A gorgeous book full of practical and easy-to-make recipes for natural skincare. I enjoy anything by Amy Galper and this book is no exception! My daughter and I both enjoy it. Highly recommended!

This is a very detailed book that mostly uses essential oils in creating natural beauty products. Lots of information, but it would be rather costly to make most of the recipes. I personally prefer recipes that use the plants themselves. For those with an extensive collection of essential oils and other ingredients, this will be a useful book.

An eye opening read into the billion dollar world of beauty. As we all try and minimize our carbon footprint in this world, this book helps realize that we can make small changes that will result in big changes. As we try and achieve a healthy body, spirit and mind - plant powered beauty aids in this goal.

There are a lot of natural beauty books out there, and almost all have similarities.

This one boasted some perks and differences:

- The details of deconstructing the label with this before discussing details on carrier oils and ingredients.
- It goes into much heavier detail of plant extract differences and methods compared to a lot of beauty books outside of actual herbals.
- The Essential Oil section is generous, including a lot of mood and themed blend ideas.
- Beautiful and colorful pictures (Full page)


There are fifty 'recipes', almost all tying back to Essential oil synergy blends listed in the front of the book.

It's an excellent book for beginnings and those wanting to expand on basic recipes -- but while I found the information itself quite details, the recipes didn't offer up anything unusual. In other words, if you have some natural based beauty books already, you've probably seen similar recipes with the scrubs, masks, powders.

Some recipes:

Almond Milk Facial Cleanser
Anti-aging Facial Scrub
Blemish Gel
Choc-o-Mint Lip Balm
Coconut Whip Makeup Remover
Vitamin-Rich Hair Health Serum
Quick and Fresh Cucumber-Thyme Body Scrub
Moisturizing Body Oil for Super-Dry Skin
Natural Mouthwash

The book doesn't offer any natural makeup ideas, which was a disappointment. While it shows a unique way to make lotion bars without worrying about getting special containers, it stays away from any water and cream based moisturizers and lotions that would require preservatives, so it's understandable why that was left out.

Plant powered beauty is my choice over chemical products........ I always want to make DIY beauty products...... This book is a great book for the DIY lovers.......

This is a wonderful book for those who wish to make their own natural skincare products. I have been doing so on and off for many years, and loved this modern, comprehensive guide to making lots of marvellous recipes for cleansers, scrubs, face masks, moisturisers and much more. It goes into a lot of detail about ingredients of commercial products and explains why they are used. If you are concerned about what you put on your skin, look no further than this beautiful book and you too can learn to make natural, fresh and effective skincare products. Definitely one to keep on the shelf!
Link to review (cannot add below as usual) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2766642505
Thank you to the publisher for a digital review copy.

I loved this! I'm always so interested in ways to use less chemicals and be more mindful of the products/ingredients I use so it was great being able to know that these everyday products we use do have natural swaps that can be easily made or transitioned to. I love the makeup remover because although I used coconut oil already, I never thought to use it in the way they recommend! I just feel like this book has so many golden nuggets and it was such an amazing and information book to read!

This book had some really great natural beauty recipes. I was a bit overwhelmed by the need for all of the essential oils in order to make "essences." I feel like it would be difficult to get started on the many ideas in the book because of that, but would definitely be interested in trying what I could and learning more!

Plant-Powered Beauty is absolutely gorgeously published; the photos are stunning. The writing is easy to follow and understand as well. Each recipe is accessible and simple. There are SO many wonderful and healthy do-it-yourself beauty products shared. This book is a real treasure. One that will be used for years to come! The instructions are easy to follow and allow for both beginners and more advanced individuals to create the perfect products. Not to mention, the authors break down the common ingredients put into typical store-bought beauty products as well as tell you why they use the ingredients that they do. It is so helpful and can help you expand your knowledge even further. Lastly, there are so many essential oils used and I am such an essential oil nerd!

I absolutely adored this book. Along with some killer advice on skin care and what products to buy, the recipes were great! I will absolutely be purchasing a copy of this book in the very near future. What a treat to read! Thanks for sharing it with me.

