Organic Skin Care and Beauty in the Midwest

Living in the Midwest is not perfect, by any means.  While the general perception of it is skewed in some ways, it is slow to catch on to the latest trends in... well, anything.  For this reason, we miss out on movies that come to select cities, we get fashion seasons too late, and organic and natural skin care and makeup is very difficult to find!  I went looking for some chemical free sunscreen, and could only find Burt's Bees.  It's a fine sunscreen, but does not wear very well under makeup.  All we have in the way of natural makeup is Bare Escentuals.  Some of the high end stores carry more, but not much.  Because of this, I think I am going to start trying to make my own.

Last week, I met a friend of a friend who is now my hero.  She and her husband make their own soap, toothpaste, shampoo, laundry detergent, grow their own food, raise rabbits to use their manure as compost (this was fascinating!), even brew their own beer - and let me tell you, it's good!  Not to mention that they are super geeks, like myself.  I was inspired, and started looking for different recipes for making your own beauty supplies.

One of my favorite sites, I found some years ago.  It is called MakeYourOwnCosmetics.com. Their focus is not so much on organic product, but a great deal of the ingredients (sweet almond oil, for example) is easier to find in an organic produce store anyway.  I found some wonderful scrubs here.  Try the Vanilla Honey Sugar Scrub or the Coffee Sugar Scrub for cellulite.  It is no cure, but it does help, surprisingly enough.

For hair care, you might also try the Long Locks Hair Care Cookbook.  I have yet to try these things, but I am planning on getting supplies very soon.  Most of it is simple as can be.  For example, to treat dry ends, rub a little olive oil on them and let it soak in before you shampoo.  Sounds too easy, doesn't it?  Long Locks also has plenty of hair jewelry, and tips for growing your hair and keeping it healthy.

Other than that, it seems like the best option is to order online.  There are any number of products, but the trouble is that you can't talk to someone about them, or test anything when you order it online.  However, if in making the cosmetics, you spend a lot of money on gathering all the supplies and don't care for the end result, you're no better off.  It's a tricky situation, for sure.  In any case, this weekend I believe I'm going to try the deep conditioner from long locks, and I shall let you all know how it turns out.  Avocado and mayo!  Yum! I hope my head doesn't smell weird...