Homemade Facewash

Since before the birth of my son, almost four years ago, I have been washing my face with something other than Neutrogena...and saved lots of money. The dermatologist I saw a few times back in high school suggested Liquid Neutrogena; it's detergent free and gentle. So, of course, I used it for the next 10 or so years. But then I read about something new....washing your face with honey. Since I was trying to move to using more natural products on my skin, and since organic products at the store cost an arm and a leg, I decided to try it.

Honey as a face wash worked great.

The pros...my skin was softer, I needed less lotion after washing my face, it was cheap and available in a cute little squeezy bear, it smelled nice, it kept my skin clear, it didn't irritate my skin, dry it out, or leave it oily.

The cons... occasionally I missed a bit when rinsing it off or a bit got left in my hair only to feel it later at night when I was already in bed :-) and secondly, here in Costa Rica we have teeny-tiny sugar ants...they really like the sink after I wash my face with honey. So, both rinsing problems, largely my fault, and both solved by using the honey in the shower instead of at the sink.

Not only was I saving by not buying Neutrogena...I started buying organic lotion online for about half of what it costs in the stores. Since my skin is less dry, I only use a teeny bit every morning and one $7 bottle lasts me 6 months on average.

After about 3 years of using honey, I started getting lazy. I would run out of honey or not want to use it in the sink at night (for the above mentioned reasons). This lead to stage two of my natural facewashing experience. Washing your face with water. Right now, this is really working for me. I still occasionally use the honey; I still like it, but washing with just warm water and only using a bit of organic lotion once a day seems to be working, too.

Try it, see what works for you. Save money and enjoy. Here are some other household products that you can use with the honey for solving your face care needs:

- need a scrub - add a little baking soda to the honey, this will also help if your skin is oily

- want an toner replacement - try apple cider vinegar on a cotton ball after washing your face

- want a natural homemade face mask - try one of these recipes; the internet is full of them