Description
This is an adaptation of a recipe from the book, 101 Easy Homemade Product for Your Skin, Health, and Home, by Jan Berry
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 tbsp. (14 ml) elderflower-infused argan oil (3 tbsp. (14 grams) of dried elderflowers plus 75 ml argan oil)
- 1 tbsp. (14 ml) mango butter
- 1/2 oz. (14 g) beeswax, grated or pastilles
- 1 tbsp. (14 ml) rosehip seed oil
- 10 drops of Frankincense essential oil
- 1 ½ tbsp (22 ml) distilled water
Instructions
- To make the elderflower infused argan oil, place 3 tbsp. of dried elder flowers in an 8 oz/250ml jar. Cover the flowers in the jar with 5 tbsp. (75ml) argan oil. Place a lid on the jar but don’t tighten the lid. Leave room for any pressure build up to escape. Put 2 inches of water on the bottom of your crock pot . Turn the crock pot on its lowest setting. Simmer the argan oil and elderflowers for 2 hours. Keep the temperature under 115°F if you can. I used the yoghurt setting on my Instant Pot, and left the jar in for 8 hours. Turn off the heat. Remove the jar from the crock pot and place it on your kitchen counter. Allow the jar to come to room temperature naturally.
- Strain the infused argon oil, reserving the oil. Press the plant material through a potato ricer to get the last of the oil. The oil next to the plant material is the richest in antioxidants and beneficial properties so you’ll want to retain as much of it as possible. Discard the spent elderflowers. They can be composted.
- Measure 1 tablespoon of infused argon oil you’ll need for the recipe and set aside the remaining argon oil for another use. Place the measured elderflower-infused argan oil, mango butter and beeswax in a heatproof jar or container. Set the jar down in your crock pot, and add 2 inches (2.5 to 5 cm) of hot water in the bottom. Heat on low just until the beeswax has melted. Do not exceed 155°F.
- As soon as the wax is melted remove from heat and stir in the rosehip seed oil. Let the mixture cool to around 85 to 95°F (29 to 35°C). Add the frankincense essential oil.
- In a small saucepan, heat the water slightly until it matches the temperature of the oil. The oil and water portions really need to be within 5 degrees Fahrenheit (about 3 degrees Celsius) of each other for the most successful emulsion.
- This next step is the tricky part. If you’ve made homemade mayonnaise you’ll know how to make an emulsion.
- Put the warm oil mixture in a bowl. Using a hand held mixer, or immersion blender, begin beating the warm oils. Slowly drizzle the water, a few drips at a time, into the oil mixture as you continue beating it. It may take around a minute to accomplish this step. Beat for 5 to 10 minutes or until the mixture begins to look like whipped cream.
- If you’re adding a natural preservative, (see page 28 of the book) check the temperature to see if it is correct for the preservative of your choice. The choices are more complex than the breadth of this article. Please see the book for more details.
- Spoon the finished eye cream into a glass jar. If you didn’t add a preservative, keep the cream in the refrigerator and use within 2 weeks.
Notes
This eye cream is luxurious and soothing. To use, apply with very gentle fingers to the skin around the eye. I was taught to use the tips of my ring fingers as they are the gentlest of the fingers. Don’t stretch the delicate skin near the eye.
