You have questions.
In fact, I have an entire folder full of emailed questions from you.
I receive several a week. Sometimes several a day. It scares me.
You scare me.
(Not really. You’re very likable. Affable even. I love you.)
Anyway, after the one I received today, a lightning bolt of DUH hit me. Why am I not blogging these things? Why am I not answering them publicly?
For the record, for the last few weeks, I haven’t even answered them privately, I’ve been so overwhelmed. There’s been a lot of guilt and sadness surrounding this. My apologies.
So, new policy: I will most likely NOT answer questions privately, unless the questions are accompanied by witty one-liners I can steal and use elsewhere to make me seem smart.
I will, however, choose questions from the list in my mailbox to answer here. If you’ve got a great question, I promise I will do my best to give a great answer.
Please, though, use my email to send me any questions. Comments (especially on older posts) tend to get lost in the shuffle. It’s not that I don’t love them – it’s just that it’s tough to keep up with upwards of 30 comments a day, most of them on posts that are 2 or 3 (or 7) months old.
Mark it, remember it, use it, tattoo it on your lower back. (Please remember that by emailing me your questions, you’re giving me permission to post part – or all – of the email here. Unless you tell me it’s a secret. Then I won’t post it. I will, however, feel slightly compelled to tell Fiance. It’s okay; he doesn’t pay attention when I tell him things. Your secret’s safe with us.)
So to kick things off, here’s a question I received this weekend. I especially love it, because it involves horses and homemade sunblock and skin protection.
Horses, like the sun, are magical.
Dear Crunchy Betty: Homemade Sunblock and Skin Protection
I am an avid horseback rider and I am a member of the local Foxhunt (well, it should be called a “coyote hunt” to be exact, as foxes are not pests around here and coyotes are) and I log tons of hours in the saddle-often in inclement weather. Rain, wind, snow, sleet, or shine, my horse and I are out there.
When I look at some of the older members of our Hunt, I see what I have long though of as the inevitable fate of my skin: gnarly, rough, dry, and incredibly wrinkled from exposure to the harsh elements. I’m working to change that with some of the advice from the Crunchy Betty site, but I’d really like to know if there is anything I can put on my face prior to getting in the saddle that will save me from that dried-out weatherbeaten feeling my skin has after a 5 hour chase in open territory with no wind protection in 6 degree weather.
Any ideas?
Also, I’ve searched the site for sunscreen ideas, but cant seem to find any. Any ideas for a natural sunscreen?
I like this question for two reasons: First of all, this applies to so many different outdoor activities. Hiking, biking, skiing (especially) and, of course, horseback riding. Secondly, many ingredients you could use for extra skin moisturizing and protection also add sun protection as well.
I’m not going to recommend using ONLY a homemade sunscreen. Why? Because when it comes to skin protection from the sun, I think we should leave it to the experts who spend beaucoup time and money formulating these things.
Translated: I do not want to be responsible for your skin cancer.
(And when it comes to the C word, I’m going to put my personal beliefs aside and stick with proselytizing whatever “mainstream” science says in this case. I’d rather they be wrong than me.)
Scads of companies make natural sunblocks these days, but I’m especially fond of the Burt’s Bees sunblock. It only goes up to SPF 30, but, like I said, we can give lots of extra protection by adding things over it. The only thing I’m concerned about with the Burt’s Bees formula is that it contains aluminum hydroxide. And although the hydroxide form of aluminum is more stable and less potentially dangerous than the aluminum chlorohydrate found in deodorants, it still encourages oxidation of skin cells, which isn’t good when it’s trapped in your skin under other emollients.
However, good luck finding an aluminum-free sunblock. I couldn’t. In the grand scheme of things, the Burt’s Bees aluminum is listed VERY far down in the ingredients list, so it’s in small concentrations. So that’s a little consolation.
Start with a natural store-bought sunblock (aluminum-free if you’re lucky enough to find some).
Then, over or under the sunblock, you can add more things (like a burqa).
Natural Ingredients That Offer Sun Protection
- Black and Green Tea: The tannins in black tea are especially good at absorbing UV rays, and the polyphenols in green tea have been shown to offer excellent UV protection (especially in regards to premature aging due to sun exposure).
