DIY Face Toner: Easy Natural Recipe

This DIY toner is a nourishing recipe made with just a few simple ingredients to help tighten the skin and improve clarity. Use this homemade natural toner to help balance the pH of the skin.

Homemade skincare is my jam. I love creating recipes that help save money and are natural. Just saying, there are so many recipes on this blog that you should check out.

This recipe was actually created a few months ago for my Natural Skin Mini Guide (grab it – it’s free!), but I love it so much as part of my skincare routine, that I decided to share it here with all of you.

My skin feels so fresh, clean, and rejuvenated when I use this product. Toners are really meant to clear any remaining dirt, prep your skin for moisturizer, and help regulate the pH of the skin, so this is a really great step to add to your skincare routine.

I struggle with dry, red, and irritated skin. Thankfully, since I’ve started using this toner, it has helped bring down the redness and doesn’t dry my skin out. There are so many great benefits of this recipe, and, bonus, it smells amazing. That is always a win.

If you want a real spa day treat, add a face scrub (this coffee one is the best) before using this toner. Your skin will feel like new, or a baby’s butt.

Why you will love this recipe:

Great for all skin types: Gentle formula is great for dry skin, combination skin, and oily skin.

Easy: Making your own toner is really easy. Just a few ingredients and a few minutes of time and you can make this recipe

Natural: No harmful chemicals or toxic fragrances here. Just all natural ingredients.

Benefits Of A Toner

• Hydrates the skin
• Soothes Skin
• Helps remove excess oil – This is especially helpful when 
• Refreshing
• Tightens skin and can help shrink pores.
• Can help balance the skin’s ph level

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Tips:

• If you don’t have witch hazel, you could swap it out for apple cider vinegar.
• Use dried lavender, chamomile flowers, or dried rose petals. Heck, you could even use a little of each.
• Use store-bought rose hydrosol or lavender hydrosol rather than making your own water infusion.
• Vegetable glycerin can help add moisture to the skin. If you don’t have it, just skip it.
• Use distilled water to help slow bacteria growth. You can also boil water and allow it to cool. This will kill the bacteria in the tap water. 

Homemade Facial Toner Ingredients:

Witch hazel – A natural astringent used to help clean pores; it can help tighten pores and calm skin. It is also naturally antibacterial and great for acne-prone skin. Other options would be lemon juice or apple cider vinegar.

Lavender water – Adds hydration and can help calm the skin. This is an optional step. You could also use rose water, chamomile, or even coconut water. 

Glycerin – Adds moisture to the skin and can help give that dewy look. You can skip this or substitute with aloe vera gel

Essential oils – Can be really beneficial for the skin. Add lavender essential oil or chamomile to help reduce inflammation, frankincense to help tighten skin, or geranium for smoother skin. Avoid using photosensitive essential oils, like citrus oils.

Tools you may need:

Saucepan

Spray bottle – I love this glass bottle.

Cotton ball or cotton pad

What Essential Oils Are Good For Your Skin?

• Frankincense – Helps tone and tighten skin, great for aging skin
• Lavender – Helps reduce inflammation and has a calming effect.
• Geranium – Can help balance oily skin, and help fight wrinkles.
• Ylang Ylang – Helps treat oily skin, and can promote cell turnover.
• Chamomile – Calming and great for dry, sensitive skin.
• Clary Sage – May reduces puffiness.

How To Make Homemade Toner

1. In a small saucepan, add water and dried lavender (or other dried flower). Bring to a simmer; simmer until it is reduced to about half and allow to cool a bit. If you want to use store-bought herbal infused water (like lavender hydrosol) you can skip this step.
2. In a glass container, mix together witch hazel and glycerin.
3. Strain lavender water and add to witch hazel mixture.
4. Add a few drops of essential oils.

How To Use DIY Face Toner:

1. Clean and dry face. 
2. Shake the natural face toner to combine ingredients and spritz on your face (or to a cotton round and rub onto the face) and allow to dry.
3. Follow up with your favorite moisturizer. My favorites are this shea butter face cream and DIY face serum.

Storage:

Store in the refrigerator or at room temperature out of direct sunlight for up to two weeks. Because it doesn’t have any preservatives it has a shorter shelf life.

My Skin Care Routine:

Nighttime Routine:

1. Double cleansing: First I start by oil cleansing my face. This is done by wetting my skin with warm water, applying a little oil to my hands and then rubbing it onto my skin. Rinse with water (this will help remove any makeup) and then follow up with homemade face wash. Rinse and dry.
2. Apply toner: Spray on the homemade face toner directly onto your face or apply with a clean cloth, cotton ball, or cotton cloth.  Allow to dry.
3. Moisturize: Follow up with a moisturizer. I like to use a serum and then face lotion.
   

In the morning:

1. First, I rinse my face with warm water. Pat dry with a clean towel.
2. Next, I spritz toner all over my face and allow it to air dry. 
3. Moisturize: Lastely, I moisturize my face by applying my favorite face serum and lotion.

Once or twice a week I like to use a face scrub to remove dead skin cells (this coffee face scrub is my favorite. It brightens and tightens skin) followed by a face mask to hydrate the skin, reduce inflammation, and remove excess oil. I love this green tea face mask to help with inflammation or this charcoal face mask to detoxify the skin.

Variations:

Green tea toner: Rather than lavender water, use a green tea bag in place of the dried lavender and create a green tea toner. Green tea is great for helping reduce inflammation.

Rose Toner: Use rose water in place of the lavender water.

Apple cider vinegar: Swap out the witch hazel for ACV. This is great for acne prone skin as it is naturally antibacterial and can help balance the ph levels of your skin and decrease the appearance of pores.

FAQ

What can we use instead of toner?

• Rose water
• Apple cider vinegar
• Witch hazel
• Green tea
• Infused waters like lavender water or chamomile water.
• Essential oils – diluted of course.
• Rice water

These ingredients can be included in a facial toner recipe. The recipe above can be mixed and matched to find what works best for you.

Is apple cider vinegar good as a toner?

Apple cider vinegar makes a great toner. It can help tighten pores, reduce fine lines and wrinkles, and has antibacterial properties.

How often should I use a toner?

Facial toners can be used once or twice a day. If your skin starts to get dry, use the toner every other day or so. 

Best places to buy natural ingredients:

One question I get a lot is, “where do you find ingredients to make natural products?” Many times people think the ingredients are hard to find, expensive, or they come in way bigger quantities than they will ever use. You guys, nothing could be further from the truth.

Some of my favorite places to find ingredients for natural products, like dried flowers or vegetable glycerin, are grocery stores. Yes, grocery stores! 

Our local Co-op and another local natural grocery store (it’s like Whole Foods, but more local, if you can believe it) have many natural ingredients in their bulk section.

My favorite store has a pre-packaged bulk section of herbs, and I can get the perfect amount needed at a really great price. Easy to find, inexpensive, and almost zero waste!

Of course, you can also buy ingredients online at places like Amazon, iHerb and Mountain Rose Herb. One of these days, I’m going to go to the actual Mountain Rose Herb Store, since it is not very far away.

Want more DIY Natural Products? Check these out!

• The ultimate guide to sugar scrubs. – learn how to make the best sugar scrubs.
• Learn how to use essential oils for beginners – great post on all the basics.
• Homemade deodorant is a must-have. Check out this recipe for sensitive skin.
• This is the BEST natural hair gel ever.

 If you try this recipe and love it, come back and give it 5 stars. Please and thank you. Tag me over on Instagram @ablossominglife