The Best Face Serum Recipe with Elderflower
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If you’ve been looking for a good face serum recipe, consider this one! This recipe is gentle for all types of skin and is also customizable to include the herbs you’d like for your skin!
For the sake of my face serum recipe, though, I use good quality jojoba oil and slowly infuse it on a very slow temperature with foraged elderflower grown right here on our farm. I use elderflower for many reasons that I’ll go through in a minute. I also add rose hips, frankincense resin, and vitamin E oil.
Jojoba oil is considered a non-comedogenic oil, so its really great for all skin types. I’m very prone to acne, redness, and have an obnoxious combination of oily & dry skin. Every year I make a big batch of this serum to last me the entire next year. A little goes a long way, so you don’t need as much as you may think!
For me, I’m not really looking for a DIY anti aging serum because aging is inevitable and I’m willing to look my age. But I do probably need a little anti aging serum properties because my face takes the brunt of the weather. In summer its in the sun, in winter its getting pelted by cold air, so it really does take a beating! Gotta take care of that skin!
Potential Benefits of Elderflower
My favorite benefit of using elderflower in my face serum recipe is it smells AMAZING. I adore when my elderberry plants bloom their giant flower umbels because they make the entire area I walk through smell so dang good. They’re lightly floral, but not overly, and just so refreshing. And even after being dehydrated, the flowers still hold on to a good bit of their scent.
Elderflowers possess anti-inflammatory and skin soothing properties that help calm redness and breakouts, even with sunburns. If I get a pretty good sunburn, this is the first thing I reach for to cool it down and help repair my skin.
Elderflower’s high vitamin C concentration and bioflavanoids work as anti aging by tightening skin and protecting it from free radical damage. It’s been shown to diminish fine lines (not mine on my forehead since my face always shows what I’m thinking LOL) and supports healthy collagen production.
Natural antimicrobial properties help balance your sebum which can aid in clearing up acne. The vitamin C content helps with this too!
All in all, this lovely wild weed that grows everywhere is a fantastic addition to your skin care regimen to help protect, promote healing, and gently cleanse.
What About the Other Herbs in This Recipe?
I’m very intentional about the herbs and things I add to my face serum recipe. Sometimes I may add other things, but this is the usual lineup that my skin loves. It’s pretty safe with these additives as most of them are not known to be harsh or tough on sensitive skin.
Any herbs that I cannot forage myself I normally get from Mountain Rose Herbs or Starwest Botanicals. I’ve had great luck with these two suppliers and their quality appears to be really good!
Rose Hips
Rose hips are known for being naturally a good source of vitamin C our body readily utilizes. They also possess potential anti-inflammatory and immune boosting supportive effects. I add rose hips to my skin care mainly for the natural vitamin C and antioxidants to keep my skin feeling fresh and to prevent and treat acne.
Frankincense Resin
Frankincense resin not only makes your face oil smell so dang good, but when properly infused, you get a good amount boswellic acids which are amazing for promoting anti-aging, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties. Lots of anti’s. Frankincense resin helps firm the skin, reduce blemishes and scarring, along with reducing redness and evening the skin tone. Alllllll the things I need. All in all, frankincense resin is good for skin of all types!
Vitamin E Oil
On its own, vitamin E oil is super thick and is comedogenic, but mixing it in a tiny amount in a carrier oil helps it actually be beneficial and more non-comedogenic. It’s never recommended to just rub vitamin E oil directly on your face. Vitamin E oil is vital for forming a good skin barrier to protect you from UV rays and damage. It also helps the skin to have a brighter complexion.
How to Make an Infused Oil
There are two main ways to make an infused oil for this face serum recipe. Slow infusion or fast, low heat infusion. We’ll quickly go over both and you can choose what’s right for you!
Slow Infusion
This one is the easiest method if you have time and patience. Simply dehydrate the herbs you’re using and then pack them into a jar and cover completely with jojoba oil. Set in a sunny window and let them infuse a minimum of 6 weeks, but longer is absolutely fine.
When you’re ready to use, strain through a fine mesh strainer!
Heat Infusion
This is the fastest method. I have an oil infusion machine from LEVO that I love, but it’s definitely not a need, but a want for your apothecary. With as many oil infusions as I make every year, this machine is well worth its weight in gold.
To heat infusion herbs in oil, simply use an infusion machine set on a very low heat setting and infuse the oil for multiple days, or until you notice the frankincense resin has turned white/opaque. That’s how I’ve decided it means the boswellic acids have been fully rendered. I could be wrong but, hey, that’s alright.
You can also use a double boiler, but adding everything to a jar and then placing the jar in a saucepan on your stove or a slow cooker on very low heat. The main thing you want to be sure of is to not overheat your oil. I like to do very low heat because I want to maintain all the benefits of the oils that sometimes high heats can denature and remove!
When infusion is complete, strain and you’re ready to go!
Let’s make some elderflower facial serum!
Equipment You Might Want
- Oil Infusion Machine
- Makeshift Double Boiler
- 2 ounce dropper bottle
Ingredients
- 4 Tbs jojoba oil
- 2 Tbs dried elderflower
- 1 Tbs frankincense resin
- 1 tsp dried rose hips
- ¼ tsp vitamin E oil (optional)
- 10 drops essential oil (optional)
Step 1: Prep
Start by infusing the jojoba oil with the dried elderflower, frankincense resin, and rose hips using your chosen method (see above blog post if you missed it).
After infusing is complete, strain the oil through a fine mesh strainer or muslin to remove the herbs. Squeeze.
Step 2: Assemble
Toa 2 ounce dropper bottle, add vitamin E oil and essential oil if using.
Top off the bottle with the infused jojoba oil.
Add the dropper lid and gently shake to combine.
To Use
Shake before using. Apply about 1/2 a dropperful to your hands and gently work into your face and neck or anywhere that needs it. Great for sunburns too!
I use this oil every evening before applying my tallow moisturizer.
And now you know how to make your own homemade face serum recipe!
Equipment
- Makeshift Double Boiler
- 2 ounce dropper bottle
Ingredients
- 4 Tbs jojoba oil
- 2 Tbs dried elderflower
- 1 Tbs frankincense resin
- 1 tsp dried rose hips
- ¼ tsp vitamin E oil optional
- 10 drops essential oil optional
Instructions
Step 1: Prep
- Start by infusing the jojoba oil with the dried elderflower, frankincense resin, and rose hips using your chosen method (see above blog post if you missed it).
- After infusing is complete, strain the oil through a fine mesh strainer or muslin to remove the herbs. Squeeze.
Step 2: Assemble
- To a 2 ounce dropper bottle, add vitamin E oil and essential oil if using.
- Top off the bottle with the infused jojoba oil.
- Add the dropper lid and gently shake to combine.
Notes
Be sure and check out all my other natural skin care products that you can easily DIY at home!