- Sesame Oil: Studies have shown that the same oil that makes fried rice addictive also protects you from 30% of the sun’s rays. It’s also magnificent for your skin.
- Olive, Coconut, and Peanut Oil: Each of these oils have been proven to block 20% of the sun’s rays. I’m partial to using coconut oil, because it’s so incredibly light, but protective.
- Jojoba Oil: This oil is almost identical to our natural sebum, so it’s fantastically moisturizing. It also happens to carry an SPF factor of 3 to 5.
- Aloe Vera: You may be used to using aloe vera AFTER sun exposure, but scientists believe it offers excellent protection while you’re being exposed to – mainly by encouraging your skin cells not to oxidize (and wrinkle, spot, or otherwise prematurely age).
I’ve found tons and tons of homemade sunscreen recipes, but most of them use a plethora of ingredients, which you might not deem affordable. Nonetheless, here are a few of the better ones:
From Love to Know. (This has about 8739 ingredients)
From Wabi Sabi Baby. (This has far fewer ingredients, but you’ll need a scale to make it.)
In addition, there are a couple of great recipes in the book Beautiful Face, Beautiful Body – if it’s available at your local library.
A Sample Sun/Wind Protection Regimen
We’re not going to talk about an actual recipe here. I’m going to tell you what I’d do, if I still had a horse and if I still rode the horse and if I still went outside for more than two hours at a time.
- Brew a strong, small cup of black and green tea. Cool. Fill a small misting/spray bottle with the tea. Store in the refrigerator.
- Mist a clean face with the tea and allow to dry.
- Apply natural sunscreen. Wait 10 minutes.
- Mix together 1 tbsp lanolin (SUPERIOR wind/sun/drying out protection) and 2 Tbsp sesame oil and apply liberally to the face. Or, if you feel comfortable with the amount of protection your sunscreen gives you, skip the sesame oil and go straight to slathering lanolin on your face.
- Finish by applying a thick layer of vitamin E around the eyes and mouth.
A Note About Lanolin: Make sure you’re getting 100% lanolin, first of all, and that it’s from an ethical (meaning they’re outspoken about not using pesticides or chemical fertilizers at their farm) source. This happens to be my favorite lanolin: Common Sense.
Very occasionally, people have sensitivities to lanolin. Before you slather it on your face, do a small patch test on the inside of your arm. If you don’t have an untoward red reaction to it after a few hours, you should be just fine.
Did you know? Lanolin comes from sheep – but the sheep are not harmed in the process of extraction. It actually comes directly from the fats in raw wool. However, if you’re vegan or vegetarian, well … yeah.
In my humble opinion, lanolin is key to protecting your skin from super harsh winds/weather. It may not offer excellent UV blocking benefits, but it’s going to greatly reduce the amount of wind damage and chapping.
Finally, A Recipe for After the Sun And Wind Exposure
As a bonus, here’s a fabulously calming/soothing/moisturizing idea for AFTER any harsh weather exposure. This is especially helpful for skin exposed to cold, cold air.
It’ll be a great way to relax and warm up, too!
After-Weather Calming Mask
- 2 Tbsp finely ground oatmeal
- 1/4 c. strong chamomile tea
- 2 tsp honey
- 2 tsp oil (olive, jojoba, sesame, apricot kernel, or sweet almond)
- Hot water
- 1 washcloth
While the tea is still warm (not boiling), add the oatmeal, honey and oil and stir well. Apply a thick layer to a clean face. Soak the washcloth in the hot water (not so hot it will burn your skin, but very nice and warm). Lie down comfortably, with the mask on your face, and place the heated washcloth over the mask. Leave on for 15 minutes. Wash well, scrubbing off very gently with the washcloth.
Do You Have a Question?
Okay – I’m going to break the rules, right after I made them.
If you have a question for Crunchy Betty, you’re welcome to ask in THIS COMMENT SECTION.
I promise to refer to the questions in this comment section for one of the next questions I answer.
And if you don’t have a question? Tell me about a time you went horseback riding.
I need more of a horse fix.
Don’t Be a Pinched-Face Lady: Kick Your Bias to the Curb
i recently use Badger’s baby sunscreen spf 30 (i always prefer baby products because the use less ingredients) they use non nano zinc oxide as the active ingredient and natural ingredients for the rest.. that and california baby is the only one i trust for me n my kid..
