Welcome to the DIY Home/Health/Beauty!
There are plenty of ways to make every aspect of your life cruelty free, chemical free & cheap! Lovely article here about creating a DIY spa day at home!
Bath, Hygiene & Beauty
Bath Salts
Here is a link to a simple recipe.
Here is a link to a simple recipe.
from Vegan Beauty Review
3/4 cup Epsom salts
1/2 cup sea salt
1/4 cup baking soda
6-8 drops of your fave essential oil(s)
Optional: dried lavender or rose petals
Combine all the ingredients together, and store in a jar with a lid.
Makes 1 1/2 cups bath salts
Bubble Bath
1 cup pure baby shampoo, dishwashing liqud
1 Tbls pure glycerin – vegetable
1 cup water
1 tbls almond oil
15 drops essential oil
Combine together and use ½ cup to each bath.
Lavender Bubble Bath
1 1/2 cups liquid Castile Soap
2 tablespoons vegetable Glycerin
1/2 tablespoon white Sugar
5 drops lavender essential oil
4 drops lemon essential oil
1 drop chamomile essential oil
(if you’re allergic to ragweed, leave out the chamomile)
Gently stir together all ingredients in a large glass or ceramic bowl until the sugar has dissolved.
Pour into a large dark glass or PET plastic bottle.
Let sit for 24 hours before using, to let the homemade bubble bath recipe “cure”. Store in a cool, dark place.
Brown Sugar Body Scrub
from Vegan Beauty Review
What you need:
½ cup of sea salt
½ cup of dark brown sugar
¼ cup of extra virgin olive oil
One or two drops of your favourite essential oils for scent (optional)
Use this in the shower, after you’ve lathered up and rinsed. Apply to wet skin in a gentle, circular motion. Rinse off with warm water and pat dry. You shouldn’t need moisturizer after this, since the olive oil works as a perfect moisturizer for skin.
You can double or triple this recipe and make enough for more than one application; just be sure that you store it in an airtight container.
Whipped Shea Butter Moisturizer
From Whole New Mom
Yields 10 ounces
12 tablespoons (3/4 cup) shea butter.
4 tablespoons plant oil (coconut, jojoba, plum kernel etc)
5-10 drops essential oil - optional (Carrot seed oil and lavender have skin nourishing properties as well)
Place shea butter and oil combination in mixing bowl.
Begin the whipping process. Stop when you have achieved desired consistency. This takes several minutes at least.
Add essential oil before distributing cream to containers. Enjoy!
Whipped Cocoa Butter Moisturiser
From Holistic Squid
1 cup of cocoa butter – find unrefined cocoa butter here
1/2 cup coconut oil - find coconut oil here
1/2 cup of jojoba oil or other liquid oil (almond or a mild olive would work great too)
Using a double boiler gently melt cocoa butter and coconut oil until completely liquid.
Stir in jojoba or other liquid oil.
Allow to chill in the refrigerator until the oil mixture begins to firm, but has not turned completely solid. This may take longer than you expect – several hours at least.
Using a standing mixer or hand mixer, whip the semi-solid mixture until white peaks form.
Scoop into glass jars and allow to chill for an hour in the fridge.
Notes:
This homemade lotion will remain whipped in moderate temperatures.
If your home is particularly hot, you may want to store your body butter in the fridge.
If you forget and your whipped butter melts back to oil, simple re-chill and re-whip.
The consistency of this lotion is true to its name: whipped body butter – and as such, it does leave a thin layer of oil when applied.
Homemade Aloe Vera Lotion
DIY Foaming Facial Cleanser
From Whole New Mom
Yields 10 ounces
12 tablespoons (3/4 cup) shea butter.
4 tablespoons plant oil (coconut, jojoba, plum kernel etc)
5-10 drops essential oil - optional (Carrot seed oil and lavender have skin nourishing properties as well)
Place shea butter and oil combination in mixing bowl.
Begin the whipping process. Stop when you have achieved desired consistency. This takes several minutes at least.
Add essential oil before distributing cream to containers. Enjoy!
Whipped Cocoa Butter Moisturiser
From Holistic Squid
1 cup of cocoa butter – find unrefined cocoa butter here
1/2 cup coconut oil - find coconut oil here
1/2 cup of jojoba oil or other liquid oil (almond or a mild olive would work great too)
Using a double boiler gently melt cocoa butter and coconut oil until completely liquid.
Stir in jojoba or other liquid oil.
Allow to chill in the refrigerator until the oil mixture begins to firm, but has not turned completely solid. This may take longer than you expect – several hours at least.
Using a standing mixer or hand mixer, whip the semi-solid mixture until white peaks form.
