We all want beautiful, healthy skin, as proved by the overwhelming array of skin products available to us in the shops. But did you know that man has been using herbs for centuries to improve the appearance of our skin and treat skin problems? Here we have listed 21 botanicals that have long been attributed to benefiting our skin, and are readily available to many of us – in fact all apart from 3 on our list I can collect from the garden or surrounding countryside.
A botanical is defined as a substance derived from plants that is used for a medical or cosmetic purpose, and as such contain active ingredients. Applying herbs to your skin can potentially cause negative effects as well as the positive ones you are looking for, so as with any skin product if it does cause unwanted side effects the advice would be to stop using it. Many botanicals are only available for a short season each year, check out our post Drying Wild Herbs and Flowers so you can have them available to you all year.
Blackberry Leaf
Just about everyone can identify a blackberry bush, but less people are aware of the curative properties of it’s leaves. Used for centuries as an anti-inflammatory both externally and internally, the astringent leaves have been used to treat wounds, bruises, swelling, eczema, burns and insect bites. Recent studies suggest that this botanical may help fight skin aging due to it’s elastin and collagen promoting properties – time to get gathering those leaves!
Burdock Root
The anti-bacterial, antiseptic, and anti-inflammatory properties of burdock root make it a fabulous herbal remedy for a whole range of chronic skin conditions, including eczema, psoriasis and acne. Also believed to benefit dry and mature skin, it is another herb which is hailed as having ant-aging skin properties, and is used both externally, and internally to treat a whole host of health complaints.
Calendula
Calendula, more commonly know as the Marigold is a beautiful, edible flower which has a long history of being used in skin preparations. Believed to brighten the skin, and prevent blemishes, it is also used in wound healing, treating bruises, and burns, as well as skin infections and is known to be both nourishing and moisturising to skin. It has antiseptic, antibacterial and antiviral properties, and is believed to discourage the formation of scar tissue. Said to be one of the best botanicals for healing problem skin. It is also often added to hair rinses, where it brings out golden highlights.
Chamomile
Chamomile is well known for it’s calming properties, and these extend to the skin. It has the power to reduce redness, itchiness, puffiness and swelling, and reportedly reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. This anti-irritant and anti-inflammatory herb is perfect to add to bath products where it will also help to ease muscle tension and stress. Traditionally used to whiten skin, and to add golden highlights to hair.
Comfrey
Known traditionally as Knitbone, Comfrey has been used for centuries to promote rapid healing of wounds, burns. broken bones and rashes. It is also said to be useful topically in the treatment of inflammatory diseases such as gout, rheumatism and arthritis due to its anti-inflammatory, soothing and healing properties. Said to be a great botanical for the treatment of rough and dry skin, it is a great herb to add to a foot scrub. Please note, although traditionally Comfrey was taken internally for some conditions, the current advice is to only use externally, on unbroken skin due to some suggestions of it being toxic.
Elder
Elder Flowers are mildly astringent, and are said to be of particular benefit for mature skin and people suffering from problem skin. Used for centuries to reduce skin inflammation, it is also used to fade freckles, skin blemishes and age spots. This botanical is also reportedly a great herb to use to treat sunburn.
Green Tea
Green tea is said to promote the thickening of the epidermis (in a good way), promote healing of the skin, and prevent uneven pigmentation in the skin which leads to age spots.
Hibiscus
Hibiscus is considered a fabulous herb for mature skin, having emollient and mucilage properties which soften and hydrate the skin. The flowers also contain a firming agent which is said to smooth out wrinkles, and lift and firm. The flowers also look divine, and are the most wonderful colour – hibiscus bath soak anyone?
Honeysuckle
Honeysuckle is a nourishing and healing herb that has been long used to treat irritated skin due to its anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties, and is said to be helpful in treating psoriasis, eczema and in particular acne.
Hops
Anti-inflammatory, analgesic and calming by nature, hops are a fabulous botanical for your skin and are said to promote a youthful glow. Used to decrease surface blood vessels, hops are found in many skin preparations and are even used to treat leprosy. Just like beer, hops make a fabulous rinse for hair.
Lavender
As if it’s wonderful scent wasn’t enough, Lavender is considered anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and antiseptic, making it a fabulous herb to use on problem skin. It has the ability to calm stressed skin, balance oil production in greasy skin, and promote new cell growth, encouraging healing.
