Aloe Vera is a hearty plant that has some amazing health properties found inside its prickly exterior. With the health craze taking off within the last few years, many different Aloe Vera products have started to hit the shelves in stores. From Aloe Water drinks to health stores selling full Aloe leaves and face masks by the bundle, there is a wide variety of Aloe Vera focused products now readily available. But, we all know homemade is better, right? Here are my DIY Easy Aloe Vera Masks to make at home!
The Right Ingredients
While you can buy Aloe Gel at almost any grocery store now, these bottled and store-bought Aloe Gels typically contain fillers and add-ins that are known to clog pores and cause irritation, which is the opposite purpose of true Aloe Vera. The best way to use Aloe Vera Gel is to harvest it yourself from a healthy Aloe plant. Luckily for me, the one I have is around four years old and about as large as my 50-pound Husky puppy. Seriously, it’s almost a problem.
Due to the mass size of this plant, that I have had since it was a little sapling, I have been scouring the internet for the best DIY uses of Aloe Vera gel. I came across many results, such as adding aloe to smoothies for protein, freezing it as aloe-ice cubes for burns and irritated skin, and of course the obvious face and hair masks. While I do love the idea of freezing a few cubes of Aloe for potential future issues, this post is covering the best DIY Aloe masks that I have recently tried, so here we go.
Aloe Vera Face Mask for Acne & Oily Skin
The first face mask I made and loved, is best for oily and breakout-prone skin. All you need for this acne blasting mask is Aloe Vera and Tea Tree Oil. Mix 1 Tablespoon of Aloe Gel (a little goes a long way) with 2 Drops of 100% all-natural Tea Tree Oil. Mix well and apply to a clean, dry face for 20 minutes. It’s super important to make sure the oil you are using is 100% natural and true Tea Tree Oil. With essential oils becoming so popular nowadays, it’s super easy to accidentally pick up some of the “essential-oil blends” that discount stores like to sell. These can cause even more irritation and are not to be used topically.
Alove Vera Hair & Scalp Mask
The best hair and scalp mask you can do is a homemade one. I love the soothing properties this Aloe Vera and Tea Tree one offers. Again, all you need is Water, Aloe, and Tea Tree Oil. Mix 2 tablespoons of Aloe Vera Gel with 2 drops of Tea Tree Oil and about a tablespoon of water. Mix well and apply to a wet scalp for 30-40 minutes, rinse well when finished. This mask is best applied to the scalp of your hair, and not directly on the ends. I like to mask-mix this with a moisture mask for the ends of my hair and do them at the same time.
You can use just aloe for the ends of your hair if you want, or you can mix Aloe with 2 tablespoons of yogurt, one tablespoon honey and one tablespoon of olive oil. I apply this mask to the middle and ends of my hair, while the Tea Tree mask sits on my scalp. Rinse at the same time and enjoy your clean, shiny and fresh hair!
Other Uses for Aloe Vera Gel
I managed to become brave enough over the past weekend to try putting some fresh Aloe Gel in one of my smoothies. I was afraid that it would vastly affect the texture and taste, but it happily did not. I’m not sure it really made any difference actually, other than some added protein.
What I used in my smoothie was frozen Mango, Raspberries, and Pineapple. 1 scoop of Coconut Plant-Based Protein Powder, 1/2 cup of Orange Juice, a tablespoon of Original Greek Yogurt and two tablespoons of Aloe Vera gel. My smoothie tasted pretty normal, and the texture was not any more gooey than average. Overall I was happy because I was able to use up even more of my monstrous Aloe plant. Plus I was only adding in some extra protein and vitamins packed in by the Aloe plant. A win-win!
Do you have favorite DIY easy Aloe Vera masks or even just a wild plant like I do? Leave me a comment below! Be sure to check out the rest of my beauty posts, here!
XO,
Tori
