Beauty Pins I’ve Tried – Moisturising Lip Balm

Who doesn’t get sore, dry lips from time to time? I do, and my son definitely does. I make sure we are sufficiently hydrated as that can cause dry skin, but sometimes the wind and/or dry weather can wreak havoc with our complexions, despite all our good intentions!

Thankfully at the moment here in Sydney, Australia, it is neither windy nor dry, being the middle of a humid summer. But we still look for the lip balm on occasion, and the push-up style ones we favour are always missing or nearly empty.

Now, lip balms are not particularly expensive, you can get them on special for a few dollars. But when there are none to be found in the house, and I did the weekly shopping just yesterday…well, you can see where this is heading!

I have actually already made a batch of this, so I could report on whether or not it was a success. My son is quite particular with his lip balms, we have tried a few brands and all the moisturising ones do a reasonable job. And this one does as good a job as any! So we are happy 🙂

You can follow my Pinterest ‘Beauty’ board here, and I found the lip balm idea on Everyday Roots.

I collected all the empty tubes I could find, and located my ingredients. I used beeswax pellets, coconut oil, and macadamia oil. I prefer not to add any fragrance, but that is up to you. The original link also includes organic honey and vitamin E capsules, I don’t have those around so didn’t use them. You can read about the various benefits of using these ingredients at that link too. The beeswax takes the longest to melt, so start with that in your double boiler. I rarely measure accurately, but I used roughly a tablespoon today. Once that has melted, add the coconut, then the macadamia oils. I used a little less than a tablespoon of these (combined) as I wanted to make sure it wouldn’t liquefy at all.

When it has all melted and combined, pour the mix into your moulds. Done! This amount filled 3 lip balm tubes, and two contact lens cases. Any small, clean container will do. Leave it to set, then it’s ready for use! How do you deal with dry lips? * This post has been added to the link-up party on Mimi’s blog A Tray of Bliss. Also The Pin Junkie, and Pin-n-Tell

Beauty pins I’ve tried – mineral veil and make-up remover

I have been on Pinterest for a couple of years now, so there are plenty of pins that I tried before I began this blog.

I thought that, every so often, I might go back through some of those previously attempted pins and share my opinions with you.

So I am going to start with some beauty ideas, and make-up related ones today.

I use Nude by Nature mineral make-up, after many years of wearing a liquid/powder combination. I have been using my own version of the Mineral Veil very successfully.

Here is the pin I was originally inspired by:

Link here: http://theresakistel.com/diy-mineral-veil-face-powder/

THE RECIPE:  In an old powder container, shake together one tablespoon cornstarch and 1/2 teaspoon baby powder. You can add a sprinkle of powder foundation or cocoa powder for color, but this is optional. Congratulations, you just saved yourself $20.

Well, frankly, even those 2 ingredients were too much bother for me. I just tipped some plain cornflour (that’s what we call cornstarch here in Australia) into an empty powder container and called it done! And for the record, Nude by Nature Mineral Finishing Veil costs closer to $40 here, although my first container lasted about a year.

I have also used this over liquid make-up and am just as happy with the results. Even in our hot, humid summer it does a much better job than powders I have used in the past.

Give it a go (if you haven’t already) and let me know what you think.

On another note, I make a point of not inhaling any powdered make-up I use, and I recommend you do the same. There have been reports of the damage the small particles can do. You can do a search for this information and make up your own mind.

The next pin I want to share today is for make-up remover. I have found the best one for me is L’Oreal’s Gentle Make-up Remover for Eyes and Lips. It has a layer of oil on the top, and you shake it before use.

There are many people who suggest using plain oil as a make-up remover, and I have given this a go but using just oil is way too much for my skin.

I found this pin:

Link here: http://www.kristanlynn.com/2011/05/diy-clean-eyes.html

Recipe:

1 C water

1½ TBSP Baby Shampoo (tear free)

⅛ TSP Baby Oil (Coconut Oil or Olive Oil) EDIT! Due to the overwhelming response to my use of Baby Oil. Please Note: Some say you should not use Baby Oil on your face, others say you should not use it period. If you are worried about it’s effects, just use Coconut Oil or Olive Oil. I will say that I have super duper expensive eye cream, that has mineral oil in it… andddd I don’t see a problem with it, BUT that’s just me. =) I mean c’mon… it’s like literally a DROP of oil you’re using. LOL. To each his own. Next time I make it I’ll probably try the coconut oil.

Materials: Mixing Bowl Measuring cup/spoons Bottle to put finished product in (I used an empty medicine bottle; an empty baby oil bottle would work GREAT) Small funnel (or improvise like me)

I made mine up in an empty make-up remover bottle, and didn’t really measure the ingredients. I used a generic brand baby shampoo. I also have given up using baby oil, so initially I added some coconut oil. As I was dropping it in I realised what a silly idea that is – coconut oil is solid under about 24C. So I got that out and added the beautiful Macadamia Oil that I have used in a couple of other applications and I will share at another time 🙂

I definitely used more oil than specified in the recipe, I eyeballed it and used roughly the same amount that the L’Oreal bottle would have had.

And it works perfectly!

Another one to give a go 🙂

* I am not affiliated with, nor receive any sort of compensation from, Nude by Nature nor L’Oreal. I use their products because they work the best for me.

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