Last week was full of recipes created to pamper your face. For dry skin in need of additional moisture, the Lavender and Aloe Lotion and Lavender and Chamomile Cleansing Bar feature hydrating ingredient such as Sweet Almond Oil, Shea Butter and Jojoba Oil. If your skin is on the oilier side, the Tea Tree and Rosemary Cleansing Bar and Oil-Free Lavender Lotion help control oil and keep skin feeling comfortable.
Top row (left to right): Lavender and Aloe Lotion, Oil-Free Lavender Lotion
Bottom row: Oily & Dry Cleansing Bars
In between washing and moisturizing your skin, using a toner is a great way to keep skin feeling refreshed. Good for both dry and oily skin types, Aloe Vera Liquid provides hydration while Witch Hazel acts as an astringent. Infused with Chamomile and Calendula Petals, this toner is a great project for beginners.
What You’ll Need:
10 oz. Aloe Vera Liquid
10 oz. Witch Hazel
1 tbs. Marigold (Calendula) Dried
1 tbs. Chamomile Herb, Egyptian
4.7 mL Optiphen ND
8 oz. Bottle with White Disk Cap (2 bottles)
Large Sealable Tea Bag (1 bag)
TWO: Place the tea bag into the Aloe Vera Liquid, and press down to fully submerge. Allow the tea bag to infuse in the Aloe Vera Liquid for 8 hours, or overnight. Aloe Vera contains over 75 different potentially active constituents, many of which have a variety of positive skincare application.
Note:It’s normal for a portion of the Aloe Vera Liquid to evaporate during this process, the amount of liquid in the recipe has taken this into account.
THREE: Squeeze out as much of the Aloe Vera liquid as possible, and throw away tea bag.
FOUR: Add witch hazel and Optiphen ND. Use a whisk to thoroughly combine. A note on preservatives: since this recipe uses dry herbs that can carry insurmountable self-preservative hurdles, using a synthetic preservative will help keep the mold and bacteria from growing in your toner.
FIVE: Once all ingredients have been added, pour toner into bottles and place cap on top. To use, pour a small amount of the toner onto a cotton ball, and gently sweep across face in one direction. Do not scrub! This can irritate the skin. Follow with a moisturizer.
I’ve made this and LOVE it! I would like to add some tea tree to it? Could you give me a suggested usage rate?
Thanks so much!!
So glad you’re loving the toner Marissa! You can use our Fragrance Calculator to find out how much tea tree essential oil to use: https://www.brambleberry.com/Pages/Fragrance-Calculator.aspx
Because you’re adding an oil to a water-based recipe, I would recommend using an emulsifier to ensure everything stays mixed. Polysorbate 80 works well! You can use it up to 50% in this recipe. I would recommend starting with a 1:1 ratio of essential oil and Polysorbate. 🙂
Polysorbate 80: https://www.brambleberry.com/Polysorbate-80-P4438.aspx
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Do the Calendula & Chamomile give this any scent? Or does the Witch Hazel overpower their fragrance?
I think it would be nice to scent this a little…how much would you recommend? (I’m thinking of BB Chamomile Bergamot FO)
Thank you!
Hi Sly!
This recipe has a very light chamomile/marigold scent, but mostly smells like witch hazel. You can add a fragrance if you like! Because this is going on the face where the skin is more sensitive, I would recommend just a couple mL of fragrance. You don’t want anything too strong right around your nose. 🙂
Chamomile Bergamot Fragrance Oil: https://www.brambleberry.com/Chamomile-Bergamot-Fragrance-Oil-P3937.aspx
Droppers: https://www.brambleberry.com/Droppers-With-Suction-Bulb-P3802.aspx
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Hello! This sounds like a wonderful recipe. I do have a couple of questions. Could I use Aloe Extract in place of aloe vera liquid? If so, do I need the preservative?
Also, could just Optiphen be used with the recipe as you have it written? If it can be used, how much would I use?
I have optiphen just not optiphen ND.
Could a spray bottle be used…I was thinking of closing eyes and spraying a mist on the face. Would that be possible?
Thank You
Hi Monique!
You can add aloe extract to this recipe if you like! Extracts are plant extracts mixed with fractionated coconut oil. We recommend using aloe extract around 2-15% in the recipe. Because it is an oil, you would still need the aloe vera liquid or distilled water as a base. You can use either. 🙂
Read more about extracts here: http://www.soapqueen.com/bramble-berry-news/sunday-night-spotligh-extracts/
We found Optiphen ND works best for water based recipes like this one, while Optiphen works best for oil based recipes. I would recommend using the Optiphen ND for this one! Read more about preservatives here: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/lotion/talk-it-out-tuesday-preservatives/
I believe this recipe would work in a spray bottle! Just be very careful to avoid the eyes, as the ingredients can irritate them. It may also be helpful to test a bit in a spray bottle to see if it sprays nicely. 🙂
8 oz. Bottle with Spray Top: https://www.brambleberry.com/8-oz-Bottles-Spray-Top-P4457.aspx
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I have Optiphen Plus. Are the usage rates the same?
Hi Charmy!
You can use Optiphen Plus at .75-1.5% of the total weight of your recipe. This recipe uses a preservative at 1%, so you can use the same amount (4.7 mL). 🙂
Learn more about using preservatives here: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/lotion/talk-it-out-tuesday-preservatives/
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Hi, is the preservative simply for the infused herbs? If I were to skip them and just do aloe and witch hazel, would I still need a preservative?
Hi Lindsey!
The Optiphen ND is used to prevent mold and bacteria in this recipe because of the aloe vera liquid. Preservatives are used when a recipe has water, or in this case aloe vera liquid, which is used as a water replacement.
If you left out the aloe vera liquid, you wouldn’t need that preservative. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Talk It Out Tuesday: Preservatives: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/lotion/talk-it-out-tuesday-preservatives/
How long will this keep with the Optiphen? Thank you.
Hi Lynn!
This recipe should keep for about a year. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I am curious if optiphen ND can be used as a preservative in eye makeup remover? If not, are there any preservatives that are safe for use around the eye?
Thanks
Hi Chris!
While all of our preservatives are skin safe if used at the correct usage rate, they are not eye safe. This is because the eyes are very sensitive!
You may want to do some online research to find which preservatives are approved for use in eye products. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I made this last week and I love it! I have been using witch hazel as a toner for years, so this was a natural choice for me to make. I love how it makes my skin feel after. Thank you!
Hi Merryn!
So glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I have almost everything to make this at home now and would like to make it. However I do not have Optiphen ND but I do have Phenonip. Can you use Phenonip instead and if so is the amount the same?
Hi Shara!
Absolutely! You can use the same amount of Phenonip as the Optiphen ND. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Awesome. Thank you.
You’re welcome! 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry