Facial Cleansers
Gentle Low-Lather Face Cleanser
If you’re looking for an ultra-gentle, super inexpensive facial cleanser for any skin type—this is it! You can make a kilo of this cleanser for about $10USD, and all of the ingredients are super versatile, inexpensive, and easy to get 😄 Want to watch this...
Easy DIY Cleansing Balm: 3 Ways
Cleansing balms are a fabulous way to cleanse the skin (they're especially great for removing long-wearing makeup!), and they're really easy to make. In this post I'll teach you how to make three different simple cleansing balm formulations. Each uses just three or...
Extra Creamy Green Clay Cleansing Balm
This Extra Creamy Green Clay Cleansing Balm is a Bee Better version of 2017's Forest Cleansing Balm. That formula was one of the first anhydrous formulas I made with fatty thickeners and I remember being absolutely blown away by its rich, creamy, slippy consistency...
Creamy Clay Balm-to-Milk Cleanser
Today's Creamy Clay Balm-to-Milk Cleanser is a Bee Better update to 2016's Creamy Clay Cleansing Balm. It's a rich, slippy, gentle facial cleanser that rinses off the skin beautifully. True to the name, it's creamy and contains a hefty dose of soft white kaolin clay...
Winter Solstice Facial Cleansing Cream
This silky, slippy, honey and rose scented Winter Solstice Cleansing Cream is a positively divine way to gently cleanse your skin at the darkest, coldest time of year (if you're in the southern hemisphere you might prefer this summer solstice themed formulation!)....
Frosted Cranberry Powder to Foam Facial Cleanser
The Frosted Cranberry fun continues today with this creamy red Frosted Cranberry Powder to Foam Facial Cleanser. It's a soft, water-free cleanser that transforms into a gentle, foaming, lightly exfoliating cleanser when you work it up between your palms with a bit of...
Natural Turmeric Foaming Face Wash
Gently cleanse your skin with this formulation for a sunshiney Natural Turmeric Foaming Face Wash. It stars anti-inflammatory turmeric extract + two of my favourite gentle surfactants, and it positively spews bright yellow bubbles when you pump it out 😄 Let's...
Clear Jelly Oil Cleanser
I'm pretty dang smitten with this Clear Jelly Oil Cleanser. It's an oil cleanser... but gelled... and clear! I brainstormed up a big list of creative names like "Clear the Day Away" and "Diamond Velvet Cleansing Gel", but in the end, I decided to mostly just call it...
Super Simple Oil-to-Milk Cleanser
Today's Super Simple formulation is the most super-ly simple of the super simple formulations I've shared with just two ingredients! I've also shared two different variations and discussed how to customize it to make it as accessible as possible (and also to hopefully...
Almond Oat Creamy Conditioning Face Wash
The almondy, oaty goodness continues today with this formulation for a gentle Almond Oat Creamy Conditioning Face Wash. This formulation features soothing colloidal oatmeal, vitamin-rich sweet almond oil, and conditioning BTMS-25 ❤️ It gently cleanses...
Sweet Magnolia Natural Cleansing Oil
This exotically-scented Sweet Magnolia Natural Cleansing Oil gently cleanses the skin, leaving your face feeling soft and nourished. It uses a new-to-me natural emulsifier and has quickly become a favourite facial cleanser for removing layers of summer sunscreen (and...
Almond Oat Powder to Foam Facial Cleanser
This soft, silky powder transforms into a creamy, sudsy cleanser when you work it up with a bit of warm water between your palms. It stars soft and velvety kaolin clay and skin-soothing oats, and you can blend up a batch in just a few moments from just six...
Almond Oat Balm to Milk Cleanser
Today's rich and all-natural Almond Oat Balm to Milk Cleanser is a gorgeous way to gently wash your face, and it pairs wonderfully with my Gentle Oatmeal Almond Body Wash Bar! I've been using this softly oat-scented cleansing balm to remove eye makeup and wash the...
Rich Plum Face Wash
If you're looking for a new indulgent, creamy facial cleanser then I think this Rich Plum Face Wash is just the thing ❤️ Made with luxurious plum kernel oil and vitamin C rich Kakadu plum power, it's a beautiful and gentle way to wash your face. Want to...
Apricot Powder-to-Foam Facial Cleanser
This Apricot Powder-to-Foam Facial Cleanser needs just five ingredients, and it's pretty cool! It's a smooth, dry, orangey powder in the bottle, but once you get it wet it transforms into a silky foaming cleanser with just a hint of exfoliation. To make this cleanser...
Cocoa Coconut Rich Cream Facial Cleanser
Today's Coconut Cocoa Rich Cream Facial Cleanser has a decadent, rich skin feel with a lotion-y consistency and offers fabulous yet gentle cleansing. It's also a bit of a riff on the two rich cream cleansers I shared earlier this year—Rose & Honey and Whipped...
Gentle Clay Facial Cleansing Bar
Today we're squishing up a creamy off-white Gentle Clay Facial Cleansing Bar, starring velvety white kaolin clay and a gentle surfactant blend that kicks off dense, rich lather. You don't need any heat or even a mould to make these—just a bowl, a dust mask, and a pair...
Rose and Clay Cleansing Balm
When I first dreamt up this cleansing balm, the dream was of a seaweed and clay cleansing balm. How romantic and exotic-sounding, no? A hefty dose of vitamin-rich green seaweed powder would star, and how lovely it would be. There was just one problem with that....
Whipped Cream Calendula Facial Cleanser
This decadent Whipped Cream Calendula Facial Cleanser is a riff on the Rose & Honey Rich Cream Cleanser I shared earlier this summer. That cleanser was really popular, and I really loved it, so I thought I'd play with the idea a bit more. This variation features a...
Creamy Jelly Facial Cleanser
Today we're creating an ultra-gentle Creamy Jelly Facial Cleanser! This gelled facial cleanser features some lovely soothing ingredients, a super mild surfactant, and a really fun, jell-o-y consistency. I'm loving it as my sole cleanser first thing in the morning, and...
Cream Silk Cleansing Balm
Today we're blending up a Cream Silk Cleansing Balm that I'm really quite proud of. It was vaguely inspired by a storebought cleansing balm that I recently tried + a need for a really effective waterproof makeup removing product. In regards to the storebought...
Rose & Honey Rich Cream Cleanser
This Rose & Honey Rich Cream Cleanser is quite the treat—it's rich and gentle, smells softly of roses, and leaves your skin feeling clean but not tight or dry. Made with sweet almond oil, fragrant rose hydrosol, and local raw honey, it has a positively decadent...
Soothing Creamy Facial Cleanser
This lovely Soothing Creamy Facial Cleanser is a new favourite of mine for washing my face, morning and night. A gentle blend of surfactants is suspended in a creamy base with lots of moisturizing glycerin, anti-inflammatory aloe vera juice, and soothing allantoin....
Lavender Aloe Cream Facial Cleanser
Today we're blending up a gentle Lavender Aloe Cream Facial Cleanser, featuring fragrant lavender hydrosol, soothing aloe vera, and gentle Cocamidopropyl Betaine. This lotion-like cleanser is brilliant for dry skin, offering great cleansing without being harsh. You...
Soft Velvet Cleansing Oil
Today we're whipping up a velvety cleansing oil that's great for all kinds of facial cleansing, but especially brilliant for removing makeup. I created it with waterproof eye makeup in mind, as it likes to hold onto my lashline for dear life! This cleansing oil has a...
White Chocolate Peppermint Cleansing Balm
This cheerily swirled White Chocolate Peppermint Cleansing Balm is just the thing for morning face-washing. With a refreshing pop of peppermint essential oil and gorgeous slippy texture, this cleansing balm melts quickly on the skin and rinses off readily, leaving...
Calendula Rose Foaming Cleansing Powder
Today we're creating an herb-and-clay-based powder-to-foam facial cleanser. It's a pretty simple concept, and easy to customize and tweak based on what you have on hand. It's been quite a while since I shared a cleansing powder—it seems I really liked them in...
Lavender Facial Cleansing Bar
Today we're creating a gentle Lavender Facial Cleansing Bar—a solid foaming facial cleanser with a skin-happy pH, creamy lather, and a lovely lavender scent. Several bees have sent in requests for another solid facial cleanser, with references to products from Cerave...
