Beauty Tip of the Day: Love Ya Honey

I love honey! There, I said it and I'll shout it from the roof tops. What's not to love? Its thick gooey goodness goes from sweetening my morning tea to soothing my skin. Who could ask for more? We keep the bees in business at Bidwell Botanicals by using copious amounts of honey in our products. Why? Just to name a few benefits: Honey is a natural humectant. That means it attracts and retains moisture and that's good for your skin and hair. Honey is rich in vitamins, minerals, natural enzymes and amino acids that give it antibacterial, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. See! And you thought it was just tasty on English muffins.

Here's a quick tip: Slightly warm about 1/4 cup of honey (dark and organic if you can get it). You only want this to be warm to the touch so be vigilant and don't over heat it.

While the honey is heating spin some old fashioned rolled oats in your clean coffee grinder or food processor. You can also use plain colloidal oats available as Aveeno. It comes in convenient pouches and you'll only need about a 1/4 of a pouch. Store the rest in a ziplock for future use.

Once the honey is warmed add the oatmeal and mix it up. Apply to a clean, dry face with your fingers avoiding the eye area. Gently massage the oatmeal/honey mixture with slow circular motions. This will stimulate your skin and help to remove dull skin cells. When the honey cools off enough to get hard to move around, about 5 minutes, it's time to rinse off the masque with warm water and pat dry. Apply a good facial moisturizer (with honey of course!) and marvel at your gorgeous glowing skin. How sweet is that!