Found aluminum free sunscreen!! Enfuselle by shaklee- sold by independent distributors. You can use my distributor- she’s great! You can find it online: http://www.shaklee.net/Corliss. Thanks for all of the great info on coconut oil.
Perhaps this has already been said, but I really like Badger sunscreens. They go up to SPF 30, have no aluminum, and contain only non-nano zinc oxide. They also seem to leave less of a white residue than other natural sunscreens I’ve tried!
You lost me with that cheesy and sexist drawing at the top of the site.
R U KIDDING?
i happen to think the drawing is lovely 😉
lol what’s sexist about it?
I would also be concerned about the titanium dioxide in the Burt’s Bees. Titanium dioxide is photosensitive and breaks down in the sun causing DNA damage which can lead to cancer…not something you want in a sunscreen. Zinc oxide is the only safe natural sunscreen. It’s been used safely for hundreds of years.
Another ingredient that I would add to your list of natural sun protection is Shea Butter. I believe it has an SPF of around 4. And, it’s very nourishing for the skin, too.
Another great way to protect your skin from the sun that is often overlooked is by taking a high ORAC antioxidant powder to prevent free radical damage from sun exposure and to make sure your skin cells are healthy. Healthy skin cells are less likely to be damaged by the sun and if they do burn they are more likely to heal faster.
Goddess Garden Natural Sunscreen doesn’t have aluminum hydroxide. It’s 82% organic and 100% vegan. I love it and it’s reasonably priced. You can order it online or find it at Whole Foods. Here are the ingredients:
Active Ingredients: Zinc Oxide 6% purpose ~ sunscreen; Titanium Dioxide 6% purpose ~ sunscreen
Ingredients: Organic Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera Juice), Organic Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Organic Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Caprylic Triglyceride, Lecithin,Organic Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Xanthan Gum, Vegetable Glycerin, Potassium Sorbate, Camellia Sinensis Leaf (Green Tea) Extract, Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Organic Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Essential Oil.
Hope it helps!
Do you have a good recipe for Body Butter?
You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for you to ask us to ask you questions.
I loooove having silky smooth legs. Like, almost as much as I love hot chocolate, or petting kittens. Any chance you’ve retried the homemade shaving cream? I’ve got some Dr. Bronner’s stuff that I like right now, but I’d love to try a homemade version. My other hitch in my love affair with smooth legs is razor burn. No matter what I do, I almost always end up with red, irritated bumps on my calves. Do you have any suggestions for an after-shave lotion that isn’t filled like chemicals and scented like manly, musky men? I’ve found aloe vera gel and witch hazel both help, but something that smells a bit more appealing would be nice.
(Oh, and I hope your existential crisis is um, going, uh, well? When I have a crisis of any sort, I generally read Rumi. I know, I’m a geek.)
Hmmm … not much tops petting kittens, but with enough thought (and a deep discussion with Fiance), smooth legs probably do.
I haven’t figured out an actual shaving cream recipe, but I will say that what I do when I have the time (and care about not getting the red bumps), is I’ll use a sugar/olive oil scrub in the shower before shaving my legs. Works just like shaving cream, IMHO, in terms of producing just incredibly smooth skin.
And I need to do more research on aftershave, but it’s my understanding that it’s really just an astringent base (like alcohol or witch hazel) that you could “pretty up” with some healing herbal infusions and essential oils.
DEFINITELY going in my queue of posts to do soon.
(I think I see an existential light at the end of the existential tunnel. That’s a good thing, right?)
Here’s my question… Do you know any recipes for homemade body butter? Because I find it to be perfect for summer. I just think that if I made my owni could add things like vitamin e oil or rose hip oil so my skin was nourished by it.
Also I found a cleasner called Orange Essence Facial Cleanser by burt bees that has all natural ingredients! Its great for when I can’t be bothered with the oil cleansing method.