Pemberley Foaming Facial Cleanser
This gentle Pemberley Foaming Facial Cleanser boasts the loveliest dense, creamy lather and a mouth-watering scent blend. It's bright, sweet, and slightly spicy with deep rose and juicy citrus notes. Making-wise, it comes together so quickly that I suspect it'll take...
Sweetgrass Micellar Water
Today we’re continuing our sweetgrass series with a simple Sweetgrass Micellar Water that comes together in a flash and really lets our stunning sweetgrass hydrosol shine. This gentle facial cleanser requires no heat to make—simply weigh everything into the bottle you...
Sweetgrass Facial Cleanser
I'm loving this simple, glossy, honey-and-sunshine scented facial cleanser right now. It uses a new product that Windy Point has recently started carrying—a surfactant blend called Iselux Ultra Mild. Pre-blended surfactant products makes creating foamy/lathery things...
Mango Mango Cleansing Oil
I am so in love with this simple, vibrantly orange cleansing oil. It smells wonderful, works beautifully, and is so dang easy to make that it feels a bit like cheating. Compared to my other cleansing oils I think you'll find this one lighter, perhaps a bit more satiny...
Gel Micellar Water
The inspiration for this Gel Micellar Water came from two places. The first was a gelled micellar water sample I got when I made a purchase. The second was a leaking bottle of non-gelled micellar water in my travel bag. Given I’ve already got a micellar water...
Micellar Water for Waterproof Makeup
Today were taking something really simple (DIY micellar water) and amping up its cleansing power so it easily removes waterproof makeup. It's a super simple modification to a more standard micellar water recipe and I think you'll be pretty stoked about the results!...
Soothing Cleansing Balm
Our Soothing series continues with this lovely Soothing Cleansing Balm. Up until now all of our soothing projects have included a water phase, and many of our awesome soothing ingredients (cucumber distillate, chamomile hydrosol, urea, etc.) live in that phase. This...
Soothing Micellar Water
Today we're continuing our soothing series with this formula for a gentle Soothing Micellar Water. You'll find many of the same soothing ingredients we've been using throughout the series, creating a soothing and softly scented facial cleanser. Micellar water is a...
Winter Solstice Facial Polish
After the annual colourful craziness of Christmas DIYs I've really been enjoying dreaming up something solstice-inspired these last few years. We've got a face cream, a soap, and a mask, and now we've got a star-studded charcoal-infused facial polish. This facial...
Clementine Facial Cleansing Milk
Today we're making a gentle, low-foam, creamy Clementine Facial Cleansing Milk. It comes together just like a lotion, with the addition of a few grams of surfactants in the cool-down phase for a titch of cleansing power. If you've been looking at making your own...
Sea Buckthorn and Charcoal Cleansing Balm
This striking Sea Buckthorn and Charcoal Cleansing Balm stars two potent ingredients to create a perfect-for-Halloween cleansing balm. The inspiration for this came from wanting to create something for Halloween—in past years I've done lots of pumpkin spice things...
Oil Cleansing Gel
When I was in Montreal last year I visited Coop Coco, a local DIY supplier, and poked around, looking for things I didn’t have that would fit in my suitcase. I ended up picking up a bottle of Sucragel, a cold-process emulsifier I’d never worked with before, brought it...
Eucalyptus Mint Soft Cleansing Balm
This soft, squeezable cleansing balm is rich and creamy, melts into a stunning cleanser once you start working with it, and leaves your skin feeling refreshed and just a touch minty. I love it first thing in the morning to help me hit the ground running! Want to watch...
Lemon Rose Facial Cleansing Drops
I seem to be on a bit of a "concentrated" kick, partially inspired by my recent trip to Australia. I brought shampoo bars with me (that also ended up doubling as body wash), and found that all the use (aka getting wet) and the lack of time to dry between moves meant...
Lavender Gel Facial Cleanser
This fun, softly purple Lavender Gel Facial Cleanser is another thing I've devised as part of my Formula Botanica coursework. It's a wobbly, silky semi-solid facial cleansing experience that I probably find entirely too amusing 😝It's simple to make (no heat...
Rose Micellar Water
I'm pretty excited to finally be able to share a micellar water formula I'm happy with. I've been experimenting with micellar water formulations quite a lot over the last year and while the concept is simple enough in theory, it took quite a lot of fiddling and...
Eucalyptus Mint Cleansing Oil
This silky smooth Eucalyptus Mint Cleansing Oil is really quite lovely; freshly herbal and minty, with a touch of a cooling tingle that definitely helps perk one up first thing in the morning. I tried a new solubilizer and I really like it—the cleansing oil rinses off...
Ginger Oak Moss Solid Facial Cleanser
This Ginger Oak Moss Solid Facial Cleanser is the sister to my Ginger Oak Moss Cleansing Balm Stick; the two accompanied me all around New Zealand last December, and did brilliantly. The inspiration for this came from a product I stumbled across while perusing...
Ginger Oak Moss Cleansing Balm Stick
I love this fragrant, creamy stick of cleansing goodness. I took the first version with my to New Zealand, where I spent much of my time on the road, camping somewhere new each night, and this stick was brilliant. I was so happy to have something I could use quickly...
Forest Cleansing Balm
I'm happy to report that Danny has been loving the Forest Facial Cleanser I made him (I'm loving it, too!), so I thought I'd extend the collection. And guys—this is the best cleansing balm I've ever made. It has the most amazing creamy consistency, beautiful rinse...
Coconut Clay Facial Cleanser
Last year, the first thing I ever made with Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate (SCI) was a Gentle Foaming Clay Scrub that I really, really liked—I polished it off in a matter of weeks! For some reason or another I got to thinking about it again, and then I got to missing it,...
Forest Facial Cleanser
I dreamt up this cleanser for my friend and super-awesome yoga instructor Danny. He's pretty much the sole reason I've been able to start running again, so when he mentioned he'd be interested in trying some of the things I make, I was on it (I definitely prefer to...
Face Masks
Summer Stone Fruit Creamy Face Mask
This Summer Stone Fruit Creamy Face Mask is part face mask, part gentle scrub, part cleansing balm—it's really whatever you want it to be. You can use it as a mask one day, a cleansing balm the next, and a gentle scrub later that week. A beautiful blend of stone fruit...
Creamy Oat & Shea Face Mask
If you're looking for an indulgent facial, I think this Creamy Oat & Shea Face Mask is just the thing. A rich base of shea butter and safflower oil suspends a blend of soothing, moisturizing ingredients to create a really decadent masking experience. Try using...
Chocolate Cherry Face Mask
We're keeping it ultra-simple and accessible today with this cocoa-scented Chocolate Cherry Face Mask. Four beautiful, all-natural ingredients come together to create a silky, rich face mask for some at-home pampering ❤️ Want to watch this project...
Creamy French Green Clay Face Mask
Today we're whipping up a simple, creamy, oil-based face mask. A soft balm base is loaded with silky French green clay (my favourite clay for face masks!) to create an ultra velvety skin treat. This format is far less messy than blending clay and water, both for...
Strawberry Rose Clay Face Mask
Today we're putting on our super-crunchy DIY boots and whipping up a summery Strawberry Rose Clay Face Mask. This pink mask pairs fresh, in-season strawberries with golden honey, fragrant rose hydrosol, and creamy clays for a sumptuous and simple summer-time skin...
Sweetgrass & Honey Face Mask
Today we're embracing the crunchy side of DIY skin care with a beautiful four ingredient clay face mask. It's smooth and creamy, smells of honey and summer days, and leaves your skin feeling rejuvenated and refreshed. It's perfect for a bit of solo pampering, or you...
Rose Bentonite Clay Facial Mask
Today's recipe is a super-crunchy, super simple clay mask starring four lovely, natural ingredients. Fragrant rose hydrosol and moisturizing vegetable glycerin team up with creamy French green clay and powerfully absorbent bentonite to create a rich face mask that...
Herbs & Honey Pink Clay Mask
Today's project is inspired by a face mask I spotted on Instagram that rings it at about $100/100mL. It definitely had some good ingredients in it, but nothing that should make it that sort of wince-worthy expensive. My version blends two different clays with some...
Rose Silk Hydrating Sheet Mask
Sheet masks are all the rage these days, but they are also usually at least $1–2 a piece, and you only get to use them once, and that’s a bit ridiculous. I have a few (mostly from last October's trip to NYC) and I find myself hoarding them (like I used to do with bath...
Canada Day Clay Face Mask
Happy Canada Day! For anyone who doesn't already know, I'm Canadian, and Canada Day was yesterday—a day where we celebrate red and white, maple leaves, apologizing to people who bump into you, and our delicious decision to elevate doughnut holes into their own food...
Earl Grey Face Mask
I thought we'd continue our Earl Grey theme today with this simple clay face mask that helps brighten the complexion and fade hyper-pigmentation left behind by healing acne. It's made from just a few simple ingredients that you almost certainly already have, comes...
Snowflake Face Mask Mix
I’m a huge fan and advocate of clay face masks—I love the pampering factor, how they gently exfoliate, and how they help clear out my pores, leaving my face refreshed and invigorated. For all the praise I heap on them, though, it’s been a hard thing to get my...
Calming Milk and Honey Face Mask
This past weekend I ran my first-ever 10km race! It was in Montreal, and it was proper hot last weekend—so hot they cancelled the full marathon out of safety concerns. The 10k race was at 8:45am and it was already somewhere between warm and hot when that started,...
Fuller’s Earth Calming Lavender Face Mask
If your skin is hankering for a bit of pore cleansing, brightening, lavender-scented goodness, this is the mask for you. It stars Fuller's Earth clay (also known as Multani Mitti), a clay with a long history of cleansing, brightening, and helping fade acne scars. I've...
Yogurt Oat Face Mask
A couple months ago I made a pretty awesome discovery—yogurt + my face. It's not so much the yogurt as the probiotics that live in it; millions of little happy bacteria, living some sort of pastoral life in my fermented milk product. Well, that's how I like to imagine...
Honey Bee Sheet Face Mask
OK—before I dive into this Honey Bee Sheet Face Mask recipe, I need to warn you guys about something. If you've been following me for a while, by now you are used to my mask recipes coming with a few goofy-yet-cute selfies of me with pasty goo all over my face. This...
Deb’s Canadian Seaweed Mask
Seaweed is pretty amazing stuff for skin care; it's rich in vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. Its texture is a bit sandy, making it a great gentle exfoliant, and when applied to the skin it is said to be a fantastic detoxifying ingredient, drawing out impurities....
Morning Frost Face Mask
It will not come as a surprise that I am no lover of winter, but I will concede that it can be very pretty. I love the sparkle of morning frost, especially when a thin dusting of it adorns every tree branch, porch step, and fence post. On a perfectly crisp morning the...
Holiday Parfait Face Mask
These cute jars of Holiday Parfait Face Mask make fantastic gifts as well as fantastic face masks. Layers of different colours of clay stack up in cute jars for the perfect stocking stuffer that'll pamper the pores of anybody lucky enough to be on your gifting list....
Brightening Kaolin Bentonite Face Mask
This Brightening Kaolin Bentonite Face Mask came about as a bit of an oopsie. After I made my video on the differences between kaolin and bentonite clay I had a total brainfart as I went to put the clays away. Instead of putting the unused benonite back into its...
Salty Sea Mud Face Mask
Alright, I'll admit it. I have a clay problem. So, when I discovered that Bulk Apothecary carries a clay I've never tried before... well, guys... it called to me. A siren song of powdery, pore cleansing goodness, and I was powerless to resist. The clay in question is...
Lilac Rose Face Mask
My garden has sprung to life with beautiful pale purple lilacs, fluffy pink roses, and a lawn that needs to be mowed far more often than seems necessary (it's still better than shovelling the walk, though!). Whenever I work outside on my back porch I'm distracted by...
Honey Bee Face Mask
Spring has sprung here in Calgary! We've got blooming tulips, budding roses, leafy trees, green grass, and lovely bumbling bees again, and all of this makes me unbelievably happy. In honour of our recently returned bumbling bee friends I whipped up this silky honey...
Mocha Face Mask
This exfoliating mocha face mask smells downright divine and is a wonderful gentle cleanser. It was just what I needed after submitting my manuscript for Make it Up: The Essential Guide to DIY Makeup and Skin Care, By Marie Rayma, creator of HumblebeeandMe.com to my...
Moringa Face Mask
I whipped up this moringa face mask the day after returning from Philadelphia, where I met with my publisher and we took some pretty photos for my upcoming book (!). After many hours spent on airplanes and in airports, jumping from dry to humid to dry again, and days...
Winter Solstice Pore Detox Face Mask
Today is the winter solstice here in North America—the shortest day and the longest night of the year. We'll see less than eight hours of daylight here in Calgary today, and it will be dark both when I leave for work and when I head home at the end of the day....
Pumpkin Pie Face Mask
I love pumpkin pie. I know lots of people mostly love it as a carrier for whipped cream, but me? I’m all about that filling. That creamy, custardy, spicy orange filling. Bring it on. I would spread it on toast if given the opportunity (though a spoon is better). So,...
Chia Seed Face Mask
Chia seeds are pretty cool little things. They start out as unassuming little speckled bits, roughly the same size as a course grain of sand. When soaked in liquid, they become gooey and gelatinous, making them fun additions to drinks and a great vegan egg substitute....
Dead Sea, Seaweed, & Silk Face Mask
This exfoliating, pore cleaning face mask is full of minerals, enzymes, and vitamins to leave your face feeling fresh and awesome. I blended mineral rich Dead Sea mud, enzyme loaded raw honey, and some water for the base of my mask. Into that, I whisked healing silk,...
Deep Cleansing Midnight Face Mask
Summer is just about the only time of year I regularly put something on my face that I didn't make—sunscreen. And as much as I can go for the good, effective, non-icky stuff... my skin does not love it. The combination of sunscreen, sun, sweat, and general summertime...
Gentle Rose & Clay Face Mask
A few weeks ago one of my yoga classmates gifted me a bag of rose powder. She'd heard about my DIY tendencies (addiction) and thought I could put it to good use. Exciting! This gentle face mask is the first of what will likely be many projects involving it. The rose...
Silken Muddy Honey Mask
The inspiration for this mask came from a recipe request from Alexandra, who wanted a homemade alternative for an $80 mask/cleanser from a luxury brand. I took a look at the original and decided to wander off in my own direction, and I'm really happy with where I...
Seaside Face Scrub & Mask
As the weather gets warmer, I often think of summers spent on the west coast of British Columbia with my family as a kid. We'd poke about in tide pools, kayak around sandstone points, and explore island forests. With a blend of seaweed and sea salt, this face scrub...
Minty Face & Body Mask
In all my years of doing clay face masks, I really haven't had much success getting men to give them a go. My dad rolls his eyes and laughs if he ever sees me in one, cousins have declined my goopy offers as politely as possible, and my brother wouldn't dream of it....
Soothing Oat & Honey Face Mask
If your skin is on the sensitive side, I think you'll love this simple soothing oat and honey face mask. Made with just a handful of easy-to-find ingredients, it comes together in a flash and leaves your skin feeling tight, clean, and refreshed. You'll also get to...
Clay & Soap Bar
This is my third clay bar, and I'm pretty excited about it. Like previous bars it's mostly clay, but this one is held together with diluted liquid soap instead of water, giving us a bar that's a hybrid between a bar of soap and a clay bar. It's pretty neat. For this...
Apple Cider Vinegar & Manuka Honey Anti-Acne Mask
This simple mask can be easily made from ingredients you’ve got in your kitchen, and can be amped up with a few more that you can likely pick up at your local heath food shop. It’s full of beneficial enzymes and acne-fighting ingredients, and leaves your skin feeling...
Pink Rose Clay Bar
After falling madly in love with my Everyday French Green Clay Bar I decided I needed more of them. Clay bars are downright fantastic for daily light clay use and they're far more travel friendly than a baggie of mysterious looking powder (especially if you're...
Coconut & Pineapple Face Mask
If you like piña coladas and getting caught in the rain, you will definitely love this face mask. It's gentle, smells like a piña colada, and leaves your skin refreshed, gently exfoliated, and wondering if it's in Tahiti. The base of the mask is , a...
Dead Sea & Manuka Honey Face Mask
Loaded with vitamins, minerals, and enzymes, this green-tinted ebony face mask looks a bit strange, but packs a detoxing, healing punch. The base of the mask is Dead Sea mud and . Dead Sea mud is thick—something like chilled peanut...
French Face Mask
This simple clay based face mask is delightfully simple and effective. Inspired by my love of , it does a fantastic job of clearing out the pores, soothing the skin, and encouraging healing. The base of the mask is [sv...
