DIY Toner, for beautiful skin of course...

Beautiful skin is healthy skin, and this toner is healthy for your skin.

I love expensive skin-clearing/skin beautifying products just as much as the next girl, but I won't spend the money on an expensive toner that claims to work wonders because I can make my own that works just as many wonders as the expensive stuff does.

 I know because I have been using this toner for a while now and can definitely vouch for its awesome awesome skin results. Best part is that it costs close to nothing (especially compared to those so-called miracle toners I walk past in Sephora..yikes! $75? No thanks).

The ingredients for this toner all together cost around $20. Best part though? You can make tons and tons of batches. So one bottle of toner ends up costing you less than a dollar.

This toner smooths, brightens and clears your skin. I used it on my shoulders when they started to break out (which they always do in the winter!) and I saw huge results in the clarity of my skin in about four days. It works way better than the drying over-the-counter creams and even better, it doesn't bleach my clothes like the store bought topical acne medication.

This stuff works, but one warning is that your significant other or roommate might not appreciate the smell...it has apple cider vinegar in it which has a really strong and not so great smell to it. But if you can tough out the smell, it will definitely be worth it.

Also, if you put it on before you go to bed, the smell will wear off by morning.

Ingredients:

1oz bottle

3 drops lavendar essential oil

8 drops tea tree oil

raw apple cider vinegar

witch hazel

hydrogen peroxide (optional)

four drops lemon juice (optional)

**Note: I used a one-ounce bottle. If you are using a container that is larger, just follow the recipe but double or triple it depending on the size container you are using.**

First I put about three or four drops of the lavendar.

Lavendar essential oil has soothing properties and helps calm blemished skin. It also helps to dull the harsh smell of the apple cider vinegar.

Second I put around 8-10 drops of tea tree oil.

Tea tree oil is an anti-bacterial and is good for clearing up blemishes and giving the skin a good deep-cleansing to get the grime out of those pores.

Third, I put about a cap full of hydogen peroxide (this ends up being about 12 drops all together). You don't have to do this step. It isn't necessary and it's a great toner without the hydrogen peroxide. The reason why I put it in is because it is an antiseptic and also helps lighten sun spots and scars and it also is very effective at drying out pimples (which is why it is used in almost all over-the-counter topical acne medication).

Some pople say it's good for acne, but some people say it wreaks havoc on your skin. It can be too drying for people with skin that has a tendency to be dry and flaky already. Don't use it if you have dry or really sensitive skin.

Next is another optional step. I put about four or five drops of fresh lemon juice in with my toner. Lemon juice has a lot of enzymes in it so it helps to lighten acne scars and also brighten skin.

If you are obsessed with being tan, don't use the lemon juice...or the hydrogen peroxide for that matter. Both of these ingredients will probably take away, or at least significantly lighten your tan.

If you want to use the lemon juice, I would suggest making a small amount of toner at a time since it is a food and doesn't have a really long shelf life. If you are making a big batch, skip the lemon juice. You don't want your toner to go bad before you are finished using it.

(Ignore the fact that the bottle is full in this picture...I took the picture with the lemon next to the bottle after I was finished making the toner.)

Next, I fill the bottle 3/4 of the way full with raw apple cider vinegar.

Make sure it says on the apple cider vinegar that it is raw, organic and unfiltered. Refined and pastuerized apple cider vinegar will not work the same.

Raw apple cider vinegar is fermented and is loaded with so many great skin benefits. It helps the pH balance of your skin. It is filled with alpha hydroxy acid which helps with flaky or dry patches on skin, heals blemishes, and lightens age spots and sun spots. 

People also claim that apple cider helps increase circulation to the skin. This is a claim that I am not 100% sure about, but if it is true, then that's awesome too! It is great to have around because it really works well as just a spot treatment if you have a pimple.

People also drink raw apple cider vinegar to help clear up their blemishes from the inside out.

(You can see here with a 1oz bottle about where I fill it to with the apple cider vinegar.)

The last step is filling the bottle the rest of the way full with witch hazel.

Witch hazel is a disinfectant, an astringent and it contains antioxidants.

It is mild, so it doesn't dry out skin, but it is effective at cleansing and minimizing pores. It tones your skin while fighting acne-causing bacteria at the same freakin' time.

Try it out and see how it works for your skin!