How to Gift Homemade Face Masks

With the holiday season sneaking up, it’s time to start planning gifts – and organic skincare is one great place to start, because everyone needs to pamper their epidermis in the dry winter months. In order to give everyone on your list something that’s helpful for their unique skin-type, try gifting homemade face masks, which are a super inexpensive gift solution for any of your skincare obsessed friends or family. Plus homemade face masks can produce great results, and will have you crafty in the kitchen instead of stressing out at a mall during holiday shopping rush hour.

In the spirit of DIY everything, plant based cosmetics, and personalizing presents down to a science, we’ve rounded up 5 face mask recipes, and the different skin ‘personas’ that match with the ingredients. Don’t forget to package your homemade face masks in recyclable glass jars! An air-tight glass container will keep ingredients fresh for longer, and eliminate any risk of plastic leaching into the formula. Oh, and you’ll want to remind your friends to keep these babies in the fridge, since they’re made out of plants! Each recipe makes enough formula for 5 masks -- so be prepared to share!

Mask for the Friend Who Stays Out ‘til 2am

For the friend who manages to always stay out until the wee hours of the morning, a face mask recipe is required to deal with party-induced skin stress! This means choosing ingredients that deal with the dehydration caused by consuming alcohol, and the redness and inflammation that can develop because of it. This formula hits the mark, combining chamomile tea and aloe vera, which are both ultra hydrating ingredients that leave skin with enhanced H2O levels and reduced inflammation. Raw honey adds an antimicrobial kick to banish any lingering toxins from a long night that might cause comedones or irritation. And ground oats provide gentle exfoliation to pores, for extra brightening and sloughing away of dead skin.

What you’ll need:

3 tbsp strong chamomile tea

3 tablespoon aloe vera

3 tablespoon raw honey

4 tablespoons ground oats

Mix all of the ingredients together to achieve a thick, gluey consistency. Apply and leave on for 15-20 minutes, then wash off with lukewarm water.

Mask for Your Makeup Vlogger Friend

This formula is for the friend who was part of the first wave of Youtube contour tutorial vloggers, and who doesn’t leave the house without a pair of false eyelashes and some seriously high-beam highlighter. Everyday heavy makeup wearers can benefit from DIY skin masks that are ultra clarifying and decongesting. The battle here is against oily skin, which can sometimes become a problem when the skin’s natural lipid layer is disrupted by constant use of silicon based primers and heavy foundations. To balance sebum, this formula combines anti-inflammatory and clarifying turmeric powder with coconut oil, which is made up of medium chain fatty acids that are readily absorbed by skin, encouraging a healthy and balanced lipid barrier.

What you’ll need:

3 tbsp organic turmeric powder

5 tablespoons raw coconut oil, melted

3 tablespoons ground oats

Combine the turmeric powder and the oats with enough of the coconut oil to form a thick paste. Apply with a cosmetic brush, and leave the mask on for 15-20 min. Wash off with lukewarm water.

Mask for That Friend Who Won't Give Up the Tanning Bed

For the friend who can’t seem to kick the tanning bed habit despite mountains of research proving that it accelerates skin aging and UV damage, this DIY mask formula packs a punch with sun related age prevention and anti-hyperpigmentation ingredients. Alpha hydroxy acids in fresh pineapple brighten and reverses skin discoloration that can occur from UV damage, plus pineapple adds a kick of fruit enzymes, which encourage the efficient turnover of dead and damaged skin cells. Cucumber infused water contains caffeic acid to soothe redness and dryness, and also silica, which is essential for maintaining the strength of connective tissue in the epidermis (which can be compromised by repeated sun exposure). The mask gets its soothing gel consistency from chia seeds, a natural humectant which will replenish pores with H20 and provide a dose of zinc and vitamin B3.

What you’ll need:

3 tbsp chia seeds

9 tablespoons water

3/4 cup pureed pineapple

1 cup cucumber infused water (to make, soak a whole sliced cucumber in a cup of water overnight, then strain)

Mix the chia seeds and water, and let sit for 15 minutes, until a chia gel consistency has been reached. Meanwhile puree fresh pineapple until smooth, adding water to blend. Combine chia gel, pineapple, and the cucumber infused water, and mix until it reaches a smooth consistency. Apply and leave on for 25 minutes, then wash off with lukewarm water.

Mask for the Over-Scheduled Friend

For the friend who swears by hourly to-do lists and who schedules every second of every minute of every day (and manages to pull off work, the gym, and ‘hobbies’ without a stray hair) a de-stress downtime mask is the perfect gift. Sometimes even the busiest and most type-A people need a moment to unwind, and aromatherapy and soothing plant-based skin care is one great way to do it. This formula contains lavender essential oil, an anti-anxiety fragrance that’s also antibacterial and anti inflammatory, so great for treating stress induced blemishes. Cinnamon in the formula promotes circulation to the face (to get that coveted glow) and raw honey smooths and plumps stressed or overworked skin (which is prone to fine lines and micro wrinkling).

What you’ll need:

½ tsp organic lavender essential oil

¼ tsp organic cinnamon powder

3 tablespoons raw honey

4 tablespoons ground oats

1 tablespoon water (to mix)

Combine the oats, honey, and enough water to form a paste. Mix in the essential oil and cinnamon powder, and add an additional tablespoon of water to slightly thin the consistency. Apply with a cosmetic bush.

DIY Mask After-Care

For any DIY self-facials, it’s important to follow up the mask step with effective cleansing and protecting products. Masks open up your pores, and it’s an ideal time to apply active ingredients for deep absorption and maximal results. Puristry’s Flower Water Toner and Seaberry Moisturizer are both must-have aftercare products, which make great gifts alongside any DIY tailored facial formulas. The flower water toner features hyaluronic acid for long-lasting hydration, and the Seaberry Moisturizer contains over fifty phytonutrients and antioxidant packed sea buckthorn oil. To help your gift recipients get the most from their masks, write these instructions on a little tag. Tie the tag to your face mask recipes with a festive holiday ribbon, and get gifting!

Another great gift that shows you care? Point your besties to our auto-routine page, where they can get up to 40% off a brand new healthy, skin care regimen!