Everyday French Green Clay Bar
Last September Margo, a reader and fellow clay aficionado, commented to tell me about this clay bar she used to buy at Sephora. It was just straight clay, in bar form, and it was nearly $50. Yipes! Margo quickly figured out that she could make her own for a lot less,...
Luxurious Green Tea & Silk Face Mask
This smooth and simple clay face mask comes together in no time, and leaves your pores clean and your face firmed and refreshed. And, with luxurious ingredients like silk and green tea, it's perfect for an indulgent girls night in. I never miss a weekly clay face mask...
Dead Sea & Silk Face Mask
This rather exotic face mask is a great addition to any spa day. It's a blend of Dead Sea mud, silk, and clay, with a spicy hit from black pepper essential oil. Creamy and dark, it'll leave your skin tightened and clean, and as a bonus, anybody who catches a glimpse...
Healing Herbal Face Mask
I love clay face masks, and I've been having a lot of fun with herbs lately, so I thought it was high time to combine the two to create a mask that boosts circulation, clears out your pores, and helps speed up healing with a dose of anti-acne goodness. The herbs I...
Silver Powder for Banishing Blackheads
This fantastic three-ingredient blackhead banisher is another Mario Badescu dupe. Not only is it cheap and simple to make, but it really does work beautifully. Magically, even. So beautifully you'll find yourself staring at your pores in the mirror, trying to figure...
Coconut Cream Face Mask
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: out of all the things I've discovered in my natural/DIY journeys, face masks are easily in the top 5 (along with argan oil). They vacuum out pores, increase circulation, boost healing, gently exfoliate, and seemingly put a...
Pore Shrinking Mask
My friend Meredith is super awesome for many reasons, but the reason I would like to broadcast today is how she is always finding awesome things for me to make, and cool new ingredients for me to try. She's the lovely lady who got me hooked on ...
Cooling Summer Peppermint Mask
It's my birthday! Yay! I'm spending it at one of my favourite places—our family cottage in Manitoba. To celebrate, I will be laying in the sun, reading a good book, drinking some beer, doing dock yoga, and eating awesome chocolate cake. And, to celebrate, I wanted to...
Honey Bee Facial
Debbi has been encouraging me to smear my face with raw honey as of late, and I have to say—I liked the idea. I've read a lot of fantastic things about raw honey. It's a fantastic natural antibiotic ointment (it's also anti-fungal and anti-viral), a humectant (it...
Facial Serums & Balms
Hyaluronic Acid Serum: 3 vs. 5 vs. 8 ingredients
In this post I'm going to teach you how to make three different hyaluronic acid serums; one with 3 ingredients, one with 5, and one with 8. Each formulation builds on the one before it so you can see how to modify and expand on (or, if done in reverse, simplify!) a...
Easy 2% Salicylic Acid Solution
In today's formulation we're harnessing the skincare powerhouse that is salicylic acid with a simple formulation featuring a low-but-effective concentration of our star ingredient. Salicylic acid is commonly used in products for blemish-prone skin and has all kinds of...
Easy DIY Vitamin C Suspension (Just 3 ingredients!)
This formulation is a super simple, beginner-friendly vitamin C suspension. You don't have to worry about oxidization or pH, you'll only need three ingredients, and the finished product will help fade hyperpigmentation, increase collagen production, boost healing, and...
5% Lactic Acid + Hyaluronic Acid Exfoliating Serum
Reveal even, smoother, glowing skin with this 5% Lactic Acid + Hyaluronic Acid Exfoliating Serum formulation. Gentle AHA lactic acid offers mild chemical exfoliation, backed up with a blend of skin-soothing and hydrating actives to reduce inflammation potential and...
Beginner-Friendly Salicylic Acid + Squalane Serum
If you've been wanting to formulate with salicylic acid but haven't been sure where to start; start here 😄 This five-ingredient Beginner-Friendly Salicylic Acid + Squalane Serum doesn't contain any water, so you don't have to worry about pH, making it super...
Brighten & Boost Facial Serum
This cold-processed face serum does a whole lot of awesome things: it hydrates, brightens, reduces fine lines, evens out skin tone, boosts barrier function, soothes, softens, and might also know exactly which mango in that display at the grocery store will taste the...
Passionfruit Pressed Oil Serum
This four ingredient Passionfruit Pressed Oil Serum was formulated to let all the ingredients shine brightly. Made from three luxurious Brazilian ingredients and rounded out with a wonderful skin-loving antioxidant, this pressed oil serum can also be used as a...
Brightening Hyaluronic Acid & Niacinamide Facial Serum
The two stars of this formulation are niacinamide (Vitamin B3) and hyaluronic acid; two of my favourite skin care ingredients. They team up with fragrant sweetgrass hydrosol and a few other functional ingredients to create a simple, hydrating, brightening facial serum...
Rosehip Oat Solid Oil Serum
This Rosehip Oat Solid Oil Serum formulation is a non-greasy, packaging-optional facial moisturizer starring some beautiful oils and antioxidants. The original inspiration for this formulation was Robbie Burns Day, which is tomorrow. I was thinking about Burns' "A...
Mango Rosehip Solid Facial Oil
You'll need just six ingredients to make this cheery all-natural Mango Rosehip Solid Facial Oil. It stars two stunning lightweight emollients and it is packaging-optional, so it's a great way to reduce your packaging needs a wee bit. Making this formulation is a...
Berry Glow Facial Serum
Today's formulation is a bit of a formulation love song—an ode, if you will. A loving ballad to beautiful, fruit berry oils. A syllable-free sonnet to anti-inflammatory, barrier-boosting, antioxidant-rich oils that smell wonderfully of fresh air and make me think of...
Skin Brightening Toner Mist
This all-natural Skin Brightening Toner Mist formulation is part hydrating toner and part serum, featuring some fantastic soothing, moisturizing, barrier-boosting, and brightening ingredients. It's quite simple to make, with just a wee bit of heating, and you can...
Summer Stone Fruit Facial Oil Serum
Today we're blending up a wee taste of summer in the form of a Summer Stone Fruit Facial Oil Serum. It smells softly of marzipan and stars oils from three of my favourite summer stone fruits, plus a solid dose of some potent anti-oxidants for skin-loving benefits....
Silky Soothing Facial Gel
Today's formulation is a richly moisturizing, cold-processed, Silky Soothing Facial Gel. It was inspired by a La Roche Posay product—their B5 gel. This DIY is definitely more "inspired by" vs. attempting to duplicate their product as I don't have all the same active...
Açaí & Jojoba Facial Oil Serum
Today we're blending up an all-natural, lightweight oil serum that is rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory goodness. Starring exotic açaí berry oil and featherweight Neossance® Hemisqualane, you can easily mix up this serum in just a few minutes—just weigh, cap,...
Hyaluronic Acid B5 Facial Serum
If you've been reading Humblebee & Me for more than a few weeks, I'm sure you've heard me say that Calgary (where I live) is dry. It's the kind of dry where bread usually goes stale rather than sprouting mould. If I visit somewhere humid and buy crackers they are...
Passionfruit Facial Glow Oil
Today we're getting our glow on with a simple & shimmery Passionfruit Facial Glow Oil. This beautiful facial oil serum features a blend of luxurious, exotic carrier oils, a potent skin-repairing antioxidant, and a touch of customizable shimmer. The end result is...
Passionfruit Coconut Matte Velvet Moisturizer
Today's Passionfruit Coconut Matte Velvet Moisturizer is a riff on something I first tried back in 2016, and it's lovely. Massage this soft, putty-like Passionfruit Coconut Matte Velvet Moisturizer into your skin and you'll feel it turn into a velvety, super-smooth...
Prickly Pear Eye Gel Cream
Today we're blending up a cold-processed Prickly Pear Eye Gel Cream! This lovely DIY is designed to hydrate and soothe the delicate under-eye skin, and also packs a de-puffifying (that's a word, right?) punch thanks to the inclusion of some pure caffeine powder. Since...
Brightening Gel Serum
I first developed this cream last autumn under the title "ultra gel cream". When you look at the ingredients you'll know why—it's pretty darn "ultra". It is positively packed with things that are bomb-diggity awesome for the skin, helping to brighten, hydrate, soothe,...
