I love, love, love this “recipe”!  It is a combination of two DIY skincare products from other blogs that I really love!  I combined my favorite DIY sunscreen (compliments of Wellness Mama) with my favorite DIY foundation from Live Simply.

Long Version… (click here to jump straight to the goods!)
I have dermatomyositis (an autoimmune disorder).  Before I was diagnosed, I noticed the redness in my facial skin was getting worse and I was also getting more sensitive to makeup and facial cleansers that had been part of my everyday routine.  I eventually just stopped wearing makeup and my lovely mother in law gave me a bottle of almond oil and said it was supposed to work wonders.  It did!  I used it to cleanse my face and I saw wonderful improvement in my skin after using it (as long as I didn’t use anything else on my face).  A few months later I went to a dermatologist to find out what was causing the redness since I knew it wasn’t “normal”.  I was thinking it was probably rosacea, but was wrong… The dermatomyositis comes with photo sensitivity on my face, neck and upper chest.   I talked to my dermatologist and she told me that I really have to find a sunscreen I can wear due to the damage the inflammation from my condition could cause.   I had already exhausted my options before I started seeing her since I had already found out how sensitive my skin was. I’m sensitive enough that even fluorescent lights make my skin red and look like I’ve been sunburned.  Do you know how annoying it used to be to hear, “It looks like you’ve spent some time in the sun!” about 20 times a day….  Until I started using my sunscreen, that is.  I wear a lovely wide brimmed floppy hat when I’m going to be outside, but I can’t drive it in safely and I’m not going to wear it inside, so what to do?!

Enter my DIY sunscreen!  I’m actually really glad that I couldn’t use the standard sun/skincare products though because it is what really started me on my DIY healthy living journey!  I finally found something that I could use and it actually helps my skin and doesn’t irritate it!  Thank you, Katie, a.k.a. Wellness Mama!

I wanted to start wearing makeup again, so I went back to the search for a natural foundation.  I came across several liquid ones that I didn’t want to try since I already had my sunscreen.  Then I found Kristin’s DIY Foundation Powder.  I tried it on top of my sunscreen and liked that, but then had the wild idea to add it to my sunscreen and it actually worked out well!  I’m going to give you the goods for how I make the sunscreen and then follow that with the foundation powder, which you can add to the sunscreen – just add as much as you need.

The Goods

Homemade Sunscreen:

(This is just what I’ve used – optional items are marked with a *)

• ½ cup grapeseed oil (or almond oil, olive oil, or other oil of your preference)
• ¼ cup coconut oil
• ¼ cup Zinc Oxide (I use a non-nano version that isn’t absorbed into the skin. Be careful not to inhale the powder).
• ¼ cup Foundation Powder (ingredients/directions below)
• * 2 tablespoons Shea Butter
• * ¼ cup beeswax (optional – thickens the lotion to make more of a paste, but I like mine as a lotion so I leave this out)
• * Essential Oils:
• * 1 teaspoon Red Raspberry Seed Oil
• * 1 teaspoon Carrot Seed Oil
• 5 drops Rosewood Oil
• 5 drops Lavender Oil
• 5 drops Ylang Ylang Oil
• I have used some of the essential oils because of their excellent skin benefits.  Ylang ylang smells wonderful, but I found it is also great for the skin – bonus!

OR – Try this one

• 1.5oz Almond Oil
• 1oz Shea Butter
• .5oz Cocoa Butter
• .5oz Beeswax
• 1/8t Vitamin E
• .5oz Zinc Oxide
• Cocao Powder
• Cinnamon

Add grapeseed oil, coconut oil and shae butter to Kitchen Aid and whip until smooth.  Add in the zinc oxide, foundation powder and essential oils until well blended.

Homemade Foundation Powder

• arrowroot powder, organic
• good-quality cocoa powder
• bentonite clay
• lavender essential oil

Mix ingredients together in a non-metallic bowl (bentonite clay should not be exposed to metals). You’ll need to play with it and adjust the amounts of each ingredient for your skintone. Start with the arrowroot powder then add from there.

You can use these separately or add the powder to the sunscreeen. I use it both ways! I added the powder to the sunscreen, but still brush on the powder afterwards to finish the look!

OR – TRY THIS ONE

• Arrowroot Powder
• Cacao Powder
• Cinnamon
• Zinc Oxide
• Vitamin E
  Light Powder
  1. 2 T Arrowroot
  2. 1 t Zinc
  3. ¼ t Cacao
  4. 1/16 t Cinnamon
  Medium Powder
  1. 3 T Arrowroot Powder
  2. 1.5 T Cacao Powder
  3. 1 T Zinc
  4. ¼ t Cinnamon
  Dark Powder
  1. 2 T Arrowroot Powder
  2. 2.5 T Cacao Powder
  3. 1 T Zinc
  4. ¼ t Cinnamon