Well, I’m not Betty 🙂 but I thought I’d share a link to a recipe I found to make your own body butter – it gives instructions to make both bar and cream versions. I haven’t tried it yet but it looks like a good starting point that you could experiment with.
http://video.about.com/candleandsoap/Make-Your-Own-Body-Butter.htm
Thanks so much for this recipe! It sounds like it will be easier than I expected. As soon as my store brought body butter runs out, I’m making it.
sunscreen… There was a study done about broccoli juice applied to the skin being sun protective. But it turns you green. Cue kermit: it’s not easy being green! The thougt of being a green giant sometime might be fun. 🙂
Haha. This cracked me up. I remember reading that about broccoli juice. But, given the comment above about EATING things for sun protection, makes me think maybe a regular dose of broccoli (in the mouth) might help, too.
Homemade sunscreen is a little difficult especially ven spending long hours in sun…..I love sesame oil and coconut oil for protection….you can also use raspberry oil if you can get hold of it…it also provides quite a lot of protection
apart from things to apply, I think internal protection to sun is very important…eating more of spinach and tomatoes increase the body resistance to sun’s harsh effects and provides protection to the body from inside so gearing up from inside and outside provides a holistic care…
You make an incredibly poignant point there. Internal protection is DEFINITELY something to think about.
It totally ties into the discussion I had in the comments above where I mentioned that I felt like the reason skin cancer rates have not fallen is because we put so many chemicals in and on our bodies now, and the sun helps speed up the free radicals they cause.
Eating the right things, though, gives your body fantastic defense mechanisms against those free radicals.
GREAT comment!
Can you please recommend something for lightening or getting rid of age/sun spots? I have a few on the side of face, probably from years of driving in my car and not wearing not sunscreen. A chemical peel might do it, but if there was something I could try at home first, I’d rather do that.
I can! Pineapple or lemon juice, applied regularly, will help reduce the appearance of age spots. You need to be careful with lemon juice, though, because it does also cause photosensitivity and can lead to “burning” if you’re out in the sun too much.
This is actually a really common question, which means it’s bumped way up the list of blog post ideas I’ve got going now.
Look for a post about it soon. Thanks for the idea!
Is toasted sesame oil as good as sesame oil for the skin? Or are they the same thing?
Also, can you use essential oils as perfumes directly on the skin? I thought that you weren’t supposed to do this if its undiluted.
Thanks!
Toasted sesame oil won’t have the same beneficial properties as expeller-pressed or otherwise carefully extracted sesame oil. The toasting will leave the sesame oil a bit adulterated.
There are many EOs I won’t use directly on my skin (like eucalyptus or cinnamon or clove or peppermint) without a good dose of carrier oil with them. There are, though, some that I know I’m not sensitive to (and I was super careful the first couple of times I tried them). That doesn’t mean EVERYONE’S not sensitive to them. But ylang-ylang, vanilla, lavender, tea tree, and sweet orange I’ll put directly on my skin in VERY small doses (think a quick brush across my wrist) without concern.
No matter what, if you’re working with essential oils, you should get to know how your body reacts to each one. A little can be very helpful and therapeutic, but too much can cause the opposite of what you want.
Like, for instance, I’ll dab lavender on my temples sometimes when I have a headache. But one time I had a really huge pimple under my nose and coated it with some lavender oil. Ended up with a HUGE headache from that.
So, yeah. Like perfume, less is more when it comes to EOs.
(I don’t know how I managed to turn this comment into a blog post of its own … heh.)
Wow I had no idea about natural options for sunscreen. And of course I have a question, how bad is perfume really? I have used Chanel’s Chance for about four years and I would be so so sad without it, it’s like the only thing I have left! I hardly wear make up, I’m in between sizes (thanks baby weight!) and I just feel UGLY, but perfume I don’t know it makes me feel better! BUT the bottle the perfume is in is corroding, and I’m thinking if it’s doing that to the bottle what the HELL is it doing to my body. Help me make an informed choice.
I agree with the pressing desire to wear perfume. I would choose it over hair styling products and makeup.
If you haven’t replaced your perfume due to how expensive it is (and you mentioned baby weight, I’ve heard babys get costly besides Chanel is an expensive brand), here are two options- wear essential oils, dabbed in the places you wear perfume. Apparentely one of the base notes in Chance is white musk so there’s an oil to start with. Or you could try body oils, which can are substantially cheaper than perfumes. They can be found at natural stores or online at places like the Body Shop. Body oils can also be made at home, Crunchy Betty has a post on it and I could share a recipe with you if you like.
