#lovemotherearth with a simple earth day challenge :: skin and hair care routines

Simplifying.

It’s one of the things I LOVE about the concept of celebrating Earth Day.

A couple years ago I started learning about many of the toxic ingredients that most skin and hair care products had in them. Even the pricey or so called “healthy” brands had one or more environmental and body toxic ingredients that just really turned me off.

As it turns out, you only need a few simple, very nourishing things to make your skin just completely GLOW.

And need only spend a few bucks on simple non toxic ingredients for gorgeous hair.

SO here’s my challenge! Give this skin care and/or hair care regimen a try for a month. Come back and let me know what you think!

SKIN CARE:

I have been doing this routine for 2 years. My skin has been through the hormonal changes of all of the above – post pardum, nursing, weaning nursing, non pregnant, and pregnant – and I NEVER break out. Ever. I used to get breakouts during hormonal changes – especially with my first pregnancy and during my cycle. My skin is so much more balanced doing this. Raw honey and coconut oil  are extremely nourishing for the skin. I am also obviously a believer in the food we eat and how our skin looks – but this definitely is a fantastic start. You are going to love it!

You’ll Need:
Raw honey (you can find this at local farmers markets or health food stores or during off season times you can get this great raw honey on Amazon)
Coconut oil (I get mine cheapest at Costco right now but the Nutvia on Amazon is a fantastic price too.)

• In the evening, use raw honey and warm water to massage your face, and splash warm water to rinse.
• Follow with coconut oil. Don’t be alarmed by using “oil” on your face – even if you have oily skin your skin NEEDS oil – if you strip it or starve it of oil it will only produce more. Nighttime is a great time to slather up and replenish that skin. NOTE! The coconut oil is a fantastic make-up remover! Put some over your eye makeup and rub with a soft cloth gently and watch your make-up come right off! Awesome!
• In the morning you may be surprised that you don’t even need to do much to your face. I rarely wash my face in the morning anymore – in the winter I’ll add a little coconut oil and in the summer I’ll splash a little water and that’s it. You could wash with honey again and maybe use a light non toxic moisturizer for under your make-up.
• Once or twice a week I will massage the raw honey on my face and leave it on nice and thick for a “mask” and then rinse – LOVE! Occasionally I’ll add some fine pure cane sugar to the honey for an exfoliating scrub.
• HERE is the article that got me convinced on trying out the honey face wash method! I will never go back!

HAIR CARE:

My hair care story starts with deciding not to strip my hair of oil by washing every day. If you are an everyday washer, you may want to just start with this step. Try going at least one or 2 days in between washing. Over the course of a week or 2 your hair will start “getting used” to less oil stripping and it will make less oil, therefore making your hair less greasy in between washings. Up until about 3 months ago I was using a “green” shampoo and conditioner about 2 times per week. That is pretty good – if you can get to that point that would be fantastic! Less water useage, less toxins into the body and environment! The next step if you are ready for this challenge is to go “no poo”! I promise you are gonna love it! I have been no poo for 3 months along with my girls – both with very different hair – and we all love it. Our hair is SO healthy and looks great. Here is how I’ve been doing the no poo method!

You’ll need:
Baking soda
Apple cider vinegar
Essential oil of choice for scent if you want (I like orange or lavender!)

• Wet your hair down and pour 2ish TB of baking soda mixed in a few cups of warm water to “wash”. Massage it in the scalp and rinse out.
• Squeeze your hair out and let the ends of your hair sit for a minute or 2 in a bowl of 3ish TB apple cider vinegar and a few drops of essential oil mixed with a few cups of warm water. Pour the rest of this mixture over your head and massage in and rinse.
• You will be so amazed at how soft this makes your hair! My first born has SUPER curly hair and it is SO much easier to brush. I have fairly wavy/curly hair and my hair is so manageable. I rarely put anything in it for “product”. My second born has fine baby hair and her hair is so much less greasy than when I was washing it. I only have to wash the girls’ hair once a week. I do mine 1-2 times per week. Talk about water saving!
• You may need to play around with the baking soda and vinegar ratios. If your hair is too dry use less baking soda or more vinegar. And vice versa.
• HERE is the article that got me convinced on giving the no poo a go 😉 It’s only been 3 months but I just love it – I’m hopeful the summer goes well!

So as non professional as this picture is I’m still gonna post it so you can see I’m not fibbin’ when I say my hair is manageable and my skin is clear. I can’t believe I don’t have ANY pictures of myself in the last few months despite having a zillion of my kids (isn’t that just they way it goes mamas?!). Anyway – here’s a bathroom phone shot. The hair is air dried right out of the shower. I have a little non toxic blush and mascara on the face but nothing else (the blush is SO necessary as my skin has not seen the SUN in like 5 months! Come on spring – where are you?!)

YOUR TURN!
Tell me which challenge you’ll be taking on and keep me posted on how it’s going!!! Happy Earth Day!

Feature image credit HERE

This post was shared at Real Food Forager’s Fat Tuesday and The Polikva Family’s Family Table Tuesday!