Rethink Clean: Restore and Maintain Good Bacteria on Your Skin

I’ve never rested my bare face on a subway pole. I have, however, held on to a subway pole at rush hour, used those same hands to swipe and accept a phone call, then placed that germy cell phone screen on my cheek for the duration of a conversation. Joseph Lister is spinning in his grave. Fortunately, the green beauty movement is hip to that. There’s a promising new generation of beauty products that seek to rescue our skin from the tech world and pollution. They’re using ingredients like lipids, adaptogens, ceramides,  and live bacteria (probiotics, yo!) to help strengthen our skin’s natural barrier, so it can function as it should. Instead of stripping away our skin’s natural defense against modern day irritants, product lines like Mother Dirt, are designed to nourish and support the ecosystem of our skin, while still delivering on what we’ve come to expect in our favorite beauty essentials. Here are some must have products from the Mother Dirt collection.

Cleanser

Less than ten ingredients, this entirely plant-based cleanser easily removes dirt, oil, and makeup without stripping, or drying out the skin. It’s suitable for all skin types and is preservative-free.

Moisturizer

This serum is a powerhouse designed to mimic our skin’s natural barrier. Start with a small drop and apply it to dry skin anywhere on your body. A little goes a long way.

Mist

This mist is my favorite! Think of this as the cherry on top of all of your Mother Dirt products. Designed to reduce our dependence on products like moisturizers, makeup, and even deodorant, AO+Mist improves the appearance of skin by replenishing essential bacteria to your skin’s natural barrier.

Shop the Bundle

The Bundle includes the cleanser, the moisturizer, the mist, and Mother Dirt’s shampoo which I didn’t include a description of because I’m having so much success with my 2 ingredient homemade herbal shampoo. If you try the shampoo, you should def tell me how amazing it is in the comments!

Spring Clean Your Beauty Routine in 3 Steps

It’s that time of year again. As you’re packing away your heavy sweaters and snow boots in anticipation of the warmer days ahead, you should also start saying goodbye to your Winter skin care routine. Spring is all about rejuvenation. With that in mind, here are some tips to spring clean your beauty routine!

Purge, Purge, Purge!

Take a look at what you have. At the start of every season, you should check expiration dates and toss out the old stuff. In general, shadows and powders can be used safely for up to three years, but mascara should be tossed after only three months. While you’re tossing out those old products, go ahead and toss out the stuff you don’t use. Be honest with yourself. Beauty products really add up over time and can really clutter and confuse your beauty routine. Rule of thumb: be realistic and practical about what you actually like, what you actually use, and what’s in good condition …and rid your life of everything else.

Deep Clean and Reorganize

Now’s your chance to deep clean your make up brushes, your toothbrushes, and all the small stuff like tweezers and nail clippers, all of which can get really skunky over time. Not sure exactly how to clean your beauty tools? Here’s some step by step instructions from Makeup.com

How to Clean Your Makeup Brushes

1. Rinse: Rinse the bristles, always with water streaming down — you want to avoid running water directly into the base of the brush, which can weaken the glue and shorten the lifespan of your brush. This is why bristles begin to fall out.

2. Cleanse: Work a small amount of gentle shampoo (baby shampoo works wonderfully here too) or soap into the bristles. Lather, rinse, and repeat until the water runs clear. If you are having a hard time getting stubborn product out of your brush, massage some coconut oil into the bristles. This will loosen the build up and make cleaning easier.

3. Disinfect: Now that your brushes are clean, it’s time to disinfect. Mix a solution of 2 parts water and 1 part vinegar in a shallow bowl. Swoosh the brush around in the bowl for a minute or two (again, trying not to submerge it fully). Rinse with fresh water.

4. Dry: Press a dry towel into the bristles to sop up excess water. Reshape the bristles and lay clean brushes flat on a towel overnight to dry.

5. Repeat: Clean your brushes every other week to keep the germs away

How to: clean your toothbrush

  1. Cleanse: your toothbrush in antibacterial mouthwash.This is great for a quick daily cleaning.
  2. Sanitize: Mix a small amount of hydrogen peroxide and baking soda in a small cup and stir the mixture with your toothbrush before rinsing it. Do this at least once a week.

How to: Clean Your Metal Tools

  1. Wash: For metal tools like tweezers, eyelash curlers, eyebrow trimmers, cuticle nippers, and nail clippers, wash them down using water and antibacterial soap. Pat dry with a clean towel.
  2. Sanitize: Thoroughly wipe down the tool with an alcohol-soaked cotton ball. Allow it to dry for a few moments. If the tool comes in contact with your face, rinse it with water (no need to rinse your nail tools). Pat dry with a clean towel.
  3. Repeat: Ideally, these types of beauty tools should at least be washed with soap and water after each use, if not sanitized as well. Aim to give them the full treatment every two weeks. Store your tools in a clean container to safeguard your hard work.

Pick the right products For the Season

All those Winter products like thick, foaming face washes and heavy creams can be super drying as the weather gets warmer. Your spring beauty routine should favor gentle milk face washes and lighter moisturizing serums. Here are 9 Must Have Clean Beauty Products that I’m seriously crushing on right now. From gentle cleansers to serums to several DIYs. Everything you need to jumpstart your Spring beauty routine!

