Summer Skincare in Your Own Kitchen
Forgive me if I sound like Martha Stewart when I say this, but I find it delightfully empowering to know that I can whip up my own skincare recipes right in my kitchen at home, with a few simple ingredients from the farmer’s market. (Or, maybe I’m actually channeling Alice Waters).
And if, of course, I can’t find the time, I know where to buy the real-thing already whipped up and packaged for me at IO. Options can be empowering too, but here’s a way to do it yourself. Here’s a recipe I recently mixed together:
Rose Geranium Coconut Balm
Rose geranium is a lovely plant that’s edible, pretty, and extremely pungent… in a good way. This time of year, you can get your hands on a bunch at local farmer’s markets for about $2.
It only takes a tiny bit of the leaves to impart a lot of flavor to your balm, so rinse off a wee pinch, and then put the rest in a small vase to freshen up your loo or bring some Spring to any corner of your house.
Throw it in a blender with some coconut oil… the good old cooking variety will do. (Here’s a little tip: chop up the rose geranium first, then blend in the oil at a very low speed, only briefly. Too long and too fast will alter the chemistry of the oil in less than desirable ways.)
Pour it into a recycled jar, and voila! You have yourself some fresh, practically edible hand balm.
Of course, you can substitute the rose geranium with just about anything from your kitchen that smells good to you.
Experimenting like this is what inspired me to develop IO’s very own line of IO Organic Products, and if you use some imagination, perhaps you too can invent your own line of wellness items. Or at the very least, create a few balms or scrubs customized to your very own skin.
Here’s yet another empowered way to be a bridge to your better side.
Experiment and HAVE FUN.
Kitchen-unconfidential,
Amy
11 Aug 2009
Joslyn Hamilton
There’s a great company out of Sebastopol that makes amazing coconut oil that smells, feels and pretty much tastes just like whipped cream! It’s called Nutiva, and you can buy their organic extra virgin coconut oil in bulk at Rainbow Grocery. Yummy stuff. I’ve made myself some great skin products from it!