Avocado, Olive Oil and Patchouli Hand Softener Recipe

You never know when inspiration will come a knocking and as my good friend and fellow writer Bill Holland has written about, it can come from any number of sources and you never know when it will hit.

The inspiration for this avocado rich hand softener came from my Dad, unbeknown to him, and I made it with him in mind.

Avocado and prawns has been a long-time favorite of his to make as a starter to a meal and I have great memories of him rustling up his “speciality” on a Friday or Saturday night as a treat for the family.

I wanted to put together a product with him in mind that he would ACTUALLY Try to I hit upon this great recipe idea using his beloved avocado.

Dad has had extremely dry hands with slight eczema for a number of years and no amount of creams have seemed to work at clearing this up.

When something bugs me, it bugs me and this has been one of those times.

I wanted to come up with my own solution for Dad that he can easily do a few times a day for 2-3 days. I intend on doing it first on him to show exactly how to apply it and how it makes his hands feel.Then he will have no excuse.

Knowing him, he will probably say “What a bloody waste of an avocado when I could be eating it with my prawn salad” so I will rustle up lunch for us of his favourite starter just to keep him happy!

The Brief -

A deeply intensive, nourishing and moisturizing treatment which will gently remove all the dry skin and dead skin cells and reduce any inflammation and eczema.

Avocados offer us way more than guacamole these days. Known for their amazing health benefits, they are Mother Nature’s natural skin moisturizers with their extensive list of healthy fats and phytonutrients.

Excellent for dry skin, avocado oil has been used in the treatment of dermatitis, arthritis and eczema with excellent results. A natural skin healer, it has anti-inflammatory properties which soothe itchy, red or irritated skin.

Avocado fruit oil naturally nourishes and maintains skin tone and elasticity while it softens rough dry or flaking skin.

Rich in Vitamins A, D and E a healthy skin is easily maintained by including avocado in your diet and using the fruit or the bottled avocado oil regularly on the skin.

To say olive oil is a giant of the oil world would be no lie.

Referred to as Liquid Gold by Homer and a gift from the gods by Thomas Jefferson, Olive oil truly is a magical product ingested or used on the skin its benefits go on and on.

Rich in antioxidants it helps prevent cell degeneration in the skin, improves skin elasticity, softens skin and minimizes wrinkles, age spots and scars.

A deep moisturizer it also has gentle skin cleansing and exfoliating properties removing dry flaky skin and revealing fresh healthy oxygenated skin. It marries with many ingredients on the skin including avocado and sugar in this recipe.

Avocado and olive oil make a wonderful face mask or sugar and olive oil make a gentle sugar scrub for the face and body.

Common everyday granulated sugar or brown sugar used in skin care has incredible benefits.

At over 95% pure carbohydrate it may be hard to see what the benefits to the skin could be. When sugar is combined with liquid or oil it becomes a whole new beneficial ingredient as a sugar scrub.

More gentle and less abrasive than salt in scrubs, sugar may be used on all skin types on the face and body.

It can be highly effective in relieving and preventing eczema and psoriasis and gives skin a smooth texture by removing all the dry, flaky skin and all the dead skin cells.

Sugar scrubs are an important part of maintaining a youthful, glowing appearance and as a pre-treatment to many applications such as a false tan, healing blemishes, manicures and pedicures.

They help prevent chapped lips when applied as a lip scrub and can be a soothing treatment before or after shaving.

Patchouli essential oil is extracted from the young patchouli (Pogostemon cablin) plant leaves by steam distillation.

This rich, cozy, musky-sweet and spicy fragrance is native to Malaysia and India where it is known as ‘puchaput’.

In skin care, it has superb tissue regenerating properties; it helps rejuvenate the skin and stimulates the formation of new skin cells while fighting off any skin infections.

Patchouli oil is extremely effective at treating rough, cracked or dehydrated skin and is an excellent oil choice for acne, eczema, ulcers, weeping sores or slow healing wounds.

This oil is a useful one to have for a number of homemade products including insect repellent, potpourri, and face balm or in a body wash.

1/2 an Over-Ripe Avocado

1tbsp Olive Oil

1/8 cup Granulated Sugar

4-5 drops Patchouli Essential Oil

Small Jar

Small Bowl

Fork

Spoon

Method:

• Scoop out avocado flesh into your bowl, save your pit or stone and leave aside to plant up easily! Scrape ALL the flesh from the skin, the most nourishing part is that closest the skin believe it or not.
• Start mashing with your fork, the more over-ripe it is the easier it is to mash.
• Keep mashing it until it is lump free.
• Add in the olive oil and start mixing it in. This can take a few minutes but persevere.
• When blended in, add in the patchouli and mix it in thoroughly.
• Add in your sugar and quickly combine it into the avocado mush.
• Transfer now to your sterilized jar, screw on lid securely and pop in the fridge with a note of the expiry date, 3 days from time of making it.
• Apply twice a day for 3 days.

How to Apply:

• Remove all rings, bracelets and watch at the sink or hand basin.
• Roll up sleeves; it will be a bit messy!
• Take a spoonful of the hand softener and put it in the palm of your hand.
• Rub palms together and start scrubbing it in all over the hands and fingers as if you may be washing your hands.
• Leave it on for a couple of minutes.
• Start rinsing off under lukewarm water rubbing your hands together as you are rinsing.
• When completely removed, pat the hands dry and apply your hand cream.

Tips & Suggestions ~

If you have no fresh avocados, you could substitute with avocado oil.

Use either white granulated sugar or brown sugar.

If you have no olive oil, use any highly moisturizing carrier oil instead. For some ideas, check out my top 10 carrier oils.

An easy intensive 3 day treatment for dry, rough or flaky skin totally rejuvenates hands into being soft, smooth and supple.

Avocado, Olive oil and Sugar are a winning combination with the piece de resistance being the warm spicy scent of patchouli oil with its cell regenerating benefits.

This hand softening treatment was made for my dad and it makes an ideal treatment to give a member of the family, a friend or to include in a spa night for the girls.

Whether it is after a day’s gardening in the dry summer or for reviving dry hands in the cold winter, this treatment is a winner!

"Creating health awareness through homemade beauty solutions"

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