InstaNatural's Lavender Essential Oil Review:

Like I mention last week, I received two bottles, and here is the other scent, Lavender.  (Other post here)  I also used this oil in bath bombs, which I made a few days ago.  And next week you’ll see how well those turned out. 

As you can see in the picture, the bottle is 4oz of 100% pure essential oil.  It also came with a glass dropper instead of like other essential oils you have to shake to get any out.  I love that. A lot of people complained online about the smell, because they thought that it didn't smell like lavender, and I couldn't help thinking that they've never been to a natural soap shop.  The scent is perfect.  Exactly what I was expecting. I've loved essential oils ever since I started going to farmer’s markets.  I always see these shelves full of different soaps and candles, and now I’m finally going to try and make my own!

Lavender essential oil has a few different uses, the biggest being a calming agent.  Put a few drops of lavender oil onto your pillows and the scent will drift you off to sleep. 

Other uses include:  Bee sting/ insect bite, cuts (it will clean them and kill bacteria), eczema. nausea/ motion sickness, dry/ chapped skin, chapped/sunburned lips, nose bleeds (put it on a tissue and wrap it around a small ice chip), hay fever, dandruff, and cold sores. 

If you plan on using essential oil, especially this one, on your skin, you should dilute it with water because it is so pure it can cause irritation, especially on sensitive skin.

I’m planning on making soap and candles sometime in the near future, and I’m going to be using these essential oils.  I’ve always wanted to make my own soap and candles.  It’s a very exciting time for me.   I have all of these new things I want to try and now I have huge bottles of essential oils.  I love it! 

xx

InstaNaturals Peppermint Essential Oil:

I’m back with another InstaNatural post!  Haha.  I love InstaNaturals stuff.  Anything I have ever received from them, I have loved.  And this time is no different.  

Today, I have a Peppermint essential oil.   I received two oils, and I decided to put them into two different posts, so come back next week to know about the other scent! 

This oil is a pure oil.   It is very strong.  When I received the package I thought that a bottle broke because I could smell them through the packaging.  Happily the bottles were fine, but even if they were broken, the company is amazing and they’ll send you a new bottle.   This is one of the best companies I have ever come across.  They’re very helpful, and after you purchase the product, they send you an email talking about the different ways you can use the product.  It’s great.  I would have used the oils in only one way if they hadn’t sent me an email telling me about the benefits. 

I of course used them in a new bath bomb recipe.  Which is another blog post coming out soon.  I failed horribly the last time I tried to make bath bombs, but I’m thinking I’ll do alright this time.  (Fingers crossed!)

Some other ways to use Peppermint Essential Oil: Clear congestion, lessen headaches, wake yourself up,  eases nausea,  lowers stress, and eases muscles. 

Just rub some of the oil (best if you dilute it) into your skin, or smell it, lightly.  

Essential oils are my favorite, and I love having them around my house!

xx

Instanatural's Moroccan Rose Water Ultimate Facial Toner:

This is the third and last product form Instanatual I received, and I'm pretty sure it's my favorite.(Seaweed Powder & Argan Oil)  But, I'm biased.  If you've been here long, then you'll know that anything and everything rose is my jam. If you haven't been here long, well, now you know! (Except for Herbal Essences Color care Shampoo, that was not rose.) 

I'm not really sure what toners do.  It says minimize pores, but you can't really do that...I guess it's just a temporary thing.  I don't know.   I use a toner here and there, when I remember that I have a toner.  I've used two toners, this one, and one from Simple.  Again, I like this one more.  

There are a few things that you can use this toner for.  The first, is as a toner. (Duh!)  On the label it says that "To maintain the pH balance of skin and tighten pores apply rose water with a cotton ball to a clean and dry face and neck in upward strokes."  When I do this, my skin feels firm and slightly tight, but not a bad tight.  If that makes sense.  It's a total plus that I can smell roses for a few minutes after, until I put on my moisturizer.  

