Girls,
Recently I’ve got into the properties of cosmetic clays and the possibilities they offer in skin care. Basically, now I can’t imagine my daily beauty rituals without using the clays. The one that I fell head over heels in love is green cosmetic clay that displays strong cleansing properties <3
I’d like to dedicate my today’s post to it – green clay. I want to briefly introduce it to you and tell you a few things about my beloved green clay face masks that each one of you may prepare on your own at home.
Check out what you don’t know yet about green cosmetic clay!
Clay – a powdered argillaceous mineral that is now used as a pharmaceutical and beautifying raw material. It displays bactericidal properties and aids in wound healing processes.
Naturally, we can distinguish various types of clays: white, pink, yellow, blue, but I personally love green clay most. As it’s easy to guess, they all differ in terms of beauty benefits but it’s green clay in particular that have the strongest cleansing effect.
The secrets of green clay
Do you know the secrets of green clay?
Of course, as the name speaks for itself, green clay is greenish. When powdered, its colour is lighter but when combined with either water or herbal distillation, it turns into bottle green. What’s interesting, green clay can be consumed (drunk to be more precise) which is supposed to deliver many pro-healthy benefits. Still, green clay is commonly used as a natural and a truly powerful cosmetic.
Green clay: Types
I was surprised when I found out that there are two types of green clay. Not only do we have a general diversification of cosmetic clays but also there are subgroups of clays distinguished.
Here are the types of green clay:
- green clay montmorillonite that is exploited in the south of France in Montmorillon region (this is where the name derives from); it contains over 20 mineral salts and a set of other micro-elements;
- green clay illite which is clay originated from Illinois state in the USA; it was first found in the first half of the 19th century. This is when its precious medicinal properties were discovered.
Which green clay to choose?
Both are equally effective therefore, when choosing a clay for yourself, it’s better to focus on its quality. The most important determinant is the color – the greener and saturated clay is, the fresher and better it is.
Obviously, before putting green clay into a basket, read its INCI first so as to avoid taking clay that is mixed with some completely unnecessary substances like preservatives, aromas or colorants. In other words, the list of ingredients should contain only one item: 100% green clay. Only then can we be sure that the product is rich in essential nutrients.
What are the chemical constituents of green clay?
Green clay offers a multitude of the finest minerals such as: silicon that accelerates wound healing processes, magnesium that prevents inflammations, calcium that improves skin tension, squalane that protects against UV rays and lifts sagging skin, mangan that erases wrinkles, phosphore that stimulates skin self-renewal processes, copper that balances sebum production as well as iron that encourages collagen synthesis – and these are just a few of the chemical constituents that green clay has in store for us.
As it’s not hard to guess, the chemical constituents determine the beauty benefits that green clay is able to offer.
Application of green clay in beauty care
- Absorbs toxins and leaves skin cleansed.
- Is antibacterial and soothes irritations.
- Deeply nourishes thanks to the multitude of minerals.
- Regulates sebaceous glands and manages sebum production.
- Reduces acne and leaves skin supple.
- Deals with flabby skin and delays skin ageing processes.
- Brightens and evens up skin tone.
Green clay should be mostly perceived as a strong cleansing natural cosmetic – its absorbent properties (toxins and other impurities) as well as the anti-inflammatory effect make it one of the best constituents of face cleansing masks.
What’s interesting, face skin isn’t the only body part that you can use green clay on. Basically, you can treat your scalp with this natural cosmetic, especially if it’s problematic.
Green clay face mask: Instructions
Creating you homemade green clay face mask is really simple! Just combine green clay with either water (you can use tap water or thermal water) or any herbal distillate. Mind the 1:1 proportions.
Of course, you can modify this basic recipe for green clay face mask at will. For example, you can mix it with:
- vegetable oils (sweet almond, argan, jojoba),
- essential oils (lavender, rosemary),
- hyaluronic acid 1% or 3 %,
- natural yogurt, kefir or buttermilk,
- natural honey or beeswax,
- vitamins A and E in drops.
My favorite face mask with green clay
Perhaps you can guess by now that I have my favorite green clay face mask that I’ve been using for really long. It perfectly suits my combination skin.
Recipe: I take 2 spoons of powdered green clay, add 1 spoon of thermal water, 1 spoon of sweet almond oil and a few drops of hyaluronic acid (1%). Then I combine the ingredients, apply to my face, let it sit for 15-20 minutes and rinse.
Why is it the best green clay face mask?
Well, there are more reasons than just the fact that my face skin reacts really well on it. Simply, green clay face mask has the best consistency (providing that the consistency is okay, which means that it remains on face and is easy to apply) and has several favorable effects: green clay cleanses face, hyaluronic acid replenishes skin with water and the oil prevents water loss. In short, in this face mask, you can find an emollient, a humectant and a detoxifying agent.
I wholeheartedly encourage you to give green clay a try.
