How to: DIY Herbal Clay Mask

by Melissa K. Norris

Am I the only one who probably has more skin issues now than I did as a teenager? I thought that was supposed to go away once I graduated high school…

Until I discovered the way to make a DIY Herbal Clay Mask.

I have the lovely combination of both oily and acne prone, but also dry splotches, a little of both worlds you could say. Like so many things on our homestead, I’ve really started looking at the ingredients in my skin care and make-up. Because, as much of a pioneer woman as I am, I like my lip gloss and mascara. Yes, I bring a little bit of sparkle to the barnyard. When I’ve got break outs kicking, I especially like my cover-up.

After reading the ingredient labels (I may need to have this made into a shirt) on many of my skin care items, I ended up tossing almost all of them into the garbage. I started investigating natural options. Two items kept coming up for acne, bentonite clay, and apple cider vinegar. I love me some apple cider vinegar. I use it for cooking and a lot of my cleaning… but I hadn’t used it for my skin.

After ordering some bentonite clay and making a mask, I was immediately in love. My skin was really smooth and soft after using it, and the redness from current breakouts and older scars definitely subsided after a treatment. Score!

The first few times I made the mask I left it on for about 10 minutes, gradually increasing to twenty minutes. I started applying it once a week, but now use it three times a week.

The mask is my favorite. My kids especially giggle and laugh when I come walking out of the bathroom with the lovely mask smeared all over my face.

Bentonite Herbal Facial Scrub & Mask
¾ cup old-fashioned oatmeal, ground fine
¼ cup dried lavender buds, ground fine
½ cup dried calendula, ground fine
1 Tablespoon ground flaxseed
½ cup bentonite clay

In a grinder or food processor, grind oatmeal, lavender buds, calendula, and flaxseed. In a glass container mix the ground ingredients well with the bentonite clay. Don’t use metal with the bentonite clay as it will make the bentonite clay less effective.

You may use as a scrub or a mask.

For a scrub: If you have oily or acne-prone skin, mix 1 teaspoon scrub with 1 teaspoon water to make a paste. If you have dry skin, mix 1 teaspoon scrub with 1 teaspoon olive oil. With fingertips, lightly scrub face. Rinse with warm water.

For mask application: Mix 1 teaspoon of the dry mask with ¾ teaspoon apple cider vinegar and ¾ teaspoon water. The apple cider vinegar will help the bentonite clay mix better. Using your fingers, spread the mask evenly over your face, avoiding the eye area and lips. This will be enough to do your whole face.

Leave on for 5 to 20 minutes. As it dries your skin will begin to feel sort of tingly, and it might feel tight when you smile. Rinse off with warm water. Don’t be alarmed if your skin is red after washing it off. It will fade after a few minutes.

Let’s talk ingredients.

First off we have oatmeal. Oatmeal does a body good, inside and out. Topically, it helps cleanse, soothe, and moisturize.

Lavender buds. Lavender is known to be a great herb in skin care products. Many people find it soothing, especially when applied topically. Some studies show it has many medicinal properties as well.

Calendula (I completely mispronounced it for months) is an amazing herb. It can be used for skin irritations, which is perfect in this mask. In fact, it has so many uses I think every household should have some on hand.

Flaxseed is popular in a lot of health foods, which is why I had it on hand. However, I didn’t realize people with blood clotting disorders, such as my daughter, shouldn’t use it internally. This isn’t an internal use, but I thought it an important point. It does have some great properties that I use it for.

The benefits of Bentonite Clay for the skin is pretty amazing. My best friend is a licensed esthetician and had high praises for using a bentonite clay mask. It helps draw toxins out of the skin, exfoliates, softens, and seemed to lessen the appearance of current breakouts by taking away some of the redness.

Each of these items on their own is great, but put them together and you’ve got… an awesome recipe for your skin. Seriously, I’d been using just the bentonite by itself and my skin has been thrilled ever since.