What an exciting thing to take time to look into and learn about natural, plant-based ways of making everyday products that I use every day on my body. This is what drew me into checking out this book and seeing what I could learn and use that was SO much better than all the harmful, chemical ladened products available at my local stores. This book gives step-by-step instructions on how to make them yourself and it will most likely be less expensive in addition to being something that is a benefit to my body’s health as well. A bonus to all this is that it’s a great inspiration to gift giving as well.

I received a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

An interesting alternative approach to beauty that is better for you, your wallet, and the environment. I much rather use ingredients from nature than harsh chemicals that I do not even understand what they are or their potential benefit. Lots of pictures as well.

Plant-Powered Beauty is an excellent textbook style educational/tutorial on making your own beauty products at home. Unlike many DIY beauty books, this doesn't just give a bunch of recipes with a few tidbits about the ingredients. Instead it goes into very in-depth detail about each ingredient and how it effects our skin/hair. Once we are given a full understand of the ingredients we'll be using it goes on to share some absolutely delicious skin care recipes. This is an excellent book to keep handy for anyone interested in at home beauty, whether it be their first time or they're looking to expand on prior knowledge.

This book was really informative!! Its full of recipes for skin care and hair care. I especially loved the essential oil category where they had many oil synergies, The recipes were easy to follow and the ingredients werent that hard to find. this is a great book for anyone who wants to start learning about natural ways to take care of your skin and hair. Cant wait to get my hands on the physical book!

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PLANT-POWERED BEAUTY is a comprehensive guide for using natural ingredients to make plant-based skincare and beauty products. Includes more than 50 easy-to-follow recipes to concoct such homemade goodies as Almond Milk Face Cleanser, Choc-o-Mint Lip Balm, Vitamin-Rich Hair Boost Scalp Serum, and Quick & Fresh Cucumber-Thyme Body Scrub.

Chock full of tips and guidance from two seasoned aromatherapists and natural beauty experts, this wise guide shows readers how to make sense of beauty labels and ingredients, while helping them make more informed decisions about the products they already use.

PLANT-POWERED BEAUTY is a beauty itself as it returns us to a more natural beauty stance based on plant-based healthy selections. 5/5

Pub Date 06 Mar 2018

Thanks to BenBella Books and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are fully mine.

#Plant-poweredBeauty #NetGalley

II like reviewing these Health and Body books because they lead me to reading branches of scientific literature that I would not normally read. Here I got interested in the authors' assertion that chemicals are absorbed through hair follicles. The research is interesting. If you want to look, the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology has a bunch of open access articles on differential chemical absorption using blocked follicle methods. These studies are done in vitro and in vivo and the methodologies are well established. The articles point to differential absorption of water soluble and fat soluble chemicals depending on molecule (for liquid delivery) and particle size (for carrier delivery). There are time effects too, with absorption of some test chemicals maximizing at about 30 minutes.

The downside of reviewing the literature is that I usually find out, as I did here, that the author did not actually consult any scientists. Ms Galper and Ms Daigneault, who started out as aromatherapists, include citations in the text, but these citations are not scientific articles. The reference lists are awkwardly placed at the end of the book not as footnotes or at the end of each chapter, so many readers won't look at them critically.

So what we have here is a book on making your own cosmetic preparations that is couched in pseudoscientific claptrap that uses deeply earnest writing to convince you that what it says is true. These women are not chemists, they know nothing real about organic certification, they are have the most bizarre idea of how the words "therapeutic" and "synergies" should be used. I object to claptrap and I am not sure why it seems necessary. Could we not just write the recipe part of the book without all this? If I were their editor at BenBella Books, I would have excised the first 40 pages and red-pencilled a lot of the next 50, which is really too bad because the rest of the book works well as a reference guide and cookbook.

Lastly I have some questions for the photo stylist. The photos in the book are generally very nice with a good drama. There are a lots of carrots in the photos and none of them is oiled so they look dried out and unattractive, at least one has a purple stain that could be root rot. The cut lemon on the cover and again on page 45 is dried out and has a skin blemish.

I really can't give this book a good rating.