Scoop into glass jars and allow to chill for an hour in the fridge.
Notes:
This homemade lotion will remain whipped in moderate temperatures.
If your home is particularly hot, you may want to store your body butter in the fridge.
If you forget and your whipped butter melts back to oil, simple re-chill and re-whip.
The consistency of this lotion is true to its name: whipped body butter – and as such, it does leave a thin layer of oil when applied.
Homemade Aloe Vera Lotion
DIY Foaming Facial Cleanser
Facial Sugar Scrub
from Vegan Beauty Review
What you’ll need:
1 Tbls Lemon juice
1tsp Brown sugar
Squeeze lemon juice onto a cotton pad and place 1 tsp brown sugar on top. Work into skin in a circular motion removing dead skin cells. Rinse with Warm water.
Banana Face Mask
Banana Face Mask
Banana Face Mask
from Vegan Beauty Review
What you’ll need:
1 banana
1 tablespoon agave (optional)
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
Mash the banana and combine it with the agave (optional) and lemon juice until it’s creamy. Spread all over face and leave for 15-20 minutes before rinsing off.
Toner
from Vegan Beauty Review
What you’ll need:
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
½ cup green tea
Mix together and pour into a spritzer bottle or container to use with a cotton ball.
Apply at night before bed.
Also you can use witch hazel or rose water as a simple toner!
Shampoo
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Also you can use witch hazel or rose water as a simple toner!
Shampoo
Shampoo
from Vegan Beauty Review
What you’ll need:
1 cup water
1 cup liquid castile soap
2 tsp jojoba or grapeseed oil (optional, see below)
1/8 cup aloe vera gel (optional)
5 drops of essential oil of your choice (optional)
Combine all ingredients and put into an old shampoo bottle. Shake before use and apply directly to your scalp, since it tends to be watery. Don’t let its consistency fool you, though—it lathers very well and doubles as shaving cream.
The initial price plunge is steep, but keep in mind that there’s enough in each bottle of each ingredient to make multiple batches of your shampoo.
Conditioner
from Vegan Beauty Review
What you’ll need:
2 cups water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
Apple cider vinegar isn’t just for facial toners; it’s great for your hair, too. It has mild exfoliating properties which removes product and shampoo buildup as well as dandruff. It’s also an effective detangler.
Combine in a bottle and shake before use, applying directly to scalp. Run your fingers through your hair a few times while the mixture does its cleaning and conditioning, and then rinse out. The smell won’t leave the shower, I promise.
DIY Beach Hair Spray
DIY Beach Hair Spray
Perfume
from Vegan Beauty Review
What you’ll need (for the base):
1 tablespoon jojoba, sweet almond or grapeseed oil
1 tablespoon organic vodka (refrain from drinking)
Essential oils
Filtered water
Mix all of your ingredients together (except for the filtered water), and let it sit for at least 48 hours (longer for a stronger scent). When the scent is as strong as you’d like it to be, add 2 tablespoons of filtered water to the perfume. Shake the bottle well to mix the perfume. Then filter it through a coffee filter, and pour it into its final bottle (preferably a dark, airtight, pretty one).
Recommended essential oil blends:
Earthy, peaceful: 8 drops Sandalwood, 3 drops Lavender, 1 drop Cedarwood
Sexy, feminine: 2 drops Bergamot, 1 drop Jasmine, 1 drop Rose, 2 drops Sandalwood
Floral, romantic: 5 drops Palmarosa, 3 drops Rosewood, 1 drop Rose Geranium, 1 drop Ylang Ylang
Young, flirty: 9 drops Grapefruit, 1 drop Rose Geranium, 1 drop Ylang Ylang
Perfume 2
from Vegan Beauty Review
What you’ll need:
2 tablespoon jojoba, grapeseed oil, or sweet almond oil (or other carrier oil of your choice)
~60-75 drops of your favorite essential oil
An amber or dark blue plastic or glass spray bottle (they sell these at Whole Foods and other health food stores)
Just mix everything together in your spray bottle and enjoy! If you wanna get fancy (←and you should!), combine complementary essential oils to find that perfect and unique “you” scent.
Here are a couple of my personal faves:
Unisexy Woodsy Scent
45 drops Cedarwood
15 Juniper Berry
5 drops Ylang Ylang
My personal go-to, which I’ve named
“Sweet-Ass Vegan Cupcake”:
35 drops vanilla essential oil (you can use pure vanilla extract, too!)
20 drops cocoa essential oil/absolute (if using absolute, you can use less of it… let your nose be the guide)
5 drops rose essential oil
Sugaring (Natual Hair Removal Wax)
INGREDIENTS
2 cups sugar
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup water
Equipment: Candy thermometer
Combine the ingredients in a heavy saucepan, and heat on low using a candy thermometer. Watch the mixture very carefully so that it doesn’t boil over. Heat the mixture to 250 F on the candy thermometer; this is the hardball candy stage.
