Body Powder

If you're anything like me, you grew up playing with your grandmother's beauty supplies. Spraying her perfume, trying on her lipstick, and having all kinds of mischievous fun with your grandma's stuff. I have fond memories of doing all of this. But one of my favorite things was her powder. I didn't know why she used it, but it always smelled soft and floral.

As an adult, I came across several deodorant powder and/or foot powder recipes. It wasn't until I started really taking a look at them that I realized what my grandmother's powder was for. Body powder is awesome. It helps to keep you feeling fresh even in the hot summer months in Florida. Think of it as a dry deodorant that you can use anywhere. Anywhere on or off your body, where funky smells tend to accumulate. You can use it on your thighs to keep them from chaffing during your workout routine, you can dust your feet before putting on your shoes to keep the foot odor to a minimum, you can lightly dust your entire body after a shower to help you feel fresh and smell great, you can even lightly dust your gym bag to help keep your workout clothes smelling fresh. There are so many uses for body powder. I also use my home made body powder as a base for some of my home made makeup. Just add a few colorants to your body powder and you have a loose blush, shadow, or foundation.

Most body powders you find commercially are made with talc. Talc has been linked to several instances of cancer. Using caution with talc is a good idea. Instead, I make my own body powders using arrowroot powder. However, you can use any of a variety of powders as your base.

The Base:

For your base you want to use an absorbent powder, particularly one that also has antibacterial properties and that is ultra fine and soft on your skin. Here are a few options that work pretty well. I prefer to use a combination of powders for my base. Some of my favorites include arrowroot, cornstarch (non-GMO), tapioca starch, rice flour, baking soda, kaolin clay, french green clay, betonite clay, or any of a variety of cosmetic clays.

Dried Herbs:

You can add ground herbs to your powders as well. These can help improve your skin, prevent acne, help heal wounds, and they smell lovely. Some of my favorite herbs to use include chamomile, lavender, calendula, rose, elder flower, peppermint, lemon balm, and jasmine flowers. Each one of these herbs has different properties, but all of them are known for helping improve the health of skin.

Essential Oils:

You can also add essential oils to your powder. They may cause clumping if not mixed well, but if you mix them well they can add more health benefits and a beautiful scent to your powder. Try lavender, jasmine, ylang ylang, frankincense, myrrh, and rose geranium. These oils are some of my favorites, but you can use any essential oil you'd like. Just keep in mind that some cause photosensitivity (making your skin sensitive to sunlight), and all essential oils are extremely strong and should always be diluted before use. An additional word of caution. Avoid using eucalyptus, rosemary, and camphor essential oils around people who have seizures, as well as young children and pets. I like to use around 10 drops of essential oils per 1 cup of powder for these recipes.

And here are some of my favorite recipes for body powder, starting with the super basic, unscented recipe, and going a bit more complicated. Enjoy!

Basic, Unscented Body Powder

1 cup Arrowroot Powder or Rice Flour

½ cup Cornstarch (non-GMO) or Tapioca Starch

Combine the ingredients in a bowl and whisk well.

Romantic Floral Powder

¾ cup Arrowroot Powder or Rice Flour

¼ cup Kaolin Clay

¼ cup Cornstarch (non-GMO) or Tapioca Starch

¼ cup French Green Clay

¼ cup each powdered Rose Petals and Calendula Petals

6 teaspoons powdered Lavender Buds

Combine the ingredients in a bowl and whisk well. If you need to grind your flowers and/or petals, a coffee bean grinder works really well. Just remember that you don't want to use the same one you use for your coffee or you'll have floral coffee.

Cooling Summer Powder

1 cup Arrowroot Powder or Rice Flour

½ cup Cornstarch (non-GMO) or Tapioca Starch

¼ cup Betonite Clay

6 teaspoons each powdered Mint Leaves, Calendula Petals, and Lemon Balm Leaves

5-10 drops each of Frankincense and Cypress Essential Oils

Combine the ingredients in a bowl and whisk well. If clumps form when you add the essential oils, just break them up with the whisk and mix a little longer. If you need to grind your flowers and/or petals, a coffee bean grinder works really well. Just remember that you don't want to use the same one you use for your coffee or you'll have floral coffee.

I hope you enjoy these body powder recipes. For more essential oil blend ideas, check out my previous entries, Herbal Home Fresheners for Spring and Car-Omatherapy. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below!

Summer Sunburn Relief

    If living in Florida has taught me one thing, it’s how to care for sunburns.  Florida’s reputation as the “sunshine state” is well earned.  Even in the middle of a rainstorm, the sun can be out in full force.  With my pale skin, it doesn’t talk long for me to burn to a crisp.  Of course, the best thing to do is to protect yourself and prevent sunburn by applying sunblock, staying in the shade, and wearing protective clothing.  If you get caught out in the sun too long, however, here are some natural ways to help heal and relieve the pain of sunburn.

Aloe

    One of the best things for sunburns is aloe.  Aloe naturally relieves pain, reduces inflammation, repairs damaged skin cells, strengthens the immune system, accelerates the healing process, and fights off bacteria that can cause infection.  It also forms a protective layer over the skin which helps hold in moisture while adding extra hydration.  This basically means that aloe is a powerhouse for healing any burn.  The easiest way to use aloe is to cut a leaf and squeeze the gel onto the burn, or cut the leaf and scoop out the gel.  Apply the gel to the burn and leave it until it dries.  If it starts to get sticky wash it off.  However, this method can be difficult for sunburns that cover a large area, so I recommend harvesting the gel ahead of time and keeping it in your fridge.  You can also freeze it in icecube trays to have an extra bit of relief from the cold.  You can also add other things to your aloe gel, such as cucumbers which also help soothe the inflamed skin.  Just cut the aloe leaf, scoop out the gel, peel and dice the cucumber, put them into a blender and blend until smooth.  Leave this mixture on the burn for 30 min. 