Meadowsweet
Meadowsweet is one of my favourite botanicals, and I have talked about it’s health benefits before in our Meadowsweet cordial recipe. It is a natural analgesic, anti-inflammatory and an astringent, and is believed to have fabulous anti-aging properties. It also smells divine!
Nettle
Nettles are traditionally used as a treatment for chapped skin, eczema and acne and are believed to reduce scarring caused by both acne and chicken pox. They also make a fabulous tonic for hair and are believed to be helpful in promoting hair growth in chronic hair loss. Nettle is another herb with an amazing list of health benefits, some of which we touched upon in our Stinging Nettle Cordial recipe.
Oats
Oatmeal baths are a traditional botanical remedy used to treat dry and itchy skin. A natural cleanser, and mild exfoliator, oats can replace soap for those with sensitivities to it, and are naturally anti-inflammatory and moisturising. Oats can be used to treat sunburn, are said to have anti-aging properties and have a restorative affect on the skin barrier.
Peppermint
Great for all skin types, Peppermint makes a great astringent, due to it’s ability to cool, refresh and revitalise. It is believed to restore skin elasticity, tone tissue and clarify the skin.
Plantain
Plantain is another herb which has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. It is believed to draw out impurities from the skin, and revitalise tired skin. It also helps nourish, sooth and calm itchy, inflamed and irritated skin. This is one of the few botanicals that you can use it on fresh wounds as a natural plaster.
Red Clover
Red Clover has long been used to treat the unpleasant symptoms of eczema – and is said to soothe itchy, scaly skin that it causes. Believed to act as an anti-inflammatory, it has been used for centuries to treat many different skin complaints.
Rose
Rose Petals have cleansing, astringent, toning, stimulating and soothing properties. Although their nourishing and moisturising properties benefit all skin types, they are considered particularly useful for dry, sensitive skin, as well as mature skin due to decreasing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Rose is also one of the most fragrant and prettiest botanicals to grow in your garden.
Rosemary
Rosemary is an astringent botanical that is useful for treating oily skin, having a balancing affect on both the skin and scalp. Antimicrobial, antiseptic and anti-inflammatory it it is considered useful on broken skin and for treating most skin conditions, as well as encouraging cell renewal and protecting against ageing. Known as the anti-aging herb it is even said to boost memory!
Sage
Sage is believed to have anti-aging properties and also acts as an anti-inflammatory, making it great for reducing puffiness. Used for it’s cleansing, pore tightening and stimulating properties.
Self Heal
As it’s name suggests, Self Heal has long been used to treat skin conditions such as acne, eczema, rashes and scarring. This botanical is believed to have anti-inflamatory, anti-bacterial, antiseptic and astringent properties – and it grows in our lawn!
Why not try mixing your own, unique blend of skin benefiting botanicals! These herbs can be used in scrubs, bath fizzes, bath tea-bags and home-made soaps, all of which are super easy to produce, and make a fabulous and thoughtful home-made gift.
38 comments
I just came upon your website and think it is wonderful Sarah. I was wanting to make fabric paint with acrylics.
As I read on I see that you are in the Cotswolds and so am I. I moved to Oxfordshire from Scotland 18 months ago. We have started a community garden in Benson – it was a wild plot and we are beginning to grow things and one plan is to have healing herbs to make potions. I am drying lots of calendular and mint and cornflowers at the moment and hope maybe next year to offer some potion making days. I will send my email and would love to be more in touch
I would love to connect and attend a potion making day when you get them set up Bridgid. Please do keep in touch :)
Hi Sarah,
I really enjoyed your article on herbs, it sounds like you are surrounded by these wonderful healing and helpful herbs! Do you sell them? I would love to make some of these delightful tea bag sachets for my friends and family to enjoy!
I don’t Bonnie, but there are lots of great suppliers online that are very reasonably priced. It’s a lovely gift to give :)
I am interested in the ways that green tea can prevent age spots. I know that these run in my family and I have started to notice some myself. Do you think that drinking green tea is enough, or should I look for a topical treatment?
I think you would need to apply it topically to reduce them Cindy. When I was treating the skin as a nurse, we used to find that even medicines such as antibiotics were much more effective topically for the skin rather than orally.
