Make your own facial lotion and toner

Camy here! And just to warn you, today’s post is yet another piece or randomness.

So I’m in pre-menopause. It’s a little early for me, but they say that if you don’t have children, you tend to go into menopause earlier, so there it is.

The problem is that pre-menopause is a bit like puberty, with massive skin problems. I haven’t had this many zits since sixth grade!

Another couple problems is that I’ve found that a) the old facial lotions I’ve been using have lead and other toxic things in them, and I’d rather not put that on my face, and b) my skin has become more sensitive as I age, so I can’t put just anything on my face or I break out even more!

So I started making my own toners and facial lotions because I can buy organic stuff and not have to worry about chemicals playing havoc with my over-excited menopause hormones and causing excessive Crater Face.

For toner, I’ve just been using plain old witch hazel solution, sometimes with a little bit of rose essential oil dropped in for a nice smell. You can actually use any essential oil you want. I bought my witch hazel at Target because it’s witch hazel, alcohol, and nothing else (no added parabens, which I’m sensitive to).

For facial lotion, since I’ve got a pretty obvious T-zone, I only put a tiny bit on my cheeks to keep the skin from getting dry and I leave my T-zone alone (after just putting toner to even it out a bit). I’ve been using this facial oil recipe:

Beautiful Oil

I bought my essential oils and the jojoba and grapeseed oils (organic) on Amazon.com and you can also get them on Etsy.com. The oil is super easy to make and I put it in a dropper bottle (also bought on Amazon.com). I use one drop and just rub it onto my cheeks.

There’s also ready-made organic toners and facial lotions on Etsy.com if you don’t want to make your own.

I’ve been feeling a bit better since I started using my own facial toner and lotion, at least I have fewer breakouts. What do you use that’s worked for you?

Camy Tang writes romance with a kick of wasabi. Out now is the fourth book in her Sushi series, Weddings and Wasabi. She is a staff worker for her church youth group, and leads one of the worship teams for Sunday service. On her blog, she ponders frivolous things like knitting, running, dogs, and Asiana. Visit her website to sign up for her quarterly newsletter.

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