Cranberry Orange Facial Serum
Today's Cranberry Orange DIY is a silky, indulgent oil serum packed with antioxidants and some of my favourite natural carrier oils. A pump or two at the end of your skincare routine is all you'll need to keep your skin soft and glowing through these dry, cold winter...
Rose Ceramide Facial Gel
Today we're making a simple, fragrant facial gel starring ceramides. This gel not only moisturizes and hydrates the skin immediately, but it also helps strengthen your moisture barrier. This leads to stronger, more resilient skin and less transepidermal water loss...
Cacti Q10 Ageless Facial Serum
This Cacti Q10 Anti-Aging Facial Serum features a base of beautiful plant oils spiked with some potent Coenzyme Q10. It's rich in antioxidants, has rejuvenating properties, and leaves your skin positively glowing. It's also a rather pretty orange colour, and comes...
Soothing Hyaluronic Acid Facial Serum
Today's recipe is kicking off a new soothing skin care series that is perfectly timed for the driest, darkest, and often coldest part of the winter here in Calgary. The formulas in this series star a beautiful selection of wonderful, effective ingredients that have...
Indigo Lagoon Balm
This rich blue balm is a DIY version of a very popular and very expensive shop-bought balm. This particular balm is known for its striking dark blue hue that comes from a hefty dose of expensive blue tansy essential oil. I've created a more budget friendly version you...
Raspberry Marula Facial Serum
I have so been enjoying using this silky Raspberry Marula Facial Serum. Not only is it a joy to use thanks to its lightweight consistency and luxurious slip, it also leaves my skin dewy and glowing. Oil serums were one of my first DIY/natural beauty loves, but it's...
Solid Olive Primrose Facial Serum
This silky smooth, light-as-a-feather solid facial serum is really neat. It has all the satiny, lightweight loveliness of a liquid serum, but it's easier to transport (no leaks!), and application is even easier thanks to the elimination of the dropper bottle....
Angela’s Calendula Eye Balm
Last autumn Angela wrote in asking for a DIY version of an expensive calendula-infused eye balm she was using in Portugal. The ingredient list was beautiful, and as usual, the price tag was a touch shocking. So, with her enthusiasm for the product I took that...
Sea Buckthorn Mattifying Moisturizer
If you're looking for touchable, smooth, soft skin, this Sea Buckthorn Mattifying Moisturizer is right up your alley. It's a creamy, orange-hued moisturizer features a few scoops of silky smooth arrowroot starch to give your hydrated skin a beautiful dry touch. It was...
Moringa Rose Serum
I've had quite a few requests for this popular rose serum over the years. I think Karen's was the first, back in 2014, but it certainly hasn't been the last. The original looks utterly lovely; a blend of fantastic carrier oils like pomegranate and baobab, with rose,...
Orange Abyssinian Overnight Balm
This juicy, honey-hued Orange Abyssinian Overnight Balm is utterly lovely. It has an almost unbelievable dry finish, leaving skin hydrated, but not greasy. It smells of pure, juicy oranges with the slightest hint of sweet, floral Tahitian gardenias. It's smooth and...
Rose Gold Facial Serum
Last week I was watching a makeup tutorial with Adele's makeup artist, Michael Ashton, and as he was prepping his beautiful model's skin, he used two products that really intrigued me. One was a fancy-sounding French facial serum; Decleor's Aromessence Rose D'Orient...
Luxury Facial Serum
The amount of money some shop-bought natural skincare products sell for never ceases to amaze me. You'd think I'd be used to seeing price tags north of $150 for a few tablespoons of something, but I'm not. I'm perpetually astonished to find a blend of oils or a simple...
Pomegranate Primrose Summer Facial Serum
My new Pomegranate Primrose Summer Facial Serum is a fantastic way to lighten up your skin care routine for warmer days (I'm calling it my PrimPom Serum for short, ha!). It is silky and light, absorbing into your skin quickly and leaving it beautifully hydrated, and...
Magical Primrose Argan Serum
This recipe is ridiculously simple. So simple, in fact, that you might think I just threw it together one day as a bit of a random idea. And you would be right. This project wasn't supposed to be a blog entry—just an experiment. I figured I'd try it out and see, and...
Winterlight Argan Serum
This milky facial oil is pretty much the opposite of my Argan bronzer. While the bronzer is designed to impart a summery glow, this serum lightens and brightens the complexion, smoothing out imperfections and giving you that Downton Abbey complexion I'm so in love...
Gentle Argan Silk Milk
A few months ago Meredith sent me a link to this product, accompanied by a hearty digital laugh. And a well deserved laugh it was. I've talked before about the astonishing markup that Josie Maran sells their at—closer to $1/mL than the $0.12/mL...
Rosehip & Tamanu Healing Facial Serum
I think rosehip oil is about to become the next big thing in commercialized natural skincare, making the leap to Sephora shelves a la & Josie Maran. It's starting to pop up on my non-natural/DIY beauty Pinterest feeds, accompanied by...
Tallow Balm for Mature Skin
Sometime last year I stumbled across this really neat blog entry about the benefits of using on the skin—especially for aging skin. Over the months I've mentioned it to readers who have tried it, and reported back with positive results, so I thought...
Brighten & Renew Facial Serum
I'm pretty happy with this recipe. It's easy, inexpensive, fast, and the sort of thing you'd pay $50 for at the beauty counter. There's just six ingredients, and the results are quickly noticeable. In the short term you'll notice smoother skin, and over time you'll...
My Favourite Argan Oil Serum
Meredith and I exchange a lot of things—recipes, ingredients, articles, and ideas. Out of all the things she's introduced me to over the years, Argan oil is far and beyond my favourite (the Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day cookbook series is a close second). I cannot...
Intense Facial Moisturizer
Winter is always dry, but Calgary is a special case. It's the sort of place where it is regularly thirsty out, in addition to being cold and/or windy. My skin has always been acutely aware of this, sparking a lotion-toting habit bordering on the ridiculous. A few...
Anti-Acne
White Willow Micellar Water
I've been playing around with my skincare routine lately, and one of the things I'm toying with is the notion of gentler cleaners. I've been using African Black Soap a lot for the last three months (or so), and that was working brilliantly for a few months, but now...
Even Better Zit Drying Lotion
I have a constant New Years/Birthday/name any occasion resolution to stop touching my face. I am not very good at it. I'm an absent-minded chin-stroker, and it does absolutely no favours for my complexion. It's infuriating. Anyhow, I have come to realize that part of...
Houdini Anti Acne Creme
I've had a few requests for a lotion similar to LUSH's Vanishing Creme, so this is it. The idea is the creme will make your acne vanish, so with that in mind, I set out to make my very own Houdini Anti Acne Creme—something worthy of the great Houdini. I took some cues...
Magical Primrose Argan Serum
This recipe is ridiculously simple. So simple, in fact, that you might think I just threw it together one day as a bit of a random idea. And you would be right. This project wasn't supposed to be a blog entry—just an experiment. I figured I'd try it out and see, and...
Anti-Acne Body Spray
With summer right around the corner, we're entering the season of sweat. And, with sweat I find a body acne can follow. Delightful, no? I shan't horrify you with any details. Anyhow, this spray is designed to combat acne on the body (and the face), and it smells...
Clean Dreams Pillow Mist
Maria sent in a request for this lovely essential oil powered pillow mist, and I just loved the sound of it. The original was designed to help prevent breakouts caused by a dirty pillowcase, but with its lovely blend of essential oils, it’ll also help lull you into a...
Indigo Acne Blaster
This indigo hued anti-acne roller smells wonderful and means business when it comes to zits. Snovel91 requested this Burt's Bees inspired recipe back around Christmas, and I've just collected all the essential oils to make it. Based on their Herbal Blemish Stick, this...
Zit Drying Lotion
Drying lotion definitely seems a bit of an oxymoron, but the name comes courtesy of Mario Bedascu, along with the idea for the product. It is, more or less, rubbing alcohol, salicylic acid, and calamine lotion, and it's designed to dry out your zits and make them...
Silver Powder for Banishing Blackheads
This fantastic three-ingredient blackhead banisher is another Mario Badescu dupe. Not only is it cheap and simple to make, but it really does work beautifully. Magically, even. So beautifully you'll find yourself staring at your pores in the mirror, trying to figure...
White Willow Bark Anti-Acne Toner
I've had my eye on some white willow bark for ages, due to its anti-acne properties thanks to its salicin content (grandfather to salicylic acid). You've probably seen store bought anti-acne products bragging that they "contain salicylic acid!", and white willow bark...