Hi Sarah,
Thank you for this list. I usually use lavender and green tea to my DIY skincare recipes. I am planning to use some of this botanicals to my DIY skin care recipes.
That’s wonderful Wendy, please do come back and let us know how you get on :)
Hi Sarah,
I love your post! I know most of these plants/herbs, but I wouldn’t know how to utilize them. Do I use them directly on my face or should I extract their juices? What’s your favorite? Please help me how to turn these plants into wonders. Thanks!
We like to either add them to a soak or scrub or simply steep them in water to make a ‘tea’ which you can them apply to your skin Jenny :)
This is such a great post. I already use quite a few on the list but definitely want to try some of the others :)
Louise x
Thanks Louise, there’s so many plants that are beneficial to our skin that are also readily available. We’re hoping to learn much more about using them in products such as balms that we can make ourselves :)
I love this so much! I can’t believe how many amazing properties all of these have and how easy they are to find around you. I’m saving this and I’ll be teaching my little one about all of these plants. I was thinkin when I was reading some of your posts the other day, you really need to write a Craft Invaders book! I think it would do so well. A ‘homemade gifts’ book or something based on your posts. You see all these cook books made by bloggers…a craft book set out like a recipe book I would buy! And so would so many others. xx
Thanks Chloe, Evie will soak up all that information like a sponge :) I’ve never thought about a book, but its a lovely idea – maybe one day…
such an informative post!!! i love the benefits we get from nature… goodness it its purest form… i didn’t know about quite a few of these…
That’s so true, Jolene. It’s amazing how many of these are so accessible too :)
Oh i love this article. I have really bad dry skin and eczema so this will come in very handy.
I’d love to hear how you get on if you try them, Yvonne :)
Wow! Fantastic source of information. Thanks Sarah.
Thanks Lynn, It’s amazing how much goodness is growing out there, isn’t it?
Wow this is so informative. Didn’t know these plants were so useful.
They really are fascinating aren’t they?
I love that I learn something new each time I come here. There are so many things here that I love the smell of, especially rose and lavender. And I have a ton of mint! I should have planted it in a pot, I can’t get rid of it! ARG!
And honeysuckle and rosemary too! Love them. And I have pots full of marigold. I need to make some homemade soaps perhaps! Ooh! Sounds like fun, and I bet they would smell fantastic!
I bet they would – plants have so much to offer us. Even my son has taken to bathing in herbs (although I’m not meant to be telling people!). Marigolds are the loveliest of flowers – pure sunshine!
Chamomile is perfect, I drink it, use it for my hair and even on my skin.
It’s a lovely herb isn’t it, we’re really enjoying learning more about them :)
Oh what a great round up – I am aware of some of them, but not all. Plants really are incredible! Kaz x
They are aren’t they – there’s so much to learn about them, we’re still just skimming the surface!
Great read! There’s a lot of information here that I had no idea about, love learning some new stuff! So many uses coming from these plants.
Jordanne || Thelifeofaglasgowgirl.co.uk
It’s amazing isn’t it – and that’s just their skin properties. Most of them have lots of other health benefits too :)
I didn’t know half of this, I would never have thought to create my ow but I might just give it a try
Let me know how you get on if you do Toni, our bath soaks went down really well which we made with some of these herbs :)
I have loads of lavender that I’m drying out at the moment and thinking I’ll try to use them for something skin related. Interesting to read about the nettles too – I suffer from eczema and never would have guessed that a plant which can be so irritating could also be so good for irritated skin! I’ve never heard of self-heal either – what a fabulous name! #BloggerClubUK
It’s fascinating isn’t it Katy, and I love the name self heal too :)
Wow there are so many things you can use. Lots of great information. I had no idea you could use oats to treat sunburn. Also, the treating of scrapes and bruises is essential in our house with my 3 cherubs. Will definitely need to look into some of these. Thanks for sharing #BloggerClubUK
I guess a 100 years ago everyone would have been using these plants – it’s amazing how much knowledge we’ve lost over the generations!
Lots of really great information here. I have lots of these at the farm and did not know most of this info. Thanks for informing us. And did I mention I love that photo?
Thank you Mary. It’s amazing how much of our plant knowledge has slipped away over the generations isn’t it – I cant believe how many useful plants there are out there. We’re loving learning about them :)