Making Aromatherapy Creams and Lotions: 101 Natural Formulas to Revitalize & Nourish Your Skin [Paperback]

Donna Maria (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 15, 2000

This is your guide to creating exciting, inventive, and unique cosmetics and body-care products using all-natural ingredients and the power of aromatherapy. Includes an overview of aromatherapy, techniques used to extract aromatic plant materials, tips on creating unique and personal creams and lotions, and 101 original recipes.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Create Aromatherapy Creams and Lotions for Radiant Skin in Five Easy Steps!

Enter the world of aromatherapy creams and lotions with Donna Maria, and learn how easy it is to craft natural skin-care products that rival those found at the most exclusive department stores and salons. With a simple five-step method you can create personalized facial creams, body rubs, moisturizers, lip balms, and more with all-natural ingredients -- including some of the world's most exotic aromatic oils.

Free yourself from synthetic substances, experience the pleasure of homemade lotions, and preserve and protect your skin. Donna Maria reveals her secret formulas for creating light, nourishing creams that will revitalize your skin and promote a healthier, younger-looking complexion from head to toe!

About the Author

Author Donna Maria is an attorney, an aromatherapist, and the founder and president of The Handmade Toiletries Network. Her book Making Aromatherapy Creams & Lotions is a must-have collection of tips and recipes for creating unique body care products. Her articles have appeared in such magazines as The Aromatic Thymes, The Natural Foods Merchandiser, The Saponifier, and The Handcrafted Soap Maker's Guild Newsletter. Donna is a member of the Aromatic Plant Project, the American Society of Association Executives, the Cosmetics, Toiletries & Fragrances Association, the Handcrafted SoapMaker's Guild, and the National Association For Holistic Aromatherapy. She lives in her hometown of Washington, DC.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC (July 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580172415
• ISBN-13: 978-1580172417
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.5 x 8.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #151,263 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #85 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Alternative Medicine > Aromatherapy

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

344 of 351 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Misleading book is an exercise in frustration! February 5, 2001

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

I received the book "Making aromatherapy cream and lotions" as a gift, and I was very excited at first, but this has got to be the most frustrating book on the subject I've seen so far. If you make the mistake of judging this book by it's covers, it looks like a basic book on the subject--the back cover proclaims that in five easy steps you will be able to make the recipes. This is very misleading; I have made creams and lotions before, and I can honestly tell you that although the basic concept is easy, this book uses mostly very hard to find ingredients and is completely impractical for the home hobbyist. This book is basically for someone that has access to very obscure ingredients, and I'm not talking about essential oils, but the "basic" ingredients the author uses to formulate her recipes. Most of these items you are not going to be able to find in your local pharmacy or health food store, and if you do manage to find the ingredients on-line, be prepared to spend a lot of money. Another major problem with this book is that everything is measured in grams or occasionally ounces, but the amounts are so small, that the average home kitchen scale, like the one I own, is not capable of measuring accurately. To really measure the ingredients accurately, you would need an expensive digital scale that will measure by individual gram increments (not 5 gram increments like some inexpensive models)--as I said, not for the home hobbyist. Even the title of the book is misleading--there are not even close to 101 recipes for creams and lotions, there are approximately 20. The rest of the book has cleansers, fruit masks, balms, etc., as well as a lot of information on the different ingredients and stories about home businesses (this is the best part of the book). Many of the recipes contain perishable ingredients and have to be used right away or the author recommends making them fresh every day. The back of the book "bio" mentions that the author "...is also a Washington, D.C. attorney." I'm not an attorney, but I don't have the time to make these recipes every day, maybe this woman does. My suggestion is if you are a beginner or just looking to expand your basic repetoire, try any of Janice Cox's books. She has hundreds of recipes on all kinds of toilletries that are easy and fun to make with items you already have at home or you can easily purchase at a health food store, and will not frustrate you to no end.

112 of 113 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting recipes, but... June 16, 2004

By Margaret Jackson

Format:Paperback

As the owner of a home-based Bath and Body Products business, I am always on the look out for new recipes to try, adapt, etc. Although there are some fabulous sounding recipes in this book, the use of hydrosols, Sea Berry and Rose Hip Seed Co2 (had never heard of them before, ever) make them way too complicated and expensive for someone who just wants to learn how to put together some simple cosmetics at home. Some of the ingredients, waxes in particular, I'd never even heard of. Perhaps someone living in the U.S. would have an easier time acquiring the "exotics," but my excellent Canadian suppliers do not sell them. I also am not keen on her use of Borax in recipes as it can be a sensitizer for some people and there are gentler preservatives on the market one can use. I can't say I'm completely disappointed, but a strong word of caution to those thinking that they'll find easy "first timer" recipes in here -- they won't.

165 of 172 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Impractical for all but the most avid home cosmetic maker March 22, 2002

By A Customer

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

It took me less than an hour after receiving this book to realize that most of the cream and lotion recipes are impractical for me to do. Not only that, the author seems to favor the use of highly processed ingredients. She appears to be far more concerned with the texture or appearance of her creams than with their being as unprocessed as possible. As I read through the book, I found myself wondering how in the world anyone with a life could find the time to hunt down all the ingredients (many are quite exotic, and she doesn't suggest substitutes), let alone prepare them. I was quite disappointed. There are many easier-to-procure-ingredients which will be just as therapeutic for the skin. The description on the back cover is definitely misleading. Most of the creams and lotions are time consuming to prepare and simply not practical (and definitely NOT easy!). I decided to return the book 1 hour after I received it from amazon. The two stars in my rating are for the presentation (it's a pretty book).