Eco-friendly and budget-friendly beauty and home products

[Shub Niggurath]

I couldn't find any similar topic so I thought I'd start one.

Since all or most of us are aware and want to take care of our Mother Earth, why not starting with our beauty products and various home supplies? Nature is clever and it gives us all we need to stay pretty, keep our homestead clean and healthy and let us save money at the same time

Here are some eco-friendly and quite cheap products that I use and love. Please share yours as well!

1. Khadi henna. 100% natural and healthy! If you want to dye your hair you can do it without damaging your hair and letting deadly chemicals inside your body - instead your hair will be nourished and will grow faster. I'm serious - since I use it my hair stopped falling out like mad and all I see is improvement + I'm not supporting companies destroying our nature

(Image source: http://www.indianproducts.biz)

2. Soap nuts! They're cheap and good for everything. Doing laundry is much cheaper, allergic-friendly and eco-friendly (I put around 10 nuts in a satchel into my washing machine every time instead of detergents - 10 nuts last for around 1 month/up to 10 times). Cleaning all the surfaces, even stubborn dirt in the kitchen (I boil around 10 nuts in 1l of water and use the liquid to clean everything) - no toxic chemicals needed anymore. You can even use them as a shampoo and shower gel!

(Image source: http://www.thediysecrets.com)

3. Coconut oil. It's perfect in the kitchen but not only. It can be used as a hair mask, face mask, body lotion, to make a body scrub (you add sugar or ground coffee beans and voila!), salves and much more.

(Image source: http://www.nutria.co)



What do you use to save money and be eco-friendly?

[Starwitch]

Great ideas! Thanks for sharing!

[GreenGato]

Baking soda- It helps my oily skin and scrubs my skin and the sinks like a charm. I spray counters with a diluted apple cider vinegar when I'm done.

I've used coconut oil to get my makeup off, but it hurts some people's eyes.

[Shub Niggurath]

Oh yeah, baking soda can be used for many things. People use it as a whitening toothpaste, add it to natural shampoos for oily hair treatment and for cleaning the house. I'm not entirely sure of its eco-friendliness though

There's also two more eco-friendly and budget-friendly products I'd like to add to the list that I forgot earlier about:

4. Crystal Natural Deodorant. It's made out of mineral salts, hypoallergic, fragrance and paraben free. It looks pretty (like a tumbled quartz crystal), it lasts forever (I mean it - few years!) and is just as good as regular deodorants, except it doesn't irritate your skin and doesn't plug the pores. It's not an antiperspirant which means that it allows you to sweat your toxins out like you naturally would but it neutralizes the unpleasant smell completely. It's healthy because it allows your body to naturally get rid of toxins (unlike regular antiperspirants which contain aluminum chlorohydrate or aluminum zirconium and block the toxins inside your body).


(Image source: miraclemilebeauty.com)

5. Amla + Reetha + Shikakai shampoo. It's an old indian shampoo formula. Normalizes hair oiliness, helps prevent hair loss and makes your hair regrow. It's made out of three plants (Amla, Reetha, Shikakai) and can be either bought in a powder form (you mix the powders together to make a paste and put in on your hair for around 1h before taking a bath) or in natural form (you boil water with the three ingredients together and wash your hair with the water when it's cold).


(Image source: tradeget.com)

[OldSoul7]

Hi guys, this is my first post on these forums!

I try and use all homemade products for beauty and cleaning.

Some of my favorites are:

1) Raw Apple Cider Vinegar (with the mother): my favorite brand is Bragg. I use this as a natural rinse with rosemary essential oil to keep my dandruff away and I also use it for my heartburn and indigestion. Just a couple teaspoons diluted with water makes me feel better

2) For all-natural toothpaste and deodorant, I really utilize virgin, unrefined coconut oil. For toothpaste, I mix CO with baking soda, calcium carbonate powder, clove essential oil, and stevia powder. It has whitened me and my fiancé's teeth and his dentist said his teeth have never looked cleaner I also mix CO with Bob's red mill baking soda, arrowroot powder, and lavender oil for a natural deodorant free of aluminum and propylene glycol!

3) For cleaning, I use white vinegar with essential oils for most. For scrubbing, I use white vinegar mixed with a bit of baking soda, essential oils, and sea salt or lemon.

[AnaisStar]

I use almond oil as my facial cleanser. Rub the oil all over the face as you let the water get hot. Then get a washcloth wet with hot water. Place it over the face to "steam" the skin, then towel off.

At night I use argan oil as my moisturizer and add a few drops of Frankincense EO

[AdastraJunction]

I use Avacodo and egg white (organic) for a twice a month facial mask and twice a week I use organic honey mixed with cinnamon, ginger juiced (just a few drops), a touch of baking soda and turmeric as a facial mask. For both you apply and let set for 20 minutes then rinse with cold water.

[BabyBear]

Figured i would chip in with some of mine

Arrowroot/Cornstarch
1) 1/4 cup Arrowroot/cornstarch (with about 2 tbs or more of coca power for dark hair/shin) can be used as foundation or dry shampoo and if you wont your dry shampoo to be scented just add a few drops of essential oils you like the smell of (i use tea tree cus its great for hair growth, repair and shine)

2) a wet version of the same shampoo is 1 cup warm water, 1/4 cup arrowroot or cornstarch, 1/4 cup vodka, rubbing alcohol or witch hazel, and Essential oils or a spritz of your favorite perfume to scent. just add to a spritz bottle and make sure to shake it well before each use and spray on roots or oily parts of hair. Let dry and style as usual.

If you have dark hair but don’t want to use cocoa powder in your hair, just use plain arrowroot and apply before going to bed the night before or at least 2 hours in advance so that it has time to absorb and you won’t get the fake-gray-looks-like-a-wig look.

Coffee Scrub
1/4 cup coffee grounds
3 tablespoons sugar or brown sugar
2-3 Tablespoons of melted coconut oil

Combine the ingredients to create a paste-like consistency (note that it will harden if cooled if you are using unrefined coconut oil). Store in a glass jar.Massage in to skin for several minutes using firm pressure and wash as usual. Use 2-3 times a week. Results should be visible within a couple of weeks.

It is believed that the caffeine in the coffee will increase blood flow essentially making the skin tighten a little and you loss cellulite either way you get a nice exfoliate scrub for your skin.

Blush

½ tsp arrowroot
½ tsp cocoa powder
½ tsp Hibiscus powder

just mix and and add more if needed till you get the tone you wish for

Skin

you can get coca nut oil and use it to help heal and repair any skin and in fact you can go to the local dollar tree and buy what they call softee coconut oil hair and scalp conditioner and just use that trust me its safe and works wonders cus i use it myself and i have VERY sensitive skin especially to most any beauty product hence why i make my own when i can