Remove from the heat and let cool enough to pour into a jar without breaking or melting the jar. (Note that this jar will be reheated in the future. Make sure it is safe for whatever form of reheating you plan to do—in the microwave, or in a pan of water.
Rip clean cotton fabric in 1-inch strips. Make sure the cotton isn’t too coarsely woven.
This next step is very critical: Let the mixture cool enough so that it won’t burn your skin. The first time I did this I didn’t let the blend cool enough and I burned myself! Test the mixture on the palm of your hand, knowing that is much tougher than the sensitive skin under your arms.
Using a dull knife or Popsicle stick, spread the cooled sugar onto your skin. Cover with the cloth strips, let set for a few minutes, and then rip off quickly as you would a bandage.
In the future you can reheat the mixture to a warm and not hot temperature (see above), and reuse. Note that reheating will thicken the paste.
Vegan Homemade Soap
Click here for my blog on soap making.
Vegan DIY with Beer!
from Vegan Beauty Review
Beer Shampoo
Add body and shine to your luscious locks by combining equal parts of your favorite beer and your favorite cruelty-free shampoo. Simply use it like normal shampoo and enjoy.
Beer Conditioner
Combine 1 cup of warm, flat beer and 1 teaspoon of jojoba or flax oil and mix well (if you wanna get über fancy, thrown in a mashed avocado, too). Shampoo as usual and follow up with your DIY beer conditioner. Leave it on your hair for about 5-10 minutes before rinsing. Enjoy your new volume and shine!
Beer Bubble Bath
Ready for a super skin softening soak in your favorite ale? Do it up! Simply mix some unscented castille soap with your favorite beer and add it to your running bath water. Use as little or as much as you like!
Fruity Beer Face Scrub
Acne be gone! Mash 2-3 strawberries with a few drops of beer until it makes a paste. Rub the paste on your face in a circular motion and let it sit for about 15-20 minutes. Rinse and follow it with your favorite vegan toner and moisturizer.
DIY Sunscreen
My friend found this recipe on Wellness Mama that tells you how to make your own sunscreen bars. Just replace the beeswax for a vegan wax.
DIY Lash Serum
DIY Air FreshenerDIY Lash Serum
Home/Cleaning
care of my lovely friend Faith
What you need:
old jam jar
baking soda
essential oil
foil or pretty material/paper
rubber band
In a small old jam jar, pour about half way baking soda or bicarbonate of soda, add about 5 to 8 drops of essential oil ( I used sweet orange) , then cover the top with some pretty paper that you have poked holes in , wrap around rubber band or ribbon, whala !
You could also use a pretty piece of material to cover it also.
DIY Kids Paints
1 cup salt
DIY Laundry Detergent
DIY Laundry Detergent
Ingredients
1 bar (or 4.5 ounces) of vegan bar soap
(I used my own homemade soap but any vegan plain soap will do)
1 cup of borax
1 cup of washing soda
Method
Grate the soap and mix into borax and washing soda well.
If you like a cold wash, add the mix in batches to a food processor and pulse until the mix is finely ground.
Store in an air tight container with a small scoop.
Use around 1 Tbls per wash, or 2-3 Tbls for a large or heavily soiled wash.
DIY Liquid Dish Soap
DIY Kitchen Spray
DIY Foaming Pump Soap
DIY Laminate Floor Cleaner
3 parts water
1 part vinegar
1 squirt of liquid dish detergent
Put it all in a spray bottle and and spray floor.
Use steam cleaner, damp cloth or mop to remove mixture.
I like to go over it with a junk towel so it's ready to walk on right away!
DIY Laundry Detergent
Ingredients
1 bar (or 4.5 ounces) of vegan bar soap
(I used my own homemade soap but any vegan plain soap will do)
1 cup of borax
1 cup of washing soda
Method
Grate the soap and mix into borax and washing soda well.
If you like a cold wash, add the mix in batches to a food processor and pulse until the mix is finely ground.
Store in an air tight container with a small scoop.
Use around 1 Tbls per wash, or 2-3 Tbls for a large or heavily soiled wash.
DIY Liquid Dish Soap
DIY Foaming Pump Soap
DIY Laminate Floor Cleaner
3 parts water
1 part vinegar
1 squirt of liquid dish detergent
Put it all in a spray bottle and and spray floor.
Use steam cleaner, damp cloth or mop to remove mixture.
I like to go over it with a junk towel so it's ready to walk on right away!