All-Natural Homemade Beauty Products

Save money and avoid harsh chemicals with these simple masks and conditioners using fresh ingredients.

Why DIY Is So Appetizing

This article originally appeared on LearnVest.com.

It may sound more efficient than effective to spread something on your face that you can also pack for lunch, but there are tons of reasons why whipping up a homemade beauty recipe is smarter than splurging on a store-bought product.

A lot of what makes store-bought products so expensive is the packaging, says Janice Cox, author of Natural Beauty at Home. According to Cox, three bucks worth of ingredients from the grocery can produce a DIY treatment with the same effect as a $300 professional facial. (She told us that simple yogurt blended with fresh fruit into a facial works as well as a $34 Guinot exfoliating mask.) For more homemade beauty recipes, Helena Van Zandbergen, a celeb hairstylist who has worked everywhere from runways to reality shows, recommends Pioneer Thinking.

In addition to being cheap, anything you make at home (unless you’re a chemist) will be 100% natural. The fact that homemade products don’t include any ingredients you can’t pronounce is especially good news for anyone with sensitive skin, those who want to go completely green, and those worried about animal testing. Plus, the recipes are time-tested and proven effective. Jorge Malo of the handmade beauty care line Fasanis jokes, “There’s a reason Cleopatra used that mud for her face and body back in the day.”