Herbs For Natural Skin Care Must Be Matched To Your Skin Type By Gloria MacTaggart At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

Herbal skin care products are becoming more popular, but different herbs have different properties. Unless you know what those properties are, you could wind up with preparations that make dry skin drier and oily skin oilier. Herbal products are always a good idea if you are a fan of natural skin care, but find out which are best before you buy.

Here are the basics that you need to know: dry skin needs herbs with emollient properties. Emollients soften and soothe the skin, and help replace some of the skin's natural oils. Oily skin needs astringents to tighten the skin, close the pores and help heal the blemishes that are more prominent with this skin type. As blemishes can become infected it is also a good idea to combine astringent herbs with those that have antiseptic properties. Normal skin needs neutral herbs - those with neither astringent nor emollient properties.

Some of the most common emollient herbs are comfrey, violet, elder flowers, irish moss and marshmallow. Astringent herbs include marigold, calendula and witch hazel. Fortunately, each of these astringent herbs also have antiseptic and healing properties, so they are doubly good for oily skin. For those with blemished dry skin, add a little thyme.

A word of warning about marigold - make sure you get pot marigold. The other one you may run into is French marigold - very toxic, used for weed killer and insecticides and definitely not suitable for natural skin care.

Normal skin responds best to thyme or yarrow. Both have cleansing and toning properties, but are neither astringent nor emollient. They are very refreshing.

Although these herbs are available as extracts and in a variety of ready-made natural skin care products, you can make them quite simply at home. Soak the herbs in hot water for about 30 minutes, keeping the heat on during that time but never allowing them to boil. After cooling, strain out the herbs and pour the liquid into a bottle for use. Simply pat the preparation on the skin, leave it on for 10 - 30 minutes, rinse off and dry.

Another great advantage to making your own skin care products is that you know exactly what's in them. Products that you buy, while they may contain beneficial herbs, may also contain other ingredients that are harsh or toxic, or may not be right for your skin type. Try adding these to your natural skin care basic routine for a week or two and you may be pleasantly surprised.

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