In compounding face creams one cannot be too careful and painstaking.
It is much like preparing a salad or a charlotte russe, either of which
can be utterly ruined by lack of care--or too much fussing. The creme
marquise is especially difficult for the woman who tumbles things
together in a haphazard fashion. Unless compounded just so carefully,
it will be likely to crumble, but when done according to directions it
makes a cosmetic that is absolutely unrivaled. The other creams which
follow this formula are more easily made for the reason that they
contain less fats and are therefore less apt to separate from the
rose-water. The creme marquise is a whiter, harder preparation than any
of the others.
Creme Marquise:
1/4 ounce of white wax.
2-1/2 ounces of spermaceti.
2-1/2 ounces of oil of sweet almonds.
1-1/2 ounces of rose-water.
1 drop attar of rose.
Shave the wax and spermaceti, and melt in a porcelain kettle. Add
the almond oil and heat slightly, but do not let boil. Remove from
the stove and add the rose-water, to which the perfume has been
added. Beat until creamy, and put in jars. Cease beating before the
mass becomes really hard. Be sure that your druggist weighs the wax
carefully, for too much of this ingredient will spoil the creme by
making it too firm. This delightful preparation should be applied
immediately after washing the face, but can be used at any time. It
is absolutely harmless. Get the best materials--and see that your
almond oil is the real thing instead of a cheap imitation, which
acts almost as poison to the skin.
Strawberry Cream:
White wax, 1/2 ounce.
Spermaceti, 1/2 ounce.
Sweet almond oil, 2-1/2 ounces.
Strawberry juice, 3/4 of an ounce.
Benzoin, 3 drops.
Take large fresh berries. Wash and drain thoroughly. Macerate and
strain the juice through a piece of muslin. Heat the white wax, the
spermaceti and the oil of almonds. Remove from the fire and add the
strawberry juice very quickly. Beat briskly till fluffy, adding the
three drops of benzoin just as the mixture begins to cool. Put in
jars and keep in a very cool place. This quantity will fill a
three-ounce jar. Apply every night as a cold cream. This is
particularly excellent for sunburn.
Orange Flower Skin Food:
Spermaceti, 1/2 ounce.
White wax, 1/2 ounce.
Sweet almond oil, 2 ounces.
Lanoline, 1 ounce.
Cocoanut oil, 1 ounce.
Tincture benzoin, 3 drops.
Orange flower water, 1 ounce.
Melt the first five ingredients in a porcelain kettle. Take from
the fire, and add the benzoin and the orange flower water, fluffing
it with an egg-beater till cold. This recipe will make five ounces,
quite enough to prepare at one time. For those who dislike oily
creams it will be found delightful, as the skin absorbs it. The
mission of the skin food is to do away with wrinkles. Massage must,
of course, accompany its application. For hollow cheeks or dry,
rough skin it is unexcelled. Its fattening qualities plumpen the
tissues and so raise the lines of the face and gradually obliterate
them.
Clover Cream:
Spermaceti, 1 ounce.
White wax, 1 ounce.
Oil sweet almonds, 5 ounces.
Rose-water, 1-3/5 ounces.
Powdered borax, 20 grains.
Essence of clover, 5 drops.
Dissolve the borax in the rose-water and add the essence of clover.
Melt the white wax, the spermaceti and the oil of almonds, using a
porcelain kettle, as tin or iron is injurious to the oils. When
melted remove from the heat and add the rose-water (all at once).
Then beat quickly with an egg-beater until the mixture is cold and
firm. It is impossible for the rose-water to separate from the oils
if directions are carefully followed. The recipe given above will
fill an eight-ounce jar, so perhaps one-half the quantity should be
tried at first.
Camphor Cold Cream: Take one-half ounce each of spermaceti and
white wax, melt and add three and one-fourth ounces of oil of sweet
almonds, then add one-fourth ounce of camphor, broken into small
pieces, and stir until dissolved. Then pour in one and one-half
ounces of distilled water in which fifteen grains of borax have
been dissolved. Stir until well mixed and beginning to thicken,
then add four drops oil of rose, one drop oil of rose geranium, one
drop oil of ylang-ylang, two drops tincture of musk, and two drops
tincture of civet. Continue to beat until cold.
Cold Cream:
White wax, 1/2 ounce.
Spermaceti, 1/2 ounce.
Orange flower water, 2 ounces.
Almond oil, 4 ounces.
Melt all together gently and pour into cups to cool. When cold pour
off the water, remelt, and pour into jars to keep.
Oatmeal Lotion:
Two tablespoonfuls fine oatmeal.