Sunburn Tea

    Oddly enough, one of the best things you can use for sunburn is one of the staples in almost every southern home.  Iced tea.  Black tea has quite a few amazing qualities that help heal and soothe skin after a sunburn.  Adding in a mixture of other healing herbs can make for an amazing sunburn relief tea that you can then apply (either by blotting with a cloth or by spraying on) as often as you need.  My favorite mixture is black tea, lavender, rose petals, peppermint, yarrow, and apple cider vinegar. 

Black Tea- Earl grey tea seems to work best on sunburns, I suspect this is due to the bergamot that gives earl grey its distinctive taste.  Black tea is packed full of antioxidants which help to block the harmful effects of the sun, even after sun exposure.  It also is full of tannins which help to reduce post-sun inflammation.  Earl gray is black tea and bergamot oil.  Bergamot is full of more antioxidants.  But it is also from a citrus fruit and all citrus helps boost immune function, but bergamot is also a pain reliever. 

Lavender- Lavender is calming, and soothing to the nerves.  It also helps to tone the skin.  Essential oil of lavender is also a great topical pain reliever. 

Rose Petals- Rose petals are high in vitamin C which helps boost immune function.  They also have a great cooling effect on the skin. 

Peppermint- Peppermint has an amazing cooling effect and it helps to reduce inflammation. 

Yarrow- Yarrow speeds up the healing process for wounds and reduces inflammation.  It also prevents blistering and peeling.

Apple Cider Vinegar- Raw Apple Cider Vinegar is great for taking the sting out of burns.  It also is full of amazing nutrients that help to fight infection and heal the skin. 

Ingredients:

1 ½ cup water

2 bags of good quality Earl Grey

1 teaspoon dried lavender flowers

1 teaspoon dried rose petals

1 teaspoon dried peppermint leaves

1`teaspoon dried yarrow leaves and/or flowers

½ cup raw apple cider vinegar

Instructions:

Bring the water to a boil.  Remove from the heat and add in the tea and the herbs.  Let it steep for 30+ minutes.  Strain into a glass container.  Add in the apple cider vinegar.  If you want, you can add 5 drops of lavender essential oil for added relief.  Storing this is the refrigerator not only adds to the shelf life, but it also adds a bit more cooling relief upon application.

Sunburn Cream

    Creams are good to have premade.  This one is good to keep around for any kind of burn, it also works well for sores and razor burn. 

Witch Hazel- Witch hazel is great to heal all kinds of skin issues.  It will help prevent blisters and peeling as well as reduce inflammation.

Coconut Oil- Coconut oil is a great moisturizer and it helps to reduce the pain of sunburns. 

Cornstarch- Cornstarch helps relieve the pain of the sunburn and has a cooling effect.

Ingredients:

½ cup witch hazel

1 cup water

3 tablespoons aloe gel (fresh is best, but don’t use the green or blue stuff from the store)

About ½ cup cornstarch

3 teaspoons coconut oil

10 drops peppermint essential oil

10 drops lavender essential oil

Instructions:

Put the water, witch hazel and aloe gel in a glass container.  Mix these together, cover, and let sit for 2 hours.  After the two hours, add the remaining ingredients and mix together (you can use a blender or food processor if you want) until creamy.  You can add more cornstarch if it’s too watery or more water if it’s too thick.  The texture you are looking for is similar to a lotion.  Let it sit for 24 hours before use.  Store in a tightly lidded jar, in the fridge.  Will keep for several weeks.

Potato Paste

    Yes, this next recipe is essentially mashed, raw potatoes, but it really works.  Just like cornstarch, potato starch works wonders on sunburns.  It draws out the heat and toxins from the burn and alleviates the pain and has a cooling effect.  Some people slice raw potatoes and just apply them to the burns, but this paste is a little more effective and has better skin coverage for those pesky sunburns. 

Instructions:

Wash some potatoes, leave the skins on, and put them in the food processor.  Add a little water to moisten the paste.  Apply to your sunburn, but don’t rub it in, dab it on.  Keep it there for 30 minutes.  Discard the potato paste afterwards.

    I hope these tips and recipes help you with your sunburns, but don’t forget to protect your skin before you go out into the summer sun!

Resources:

DIY & Crafts: http://www.diyncrafts.com/6768/health/5-natural-sunburn-remedies-instantly-stop-pain-prevent-peeling

Home Remedies for Life: http://homeremediesforlife.com/aloe-vera-for-sunburn/

Love to Know: http://skincare.lovetoknow.com/Severe_Sunburn_Old-Fashioned_Remedy

Organic Facts: https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/essential-oils/health-benefits-of-bergamot-essential-oil.html

Today in Dietzville: http://todayindietzville.com/2016/05/sunburn-tea-natural-sunburn-remedies/

Top 10 Grocery Secrets: http://www.top10grocerysecrets.com/2015-09-28-top-10-medicinal-plants-natural-sunburn-relief