5.0 out of 5 stars Easy success with DIY body care

A.G. · January 28, 2013

Hands-down the best make-it-yourself nature beauty care book I've used. It's a great starter book.The Pros:The recipes use familiar measurements, the directions are easy to follow, and everything I've made from this book has turned out really well. The instructions are so much better than in The Other Beauty Book that I purchased that I'm using the directions from this book to modify the recipes from the other one, which are much harder to make but this book has shown me that it doesn't need to be difficult for a lotion to turn out really well.It covers a wide range of beauty products you can easily make at home with easy to acquire, non-scary ingredients. Most of the recipes are very practical and the selection of products isn't horribly skewed to one or two types of products (only 18 pages on masks, as opposed to 40!), and there's a wider range of skin cleansers than I've found elsewhere.A great feature is that each recipe lists several very important and useful details, including recommended uses, prep time, tools needed, type of storage container, and recipe yield. Compared to other natural beauty books, this puts it heads and shoulders above the competition. Seriously. You won't realize how important this is until you try to use the books that don't provide it!The Cons:The Table of Contents and Index are terrible - basically useless, a librarian's nightmare. The TOC does not list individual products, only chapters in which to find them, and even those subsections of each chapter are not listed with a page number/ The Index does not list products by name, or even keywords within product names; I have to flip page by page through nearly the whole book if I didn't write down the name and page of the item I want to make.This book needs a TOC and Index like those in The Joy of Cooking - far more cross-indexing is really needed and the titles of each product should appear in the TOC and in the Index, no exceptions. These are recipe books, after all, and should be produced as such. However, every other DIY body care book has the exact same problem, so I'm not knocking the ratings down for that. It's not the author's fault that the editor/publisher did a terrible job on front and back matter, right?

5.0 out of 5 stars this is making me a body care addict :)

p. · February 26, 2013

everything from the soothing colors, layout, and explanations make the book itself a real joy to read. her recipes are simple, diverse, and really good! i've tried the face scrubs, body washes and creams, lip glosses, and now i'm collecting the ingredients for a delicious-sounding 'love potion', which i described to a woman in the grocery store, so that even she wants to go out and get the book (i don't know if it was the recipe itself that got her or the idea of using it on her husband!).in one chapter, she gives a very helpful description of all of the ingredients that she uses in her recipes, what they do, what kind of skin (or hair) they're best for, and what possible substitutes can be used, which i find really helpful since i don't have every ingredient on the planet.in each recipe, she tells just how to make the product, what kind of skin it's best for, how to apply it. and how to store it. she also gives helpful hints on how to give these products as gifts, which has come in handy because there's no way i can use all the stuff i've made! my friends and family have all really liked what i've made for them too and eagerly ask for more--even my brothers! that's because the skin cream, for example, is much better than anything i've ever gotten in a store. this stuff is really hydrating and long-lasting, and you can scent it whatever way you like or not at all. in our cold dry winters, this is just the ticket.i was actually getting back online to see what other books stephanie tourles has written, but i thought i'd stop and write a product review first. as you can see, this has quickly become a really enjoyable hobby, and this book has made it easy to do.

4.0 out of 5 stars Love the writing style and organization.

B. · January 7, 2015

I really like this book. I especially enjoy the reference section and simplistic explanations. It's written in an organized, easy-to-understand format. The recipes are broken down into skin and hair types and address specific problems. It's a great book if you're just getting started with herbs and essential oils and are tired of spending money on products that don't work. I've made my first batch of lotion and absolutely love it. I also like the idea that my skin is absorbing things that are actually good for me. (I threw away a bag of dog treats that contained propylene glycol; an ingredient used in anti-freeze and is attributed to several pet deaths. When I read the list of ingredients on my lotion bottle, guess what it contained?) The only reason I gave the book four stars is because the list of ingredients for some of the recipes was lengthy...and pricey. Others are quite simplistic. All in all, I'd recommend this book.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book for Beginners or Intermediate Body Care Crafters

D. · November 28, 2012

I have been making my own body care products (lotions and soaps mostly) for years but wanted to fill in some holes in my knowledge base. It is thoughtfully written, clear and concise. What I like about this book is it gives good info about hair, various skin types and their respective needs, nails, and even a little about what these things need in order to be and look healthy. I also like the extensive "Ingredient Dictionary" which gives helpful info about oils, essential oils, botanical ingredients and so forth. Plus it lists contraindications for each item so you know what to avoid if you have particular issues. The recipes are great. From very basic to more involved, the directions are easy to understand. If you have ever made a product from a recipe off the internet you sometimes find they leave out a lot of info like yield. Each recipe in this book gives that plus a paragraph describing the product's uses and attributes, prep time, tools needed, how to store and recommended usage and who should avoid. I liked this book so much I give it as a gift to friends and family who want to start making their own products.

Lots Of Good Recipes But Also Full Of Other Info As Well

P.H.S. · February 7, 2016

I purchased this book when I set up my business making natural soap and skincare. It’s a big book and there is so much information in it and it has lots of illustrations.There’s a lot of background information in the book which covers skin care and the type of skin you have plus recommendations on which are the best products to use. It also goes a little bit into nutrition and the way that can affect your skin.There is also plenty of data of the different ingredients used in natural skincare. Some of the ingredients such as borax aren't really used in the UK and are a bit suspect so you may need to do a bit more research before following some of the recipes.One thing you need to know if you are considering buying this book is that many ‘recipes’ are not what I would call recipes. There are many instances when you are ‘told’ to add fragrances/oils to pre-bought products such as baby shampoo. I did actually know this before I purchased the book but it was still worth the cost because of the other actual recipes that are in here.Most of the ingredients are easy to obtain but none of the sources mentioned are UK based, which I am. This isn't a problem though if you do a little online research.I bought this as a beginner and it’s still really useful to me several years later. Recommend for anybody interested in making natural products.

good book

S. · November 17, 2019

Good book

Espera algo mais natural...

C.d.K. · June 9, 2015

... e também mais barato. A grande maioria das receitas tem óleos essenciais que são muito caros, se uma pessoa, como eu, que tem interesse em fazer produtos para uso pessoal, decidir fazer um creme simples vai gastar fácil R$100 em alguns casos calculei R$300.O livro é bem detalhado, mas esperava algo mais focado em ervas que em óleo e outros produtos industrializados.

One Star

P.T. · August 23, 2014

Not detailed process of making and recipe are missing in important ingredients.

Just what I needed.

H. · May 22, 2012

I'm very allergic to some preservatives, the most commonly used ones, of course, and perfumes. I can buy some creams, lotions and potions, but it's always and adventure as companies reformulate their products, sometimes making a lotion which was wonderful last batch seem like a blend which includes fire ants in the new 'improved' version. Labels aren't always clear given the number of abbreviations and names under which preservatives are listed.This book gives me options. I can make what I cannot buy, even if I have to mail order some of the ingredients. No more walking down the drug store aisle, magnifying glass and list of preservative names in hand, looking for something unscented that doesn't include things that make my skin burn, itch and swell up.