Made with the rich oils of fruits, nuts, seeds, and vegetables,
wax made by bees, and wildcrafted healing herbs, homemade skin
creams are luxuriously fresh and nourishing. By adding a bit
of a queen bee’s royal jelly, your face cream can impart to
your skin one of the great secrets of Mayan beauty. What a
contrast with expensive, petroleum-based dead-in-a-bottle
products without any healing benefit, found in department
stores.

The purpose of an emollient and moisturizing skin cream is to
protect the skin from the elements, to hydrate, and replace
oils that have been stripped away from cleansing. Beeswax
provides a protective coating against wind and sun, and the
emollient oils such as apricot kernel, almond, avocado, and
Shea butter, hydrate and nourish. Some oils, such as sesame
oil, are rich, natural sunscreens in their own right.

This easy skin cream only takes 25 minutes to make!

The Basic Moisturizing Skin Cream Formula
2 1/2 ounces blended oils (see “What are the Best Oils for Your Skin,” below)
1 1/2 ounces coconut oil or cocoa butter
1/2 ounce beeswax
4 ounces distilled or purified water
1 teaspoon active royal jelly (optional; available in health food stores)
30 drops grapefruit seed extract (available in health food stores)
Essential oils of choice (optional)

Weigh the coconut oil and beeswax on a scale. Combine the oils and beeswax in a double boiler, and melt over a low heat, stirring occasionally. This step takes about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the melted oils and beeswax from the stove and add the water. Mix with an electric mixer until creamy and thick. Stir in the grapefruit seed extract and essential oils (if using). Store in glass jars with screw-on tops. Makes 8 ounces of cream. Note: This cream should last for 4 months or so, but if you see mold growing, discard. When you make kitchen cosmetics, cleanliness is really important so bacteria doesn’t grow. Purified or distilled water is used in this recipe because bacteria has been filtered out.
Preparation Time: 25 minutes

What are the Best Oils for Your Skin?
The only way to find the best oils for your skin is to go to a health
food store and buy a variety and see how they feel. Your
skin will “tell” you when you have found the best ones for you. Join
with some friends for this experiment, and share the cost.

Here are some suggested oils to try: almond oil; apricot kernel oil (great for sensitive and older skin); avocado oil (one of the most moisturizing oils and good for older skin); cocoa butter (protective and water repellent); grapeseed oil (a dry oil, good so the cream isn’t too greasy); jojoba (actually a liquid wax and good to use so the cream isn’t too greasy); peanut oil (good for all skin types); sesame oil (natural sunscreen); Shea butter (natural sunscreen); and wheat germ oil (high in vitamins and minerals).

An increasing number of natural plant-based moisturizing creams are on the market. Check at health food stores for products from our advertisers Kiss My Face and Aubrey Organics, among others.