DIY: FACE SERUM WITH LAVENDER AND ROSEMARY
- Jan 5, 2015
- 2 min read
Photos by Morgan Brinlee
As discussed in my last post, carrier oils are used to deliver the maximum benefit of essential oils to your skin. For this face serum, I used prickly pear cactus seed oil (what a mouth full) that I sourced from Morocco, and then added lavender and rosemary essential oils, which are good for normal, oily and irritated skin. Prickly pear seed cactus oil is not easily found in Turkey. The plant is native to here, but the Turks have not caught on to extracting the oil, bottling and selling it. With good reason, too. This oil is one of the most labor intensive and dangerous oils to source, which is why it is often expensive and hard to find. If you can’t find prickly pear cactus seed oil near you, or don’t want to spend the money, I give some suggestions below on which carrier oils to use for your skin type. You can also experiment with different essential oils. I used lavender and rosemary because they work for my skin, and I had a new rosemary oil I wanted to try out.
Also, I know what you may be thinking: “You want me to put what on my face?” The idea of slathering oil on your face can be scary to some, especially those with already oily or acne prone skin. Hear me out, though. Oil is not bad for your skin. Granted, you don’t want to slap any old oil on your face, but oil actually protects your skin. Chances are, if you have been using conventional beauty products all your life, these may be the culprits behind your inflamed and oily skin. These products strip skin of natural oils, often times causing skin to produce more oil to compensate, and they use harsh chemicals which can irritate and inflame the skin.
Using a natural face serum, instead of a toxic moisturizer, is one of the simplest changes you can make to your skin care routine. Check out the easy instructions below:
For any size bottle (I used an old, glass 2 oz jar with a dropper), fill it half way with your carrier oil.
Next add your essential oils, I used a 30 drop combination of lavender and rosemary. You can add up to 45 drops, depending on your scent preference and bottle size.
Add the rest of your carrier oil until the bottle is almost full.
Shake and let set 24 hours for the oils to meld.
Here are some suggestions on different carrier oils to use depending on skin type:
Normal - Almond, Hazelnut and Apricot Kernel
Oily - Almond, Grape seed and Apricot Kernel
Dry - Coconut, Avocado, Olive and Apricot Kernel
Mature/ Anti-aging - Prickly pear seed, Rose hip seed and Apricot Kernel
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