I’ve read many plant based books, but none like this one. Very interesting, informative, easy reading and a great reference book. Definitely a book I can read over and over.
The authors put a lot of time into making this a great book. Loved the format, illustrations and inspiration. I can’t wait to get some of the ingredients and get started on the road to healthy, plant based beauty...

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from BenBella Books for my unbiased opinion of the book. I fell in love with this book! This is just what I have been looking for to solve my skin issues. I have very sensitive skin. I have been trying to get away from processed foods and all-natural ingredients from the food I eat and my skincare. I tried the Fresh Anti-Inflammatory and Brightening Facial Mask, Balancing Facial Scrub, and Sensitive Body Cleanser. I cannot wait to try all the recipes. The products that are mass marketed are full of so much stuff this book will help me get away from all of that!!! Anyone trying to live a less processed life when it comes to your beauty products this book is for you!

You’d almost think I was on a DIY trip, the way I’m reviewing two beauty guides in a row! This is actually rather serendipitous; I’d requested both, just in case I didn’t get approved for one, and ended up with both. As it turns out, they complement each other rather well. So let’s not dilly-dally any further and get on with the post!

“Plant-Powered Beauty” is an amazing, in-depth resource for anyone wishing to learn the behind-the-scenes science of creating not only your own beauty products, but your very own recipes. Ms Galper and Ms Daigneault, certified aromatherapists, spend the better half of the three hundred-odd pages of this book giving you all the tools you will ever need to do exactly that. As you would expect, you begin by examining the skin. What is it, what does it do, and how does it do it? You’ll learn all about components of skin care, how to combine them in which format to arrive at a desired result, and you will find out how to prepare and store your recipes to get the most out of them. When I said ‘the better part,’ I was not kidding. Part 1 of the book ends roughly in the middle of it, but all throughout this first, as well as the remaining, half you’ll see info boxes and whole pages with additional information inserted. You are in good hands here! One little quibble I have is with the section “Nice to have equipment”: in a setting where hygiene is of the utmost important, bottle brushes are not a pleasant afterthought but essential. They are dirt cheap, too, so there is no reason at all not to add them to your at-home beauty laboratory.

Part 2 begins on page 153. This is where you can begin making products with some 50 recipes, from face cream and body butter to hair treatments (including pomade, although fans of a certain film are left in the dark how this compares to Dapper Dan), deodorant, mouthwash, bug spray, pain relief gel, and massage oil. There is quite a variety! I particularly love the final recipe section, Mind-Body Care, which includes aromatherapy bath tea bags, various salves, roll-ons, and even inhalers for those moments when you’re desperate for some serenity. Please note that some recipes call for honey or beeswax, although there is a discussion on how to substitute different plant-derived waxes, at least. One thing I found a bit odd was the fact that the introductory notes to the recipes come after the list of equipment and ingredients needed. I prefer the actual recipe body to be as uncluttered as possible, but I realize not everyone cares.

Finally, there is a fairly extensive resources list, lots of notes referred to in the text, a glossary, an index, and a separate recipe index (super helpful!). If you want to develop your own body care recipes, this is definitely the guide for you. Do realize, though, that because you’ll possibly be making your own herbal infusions and other vital parts of your recipes, you will need to plan ahead, possibly even months ahead. If you’re just looking for some quick ideas you can whip up for an impromptu spa day, you would be better off with the book from my previous review.

“Plant-Powered Beauty” is published by BenBella Books. I received a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.

This is a great book. The authors really know their stuff, and they walk the reader through every step of the process. There are incredibly detailed sections on each ingredient that goes into the recipes, such as the differences between various butters, grains, fruits and vegetables, carrier oils, clays, waxes, essential oils and herbs and spices. There is a section with essential oil synergies for various skin care needs, which are then added as needed to the diy projects. The book has a great section on ensuring that your workspace is sanitary and each project has an expriration date. I actually tried out one of the recipes,the Dreamsicle Whipped Body Butter and it is to die for. The smell is intoxicating and the texture is perfect. I also want to try the lotion bars, herb and flower facial steam and blemish gel. There are tutorials for making your own powders from dehydrated fruits, making infused oils and making homemade almond milk. This is truly an amazing book with so much information.
I was given an advance reader copy of this book via netgalley in exchange for my honest review.