It is summer again, which means it is time to make myself a new face cream. I do this every year around this time because whatever I made in early spring is long gone by mid-June.
For my latest in a long line of homemade moisturizers, I decided to embrace the power of antioxidants by combining green tea, lavender, and a few other skin-loving ingredients. The result is a beautiful cream for dry skin that leaves my face soft, nourished, and radiant.
If you are looking for a moisturizer that truly hydrates and brightens your skin, you are in the right place. While I would not call this an anti-aging cream, many of its ingredients naturally help rejuvenate the skin and minimize fine lines over time.
It is also a wonderful option for anyone on a budget. There is no rose essential oil here, which often drives up the cost of anti-aging products. While sandalwood can be pricey, you can easily substitute it with more affordable alternatives like frankincense
Watch Me Make This
The Ingredients We Are Using
So let’s take a look at our ingredients at a glance.
Green Tea Infusion
Good quality Green tea is full of antioxidants so it has many health and skin benefits. It helps to rejuvenate, repair, and protect dying skin cells and also brightens complexion by combatting the signs of aging.
It is high in vitamin B-2 which also helps your skin to look younger by maintaining collagen levels making your skin firmer.
Green tea is very moisturising due to its high levels of vitamin E which is well known for its skin loving properties.
For this face cream, we used a green tea infusion which was super cheap and simple to make. See our herbal infusion page to learn how to make your own infusions.
BTMS-50 Emulsifying Wax
BTMS-50 is a gentle emulsifying agent which works wonderfully in skincare products. I chose to use this emulsifying wax as it will leave your skin feeling silky smooth and helps to create a more luxurious moisturizer. This was my choice but feel free to use Emulsifying Wax NF, or Polawax.
Evening Primrose Oil
Evening primrose oil encourages the generation of new skin cells and refreshes old skin cells. This oil also soothes, treats and nourishes dry skin and has great healing benefits. So when I decided I wanted to make a face cream, that would both moisturize and rejuvenate my skin, this carrier oil was an obvious choice.
Rosehip Oil
Rosehip oil not only heals your skin, but it is also very rehydrating. I chose to use this oil as it is known for fighting wrinkles and I wanted a product that would rejuvenate my skin.
Shea Butter
We all know how great shea butter is at moisturizing and it tends to be my go-to for most skincare formulations, as it is suitable for all skin types. I particularly chose to use it in this recipe as it helps to relieve dry skin with its nourishing properties. It is Intensely hydrating as well as being a rich source of vitamins A and E.
AHA Fruit Complex
AHA Fruit Complex promotes younger firmer skin by rejuvenating skin cells leaving your skin looking younger and more refreshed. A little of this amazing stuff will brighten up your complexion and hydrate your skin wonderfully.
Essential Oils
Lavender contains anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties making it great for the treatment of damaged and compromised skin. It’s also a great source of antioxidants for your skin, too.
Essential oils are unique in that they’re able to sink into the very lowest levels of our skin, where new skin cells are being formed. This dose of antioxidants can really help the new cells to appear fresher when they make their way to the top layer of skin.
The calming properties of lavender oil are good for relieving anxiety and stress, and it has a lovely sweet floral smell too.
Sandalwood oil is a fantastic choice when it comes to making face face moisturizer and it also has good anti-aging and anti-inflammatory properties. It will bring a lovely scent to your cream and will help to lift your spirits.
My Antioxidant Summer Face Cream
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Ingredients
- Green Tea Bags (For the Infusion)
- 130 g Distilled Water (For the Infusion)
- 10 g Glycerine
- 14 g Evening Primrose Oil
- 14 g Rosehip Oil
- 10 g BTMS-50 Emulsifying Wax (or Emulsifying Wax NF)
- 6 g Cetyl Alcohol
- 16 g Shea Butter
- 2 g Liquid D-Panthenol
- 2 g AHA Fruit Extract
- 2 g Vitamin E Oil
- 2 g Preservative
- 1 g Lavender Essential Oil
- 1 g Sandalwood Essential Oil
- 2 Cosmetic Jar 4 oz (100 ml)
Video
Instructions
- Make a Green Tea Infusion using the green tea bag and 130g of distilled water. This can be as simple as steeping the tea bag in the bioling waterfor 15 minutes, here's more info on making infusions. Pour the infusion it into a beaker an add your Glycerine.Green Tea Bags, 130 g Distilled Water, 10 g Glycerine
- Place the Evening Primrose oil, Rosehip oil, BTMS 50, Cetyl Alcohol and Shea butter into a separate beaker.14 g Evening Primrose Oil, 14 g Rosehip Oil, 10 g BTMS-50 Emulsifying Wax, 6 g Cetyl Alcohol, 16 g Shea Butter
- Make a bain marie by adding a few inches of water into a pan, and bring it to a gentle simmer. When the water is just simmering, pop both the water and oil beakers into the water.Leave the beakers in the water until the oils have melted and the water has heated through. This will usually take approximately 20mins.
- Once the oils have completely melted, remove both beakers from the water. Pour the green tea and glycerine mixture into the beaker containing the oils.Then stir the cream in intervals, stirring for 2 mins then leaving to stand for 1 min. Carry on with the intervals until the cream has thickened and cooled below 104f (40c). If it looks like the cream is starting to separate at any point, vigorous stirring should bring it back together.
- When the cream is below 104f (40c) it's time to stir in the Depanthenol, AHA, vitamin E and preservative, then add the essential oils and stir thoroughly in order to fully disburse them within the cream.2 g Liquid D-Panthenol, 2 g AHA Fruit Extract , 2 g Vitamin E Oil, 2 g Preservative, 1 g Lavender Essential Oil, 1 g Sandalwood Essential Oil
- Your cream is now ready to pour into a container. It is slightly easier to get it into the container whilst it's still warmish. Then, leave the lid off until the cream has cooled completely.2 Cosmetic Jar 4 oz
Conclusion
I’m probably going to keep this recipe close to hand. It smells so good I might just make another batch when autumn comes around.
However, don’t hold me to it. I’m obsessed with formulating new beauty products so I’ll probably have a new love by then!
But until then, my face smells gorgeous and feels fantastic, so I’m a very happy girl.
If you’re interested in making more DIY face cream recipes and other skincare products, I have a boatload of recipes. All of them are tried and tested personally by me. I never recommend a recipe that I haven’t formulated, tried, and used myself.
But if beauty products aren’t your thing, we have plenty to offer you here. Sign up for our newsletter to receive some free ebooks, filled with recipes for you to enjoy. It’s also a great way to stay up to date on all of my latest recipes.
Hi Angela Wills,
I am a big fan of you and your recipes. Now, my question is, can I use beeswax instead of emulsifying wax? And the preservative you have used (Preservative Eco) how much should I use for making 1 kg cream?
Hello Rosa, Thank you for your kind words!
Beeswax is not a true emulsifier, so it won’t create a stable emulsion on its own. If you use beeswax instead of emulsifying wax, your cream will separate over time. For a stable emulsion, you will need to use an emulsifying wax.
The recommended usage rate of Preservative Eco is typically 0.5–1% of the total weight of your formulation. For 1 kg (1000 g) of cream, I would use 10 g. This will keep the cream safe and free from bacteria.
Hope this helps,
Angela x