Another way to use this is for hair care.  I have yet to do this, because I want to keep this toner around as long as possible.  I've got a big head, and it's not a never-ending bottle. Haha.  It says, "For soft shinny hair, apply rose water directly to your scalp in a gentle manner.  Let it sit for 20 minutes before you wash your hair with shampoo.  You may also mix it with your shampoo."  Maybe I should do that, mix it in.  I read somewhere that rose water is supposed to help with an itchy scalp.  That would be good during the colder months. 

The last way to use this rose water (with directions) is in the bath.  "To experience a scented and relaxing bath mix a little bit of rose water into the bath water."  I have done this.  At the beginning there was a soft hint of rose, but as the bath proceeded, it faded.  If my memory is correct, it lasted about 5 minutes.  I won't be using it in the bath again.  

Then there is a list of ways to use it without direction,  those ways include: aftershave, acne, sunburn, blemishes, aromatherapy, and more.  Maybe I'll keep this long enough to use it against a sunburn.  I usually get a sunburn in the spring time.  If I do, I'll get back to you, probably when it's empty.

Like I said, I'm a sucker for rose, and this doesn't disappoint.  It's exactly what a good rose scented product should be.  It's floral and light.  Think Grandma, I know I do.  I love it. 

Have you ever used a rose water product?  Let me know!  

xx 

Instanatural's Argan Oil Hair Treatment and Elixir:

Like I said last week, I received this product in the mail with three other products. The first is here.  

Oil treatments are so good for your hair, and this oil treatment is no different.  There are many different things that it can do to your hair, including re-hydration.  I love using oil in between hair cuts to make sure my hair stays as hydrated as possible.  Especially since I typically do use a lot of heat.

I wouldn't call my hair damaged, but it wouldn't mind a little love. Like I said above,  I do use heat on my hair often. This is exactly what this treatment is to me, a little bit of love.  In this elixir is argan oil, coconut oil, grapeseed oil, jojoba oil, olive oil, and shea butter.  It doesn't really have a scent.  I guess it just smells like oil?  I'm not really sure.  

There are a few different ways you can use this argan oil.  A 10 minute treatment, a two hour treatment, an overnight treatment, and as a scrunching styling aid.  I've used it for the 10 minute treatment and for scrunching.  When I washed it out of my hair, there was no residue and it didn't effect my shampoo smell.  Which made me really happy, because not going to lie, I'm in love with my shampoo scent. Even though I only used the 10 minute treatment, my hair felt so soft and it was very shinny. I used it for scrunching for a Christmas party I went to, and it actually worked.  If you have been here a while, then you would know that my hair is straight as nails and nothing helps.  This did.  My hair held out for pretty much the whole night.  There is some residue, but it's a lot better than gel.  

I think my only problem with this argan oil is that I feel like I'm running out already.  I'm sure it's just because of the length of my hair. Haha. 

If you're looking for a new hair treatment, then I suggest this one.  It's really nice. 

xx

My two other Instanatural products:

Seaweed Powder 

Moroccan Rose Water Toner

Instanatural Seaweed Powder:

Last month I received this powder in the mail along with two other instanatural products.  I've decided instead of having a mile long posts that would probably get boring, I'm going to break this up into three posts.  

This seaweed powder is used to detox your body and smooth/soften your skin.

When I opened it up, the smell threw me back a bit. It smells like seaweed. On the amazon reviews some people said it smelled fishy, I don't get that.  I get salty seaweed, like I'm at the ocean.  It's not something that I'm used to smelling, but while using it, the smell wasn't as potent.  I actually felt like I was a the beach. (I was in the bath while using it.)  

There are four recipes provided, but I'm sure there are many different ways you can use this product.  

Cellulite Scrub: 

1/4 cup seaweed powder 

1/4 cup sea salt 

1/4 cup olive oil 

1-2 drops of essential oil (optional) 

Mix the ingredients together until a creamy mixture forms. Before showering massage into skin in a circular upward motion.  Rinse off in shower.  Can be used daily.  

