Tired of paying through the nose for beauty products that contain a bunch of chemicals you can't even pronounce?

Us too!

Believe it or not, you can get started making your own all natural beauty products with just 8 ingredients!

I'm a big believer in not only knowing what you put on your skin but how it will impact your skin type.

With just 8 ingredients, you can make dozens of beauty products from lotions to sunscreen and even scrubs! Read on for 8 essential ingredients and 4 all natural beginner recipes, including that awesome sugar scrub we just mentioned!

Coconut Oil

I am sure you have heard of the wonders of coconut oil by now. Not only does it have many health benefits when consumed, it also does wonders for your exterior!

• Greatly improves skin moisture
• Protects hair from damage
• Mild sunscreen
• Fights bacteria
• Improves dental health

Make sure you buy unrefined, organic, virgin coconut oil for maximum benefits. Refined coconut oil is less expensive, doesn’t have a scent, and can be used in skincare recipes if desired.

Cocoa Butter

This oil is also entirely edible—and is used to make chocolates in addition to soaps and other cosmetics! Like coconut oil, cocoa butter has a long shelf life, (around 2 to 5 years!) so you can stock up on this ingredient too!

Cocoa butter typically has a chocolatey aroma and flavor, but is sometimes deodorized. Deodorized cocoa butter has hardly any cocoa taste or scent at all, which makes it perfect as a soap ingredient.

So why use cocoa butter? Aside from the velvety texture, this ingredient absorbs easily into the skin, preventing an oily-sticky feeling that some soaps or lotions have.

Shea Butter

Many beauty and skin care products contain this wonder of nature. Buying shea butter raw and cold pressed preserves the maximum amount of good stuff for your skin. Here is a summarized list, as the benefits go on and on!

• Moisturizing
• Skin healing
• Source of vitamin A & E
• Skin soothing
• Treats certain skin conditions
• Anti-aging
• Skin protectant
• Mild sunscreen
• Increases circulation
• Anti-inflammatory
• Improve condition of hair
• Anti-itching

As previously stated, buy raw, organic, cold-pressed shea butter for all these benefits and more. Refined shea butter produces a fraction of the powerful ingredients as unrefined

Remember though that it's important to understand every ingredient you put into your beauty products as different ingredients are better for different skin types. In most recipes, you can actually substitute butters, carrier oils and essential oils to tailor the recipe for your skin type.

Beeswax

All natural beeswax is produced by Honey Bees.

This is another ingredient you can buy in bulk, as it has an indefinite shelf life.

Beeswax is often used as a bonding agent to combine oils and waters. To make a true lotion you need both waters and oils which don't naturally combine so you need to emulsify them using a beeswax.

Sweet Almond Oil

Sweet almond oil is a cost-effective carrier oil.

Carrier oils are vegetable and nut oil, named such because they are used to dilute and carry essential oils to the skin. Essential oils can be abrasive or irritating when applied on their own.

Benefits of Sweet Almond Oil:

• Great for all skin types
• Easy to absorb
• Leaves skin soft and smooth
• Helps relieve skin irritation
• Improve the complexion and retaining glow
• Moisturize better and deeper

Pure Aloe Vera

The benefits of pure aloe vera gel have been known for decades. Not only does it aid in digestion, it has many other topical benefits.

• Antibacterial
• Anti-inflammatory
• Skin hydration
• Wound healing
• Anti-aging
• Improves dental health

Don’t be fooled by imitations! There are many products available that call themselves alone but are actually full of chemicals, dyes, and fragrances. Pure aloe vera gel is not bright green!

Your best option would be to grow your own aloe vera plant. If that is not an option, make sure you read the ingredients well.

Arrowroot

You may not have seen this little gem hiding on the baking aisle at the grocery store. It is typically used these days as a thickening agent in cooking. There are also some beauty and skin care uses.

• Absorbs oil
• Skin healing
• Skin soothing
• Mattifies shine

You want to find organic arrowroot in its powder form.

Essential Oils

Essential oils, like rose oil, lavender oil, frankincense, or sandalwood oil, are commonly used in soaps and other cosmetics for their attractive scents.

Essential oils are always diluted in carrier oil, which prevents any skin irritation from being applied to the skin.

When using essential oils in lotions and soaps, be certain to choose therapeutic grade essential oils, which are safe to be used topically, unlike essential oils meant for aromatherapy.

Essential oils should also not be included in any soap intended for use on animals, as they have extremely high levels of hepatotoxicity and dermal toxicity for animals.

For those with sensitive skin, citrus peel oils may result in increased sensitivity to sunlight.

4 DIY Beauty Recipes

Below are four great DIY beauty recipes. Before I share them I think it's important to note that many people follow recipes blindly on the Internet, and while for the most part nothing harmful will come of that I do think that to develop a truly effective beauty routine it's important to take the time to understand every ingredient in a recipe and for what skin type that ingredient is designed for.

Did you know that in most recipes you can make substitutions and alterations to the recipe to make sure that it is perfect for your skin? Just make sure that when making substitutions that you're substituting alike ingredients or it will change the properties of the recipe.

Simple 5 Ingredient Deodorant

This chemical free, natural odor fighter will keep your pits dry and unoffending this summer.

• 3 Tablespoons coconut oil
• 3 Tablespoons baking soda
• 2 Tablespoons shea butter
• 2 Tablespoons arrowroot (optional)
• Essential oils (optional)

1. Combine the shea butter and coconut oil in a quart-sized mason jar and place in a small saucepan of water and heat through until melted.
2. Carefully remove the mason jar from heat and add baking soda and arrowroot, mixing until well combined.
3. Add any essential oils desired. This recipe does not need to be stored in the fridge.
4. If desired, let the deodorant cool completely and then put into an old deodorant stick for easier use.

Luxurious Sugar Scrub

With three simple ingredients, your skin will be soft, smooth, and downright sexy.

• ½ cup white or brown sugar
• ¼ cup coconut oil
• Essential oils (optional)

1. Mix all ingredients together in an airtight jar.
2. Use 1 tablespoon as needed. Rinse skin thoroughly after use.

Sunscreen Bars

All natural sunscreen that won’t make your skin feel oily or break your face out.

• 1 cup coconut oil
• 1 cup shea butter or cocoa butter
• 1 cup beeswax
• 2 Tablespoons of non-nano zinc oxide
• Vitamin E oil (optional)
• Non-citrus essential oil (optional)

1. Combine all ingredients in a double boiler and stir constantly until melted and smooth.
2. Remove from heat and gently fold in zinc oxide powder and essential oils.
3. Pour into molds or empty deodorant containers to harden and cool completely.
4. Store at room temperature or in the fridge. Keep below 80 degrees or they will melt.

Homemade Lotion Bar