Use of honey in beauty rituals is far from being a new thing.
It's microbial properties and wound healing make it an indispensable arsenal in the home beauty apothecary. And as if that is not enough, the anti-inflammatory side of the honey can aid conditions like acne and psoriasis.
Its uses are versatile, from face washing, skin moisturizing, eczema calming to helping with healing small cuts or abrasions.
The practices around the use of honey that we support are those that are respectful, locally sourced and sustainable in every sense. Look for a local beekeeper, get familiar with their practices and how he cares for his bees and technology they use for the production of the honey.
Yes, Manuka Honey is amazing, we agree.
But if living in Europe, please do consider what it means, sustainably, to use Manuka Honey that is native for New Zealand. The costs of transportation are less of a concern as the transportation practices itself, the kilometres the honey travels and what impact it has on the planet and the local economy. The price of a 250g jar of Manuka Honey is 66.00 euros and for justifiable reasons. Manuka Honey comes from the Manuka Flower, a scarce and natural resource found only in New Zealand. The Manuka Flower has a limited crop production (roughly only 2-6 weeks a year) and is incredibly sensitive to seasonal weather conditions. It takes immense skill, planning and resources to harvest Manuka Honey, which makes it much more expensive to produce than other types of honey. You are not missing on the benefits if you use your traditional, regular and yet special local honey.
This is not a call for a boycott of Manuka Honey or your choices. We have great respect for the strenuous process beekeepers go through to be able to get this very rare honey and you get to spend your hard working earned money the way you want. You do you, but while all along aware of the impact that you make.
When using the honey for your 'spa day at home' make sure your hands are clean, you do not use wet hands to extract honey from the jar and the same goes for the spoons you will be using.
Face Washing
Apply on wet face, best honey is raw honey and it's usually very thick and hard to spread so having some water on the skin helps, gently massage, leave for a minute or two, rinse with lukewarm water. You can leave it for a longer time and, also, use a microfiber/cotton glove to massage your face while honey is on it and to wipe it off. Honey won't be able to wash off your mascara, in these cases, we suggest using oil.
Face mask
Option 1
After cleansing the face, apply a floral mist, hydrosol, colloidal silver or gold.
Apply in thin layer honey of your choice. Leave it to 'work' for 20 min.
Rinse with warm water, don't dry your skin, apply face oil and them cream or serum of your choice
Option 2
After cleansing the face, apply a floral mist, hydrosol, colloidal silver or gold. Apply in thin layer honey that you have mixed with a bit of natural yoghurt. Leave on for 20-30 min. Proceed as in the previous example
Option 3
I dare you not to try to eat this one. Mix half of the teaspoon of honey, lemon juice, turmeric and yoghurt, apply on the skin and leave it, forget about it … for as long as you can. Wash it off, spray some hydrosol and follow with the rest of the skin care of your choice. ( for an extra touch add few drops of apple cider vinegar in the mask mix-don't if you have open wounds)
Option 4
Mix equal parts of honey, cacao and camomile ( a half of a tea bag or half of a teaspoon), apply to skin and leave for 20-30 min. Additionally, you can wet a hand towel with warm water and leave it on the face while the mask is on, so it opens the pores and skin absorbs all the properties. Rinse with warm water and finish with cold. Continue with your usual skincare regime.
We suggest, washing your face semi-regularly with honey, morning and /or evening and depending on need. Apply any of the aforementioned masks when in need of extra plumpness, moisture or when your skin seems inflamed, dry or breaking out. Or simply because you are worth it.
