Essential Oils - Lip Balm Recipes - Smacking Good For Healthy Lips

The easiest way to make a lip balm with your choice of essential oils, is simply to warm your favorite balm (with all those pure natural ingredients) and add a few drops of the therapeutic grade essential oil. For example, take about a Tablespoonful size of a beeswax type of lip balm, place the container in some warm water until it softens, and then add 2 drops of Melissa, 1 drop Tea Tree and 1 drop of Spearmint essential oils. Stir well with a toothpick. This formula is wonderful salve for healing cold sores. It tastes good, too.

Lip balms make great gifts. You can experiment around with different combinations. Check with your aromatherapist for specific essential oils specific to your special needs.

If you want to make your own, here is a wonderful recipe for cracked, dry or sore lips that I have used with success:

• 1 tablespoon of beeswax
• 2 tablespoons of castor oil
• 1 teaspoon of honey
• 1 Vitamin E capsule
• 2 drops of carrot seed essential oil
• 2 drops of sandalwood essential oil
• 2 drops of myrrh essential oil

Melt the beeswax in the top pan of a double boiler over low heat. Stir in the castor oil and honey until you have a thick liquid, then remove from heat. Cut the end off the vitamin E capsule, and add the gel from the capsule to the mixture. When cool, add the therapeutic grade essential oils. Blend well, and then put into small containers for storage. Be sure to make labels that contain the ingredients and directions for use. Directions are to smooth a small amount on lips as needed. Precaution: do not use myrrh during pregnancy. (Just leave it out if this is the case).

For lip balm, the proportions you need are 2:1 solids to liquids. The beeswax is a solid and all of the other ingredients are liquid. I like to use castor oil because if gives a nice gloss to the lips. Honey adds a bit of sweetener, and the vitamin E contains antioxidants and will extend the shelf life of your balm. The essential oils listed are all known for healing properties. In particular, myrrh is renown for mouth care.By Judy Lausch

Don't Let the Signs of Aging Show Up on Your Face - Keep Wrinkles Away With Essential Oils

Remember when your mother used to say: "Don't make that awful face. It might stay that way"? As it happens, she may have been more correct than she knew. Over the years our skin takes on a memory of our most common facial moves like squinting, smiling, frowning, raising our eyebrows or even the "sucking in" part of smoking. The result of this is wrinkles. Plus, anything we do that takes moisture from our skin tissue helps in the development of wrinkles. A major offender is over-exposure to the sun.
Forget about aging gracefully. Fight it every step of the way! Cleanse your face gently with natural moisturizers that gently clean and hydrate the skin. Increase the level of anti-oxidants in your diet. Avoid over-exposure to the sun or apply SPF products. Limit your alcohol consumption, manage your stress, and quit smoking. Hydrate with a minimum of eight glasses of water a day. Get plenty of sleep: at least eight hours a night. And last, but certainly not least: use essential oils to help maintain collagen and regenerate new cells. In general, the essential oils that help skin cells regenerate and rejuvenate are the same oils that help heal slight skin abrasions caused by dry skin.
The two best choices of oils to use for wrinkles are Niaouli, which is a choice skin tonic that protects the skin and Myrtle, which acts as an astringent to the skin. Other essential oils known for their anti-aging properties are: carrot seed, rose, jasmine, geranium, helichrysum, neroli, frankincense and myrrh.
To counteract dry, mature skin, it is best to combine these essential oils with vitamin-rich plant oils to help soften and nourish the skin, and nutrient packed nut and seed oils to act as carriers for the essential oils and aid in moisturizing and protecting the skin tissue. For this the best choices are high quality, cold-pressed oils such as rosehip, apricot kernel, avocado, macadamia nut, kikui nut, evening primrose and wheatgerm.
Here is a great formula for an excellent facial oil to use for dehydrated or wrinkled skin, or skin that has been damaged by the sun. When applying this oil avoid the eyes and the hairline. Use upward strokes while applying to neck and face.

Anti-Wrinkle Oil
2 tsp Apricot kernel oil
1 tsp Avocado oil
1 tsp Rose hip seed oil
10 drops Carrot Seed oil
5 drops Evening Primrose oil
4 drops Myrtle essential oil
4 drops Niaouli essential oil
2 drops Myrrh essential oil
3 drops Rose essential oil (for women) or
3 drops Jasmine essential oil (for men)
Combine ingredients in a one-ounce dark glass bottle. Cap and gently mix. Label. Apply 2-4 drops of the blend onto your fingertips, and apply to a moistened face and neck (Using floral water to moisten face is a great idea). Work upward, gently massaging the facial tissue.By Judy Lausch