Face Mask: 

2 Tbsp seaweed powder

2 Tbsp honey 

1 Tbsp aloe vera

Combine all of the ingredients until it turns into a paste.  Exfoliate your skin, then apply all over.  Let dry for 15 to 20 minutes.  Rinse with warm water.  Best if used 3 times a week.  

Face Scrub: 

2 Tbsp seaweed powder

2 Tbsp coconut oil 

2-4 Tbsp sea salt 

Mix ingredients in a bowl until a heavy mixture is formed.  Rub all over your face in circular motions.  Rinse with warm water.  

Body Seaweed Wrap: 

1 cup seaweed powder 

warm water 

2 Tbsp olive oil 

1-2 drops essential oils (optional) 

Slowly mix the seaweed powder with the water until a thick paste forms.  Then stir in the olive oil and essential oils.  Apply the mixture to your body in upward strokes.  Once application is complete, wrap your body with plastic wrap then cover yourself with a light sheet or sweatpants/sweatshirts.  This will heat up your body and open up your pores.  Leave the treatment on for 20-30 minutes.  Then rinse with cool water in the shower.  Can be used 1 to 2 times a week.  

I have only used the face mask and face scrub.  Both were really nice.  My skin felt clean and very soft afterwards.  It is a little messy.  I at first used just a normal bowl, but decided to switch to an old plastic container that we never use anymore.  The face mask was very sticky and thick when I first made it, kind of like play-dough, but after I played with it a bit, and added a little bit of water it worked just fine.  The face scrub was perfect. 

I don't think I'll try the other recipes anytime soon.  The last one seems very intense, and I don't know if I can use that much plastic wrap. But if I do, I'll write another post!  

xx 

My two other instanatural products: 
Argan Oil 
Moroccan Rose Water Toner

Instanatural Deep Cleansing Facial Oil Review:

A little under a month ago, I received an oil face wash from Instanatural to review.  I had never used an oil face wash before but I’ve heard many stories about how great they are. 

  What I really like about this one was that it was all natural, I know what everything is on the label, and also, that it covers a few different things.  This face cleanser removes make-up, cleanses your face, and you can use it on your make-up brushes. 

There are a few different ways you can apply the oil to your face; by hand, cotton pad, or cotton ball.  I prefer to use my hands if I’m going all over my face, but if I want to just target my eye make-up I feel like the cotton pad works best.  I wasn’t a big fan of the cotton ball application. 

I’ve tried a few different make-up removers from creams, to wipes, to liquids, to (now) oil, and I would have to say oil is my favorite way of removal.   I favored cream for a while, but the cream that I have doesn’t remove my mascara unless I try really hard, and with the oil, it’s almost instant.  The only thing that I’ve had a hard time removing with the oil is the eyeliner from Flower. 

I’ve used this face oil with two different mascaras, make-up with primers, make-up without primers, and even foundation, just to make sure I covered all of the bases.  It works really well with everything.  Some face wipes will leave a little bit of mascara and foundation behind, but this stuff didn’t.  I was ecstatic.

After I wipe it off with a washcloth, my face is left feeling so soft and clean.  My skin type is a combination of both oily and dry, but mostly oily, and there does seem to be a little bit of residue later on in the day, but it’s not so much that I can’t work with it. 

I also used it on my make-up brushes, and it works really well.  I used it on a few brushes that I haven’t used since the last time I washed my brushes, and some make-up still came off.  The only thing I have to warn you about is don’t use this on really cheap brushes.  By really cheap I mean the kind that leave behind bristles after you use it, the kind that you get with cheaper make-up, the kind that are in those Christmas brush packs.  All of mine fell apart.  It could have been just their time to fall apart, or the oil could have made them loose.  Who knows, I’m not really careful while washing my brushes. 

Currently looking on Amazon, this face oil is $19.95, and I feel it’s worth it. 

xx