Pore Shrinking Mask
My friend Meredith is super awesome for many reasons, but the reason I would like to broadcast today is how she is always finding awesome things for me to make, and cool new ingredients for me to try. She's the lovely lady who got me hooked on ...
Activated Charcoal & Clay Spot Treatment
This is another one of those things that’s been on my to-do list for ages. Ever since I read that activated charcoal is a fantastic detox/drawing-out ingredient, and then happened to see it as an ingredient in some fancy face mask I’ve almost entirely forgotten about,...
Honey Bee Facial
Debbi has been encouraging me to smear my face with raw honey as of late, and I have to say—I liked the idea. I've read a lot of fantastic things about raw honey. It's a fantastic natural antibiotic ointment (it's also anti-fungal and anti-viral), a humectant (it...
Sea Buckthorn Acne Serum
I've been planning to make an acne serum for a while now. I've had all kinds of great, healing oils in my cupboard for a while now. Oils like tamanu, black currant seed, baobab, and sea buckthorn. I stumbled across a little tip via Pinterest recommending applying sea...
Facial Hydrators & Toners
De-Puffing Peppermint Aloe Facial Roller
The idea for this De-Puffing Peppermint Aloe Face Roller came to me as I was drifting off to sleep on a warm July night. It's part facial serum, part facial massage—designed to moisturize, soothe, de-puff, and cool your skin on hot summery days. A refreshing,...
Skin Brightening Toner Mist
This all-natural Skin Brightening Toner Mist formulation is part hydrating toner and part serum, featuring some fantastic soothing, moisturizing, barrier-boosting, and brightening ingredients. It's quite simple to make, with just a wee bit of heating, and you can...
Hyaluronic Acid B5 Facial Serum
If you've been reading Humblebee & Me for more than a few weeks, I'm sure you've heard me say that Calgary (where I live) is dry. It's the kind of dry where bread usually goes stale rather than sprouting mould. If I visit somewhere humid and buy crackers they are...
Soothing Makeup Finishing Spray
Today I'm sharing something I've been loving lately—a Soothing Makeup Finishing Spray. You certainly don't have to use it over makeup (it's also a great soothing & hydrating mist for bare skin!), but I've been using this as the last step in my makeup routine (and...
Lavender Aloe Hydrating Facial Toner
'Tis the season for heaps of hydration! This DIY was initially inspired by a popular lavender witch hazel toner product, but I decided to really amp up the hydrating/humectant-y goodness in the spirit of Asian-style hydrating toners (rather than Western astringent-y...
Strawberry Rose Toning Facial Mist
Today we're creating a beautiful summery Strawberry Rose Toning Facial Mist—a fruity floral hydrating skin treat designed to soothe and moisturize your skin. I'm really enjoying it towards the end of my skin care routine and throughout the day for an added boost of...
Sweetgrass Gel Moisturizer
This silky, softly-scented gel moisturizer has become a fast favourite in my skin care routine. It’s beautifully light and packed with things my skin loves. It is focussed on lightweight hydration, making it the perfect thing to sandwich between skin cleansers and...
Rose Ceramide Facial Gel
Today we're making a simple, fragrant facial gel starring ceramides. This gel not only moisturizes and hydrates the skin immediately, but it also helps strengthen your moisture barrier. This leads to stronger, more resilient skin and less transepidermal water loss...
Sweetgrass Facial Serum
This beautiful Sweetgrass Facial Serum features a stunning blend of some great-for-skin ingredients to create a lightly golden serum that focusses on brightening and hydration, with undercurrents of soothing and healing. We're also using a new-to-me hydrosol that I'm...
Soothing Hyaluronic Acid Facial Serum
Today's recipe is kicking off a new soothing skin care series that is perfectly timed for the driest, darkest, and often coldest part of the winter here in Calgary. The formulas in this series star a beautiful selection of wonderful, effective ingredients that have...
Hydrating Aloe Facial Mist
Today's facial mist recipe was inspired by a recipe request and a cult favourite herb-spiked super-hydrating face spritz. Anuradha requested "a facial spritzer... something calming [and] refreshing," and the product she linked to featured aloe vera and a selection of...
Rose Silk Hydrating Sheet Mask
Sheet masks are all the rage these days, but they are also usually at least $1–2 a piece, and you only get to use them once, and that’s a bit ridiculous. I have a few (mostly from last October's trip to NYC) and I find myself hoarding them (like I used to do with bath...
Hydrating Rose Water Facial Toner
As I've been learning more and more about Asian beauty philosophies and trends, I've been really intrigued by the Asian-style toners /r/AsianBeauty raves about. Toners from Korea and Japan are focused on hydration and pH correction, packing a seriously nutrient-rich,...
Hydrating Summer Facial and Body Mist
I'm on a huge hydration kick these days. Well, not so much a kick as a lifestyle change. I'm making hydration a serious priority, and my skin is so much happier for it. While staying hydrated in Calgary is always a challenge, summer is a different kind of challenge:...
Rejuvenating Pine Pollen Facial Toner
This pretty yellow Rejuvenating Pine Pollen Facial Toner packs a punch for skin that needs a bit of a kick in the pants in the refreshing category. Rich in humectants and alpha hydroxy acids, this toner helps encourage your skin to regenerate and stay hydrated so your...
Lemongrass Green Tea Toner
After I motored through my batch of Vitamin C Toner in a matter of weeks, I just had to make another batch. This time I decided to make a few changes. The biggest one was using organic orange blossom green tea instead of aloe vera juice. I also added mango extract and...
Vitamin C Toner
A new order of goodies recently arrived on my doorstep from New Directions Aromatics, so I've been spending the last few days playing with my new toys. One of the things I've been just itching to make ever since I placed the order was a vitamin C toner. I'd included...
Facial Lotions & Creams
Luxury brand formulation secrets for expensive-feeling lotions
Even though I make most of the skincare products I use, I still enjoy perusing the skincare departments at Sephora and airport duty-free shops—paying extra attention to the luxury brands. I sample, sniff, and examine ingredient lists like a lotion detective. If a...
Ultra-Light Summer Face Cream
If you've been looking for a lightweight summer facial moisturizer with a gorgeous, powdery, expensive-feeling finish, you can stop looking. This is it! I'm currently obsessed with this cream—I can't get over how lightweight and fancy it feels. It smells softly of...
Natural Oil-Free Turmeric Face Lotion
Today we're formulating up a cheery, sunshine-y bottle of Natural Oil-Free Turmeric Face Lotion. This slippy, lightweight lotion is heavy on the hydration and features anti-inflammatory turmeric extract and brightening niacinamide. Let's get making! Want to watch this...
Goji & Açaí Superfood Face Cream
As winter drags on, my skin needs all the hydration and love I can send its way. This formulation pairs two superfood ingredients with a couple fabulously hydrating ingredients and some potent antioxidants to help my skin stay soft and moisturized in the face of dry,...
Frosted Cranberry Face Cream
If you subscribe to Humblebee & Me on YouTube you'll know I've been working on my first-ever glycerite (cranberry!)—and today I am incorporating that beautiful bright pink liquid into a moisturizing and soothing Frosted Cranberry Face Cream. Swoon! Want to watch...
Soothe and Glow Facial Gel Cream
This beautiful gel cream delivers a double dose of glow—both from boosted skin health and a touch of softly shimmering mica. This formulation includes some of my favourite skincare goodies to deeply hydrate the skin and support barrier function, and a coloured mica...
Winter Solstice Oil-Free Facial Moisturizer
Today is the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere—the shortest, darkest day of the year, but also the turning point towards longer days (tomorrow will have a whole 5 seconds more daylight than today!). I've shared several winter solstice themed projects over the...
Ice Palace Ceramide Glow Gel Cream
This Ice Palace Ceramide Glow Gel Cream is packed with great-for-skin actives and just a hint of mica for skin that positively glows. I was inspired to create a complexion-enhancing moisturizer by products like Charlotte Tilbury's Hollywood Flawless Filter and...
Brightening Gel Serum
I first developed this cream last autumn under the title "ultra gel cream". When you look at the ingredients you'll know why—it's pretty darn "ultra". It is positively packed with things that are bomb-diggity awesome for the skin, helping to brighten, hydrate, soothe,...