5 Matcha Beauty DIYs—Homemade Green Beauty Recipes + 6 Matcha Infused Products to Shop Now

Fun fact for the kids: In the 1920s and 30s, radium was a popular additive in cosmetics and household products. Yep. That radium. Soap, night cream, face powder, blush, mud masks, and even toothpaste contained radium with the ‘scientifically-based’ promise that these products would give the consumer a youthful glow. I suppose these products actually did deliver on their promise, until of course, you had to have parts of your mouth and lower jaw surgically removed because of radiation poisoning, living out your final, extremely painful days blemish free. Thankfully, today we are experiencing a trend toward clean, green beauty products, and you seriously can’t get much greener than Matcha. The health benefits of Matcha are amazing both internally and externally, and we can all rest assured that no jaws have been removed as a result of its use. So have no fear! Mix these masks up!

5 simple Matcha beauty recipes

1. Matcha + Rose Water + Coconut Oil Mask

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons Matcha
  • ½ teaspoon coconut oil
  • rose water

Directions

Combine melted coconut oil with Matcha in a small bowl. Add drops of rose water until you have a medium-thick paste that’s easy to spread onto your skin. Let it set for 20 minutes and then wipe off with a warm, wet towel.

2. Avocado + Matcha Mask

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon Matcha
  • ¼ of an avocado, mashed
  • 3 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon honey

Directions

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Apply a thin layer to either your face or body, and gently scrub in a circular motion with your fingertips, making sure to avoid your eyes. Leave for 10 minutes and rinse with a warm cloth.

3. Matcha + Banana + Turmeric Mask

Ingredients

  • ½ of a banana,mashed
  • ½ teaspoon turmeric
  • ½ teaspoon Matcha
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions

Mash your banana in a small bowl, then add your turmeric, matcha, and olive oil. Mix well and then spread onto your face to set for 10 minutes. Rinse with warm water and pat dry.

4. Aloe + Matcha Mask

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon Matcha
  • 2 teaspoons Aloe Vera

Directions

Combine your Matcha with Aloe Vera in a small bowl. You can add more or less Aloe Vera depending on what consistency you prefer. Apply to your face, let it set for 15 minutes, then rinse with warm water.

5. Exfoliating Matcha Scrub

Ingredients

  • 1/3 cup coconut oil
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Matcha
  • 1 teaspoon honey

Directions

Combine sugar with Matcha, then add honey and melted coconut oil and stir until everything is mixed well. Store in a sealed mason jar and place in your shower for up to two weeks. After cleansing your skin, gently exfoliate with the scrub and then rinse. Use every other day.

6 Matcha Infused Beauty Products to Shop Now

1. Biodara Coconut Matcha Brightening Mask

2. Fig + Yarrow Matcha Milkbath

3. Urb Apothecary Lavender Matcha Mask

4. Plant Apothecary Matcha Antioxidant  Face Mask

5. Erborian Perfect Morning BB 3-IN-1 Matcha Mask

6. Cocokind Organic Matcha Face Moisturizer

Recipe Source: WendyGould

DIY Botanical Winter Salt Scrub

“The best things in life are free. The second best things are very, very expensive” —Coco Chanel

Sometimes there’s a happy place where luxury is just affordable. This homemade botanical winter salt scrub is in that happy place. This scrub contains coconut oil, thyme essential oil, lavender essential oil, fine sea salt, and Epsom salt. Salts are packed with minerals which enhance the skin. The magnesium in Epsom salts reduce inflammation while the sulphates flush out toxins. Thyme essential oil stimulates blood flow. It helps heal bruises, sprains, and other injuries. The oil is antiseptic, antispasmodic, diuretic, and a good decongestant. Lavender essential oil is another natural antiseptic. It helps to regulate over-excretion of sebum, and over time can help visibly reduce scarring. Lavender also tones and firms skin by boosting circulation, supplying adequate oxygen and nutrition to skin cells. This helps in keeping skin cells healthy.

You guys, this scrub is a game changer. Add this into your weekly beauty routine to keep your skin smooth and hydrated all Winter long!

DIY Botanical Winter Salt Scrub

Ingredients

  • ½ cup Coconut Oil (you can also substitute this with olive oil)*
  • ¼ cup Fine Sea Salt*
  • 1 cup Epsom Salt*
  • 10-15 drops Lavender Essential Oil*
  • 5-10 drops Thyme Essential Oil*

Directions

  • In a small glass bowl, mix the salt and oil together (I use a fork to mix it)
  • stir in essential oil until well blended
  • store in an air tight glass container
  • to use, simply spoon a small amount into your hands, gently rub it on your skin, and rinse it off with warm water

*The ingredient proportions here are just an approximation. I usually make these homemade products by eyeball the ingredients, so just play around with the proportions. The idea is that you don’t want the mixture to be too oily, or too crumbly!

Source: Cleanse by Hepzabeth

3 DIY Cranberry Beauty Packs

In honor of Dolores O’Riordan, who wrote some pretty cool tunes that us 90s kids were rocking out to, here are some beauty recipes with… Cranberries.

Cranberry Yogurt Mask

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup pureed cranberries
  • 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 tablespoon honey (optional)

Directions

  • In a blender, mix all the ingredients together
  • apply the mixture all over your face (avoiding your eyes)
  • leave on for 10 minutes
  • Rinse with warm water

Cranberry Body Scrub

ingredients

  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • I cup cranberries
  • ½ cup coconut oil

directions

  • in a blender, puree the cranberries
  • add the sugar and coconut oil and continue to blend until well mixed
  • store in an airtight container

Cranberry Exfoliating Face Mask

ingredients

  • ½ cup boiled sweet potato
  • 2 tablespoons pureed cranberries
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar

Directions

  • Mash the sweet potato in a bowl, then add in the rest of the ingredients and mix until fully blended
  • Apply generously over your face and leave on for 10 minutes
  • Rinse with warm water
  • As you rinse, rub in circles with your fingertips to help exfoliate

Recipes via Byrdie