I realise this question was posed to Betty and I haven’t given any answers about the effects of perfum on the body because I have no idea. Jean Paul Gaultier Original, Tommy Girl, Rose by Paul Smith and I are all very happy together so I’m choosing to remain ignorant on whether or not they are harming me.
I just empathise with feeling ulgy and been made to feel prettier by smelling pretty.
Well, like everything in this here blog, it’s my humble opinion and worth as much as you want it to be. But I steer clear of everything that has synthetic fragrance in it now.
There’s a theory that synthetic fragrance actually messes with our hormones, which can lead to anything from disease to emotional changes, etc.
It’s crazy, how sensitive I am now to anything synthetic – whether it’s the rare occasions when Fiance decides it’ll be cool to spray on some Axe (YUCK) or the time he came home from California after washing his clothes with Tide and Bounce. I was really sick from that smell. Ugh.
I used to be a HUGE perfume junky. Had 10 bottles at a time. Now I either use ylang-ylang and vanilla essential oils (which are so yummy and romantic together) or – and this is my favorite scent I’ve ever worn, even including fancy schmancy perfumes – I go to the natural foods store and get amber musk.
Everyone has their favorite smells, so amber musk may not be for you, but check at Whole Foods (or whatever natural foods store you have) in the cosmetics area, and there are probably some kind of (most likely Indian-looking) oils. Take a sniff.
The thing for me, with using natural oils, is that it feels like MY scent, y’know? Like it’s not just some cookie-cutter perfume anymore.
Granted, it may not seem that unique if everyone ran around wearing it, but it may help to make you not only feel SUPER pretty … but super special, too.
Perfume is awful! One perfume can have up to 600 synthetic chemicals. And, quite often they contain pthalates, which are hormone disruptors. However, there are safer options. You can mix your favorite organic essential oils into carrier oils for your own custom aroma. Or, you can buy certified organic, hand-blended, artisinal perfumes. Miessence has 6 certified organic perfumes that all have ratings of 0-1 on the cosmetics database. They are made using age-old traditions. Three of them are unisex and great for the men in your life, too.
So here’s my question: Any idea on how to create a body wash? I prefer using body wash to bars of soap, and there has to be a way to create it out of my kitchen, right? Maybe you’ve already addressed this in an older post. I looked, but couldn’t find anything. Thoughts?
Ahh. Excellent question, Christina. And one I’ll have a funny blog post for.
I’ve made both my own handsoap and body wash before, and both were disastrous. Thanks for encouraging me to try again (even though you didn’t know it!).
Look for a blog post in the future on this one. Yay!
Thanks! I’m looking forward to it!
Sunscreen is the one thing I don’t quite feel comfortable going homemade yet. I have UBER pale skin (I swear, it was popular in 1887, IT WILL BE POPULAR AGAIN) and I burn so, so easily. I am the person in the group who wears SPF 70 when she drives with the windows down… DURING THE WINTER.
If your skin type/color allows you to use a sunscreen method that deflects 20 percent of the sun’s rays, that’s awesome. (I still don’t think that’s enough sun protection, but of course, those of us with the skin-that-reflects-the-moons-rays can be so biased…) But I do think that these methods of “sunscreens” are better than trying to mix up your own batch of sunscreen with zinc and such, because I’ve read somewhere that mixing up sunscreen chemicals can be toxic. (Of course I can’t remember where, which makes this so much less credible, but whatevs.)
I very much believe in “prevent disease by nature’s miracles, cure disease by doctor’s miracles” but unfortunately, commercial sunscreen is still my go-to over natural methods. Hopefully one day they’ll come up with an all-natural SPF 70 for me. (And if you guys have any recommendations, I’m all ears.)
Carter – Me, too! Me, too! I do not tan. Not after 3 weeks on vacation in Hawaii. Granted I use SPF 50, but you’d think I’d get a little something, right?
Betty – Great post! I love this idea of doing a Q&A set of posts.
I love the “prevent disease by nature’s miracles, cure disease by doctor’s miracles idea”. I think, whether it’s through holistic medicine or “traditional” medicine, you have to keep your wits about you and not go crazy with the cures, either. Far too easy to just depend solely on one or the other.
The sunscreen question was such a tough one, because I’m in the camp that believes perhaps it’s more the chemicals we’re putting in and on our bodies that the sun speeds up the oxidizing of that causes the skin cancer.
