When you’re trying to improve your green lifestyle, homemade cosmetics may seem like a good idea, but they don’t always offer the same convenience and effects as store-bought beauty products.
Discover the pros and cons of homemade cosmetics and decide if making your own is the right choice for you. Find out more about how long homemade cosmetic products last and what you can do to extend their use.
Pros of Homemade Cosmetics
Using Only Organic Ingredients
When you have sensitive skin, using gentle products is a must, so making your own cosmetics with organic ingredients is a major advantage.
You can already find plenty of ingredients in your kitchen, but one of the big pros of homemade cosmetics is that you can make sure that anything you put on your skin is completely chemical-free.
Controlling the Formula
Besides using fresh and organic ingredients, you can also control how effective each one is by adjusting the formula. Increasing the percentage of a newly-added ingredient that seems to be making a difference is easy and will allow you to customize your own skin care routine. Make what you need, when you need it, according to your own skin.
Using Homemade Cosmetics Fresh
One of the biggest pros of homemade cosmetics is that you can use them as soon as you’ve prepared them. When you’re applying delicate ingredients like antioxidants from fruits and oils, you need to make sure that they last long enough to make a difference. The FDA does not accept natural preservatives in products, so be careful when you’re buying homemade cosmetics.
Saving Money
A lot of times, making your own cosmetics can become an effective way to save money you would spend on expensive products, full of preservatives and artificial fragrances. Make as much as you need on your own, without paying extra for stuff that you won’t use for a long time. Buying ingredients in bulk can also save you even more money once you start making different cosmetics on your own.
Protecting Your Skin from Harsh Chemicals
Whether you have sensitive skin or allergies, keeping harsh chemicals away from your face is important. One of the biggest pros of homemade cosmetics is that you know that preservatives and other chemicals found in cosmetics won’t end up on your skin or in the environment when you clean it.
Cons of Homemade Cosmetics
Limited Effects
While the big problem with store bought cosmetics is that they’re full of chemicals, it’s those same ingredients that also make them act faster. You won’t see overnight results when you make your own, from natural ingredients, and that’s one of the main cons of homemade cosmetics. Their effects show up in the long, but if you need a quick fix, it’s not in homemade products.
Scarcity of Ingredients
While some ingredients in homemade cosmetics are found in every kitchen, others are difficult to locate and can be quite expensive. From certain essential oils to plants that you need to use in certain recipes, you might end up putting a lot of effort into your homemade cosmetics before you even start making them.
Preparation Time
Some homemade facials only need a minute or two to mix the ingredients, but one of the big cons of homemade cosmetics is that others take a lot of time. Keeping it natural also means that you might be waiting days until the product you wants finally comes together.
Sterilization Issues
Any homemade cosmetic product that includes water can be a breeding grown for bacteria and mold. If you want to preserve your own formulas for longer, you’ll need to keep them sterilized and store them in an air tight container, in a cool and dark place. Recipes that include milk and other perishable ingredients can be a bad fit for storing even overnight.
Limited Use
One of major cons of homemade cosmetics is that you need to constantly replenish them. Even sterilized and stored correctly, they only last a fraction of the time it takes cosmetics with preservatives to reach their expiration date. If you’re prepared for the time and effort, then you can really benefit from your own creations.
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