Winter Solstice Facial Gel Cream
It's time for another Bee Better project with a revamp of my first-ever face cream—2014's Winter Solstice Face Cream. This new version uses several newer skin-loving ingredients to create an even better facial lotion that is designed to deeply hydrate and strengthen...
Cranberry Orange Facial Gel Cream
I've had several requests for a gel-cream this year, and I'm excited to share this Cranberry Orange themed one with you today! This cold-processed cranberry orange facial gel cream is focussed on hydration and barrier support, helping our skin be its best self through...
Soothing Facial Lotion
Today we're continuing our soothing series with this beautiful Soothing Facial Lotion. It's a fairly lightweight facial lotion, positively packed with potent moisturizers, skin-soothing actives, and ingredients that help strengthen barrier function so your skin can be...
Sugar Plum Facial Lotion
I start planning out Christmas recipes in the summer and typically have everything more-or-less nailed down by the end of September. This formula wasn't in the original plan, but I am so in love with plum oil right now that I couldn't not make some sort of decadent...
Frankincense Facial Lotion
This delightful lotion comes from a recipe request from Ashlie, who loves the Frankincense Intense line from Neal’s Yard Remedies. I love Neal’s Yard; their formulations are solid and their corporate ethos is both environmentally and socially responsible. I’ve visited...
Lemon Rose Facial Lotion
This lightweight, hydration-packed facial lotion is one of my formulas from my Formula Botanica coursework, and it also happens to be the first recipe I'm sharing using hyaluronic acid! I tested this lotion through some of Calgary's driest winter months and found it...
Forest Facial Lotion
In the last week I've been on some utterly stunning hikes, really soaking up how beautiful Canada is and squeezing the last drops of good weather out of our waning summer. I love a lot of things about the mountains—their beauty, the solitude, the babbling brooks and...
Green Tea Face Cream
Rich in antioxidants and all kinds of fresh and citrussy, this face cream is rather brilliant for summer. It's got a thick, almost balm-like consistency, but it spreads over the skin beautifully in a thin, fast-absorbing layer that you wouldn't typically expect from a...
Orange Blossom Face Cream
Now that I've fallen in love with face creams for winter skin hydration, I'm afraid I'm finding myself on a slippery slope. I caught myself drifting off to sleep the other night thinking about orange blossom water in face cream, and evening primrose oil. Some silk,...
Winter Solstice Face Cream
I've had a lot of requests for a straight-up face cream, but for some reason or another, I haven't really strayed into that territory too much until now. That's mostly because I adore oil-based serums; my skin loves their potency, and when a serum is 100% oil based...
Houdini Anti Acne Creme
I've had a few requests for a lotion similar to LUSH's Vanishing Creme, so this is it. The idea is the creme will make your acne vanish, so with that in mind, I set out to make my very own Houdini Anti Acne Creme—something worthy of the great Houdini. I took some cues...
Immortelle Primrose Facial Serum
Helichrysum (also called Immortelle or Everlasting) is one of my favourite essential oils. I love its soft, herbal/floral scent and its wonderful healing properties. The pretty yellow flowers of the Helichrysum italicum plant give Helichrysum its nicknames as they...
Lip Balm
Hot Chocolate Lip Butter
We're continuing our Hot Chocolate holiday making theme with some tubes of the sort of lip butter I need in the winter. It's rich, creamy, and most importantly, long-wearing. This stuff sticks around for hours—an absolute must when it's cold, dry, and generally bleh...
DIY Moisturizing Lip Oil: 3 Ways
I've been having a ton of fun making lip oil formulations this year, and today I'm finally sharing three of my favourite formulations starring a new-to-me ingredient that I'm low-key obsessed with. These are super easy to stir up (no heating required!) and are a...
Peppermint Beeswax Lip Balm
If you love Burt's Bees lip balm, you should definitely try this formulation. I've been working on this project for months, testing and adjusting and comparing it to the original and circling back and trying again, and I think I've gotten really, really close. I...
Candlelight Lip Butter with Hyaluronic Acid
If dry winter lips are driving you up the wall, I think you will love this rich and creamy Candlelight Lip Butter with Hyaluronic Acid. It stars a base of luxurious and deeply moisturizing ingredients while also boasting lip-plumping and anti-ageing effects. Let's...
Mocha Lip Scrub
In today's edition of "I promise that's not actually food even though it looks, smells (and tastes!) like it" I'm sharing a formulation for a simple six-ingredient Mocha Lip Scrub! This decadent coffee and chocolate scented scrub is perfect for gently buffing away...
Summer Stone Fruit Lip Balm
This cherry-hued, marzipan-scented lip balm is a lovely bit of summery goodness in a tube! You'll need just six ingredients to make it, and you can customize the colour—including adjusting the formulation to include more pigment to create a lip tint. You can choose to...
Creamy Almond Lip Balm
This rich Creamy Almond Lip Balm has a gorgeous ointment-gel consistency, and it's an evolution of the Almond & Olive Creamy Lip Balm I shared last autumn. A combination of a pseudo wax and a true wax gives us an end product that's a bit reminiscent of petrolatum...
Cocoa Coconut Sticky Lip Balm
There was really no way I could do a Cocoa Coconut theme and not do a lip balm. Cocoa Coconut practically begs to be lip-balm-ized! Since we're in the midst of ultra-dry wintery weather right now, I opted to make this a Cocoa Coconut Sticky Lip Balm because when it is...
Almond & Olive Creamy Lip Balm
It has been absolutely ages since I shared a lip balm formulation, but with cold & dry winter conditions here for the somewhat foreseeable future, it's definitely time for a new way to keep our lips happy! This Almond & Olive Creamy Lip Balm has a rich,...
Nourishing Lip Mask
Today we're blending up a simple, all-natural, Nourishing Lip Mask. I've called it a lip mask, but honestly, it's a super versatile salve for all kinds of dry, irritated skin. It stars a short and sweet list of rich, soothing emollients to create a gorgeous ointment...
Chocolate Cherry Lip Balm
Today we're kicking off a decadent new theme—Chocolate Cherry—with an equally decadent lip balm! Mouth-wateringly delicious cocoa butter co-stars with oh-so-lovely cherry kernel oil. I thought a lip balm would be a great place to start as the idea of chocolate-cherry...
White Chocolate Peppermint Vegan Lip Balm
Today we're whipping up some beautiful stocking stuffers—White Chocolate Peppermint Vegan Lip Balm! Despite lip balm being inexpensive and easy to make, people are pretty accustomed to paying about $5 a tube for the stuff. This creates a lovely opportunity for you to...
Cranberry Orange Tinted Lip Balm
Deep red cranberries lend themselves beautifully to a Christmassy tinted lip balm, so it's no surprise that this lip balm hit my to-do list as soon as I knew one of our holiday themes would be cranberry orange. Today's silky tinted lip balm gives the lips just enough...
Rosé Lip Balm
Today's DIY is a soft, lightly glossy lip balm that smells deliciously of rosé with a beautiful pink punch. It's a continuation of our rosé series, starring a stunning scent blend of fresh & dry green cognac essential oil, sweet rose, and bright citrus. This scent...
Lavender Vanilla Vegan Lip Balm
Today we're making a lovely Lavender Vanilla Vegan Lip Balm that's brilliant for spring. With a light-but-creamy consistency and a bright, sweet essential oil blend it's just the thing to shake up your lip balm routine as we move towards warmer days. Want to watch...
Sugar Plum Lip Balm
I've been gifting homemade lip balm to friends and family for so long now that people have told me they just hold out for Christmas rather than buy more—and I'm definitely not going to let them down! This year's holiday lip balm is Sugar Plum themed (it seemed much...
Creamy Lip Balm
This rich, creamy lip balm came out of the experiments I did as I was developing my recipe for my Basic Moldable Lipstick Base. It was the far end of my "let's make this creamier" experiments, and while I loved how it felt, it basically glued itself to the inside of...
Moisturizing Overnight Lip Mask
Back in December I picked up Laniege’s Lip Sleeping Mask at San Francisco’s Duty Free shop during a rather long stop-over on my way to New Zealand. I’d read about the product working wonders for super dry lips and was intrigued by those claims and also by the idea of...
Lemon Rose Tinted Lip Balm
After returning from a week in Toronto earlier this month my lips were a mess. Toronto is wonderfully humid whilst Calgary is... not... and my lips had been spoilt with all that decadent, skin-loving humidity. The return to Calgary saw my lips pitching a very...
