing, removes dead skin cells

• Lemon - strong astringent, invigorating, disinfectant, bleaching to skin and hair, restores natural pH level, softens and lightens rough dark skin, skin cancer fighting

• Oats - soothing, great base for scrubs and masks, relieves itching, irritated skin, good for rashes, dry, and sensitive skin

• Orange - emollient and soothing, good toner for dry sensitive skin, good for broken capillaries

• Raw Honey - replenishing and full of natural antibiotic and antiseptic properties as well as softening and moisturizing the skin; makes the best face mask.

• Rice -

This list could get pretty long as well so I will only include a few of my favorite skin care herbs.

• Calendula - dubbed by me as the "skin care" herb

• Chamomile -

• Comfrey - soothes and heals damaged skin tissue

• Lavender - soothing and healing to the skin

• Plantain - astringent used to pull toxins and impurities out of the skin

• Rose Petals - cooling, anti-inflammatory, all-around beauty treatment herb, skin healing and rejuvenating

• Rosemary - stimulates circulation, used for hundreds of years to benefit the skin and especially the hair

• Aloe Vera liquid (or gel from the plant) - contains polysaccharides that protect against non-melanoma type skin cancers and prevent premature aging; does not prevent sunburn but can prevent the damage the sun can do to the skin; absorbs into the skin almost four times faster than water, making it an excellent moisturizer; antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and soothing; prevent scars, helps combat acne, improves skin elasticity preventing wrinkles.

• Glycerine - natural emollient that adds a cooling effect, retains moisture and is helpful in pulling oxygen into the skin.

• Redmond Clay - strong pulling capacity, which helps draw bacteria and toxins out of the skin, making it a great face mask for acne and blemish prone skin; Redmond has a unique blend of calcium and sodium making it a "use for all purposes" clay.

• Sea Salt - mineral rich, exfoliating, softens skin

• Vitamin E Oil - aids in the prevention of scar tissue from burns, cuts and sore; anti-aging, good for all skin types, acts as a preservative in body care products and prevent rancidity.

• Witch Hazel - astringent and cleansing, used to heal all types of skin conditions and problems, including inflammation and sunburns. (Most store brands are more alcohol than witch hazel so read ingredients, I get mine from Mountain Rose Herbs which is a true witch hazel extract.)

Acne Prone Skin Oils

• melaleuca

• geranium

• vetiver

• sandalwood

• patchouli

• lavender

• German & Roman chamomile

• cedarwood

• eucalyptus

• peppermint

• rosemary

• lemon

• orange

• cypress

Wrinkles & Aging Oils

• frankincense

• myrrh

• vetiver

• rose

• geranium

• palmarosa

• spikenard

• lavender

• helichrysum

• patchouli

• cypress

• tangerine

• sandalwood

Dry, Chapped, Skin

• neroli

• rose

• cedarwood

• Roman chamomile

• palmarosa

• geranium

• lavender

• spikenard

• myrrh

• sandalwood