What is Witch Hazel?

Few ingredients, especially in the world of Green Beauty skincare, are as powerful and multi-faceted as witch hazel. The most common type of witch hazel Hamamelis virginiana is native to North America and has been used in the people's homes, medicines, and beauty regimes for thousands of years and also has had a powerful, long-reaching effect on the health of my skin.

Witch hazel is commonly cited as being two things, an anti-inflammatory and an astringent. As an astringent, it works by refine the pores to keep extra oil from coming to the surface and keep that moisture within the skin's deeper layers instead of drying out the surface of the skin excessively. This makes it an excellent ingredient to look for if you have dry skin but are looking to also treat breakouts. So often products with ingredients like denatured alcohol, salicylic acid, charcoal, or clays will treat breakouts by either drying out the skin's surface or pulling all moisture up and out of the skin, which leads to an even drier and more irritated (that is, therefore, likely to breakout overall). But witch hazel simply works to calm and shrink down the problem areas without stripping the skin.

Perhaps my favorite quality about witch hazel, though, is its anti-inflammatory nature. Not only is the ingredient really great at reducing the redness of a pimple or of the residual mark left over after a pimple is healed, it is also great at reducing puffiness in the face, including around the eye area. One of my favorite things to do is to take a mixture of rosewater and witch hazel on a cotton pad and add water to it and then put that on my eyes in the morning. In only about 10 seconds are my swollen, sleepy red eyes refreshed and look much more awake too. This same mixture also works nicely as an effective but non-irritating eye makeup remover in a pinch. If you are going to make your own blend for this method, though, be sure the witch hazel you get is pure and does not have any alcohols added in. The brand Thayers makes a great option, and they also have a blend of witch hazel and rosewater that I also recommend.

If you are considering exploring ways to make your beauty routine, the ingredient witch hazel is a mainstay for a reason. For its help as an acne-fighter, a redness reducer, and a solution for my undereye circles. this ingredient will always be one of my most relied on in skincare. I hope you will enjoy trying incorporating it in your routine too!