Mr. Dig usually isn’t so enthused about trying out my extra-crunchy adventures with me.  So I know I’ve made something pretty good when he starts incorporating one of my products into his routine.  This face wash is one that made the cut! It’s fairly heavy-duty in its cleansing power without being overly drying.  It has helped minimize our dry skin throughout this gnarly winter we’ve been having…without the usual obligatory increase in the number of breakouts.

The bee pollen is chalk full of amazing enzymes that help exfoliate the skin, while providing a powerful pack of vitamins and minerals that soothe it.   The castile soap gently cleanses the skin while the vegetable glycerin acts as a humectant to make sure it stays well moisturized.  The grapefruit seed extract is antifungal and antibacterial which keeps you pimple-free but also acts to increase the shelf life of your face wash so that you can store it in the shower.  All in all, it’s a fantastic blend for feeling like your face is squeaky clean without the actually “squeaky” face feeling.

Like this post? Want to share the article? Pin it to your favorite Pinterest boards!

Ingredients:

• 1.5 tbsp bee pollen granules (pretty easy to find locally, check a health food store nearby)
• 5 tbsp witch hazel or aloe vera juice (this is to dissolve the bee pollen granules in).
  • If you can’t find witch hazel or aloe juice, you can use lemon juice. It’s not the very best option given you’ll also be adding castile soap to the mixture…here’s an explanation for why…but I’ve used it in a pinch and it worked well enough to hold me over until I got the witch hazel.
• 1/2 cup vegetable glycerin
• 3 tbsp raw honey (also fairly easy to find a local supply)
• 15 drops grapefruit seed extract
• 1/2 cup liquid castile soap (I used Dr. Bronner’s tea tree scented soap)

Steps:

1. Place the 2 tbsp of bee pollen granules into a small jar (I used a small mason jar, see below) along with the 5 tbsp of witch hazel (or aloe vera or lemon juice).

2. Stir the bee pollen and witch hazel mixture until the bee pollen granules have mostly dissolved. (It’s ok if there are some left, they’ll get blended away.)

3.  Add the bee pollen and witch hazel mixture to your blender.

4. Add the 1/2 cup vegetable glycerin, 2 tbsp raw honey, and 15 drops grapefruit seed extract and blend on low for a minute.

5. Add in the 1/2 cup castile soap and blend for just a few seconds, until it’s mixed in.  Don’t blend too long because it foams up and will leak all over the place (and is really hard to clean up because it foams like crazy when it gets wet. I totally didn’t go through all this on an earlier attempt.)

6. Decant into a storage container. I used an old VO5 shampoo bottle that holds about 500 mL or so (I didn’t check the label before I tossed it so I’m guessing here.)

This recipe is completely modifiable according to skin type.  If you’re having problems with oily skin, bump up the honey and castile soap (only change on at a time).  For dry skin, try adding more glycerin and less castile soap.  If your skin is dull, try increasing the amount of bee pollen.  If you want a more viscous gel, try increasing the honey or mixing the bee pollen in less witch hazel.

Even though the original idea was to just use this as face wash, I actually use this mix as face wash, body wash, and shave gel.  It foams a lot so it does well on a loofah but it’s also quite slippery straight out of the container which helps make shaving a nick-free/razor-bump-free experience.  How’s that for a multi-tasking cleanser?