It’s interesting to note that skin cancer rates haven’t gone down in the last umpteen years that we’ve all been slathering ourselves with sunscreen/block.
Makes you wonder.
The way I interpret that “idea” is… avoid medicines and chemicals and such as much as possible, but don’t throw away good doctors care and prescriptions once something actually DOES go wrong. I feel like it’s one thing to not take Advil when you have a headache (I don’t), and quite another to refuse an operation should you, I don’t know, have an enlarged intestine or something. No amount of citrus or hibiscus tea is going to take care of something like that, you know? It’s exactly like you said, too many people just depend on one or the other.
That’s REALLY interesting what you say about the skin cancer rates not having gone down in the past few years. I wonder, though, how much that has to do with people still thinking tanning is good looking, etc. But I think to some extent you’re probably right when it comes to it being more a problem of what we put in our bodies as opposed to how much time we spend unprotected in the sun. Even then, as someone who has had more than a few suspect moles removed from her body (thankfully none were malignant), I guess I am more worried about NOT putting sunscreen on and the problems that would cause, as opposed to the problems that using commercial sunscreen would cause? Ugh, I feel like this is just one of those things that we probably won’t know the answer to in our lifetime. Which brings me back to the “prevent disease by nature’s miracles, cure disease by doctor’s miracles” idea, I guess. It’s a vicious cycle. =)
Oh man. Totally a vicious cycle.
When I think too hard about this kind of stuff, I end up just feeling worse about everything in the long run.
Ultimately, we’re all going to die, y’know? Sometimes I have to remind myself that VERY STRONGLY, because no matter what you do, you’re never going to outrun that.
In the end, whether it’s chemical sunscreen or drinking three glasses of kombucha tea a day, we all just need to make decisions based on awareness – not fear – and know that if we’re being conscious and thoughtful about us and about the beings that “live here with us,” we’re leaving the world a better place.
Right? I’m thinking too much again …
No, that’s EXACTLY where I was going with it! You can’t do everything perfectly, whether it’s eating right or not using any chemicals on your skin, or whatever. You have to make choices as to what is important to you, and it sucks because no decision will ever be perfectly informed. And even though I know all of that, I still do the EXACT SAME THING and scrutinize every measly decision I make, even though I’m sure it’s just a tiny drop in a very big ocean.
So, on that note, I’m going to go have a glass of red wine, because I hear that’s good for you…
Great post today. I loved discussing sunscreen, as it’s one of the things I’m still struggling with, as to whether to erase it from my routine or not. And of course, the comments between us, totally inspiring, at least just to know that you struggle with the same decisions as I do!
I am late getting to this conversation but I wanted to refer you to EWG’s research on sunscreens. http://breakingnews.ewg.org/2012sunscreen/all-sunscreens/
They have a rating system for every sunscreen you’ll find a the store. I’m still using up old sunscreen (that has horrible ratings on the EWG list) but plan to switch to something better. Now I use jojoba or grape seed oil for moisturizing but on the days I need to slather up with sunscreen I use the Pomegranate daytime protection from Skin Organics (by Ann Webb) first. It protects from free radicals, it’s a good light weight moisturizer and it smells great. I love it. The downside is that it can be pricey (max $26 for 1.7 oz) but I’ve had good luck finding it on sale at Wholefoods. In my head it seems better to have that absorb into my skin before I use regular sunscreens.
Now I know I just asked the question above, but I’ve got another! Is there anything I can use to keep my hair from fading in the sun? I’m a redhead and my hair likes to play the “lets try and piss ashleigh off by trying to turn blonde in the summer” game.
I typically resort to wearing a baseball cap and then a sock over my bun (to protect the ends as well as the roots) but there are occasions where I’m outside and dont want to look as ridiculous as I normally do and on those days I’d like to give my hair a bit of extra protection.
You ask some tough questions, lady. I will say, off the top of my head, that there’s one really fun thing you can do to KEEP your redness – and that’s rinse your hair every few days with a strong hibiscus tea.
Plus, hibiscus tea is super delicious, so it’s a win-win if you find some and buy it.
I’ll put your question in the mix and see what fun ideas I can come up with.
Thanks again for the email and the ideas. You rule.
I’ll look into Hibiscus tea, gracias!