"Set your aging clock back 20 years with this do-it-yourself face lift."

According to this article, Ninon de L'Enclos was a great French beauty who, at 90, was still so physically attractive that young men fell in love with her!

On another site, this was said: "The gift of perpetual beauty was bestowed upon Ninon de L’Enclos by a “Noctambule,” or "a little black man," (her description) and for nearly 80 years she was the rage in Paris, her charms influencing the most distinguished men of the period, including Cardinal Richelieu, the great Condé La Rochefoucauld, Molière, Voltaire, and a host of others." http://aelliott.com/reading/ninon/introduction/book_insert.htm
http://aelliott.com/reading/ninon/life/chapter_XVI.htm
However she came upon the secret of great youthfulness and beauty, part of it had to do with a secret skin cream. It was said that at 90, her skin was as smooth and free of wrinkles as it was at 20. (This is apparently a well-documented fact.) Louis XIV declared that she was "the marvel of his reign!"

"Authentic pictures of her (paintings--this was in the 1600's) at ages ranging from 50-85 show a clear, smooth face, with youthful rounded contours, a smooth throat, and symmetrical neck."

Apparently she shared her secret with friends, including Saint Evremond, who at the age of 89 was reportedly still so handsome that "young girls swooned over him." The secret was revealed in a pamphlet published in 1710 by her personal attendant for almost 50 years, Jeanne Sauval. A claim is made that this is the only successful method for removing wrinkles, aside from plastic surgery.

One of the ingredients is no longer available (spermaceti from sperm-whale oil), but a substitute has been suggested in the following formula.

Original Skin Cream Formula:
4 ounces almond oil
3 ounces lard
1 ounce spermaceti
onion juice (a "chunk" juiced through a garlic press)
rose water for scent (see recipe below for making your own if you can't find it sold commercially)
**Refrigerate**

The "Miracle Foods..." author suggests substituting olive oil for the lard and shaved or chopped candle wax for the spermaceti.

Revised Formula
4 ounces almond oil
3 ounces extra virgin olive oil or lard
1 ounce shaved candle wax (I used bees wax )
onion juice (I used more of a hunk than a chunk)
scent--it has to be oil soluble (I'm going to try essential oil of vanilla)

Raw, cold-pressed almond oil from a health food store should be of the best quality. My HAIN brand cost under $10 and will make over 3 batches (12.7oz). I did make a batch with extra virgin olive oil in place of the lard, but wonder if one shouldn't stick to the original formula as much as possible. That batch didn't last long enough to really try it because the onion juice in it spoiled after the jar was left out of the fridge too often, and I only remembered to use it now and then a few times.

I also substituted natural bee's wax for candle wax the first time, but don't know if that is better or not. I also substituted cheap imitation vanilla for the rose water because I couldn't find rose water locally, and had the vanilla on hand ...forgetting that a watery liquid and the oils might not be compatible. I had to keep stirring the mix as it set up to keep the ingredients from separating. One must be careful about the onion juice, also, because it will cook and lump up if you let the mixture get too hot. I warmed the other ingredients just enough to melt the wax and added the onion juice last, along with the vanilla.

The next batch I made, after the first batch spoiled, I went back to the almond oil, lard, and candle wax. It got too hot and the onion juice lumped up. That's when I really had a problem with the vanilla mixing in. In spite of being blended with a hand beater, when it set up the oils and vanilla had completely separated. I reheated it and kept blending with the hand beater all the while the mixture was setting up to get it to stay together, but it still made an odd mix with brown vanilla drops throughout the mix.

So--back to the drawing board. I went looking for something like the rose water, which I believe has a consistency that will blend with the oils, if one can find it (later, I found the recipe for making it below). It must be a lovely scent, and one is needed to neutralize the onion smell.

Instead, I found a vanilla-scented oil spray with "age-defying" apricot kernel oil and vitamin E--WATKINS Vanilla "dry oil body mist." It costs $3-$4 at Walmart and is compatible with the other ingredients. Of course, if I find or make some rose water, I'll have to try that too. I used about 1/3 of the small bottle in the mix, and added it as the other ingredients were cooling.

The instructions don't specify how much onion juice, but do say "a hunk" which can be juiced by squeezing through an ordinary garlic press--an item I already had, but which can be purchased inexpensively. It does need to be strained after being squeezed through the press.

Next time, if I use the lard, I will get actual hog fat from the grocery store and render it. It made me uneasy using processed lard with preservatives in it. Rendered fat would have been used in the original formula.

I doubt anything can really replace the sperm whale spermaceti (from sperm whale oil), and that the formula could not possibly be equal to that used by Ninon without it. It must have been a waxy protein matter of extraordinary rejuvenation powers, but the other ingredients have their own powers.

The instructions say: "Apply once a day to forehead, face and neck, whenever convenient, as at bedtime. Cover the pillow with something to prevent staining. Wipe off a few hours later, or upon awakening, with cotton balls soaked with rubbing alcohol.* Then use any gentle commercial skin cleanser and toner or moisturizer."

Instead, this is what I did: I found an old blanket and sacrificed it to the cause, threw it over my bedding at night, and while watching tv, took the wonderfully creamy mix and started rubbing it on my arms, legs, and face ...especially my badly sun-burned forearms that look damaged from spending a week several years ago outside in the boiling sun "weed-eating" a friend's neglected 6-foot high front and back lawn so she could move. Everything was covered but my arms. They ended up and remained a rough, spotty mess--my fault for such carelessness. We absolutely do need sunlight for health, particularly for the production of vitamin D, but not this kind of self-abuse.

Results: I'm using the last mix with the almond oil, lard, onion and Watkins vanilla spray oil, which made an unbelievably luscious hand-cream. It's only been about 3 days, but the skin on my arms is changing somewhat and my face feels buttery soft. Also, it had pretty much absorbed by bedtime. There was nothing to rub or wipe off the next morning, unless it's supposed to be slathered on and left thick. I think this recipe is a "keeper!"

I will keep the readers here posted--DJT

*Do not use rubbing alcohol where it can absorb into the skin. Dr. Hulda Clark has found that rubbing alcohol provides something chemically that allows a common parasite to develop inside the body and reproduce instead of being expelled at an earlier, harmless stage.

This recipe is meant to yield about 1 gallon of Rosewater. You will need a clear gallon container, about 1 gallon of distilled water, enough fresh rose petals to fill the jar 3/4 way full, and 1 cup of Vodka. Hint: Your sun tea jar will work great for this and is completely safe to be reused. Make sure your container is clean and fill it up with rose petals about 3/4 of the way. If you want to use your Rosewater for ingesting make sure your petals have been organically grown. Pour the water in until it covers the petals completely. Once your water is in pour in the Vodka. Put the lid on and shake it up a bit so that the ingredients mix together thoroughly. Place in the sun or on a sunny window sill and wait. You can put it outside in the sun, but bring it in each night. Think of this as the same process as making sun tea with the exception of the length of time needed to be completed. You will start to see your water turning color after only a couple of days but for the best results wait two weeks. Strain out the rose petals and you have Rosewater! NOTE: The unscented vodka has a dual purpose. One--if there is any bacteria on the petals it will kill it, and two, the alcohol helps prolong the scent. You don't have to use it but if you don't, you may find a little green and blue island floating on the top (mildew!) Take special care to keep the petals below the water line because if they rise above it, they will mildew too. Suggested uses: Fill a bottle with an atomizer (spray) and mist after bathing or showering. Wonderful for the face. Also, make your own glycerin and rosewater hand lotion

Anti-Wrinkle Oil

According to the French beauty Ninon de L'enclos, she bitterly complained, "if God had to give women wrinkles, He might at least have put them on the soles of her feet." The essential oils of lavender, geranium, neroli, rosemary and rose are historic "anti-aging" ingredients for mature skin. Jasmine, frankincense, myrrh, carrot seed, and helichrysum also rejuvenate the skin, encouraging new cell growth. Since jojoba oil also contains natural wrinkle removing qualities we find it a natural as a base or carrier oil to add our essential oils into. To 4 oz jojoba oil add 50 to 60 drops total of any or all of the above oils. Mixing and matching creates a natural synergy. Example: Lavender has its own attributes as does helichrysum have its own. However when they are mixed-instead of 1 and 1 making 2--they magnify each other to the tune of perhaps 5 or 6 or more. May be used day or night or both for a truly enhancing and youthful appearance.

Tighten Loose Skin

Take two egg yolks and beat them thoroughly in one-half cup of olive oil. Brush on face and throat, and allow to set for 10 minutes. Beat the egg whites and then layer them over the top of the first dressing. Leave on for 30 minutes, and then wash off. Reportedly leaves the skin appearing tighter and wrinkle-free.

Clay Beauty Mask

Clays have been used for centuries in beauty treatments to pull toxins from the skin and to refine the skin's texture. This masque also works for a wonderful full-body treatment. 1 tablespoon (kaolin-china white), French green, Moroccan red or bentonite clay, 2 to 3 tablespoons rosewater or filtered water. In a small bowl mix the clay and the liquid until you have a smooth paste. With your fingers, apply the clay mask all over your face and neck, avoiding the eye area. Relax and let the mask dry completely (about 20 minutes). Rinse with warm water. Finish off with a mist of rosewater.

Rose Water and Glycerin Hand Cream

In an attractive bottle blend 1/2 rosewater and 1/2 vegetable glycerin. Shake well and it's ready to use. Great for hands, face, rough heels and elbows. Feels wonderful.

Aromatic Bath Vinegar

25 drops essential oil, 4 oz vinegar. Combine ingredients. Let the essential oil sit in the vinegar for a week, shaking the bottle every day. Use 2 tablespoons per bath.

Body and Dusting Powder

1 cup arrowroot powder, 25 drops essential or fragrance oil. In a blender or with a mortar and pestle mix very well. That's it!!! Put into a shaker can or in one of our hard-round boxes with its own powder puff.

Cocoa Butter Suntan Creme

Although sesame oil has some sun-screening properties, it is not a sunscreen. 1/2 cup light sesame oil, 2 tablespoons coconut oil, 2 tablespoons cocoa butter chunk. Mix all ingredients in a clean, ovenproof container. Heat the mix gently, stirring all of ingredients together. You may place the container in the microwave on high for 1 minute, or heat it gently in a double boiler or water bath on the stove top. Let the mixture cool completely. Place the suntan oil in a clean jar or container with a tight-fitting lid.

Natural Deodorant Cream

1/4 cup vegetable shortening, 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1/8 teaspoon tincture of benzoin. (a few drops of essential oil is optional). Blend all ingredients together into a smooth cream. Place in a clean jar with a tight-fitting lid. To use, rub a small amount of cream under your arms. Yield: 3 oz.

Lanolin Lip Balm

1 teaspoon lanolin, 1 teaspoon beeswax pearls, 1 teaspoon petroleum jelly. Melt lanolin, beeswax and jelly over medium heat in a glass measuring cup in a pan of boiling water. Pour the melted mixture into any of our lip balm jars or tubes. Let cool. Yield: 1/2 OZ.

Garden of Life brand "Omega Zyme" digestive enzymes:

After taking these digestive enzymes for other reasons, in less that one month the thick, rough, cracked skin on the bottom of my feet completely smoothed out. One other product did the same years ago. See below--DJT

Km:

A special potassium drink made from roots, berries, etc. from Canada--many distributors on the internet. This amazing supplement smoothed out the rough skin on my feet, gave the family shiny hair, re-mineralized our teeth so that no one had cavities for several years after just 2 months of use, and must have been a boon to our skin overall at the same time. One of those few products we actually saw first hand make a difference in a short time--DJT

Peanut Oil

According to Dr. James K. Van Fleet, D.C. who reports remarkable success with an arthritis program which includes the use of peanut oil taken internally and as a massage oil, when rubbed in and massaged, it apparently eases pain, helps arthritis, and stimulates circulation so that body parts and areas "pink up" with increased health, as a beneficial side effect to treating arthritic pain and inflammation. Use only raw, cold-pressed peanut oil from the health food store, unless available elsewhere. Hain makes a product that works.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil also works on pain and soreness--it has anti-inflammatory properties when massaged into the skin, as we discovered when trying it experimentally, and is reported to have beneficial effects on the skin when consumed as a food and used to massage the skin--DJT

more information from "Miracle Healing Foods From the Bible" articles on skin care. "No Aging Diet" & "Youth Restorative X"