Port Potager

Remember my homemade face scrub ? I've been using it for over a month now, and (once I got used to it) I love it. There's a bit of trick to getting just the right amount on your fingertips, and massaging it gently at first, so it doesn't just slip off your hand in a big glob. It also helps to start with a dry face, so the scrub can get a grip on your skin. There is a bit of finesse involved, but the results are really worth it. I haven't had any of my occasional PMS-induced chin breakouts since I started using it, and it's not at all drying, which makes it great for winter. It's a winner! Turns out that Tiegan wasn't a huge fan, though. I can understand that – as I mentioned, there's a learning curve, and a 10-year old is likely to be more easily frustrated by it. Also, a 10-year old's gorgeous skin barely needs and exfoliation anyway, so I started looking for a less scrubby alternative for her. After some internet research, I decided on this D...

In addition to all the edible stuff we've been growing all summer, I've also been slowly building up an herbal apothecary: From left to right, we have dried lavender, dried rose petals, dry face scrub, face scrub moistened into a paste, dried chamomile, and comfrey oil. The dried flowers have all kinds of uses, both edible and not. Here I've used it for an all-natural face scrub.  You can see it in its dry form in the jar above — the white stuff in the center. This is from a recipe by herbalist Rosemary Gladstar. You can check it out here , or read the whole book , which has lots of cosmetics as well as medicinal recipes. This face scrub is called "miracle grains," and is actually a substitute for soap. It uses a bunch of kaolin clay (that's the white stuff that you see in the jar), plus ground almonds and oatmeal, and chopped up dried rose petal and lavender. The clay draws impurities out of the skin, and the other ingredients are for gentle exf...