Vanilla Spice Vegan Lip Balm
Most of the vegan lip balms I've tried share the characteristic of being quite glassy and thin—they lack that rich creaminess of beeswax lip balms. With a beeswax lip balm you can really schmear it on and it'll stay there and lock in moisture for ages (especially this...
Chocolate Macadamia Nut Vegan Lip Balm
If you have ever dreamed of living in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, or figure the best superpower ever would be the ability to eat as much chocolate as possible without it having any calories, I think this lip balm is for you. Decadent, super-fragrant cocoa butter...
Chamomile Citrus Vegan Lip Balm
The consistency I look for in a lip balm is almost entirely dictated by how my lips are feeling. If I'm feeling extra parched and lizard-like I'll reach for something sticky (like this or this) that has the power to stubbornly cling to my lips and really lock in...
Tinted Coal Lip Balm
I thought I'd mix things up a bit with this seasonal lip balm and bring my Lumps of Coal holiday theme to the realm of lip balms. And I love it. It definitely seemed a bit odd when I jotted down the idea a few weeks ago, with aims of avoiding creating something dark...
Vegan Citrus Lip Butter
Ever since I made my Chocolate Lip Butter I've been completely smitten with it, so naturally I want more of it in all kinds of different variations. I've been wishing for a citrussy lip treat for ages, but since citrus essential oils are photosensitizing, I've never...
Chocolate Lip Butter
Out of all the things I've made that I have to frequently remind myself not to eat, this Chocolate Lip Butter is pretty high up that list. It smells downright delicious, and leaves my lips oh-so wonderfully soft and hydrated. And did I mention that it smells exactly...
Blushing Rosehip Lip Balm
A few years ago I acquired a bag of bright pink rosehip botanical extract in my quest for something that would make an awesome lip stain (and I've heard from many readers who did the same, for lip stain or other projects). Rosehip powder was a resounding failure in...
Sticky Coconut Lip Balm
'Tis the season for horrible lizard lips, and this lip balm is my lizard lip savior. This super simple, wonderfully effective Sticky Coconut Lip Balm came about thanks to Susan, who commented on my Quick Guide to Coconut Oil & Beeswax Ratios back in 2014 to tell...
Maple Syrup Lip Balm
As a Canadian it is my patriotic duty to try to incorporate maple syrup into as many things as I can manage. Today's thing is lip balm, and it is lovely. This taffy coloured maple syrup lip balm is creamy, hydrating, and lightly maple scented. Please don't eat it,...
Scottish Rose Salve
In honour of Robbie Burn's day, I'm sharing this recipe for a Scottish Rose Salve today ("O my Luve is like a red, red rose"). It was inspired by a recipe request from Jade, who wrote "I love this [rosebud] lip salve. I've been using it for 9 years and it's a staple....
Candy Cane Lip Balm
This idea came to me from Sarah over on the East Coast of Canada, who told me about making candy cane lip balm for Christmas last year. The idea stuck, and here we are! What could be better for Christmas gift giving? We’ll kick the scent department off with the base...
Princess Lip Balm
This sparkly princess lip balm is a continuation on a theme that started with my princess soap. It’s great for the little ladies (and the big ones), and smells pretty awesome (roses, lavender, and vanilla). Mmm. The base of this princess lip balm is a blend of glossy...
Red Velvet Lip Balm
Red Velvet cake is one of those things people can get quite particular about, and with its striking red colour and bright white frosting, it’s hard to blame them. This red velvet lip balm is inspired by this decadent dessert. This indulgent, glossy lip balm uses a...
Lavender Cardamom Lip Balm
Bobbie wrote in with a request for this lovely sounding lavender cardamom lip balm—I must admit it was the mention of cardamom that pulled me in. I adore the bright, sweet note the cardamom adds to any scent blend, and I'm always looking for new places to use it. Add...
Mimosa Coconut Lip Balm
This summery smelling mimosa coconut lip balm makes use of tropical mimosa floral wax to get a soft floral scent that's rather lovely and exotic. Like all lip balms, this one is a blend of different oils and butters, thickened with wax. I'm using my coconut oil, [sv...
Royal Hibiscus Lip Tint
This pretty, ruddy russet-toned lip tint glides on with a pop of mint and a hint of golden shimmer. Everything comes together quickly and easily, leaving you with a fistful of little gifts for friends and family in no time. The colour comes from an infusion of...
Double Mint Lip Balm
This silky smooth double mint lip balm marries strong, bright peppermint with soft, subtle spearmint, and adds a hint of spicy French rosemary for good measure. It's a simple lip balm, with a base of glossy coconut oil, moisturizing , and...
Ruby Lip Tint
This pretty ruby lip tint gets its ruby colour pop from an infusion of alkanet root—Batschia canescens. Native to the Mediterranean, it produces bright blue flowers and dark red roots that have been used as a dye for hundreds of years. Alkanet powder itself is pretty...
Vanilla Latte Swirl Lip Balm
This sweet, smooth vanilla latte swirl lip balm is downright delightful. It's like a trip to a local café in a vibrant new city. New York, perhaps, or London. The smell of rich coffee mingles with sweet vanilla and mouth watering cocoa. A touch of optional shimmery...
London Fog Lip Balm
I am quite smitten with this glossy, fragrant London Fog Lip Balm. Inspired by the lovely latte made with Earl Grey tea, steamed milk, and vanilla syrup, it conjures up memories of misty days wandering cobblestone lined streets with a woolen jacket and a chunky scarf....
Coral Lip Balm
This pretty coral lip balm brings a pretty pop of colour and a hint of shimmer to an already awesome tube of lip balm. It's fun to make and easily tweaked to your preferred shade of coral and level of colour and shimmer—I like it a lot. The colour comes from a blend...
Ginger Petitgrain Lip Balm
This light and gently spiced lip balm is just the thing for brightening your days, even if they are unbearably short right now (as mine are). Ginger adds a hint of spicy warmth, while petitgrain brings an intriguingly dry hint of citrus to the lip balm (sans...
Pumpkin Spice Lip Balm
I thought I'd continue my pumpkin spice spree with this delightful Pumpkin Spice Lip Balm. Not only does it smell of pie and leave your lips smooth and glossy, but it also contains real pumpkin oil, which gives it a wonderful mandarin hue. Want to watch this project...
Rose Spearmint Lip Balm
Several months ago I ordered some rose wax from Saffire Blue, and apart from enthusiastically sniffing the wee baggie it came in, I haven't done anything with it until now. This lovely rose and spearmint lip balm was well worth the wait, though. Want to buy this lip...
Sun Kissed Lip Balm
This fun bronze-tinted shimmery sun kissed lip balm is perfect for summer. With a fantastic cocoa peppermint scent, great glide, and some shimmer and shine, I'm loving having this in my purse this summer. A base of beeswax, , coconut oil, and...
Blushing Argan Lip Balm
This carnation coloured Blushing Argan Lip Balm is inspired by Josie Maran's Argan Lip Treatment. It sounded like a good idea, but the reviews were a little mixed. Some users raved about it—subtle, smoothing, shiny. Others said it was a bit lackluster, from...
Mocha Lip Balm
Allow me to introduce you to something that is wonderful and delicious. It is lip balm that has been infused with coffee and chocolate, resulting in a fancy coffee shop experience for your kisser. This mocha lip balm smells incredible, tastes pretty darn good, and...
Silver Shimmer Lip Balm
As much as I generally detest winter, I will concede that it can be very pretty. My favourite winter sight is that of trees coated in sparkling ice crystals—it's as if the entire world has been coated in diamond dust. That's what this silver shimmer lip balm makes me...
Rosehip Lip Gloss
I was rather sad when my rosehip lip stain totally failed to do much of anything. It had so much promise! The name sounded so nice! The powder was so, so very pink! And I now had a bag of rosehip powder that I now had no other use for… at least the last problem could...
Peppermint Sugar Lip Scrub Stick
In the winter my lips get unbearably dry. Arrrgh. It's infuriating. Calgary is practically a desert for most of the year, but in the winter I swear we tip into negative humidity. Things don't mold here because it's like living in a dehydrator. Good for line drying...
Cranberry Lip Balm
Every year around this time The Body Shop releases their seasonal line of cranberry inspired body products. I say "inspired" because they don't seem to have much in common with the little red berry other than the colour. I used to love the lip gloss, but once I...
