DIY Evening Moisturiser | February Flake-Away

I have a love-hate relationship with moisturisers. I love the feeling of freshly cleansed skin with a soothing layer of moisturiser soaking in, but I haven't yet found one to fall in love with. The ones targeted at imperfection-prone skin isn't rich enough and sometimes leaves my skin too dry. The same
can be said of moisturisers for oily skin types. The ones for dry skin can be too heavy and leave me feeling as if I've caked my skin in an unbreathable amount. Everything in between seems either too watery, oily, thick, thin, heavily scented or shimmer rich. With more options comes more confusion.

So I decided to make my own night time moisturiser that would target my needs without breaking the bank. No added fluffs or frills, just full of the ingredients I want to replenish and restore my skin with. Here's what I do:

DIY #1

Base
The bulk of the moisturiser is a combination of shea butter and coconut oil. Shea butter is deeply moisturising and leaves the skin supple and smooth. Coconut oil has antibacterial properties so as well as giving an extra dose of moisture, it'll combat any blemishes or breakouts without leaving them dry and flaking. Whipping these two together creates a body-butter-esque texture, but if you wanted a lighter consistency you can have more coconut oil and less shea butter.

Additions
I mostly use this formula as basic as possible, but when my skin feels like it needs an extra kick I like to add vitamin E for moisture (also great to rub onto scarring or stretch marks). I tend to squeeze the oil from the capsules rather than the essential oil with this base because it's thicker in consistency and so doesn't separate as quickly. For a more targeted moisturiser check out the next DIY.


DIY #2

Base
This is particularly an evening moisturiser because I use an oil for the base. This may seem scary, particularly to those who have oily or combination skin, but using an oil actually rebalances the skin moisture levels so whether you have oily, dry or combination skin, oil will help address your problem areas. I tend to use a mixture of almond and vitamin E oil in the winter (check out my DIY cleanser post for more on these and alternative oils) to balance and rejuvenate my skin over night like a serum. I'd recommend adding vitamin E (either gel or oil) to anyone, it helps tackle blemishes, brings moisture to dry patches, balances oily zones and soothes damaged skin.

Additions
Once you've got your base decided, you want to think about what you want to target; oiliness, dryness, acne, ageing skin, and chose the best formulation for you. Because I use this as an evening moisturiser I add lavender essential oil to calm my skin and help induce a deeper sleep and a drop of tea tree oil to combat imperfections. Here are some alternatives, and feel free to add as many or as few as you like, experiment until you find your perfect ratio: