Honey Face Mask for Clear, Glowing Skin
I recently visited the Honey Hive in Taupo, New Zealand and now I’m fascinated by bees! I’ve always loved honey, but now I have an even greater appreciation for it. One bee will visit thousands of flowers in its lifetime and will produce only 1/2 a teaspoon of honey. And yet that honey holds amazing nutritional and healing properties. Honey is naturally antibacterial and contains powerful healing enzymes.
Honey is obviously tastes great as a sweetener in your tea or baked goods, but there are heaps of external uses as well. It can be used as a natural antibiotic on burns or scrapes, and it can be used as a natural acne treatment!
The Search for Clear Skin
Can I be straight up with you? Is that OK? I’m 26 and I still deal with acne. It’s gross, I know. I’ve wondered for years when I would “grow out of it.” But since I’ve been getting back to my roots and learning about true nutrition, I’ve come to realize that everything I could have done wrong through my life, I’ve done.
Bummer, huh?
Just about all skin conditions originate in the gut–from an imbalance of good & bad bacteria. There are lots of things that can cause that imbalance, and unfortunately I’m the walking poster child for many of them. So here we go:
- I was bottle fed as a baby
- Took antibiotics for every cough & cold growing up
- Drank pasteurized milk
- Ate a regular diet of processed & packaged foods (including waaaaay too much sugar)
- Took birth control pills for years
- Then stripped all the natural oils from my face with harsh chemical products.
Sigh. So I’m working on restoring a good balance of bacteria in my gut by taking a high quality probiotic supplement, cutting sugar and pasteurized dairy out of my diet as much as possible, and starting to implement fermented foods.
I’ve tried a number of natural acne face washes and lotions from the health food store, but they didn’t do much good. I finally just quit washing my face altogether and instead only used coconut oil as a moisturizer (it’s antibacterial as well). Surprisingly enough, washing or not washing my face didn’t make an ounce of difference in my acne, but it did restore the balance of oil on my skin. No more time wasted scrubbing my face twice a day with smelly sulfur based soap! And I no longer deal with oily or dry skin. (Score!)
So, back to the honey. You’ve probably already surmised that I’m going to tell you about a honey face mask for acne. Not only does putting honey on my face keep my acne at bay better than almost anything else (what I eat is the most important), but it has improved the quality of my skin within days.
Here’s how I do it:
How to Make a Honey Face Mask
1. Pull your hair back well with with head band and remove any makeup (or not, but definitely remove eye makeup with this natural make-up remover).
2. Take about a teaspoon of raw honey from the jar using a spoon or the tips of your fingers.
3. Rub your fingertips together a bit, then smear the honey on your face evenly. I find it helps to dot it on first, then smear gently.
4. Leave it on your face anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour. (Fix your breakfast, wash the dishes, brush your teeth, read a book. There are plenty of things you can do with honey on your face.)
5. Rinse off with warm water, then pat your face dry. You’ll be surprised at how easily it comes off!
I often follow my honey mask with an apple cider vinegar toner, then moisturize with coconut oil. Don’t worry–the wonderful fragrances from the honey and coconut oil override the potency of the vinegar.
A few notes for you about the honey mask:
- You can moisten your face with a small bit of water before applying the honey. This makes it way easier to spread, but you don’t want to water down the honey. Try splashing some water on your face, then patting it almost dry with a towel.
- Do this every. single. day for at least 2 weeks to get started. Twice a day is ideal, but once a day is alright, too. After a while you can reduce the frequency of honey masks and just use coconut oil.
- Choose a raw, unpasteurized honey to make sure all the enzymes and nutrients are in tact.
Who’s willing to try putting food on your face? If you deal with any kind of skin problem, honey can be incredibly beneficial. And you can’t get much easier (and truly cost effective) than one simple ingredient for a homemade beauty product.
As a side note, I’ve also learned that mead (fermented honey wine) is incredible! If anyone has had experience making their own mead, please let me know. I want to learn!
Who’s in for the honey face mask challenge? Have you already tried using honey on your face? What has your experience been like?
This post is linked to Monday Mania, Simple Lives Thursday, Fight Back Friday
Comments are closed.
Hayley Canning
September 8, 2013 at 4:55 amHoney as a face mask really is effective and it works well for all skin types. It always calms down the redness in my skin. I haven’t had any irritation as some of the other comments mentiones. Maybe its the impurities being drawn to the surface
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emergingoddess
September 8, 2013 at 10:03 pmI have been using this simple honey mask treatment for a while now and i love it. On days when I’m feeling run down and my skin is dry and dehydrated, I use the honey mask. Its amazing how hydrated, soft and supple your skin feels afterwards. A local bee farmer provides me with raw honey and I’m hooked.
emergingoddess
September 8, 2013 at 10:09 pmI forgot to mention that after this treatment, my skin is glowing. Before a big night out, I highly recommend spoiling yourself and if you have the time, a one hour honey mask treatment will have you feeling fantastic.
so grateful to all those busy little bees who produce this liquid gold.
