Keep the beard beautiful

Until recently, my OH had a beard – and beautiful it was too. Then he decided that, for him, the beard trend had ceased and he's clean shaven again.

When he was bearded, he was browsing beard oil to buy, and I said: 'You don't need to buy it; I'll make you some...'

So I got out my essential oils, and we had a suggest and sniff session. He went for a mix of lemon and rosemary, with a drop of peppermint. Here's what we did (I've just written more on how to make your own beard oil, for Saga)...

Spoon a little coconut oil into a small pot. Melt the oil by putting the pot in a  bowl of hot water (or if it's a hot day, it may liquefy naturally). Add a couple of drops of your chosen essential oils, which have antibacterial properties (can be useful if the beard-spotter is a messy eater), and help to condition the hair. To apply, dip in a finger or two, and stroke thoughtfully over the beard.

After I made the first little pot, he took over the job and made his own, and we made and gave some more as presents.

Want to save money and make your own beauty products? How about making your own body scrub? That way, you know what's in it, and you don't have to read the label to make sure it's free of microbeads: tiny pieces of plastic that find their way into the oceans and harm wildlife.