DIY: Homemade Refreshing FacialToner

Wazzup ladies! Today we're gonna make our very own facial toner, which is a mixture of lemon, green tea, and a little rice vinegar or sake (rice wine). Before we start, let me just tell you the benefits of our homemade toner.

• Lemon, which is rich in vitamin C, is known for its whitening properties. It helps even out skin tone and reduce sunspots and other skin discoloration. When heated, it naturally produces salicylic acid, which is a main ingredient for fighting acne and pimples. It also prevents blackheads, whiteheads, and other skin blemishes.
• Green Tea is a well known anti-oxidant. It helps fight free radicals, thus preventing skin damage caused by pollution and frequent sun exposure.
  
• Rice is known for its anti-aging properties. Japanese monks, who make the rice wine (sake), have hands that are baby soft and wrinkle free. So rice vinegar or sake will not only act as a natural preservative for our toner but also acts as skin whitener and wrinkle preventing ingredient.

So to start off, here are the things (and ingredients) that you would need:

• An empty container. You can recycle your old toner's bottle or an alcohol bottle.
• About 8 to 10 pieces of kalamansi (or about 2 pieces lemon) thoroughly cleansed and washed.
  
• One bag of green tea, and
  
• Rice Vinegar (you can buy this at the supermarket/grocery stores). You may also use rice wine (or sake) but it's more expensive.

So first we're going to brew our green tea according to package instructions, but we're just gonna use one cup of water. We're also gonna squeeze our lemons or kalamansi. Make sure to take out all the seeds.

For the sake or rice vinegar, we're just gonna use 1 tablespoon. Combine all the ingredients together and pour it into the bottle (you may use a funnel). And that's it! You now have your own homemade, all-natural refreshing facial toner.

I recommend storing this in the fridge and consuming it for at most a month. Sometimes I like storing it in the freezer or meat chiller (if it still has room) but usually I just store it in the bottles section of the fridge. And the cold temperature actually adds a more relaxing and refreshing feeling when you apply it to your skin.

You can also use this for your arms, legs, and the rest of your body, especially on those areas where you need whitening such as the elbows and knees.

And one more thing, because of the lemon, this toner actually also acts as a natural mosquito repellent, and I can attest to that! Ever since I was a kid, I'd always been a target of mosquitoes, until I used this toner ;) I actually didn't know at first that lemon is a natural mosquito repellent. Before, the only natural mosquito repellents that I know of were citronella, thyme and eucalyptus. I did use citronella oil one time but I didn't like the smell so I just stopped using it.

When I started using this toner, I noticed one night while I was sleeping that a mosquito (or mosquitoes) was biting on my arms but not on my face, and usually when this happens I just cover up my arms (and legs) with the blanket, and then the mosquitoes would then proceed to feast on my face which is the only exposed part of my skin. But that particular night, I noticed that after I covered my body with the blanket, the mosquito/oes didn't go for my face, and I woke up the next day with no single mosquito bite on my face at all. So that's when I started to wonder, did it have something to do with the lemon toner? I then started to Google "lemon + mosquito repellent" and then that's when I learned that lemon is one of nature's mosquito repellent. Mosquitoes don't like the smell of lemon (or something in the lemon that they don't like) so they tend to stay away from any surface that has lemon on it :) I was so elated by this discovery that I decided to use this toner unto my arms, legs, neck, and the rest of my exposed skin. And yep, I don't have a single mosquito bite ever since. Weeeeeh! :D

So I hope you guys enjoyed this DIY. Have a happy weekend :)

Oh by the way, I'd have to tell you guys that since this is just a homemade product, it doesn't have any "approved therapeutic" claims or whatsoever . Personally since I've been using this, it has done a great job on my skin but note that it doesn't necessarily mean that it would also do the same for yours since we all have different skin types. So I guess what I'm trying to say is that, do your own research first before trying it out okay?

So yeah, I guess that's it and I'll talk to you soon! :)