Spa at Home: Do it Yourself (DIY) Facials with Honey

Organic skincare: Honey is a natural moisturizer with antimicrobial properties

Recently I was treated to a Honey Almond Facial and at Honey Scrub hand massage at the Le Ciel Spa at the SLS Hotel.   Both treatments put much needed moisture back into my strained hands and tired skin.  Working on the computer all day dries out the skin and often leaves us with sore wrists, fingers and hands.   Did you know that honey is  a natural moisturizer that refreshes the skin and helps to act as a natural sun block? The same properties that moisturize and sooth your sore throat in a hot cup of tea when you are sick, can be put to work to heal and replenish moisture in the skin.  Best of all it’s economical to use Honey as a beauty treatment. You can give yourself the same treatment I received at a high-end spa for a low cost at home with a few simple DIY beauty recipes using Honey.

Honey display at Le Ciel spa.

For a simple facial at home, add honey (any kind will do) to the exposed side of an aloe vera leaf.  Then rub your skin with the honey on the leaf.  Leave the honey /aloe vera spread on your face for 15 minutes and your skin will feel renewed and moisturized.

To create a more complex exfoliating Honey Almond Scrub mix the following;

• 3 teaspoons – honey
• 1 teaspoon – olive oil
• 6 1/2 tablespoons – crushed almonds

Gather all the ingredients into a medium sized bowl. Then gently mix the honey, crushed almonds and olive oil.  Fold the ingredients together until thoroughly mixed.   Then take the mixture (yes, it will be a bit sticky) and rub the exfoliating scrub with circular motions onto your T-zone, and then spread to cover your  nose, chin and forehead.  I like to allow the scrub to stay on my face 1 to 2 minutes to gently exfoliate the skin.   Then, rinse with warm water.

Mixing my honey yogurt mask with Skinowl lavender oil.

If you’re looking for a refreshing DIY treatment, try this simple Honey and Milk refining mask. I mixed this up in my kitchen using Skinowl lavender oil, honey and yogurt.  This mask is an easy and a luxurious treat after a long day of work.

Ingredients
2 teaspoons – honey
2 teaspoons – Greek full fat yogurt
2 drops – lavender (or your favorite essential oil. I used Skin Owl Lavender but also will try it with Skin Owl Geranium Oil)
Directions
Mix ingredients in a bowl and apply using hands or a fan brush. Let mask dry for 20 minutes then rinse with warm water and towel dry.

If you don’t want to mix this ingredients together but want to try a pre-packaged solution, check out Pino’s  GESICHTSMASKE MILK & HONEY packaged mask.

Who knew that Honey, a staple in most of our kitchen pantries could be as good for your skin as it is in cooking or a cup tea?  “Honey has been used as a beauty ingredient for centuries, so it is wonderful to now have science proving its great moisturizing effects,” notes Catherine Barry, director of marketing for the National Honey Board. “This summer, people can move aside expensive lotions and potions and instead replenish their skin with all-natural, moisturizing honey.”

Prices for a jar of Honey are as low as $8.28  (Gunter’s Clover Honey Bear) compared to the price of a pre-packaged spa products containing Honey which start at $20.00 and go up to over $50.00 depending on brand.   For more information on the effectiveness of Honey and “do it yourself”  recipes for skin and haircare, visit the National Honey Board’s website.