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The BEST at-home, affordable, chemical-free beauty tips for the face, skin and hair!

by bablondie25

Nov 9, 2010

Helpful? 1 Helpfuls

There is no need to spend hundreds of dollars on expensive brand, department-store or high-end skincare or bath and body products. I have been fooled many times into buying expensive brand name facial creams, conditioner and so on, only to be disappointed in the price or additional chemical ingredients (who needs that!). Some of those ingredients can cause cancer and so here are some ways to have great skin (and hair) without going broke. Here are some great at-home beauty tips:

Use 100% jojoba oil as a makeup and eye makeup remover. It not only removes makeup, but clears out pores (and will not cause acne) and moisturizes the skin at the same time. It's also all-natural. Desert Essence is the best in regular OR organic. Vitacost.com has the best prices ($8.44 for the organic, 4 ounces). I've seen this in vitamin stores for around $12 (so it is a great price!). It can be used as a skin oil and your skin just drinks it up. I also love to pour a couple of tablespoons of this (up to 6 tablespoons) into my shampoo bottle. This makes my scalp flake-free and no longer dry! I never get greasy hair from doing this (only shinier hair).
100% Squalane oil is perfect to moisturize the skin. No need to buy ultra-moisturizing creams, this is inexpensive and will go under or over any cream and under makeup. It soaks in after awhile (so it is preferred to use at night) and gives provides the skin moisturizing cushion to it. I have bought omega skin oils from higher-end brands and they sell around $30 an ounce on up (yikes). Those brands really only have squalane in the oil in a pump container with some preservatives. This is 100% pure and this brand (Mayumi) gives you 2.17 ounces and is only $13.39 (Vitacost.com). You will NOT find a better deal anywhere for 100% squalane oil. The best part is that this will not clog your skin nor cause acne. It soaks in after a short period of time. Your skin basically drinks it up and your skin will feel plumped up. It's a great oil to have on hand during the winter (put on alone, or over your night-time moisturizer).
Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil by Nutiva (another brand that is great is NSI Brand on Vitacost.com). It's not only inexpensive, but great for several uses (not just cooking and eating with it!). It's great to slather on the scalp or hair before showers (or overnight) as a hot oil treatment. It's great to slather on the body, it gets rid of dry, flaky skin and chicken bumps on the arms (these will eventually reduce in appearance). It can be used as a massage oil, body oil, a safe-intimate lubricator, hair oil, facial oil, added to body lotions and bath products and even for moisturizing lips. I buy the BEST brand I can find for the best deal I can find (Vitacost.com; Nutiva 54 ounces for $20.49). This stuff never goes rancid.
Castor oil is GREAT for eye lash growth. This needs to be used often and stored out of light because it can go rancid. No need to spend money on eyelash growth products (which can be expensive). Use nightly with a Q-tip. This is available online or in vitamin/nutrition stores for under $6 per bottle.
Vitamins are great for hair and nail growth. B Vitamins are important for stress, pantothenic acid for stress, magnesium for nerves/stress, the heart and for calming. A multiple and a B-complex is a good place to start (try Vitacost.com for the best prices online or Drugstore.com).

For natural hair dyes there are brands like Herbatint (try vitamin stores in your area or online like Vitacost.com). I've tried these more natural brands and have gotten the same results the boxes (like L'oreal) at the store provide. They lack ammonia and harsh chemicals and are paraben-free.

There is no need for chemical-laden makeup. There are some amazing brands out there that are really inexpensive like Everydayminerals.com. They provide natural minerals in matte to a glow on the face for way less than other powdered makeup. Some other great natural cosmetics out there are Gabrielle Cosmetics, Zoya and Larenim (laranim.com). These have mixed prices, and some are more or less than others. The lipsticks will be lead and chemical/preservative-free (which is awesome), but cost more than say drugstore brands (but less than department-store brands). I will pay these middle-of-the-road prices for these items for my health and my skin has a nice glow to it (not all natural makeup is awful looking!). I find these brands in my local vitamin stores (Supersupplements) or online sites.

You can save on natural mouthwash by buying Tea Tree Oil drops and mix with distilled water in a container with lid, add teaspoon of baking soda if you like and Peppermint drops. Do not swallow, just swish and spit in the sink. The Tree Tea Oil drops will last a lot longer than expensive mouthwash.

Buy and avocado, mash up the inside in a bowl and mix with some full-fat mayonnaise. Spread onto hair and let it sit for 20 minutes. Wash and rinse off in the shower.
Exfoliate your skin with bath brushes, loofahs, or sugar mixed with oil in your cupboard like olive or grapeseed. Use this in the shower, on hands, cuticles, elbows, feet and face. Rub in circular motions and rinse off with warm water. You can add drops of fragrance (like essential oils if you like).
Vegetable oil is best for eczema, my daughter had this and the best is veggie oil in the cupboard like olive oil, canola oil, corn-based oil, grapeseed, etc. Lotions at the store will sting and irritate and prescriptions can have steroids in them. Slathering good, old-fashioned vegetable oil on several times per day can help keep eczema at bay (my daughter's has disappeared completely, meanwhile prescriptions and drugstore lotions did not help much at all).