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October 3, 2013 at 4:22 am[…] Just applying raw honey evenly on your face every day can bring about a lot of change in complexion eventually. Learn how to do it at Laurelofleaves.com […]
Kat
October 10, 2013 at 5:32 amWOW. Cant believe honey works so well on my face. Cleared all my pimples in less than a month! Well.. there were small bumps that popped out randomly but using honey everyday helps to clear them all. Lets all take a moment to thank the bees. lol
Meagan
October 13, 2013 at 1:10 amUsed Proactive for years. Over time, it didn’t work as well. Also, like most of you, I didn’t like using complicated chemicals on my face everyday 2x a day. I’ve been experimenting with the natural. From the ballin’ results, I’ve deduced that my face was acting up all those years because it was sensitive. Go figure. This is better than Proactiv ever was.
In the morning:
Wash with 1) mixture of fine sea salt (Publix) & 99% aloe jelly (Puritan’s Pride), 2) follow with Neutrogena skin-clearning foundation applied with wedge.
At night:
1) remove make-up w/sensitive baby wipes (CVS), 2) then wash w/Queen Helene’s mint julep clay mask (Dollar General), 3) then 10 min. honey (local from farmers market) face mask
Twice a week, I exfoliate w/baking soda. And I change my pillow cases frequently. That’s a biggie.
It’s cheaper, healthier, more effective, & has fewer steps than most commercial skin-clearing systems. And the honey bit is flippin’ amazing. I think it’s the strongest player in my routine. Natural anti-microbial that gives me smaller pores & suppler skin? Yeah, baby. (Catherine Zeta uses honey masks, too. Read it online, so it’s legit.)
Amber
October 16, 2013 at 6:24 amI’ve tried so many methods and honey + sugar mask gave me the best results. I didn’t expect to see the results after just one day, but I did see the improvements on my skin after 2 applications. Honey is a better cleanser than the ones being sold in the markets. Plus, honey is so yummy!
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October 22, 2013 at 9:21 am[…] also the time of year when my hair and skin like to get super dry, so I’m rediscovering honey face masks and Moroccan Oil. The honey is 1) because of dry skin and 2) because the hard water in Baltimore […]
Brianna
October 23, 2013 at 5:38 pmHello! I stumbled across your blog from something I found on Pinterest. I’ve heard about the wonderful effects honey has on skin but never tried it – I definitely am going to to after reading your post! Is this honey mask a supplement for regular face washes or is it an addition to the normal face care routine?
Thanks!
Brianna
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November 8, 2013 at 4:29 am[…] Honey Face Mask […]
Sonia
January 20, 2014 at 8:22 pmI would try Manuka honey !! It’s stronger and amazing stuff
Madison
February 25, 2014 at 12:04 pmYou got a really useful blog page I have been here reading for about an hour. I am a newbie and your accomplishment is quite significantly an inspiration for me.
Natural Acne Remedies | The Job seeker's Blog
March 18, 2014 at 7:10 am[…] Having a clearer face may be as simple as taking a dip in the ocean. It is known that salt water has a positive effect on acne. It drys up the oils that cause breakouts, leaving you with a smooth result. You can also make your own salt water and wash daily. […]
FloridaMom
June 3, 2014 at 10:02 pmI used to wash my face with a simple soap – OMG please dont do this! My dermatologist recommended the organic Citrus Clear products – I used their face wash and the Citrus Clear Pore Mask. Usually my face feels tight when I use a mask, and its tough to be scraping the product off. Not with Citrus Clear. My face felt soft & moisturized.
I went to bed right after and slept for about 4 hours. I went to the restroom and was amazed at how my face looked in the mirror. Prior to use of the mask, I noticed a red lump that clearly wanted to cause trouble.
There was no trace of it now. I’m serious.
Also, there was a blemish on my cheek that reduced so no one could notice it! I was so happy!
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June 5, 2014 at 6:34 pm[…] and back to facial skin within days. Laurel of Leaves shares her simple and effective honey mask on her blog. Similarly, honey provides hair with an excellent natural conditioner and moisturizes by attracting […]
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July 10, 2014 at 9:31 amI love honey masks too, Lori! I never tried doing them everyday, though. I like to mix it with an egg yolk for the phospholipids. It’s really good at restoring hydration to the skin.
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