Witch Hazel ...the good

No it's not a witch who's named Hazel ....yeah I'm still in a quirky mood but moving along...

I have recently found out about Witch Hazel and went out and bought some right away...once again as with all of these natural products it is cheap ...about $3 or $4 for a bottle.

Here is a bit about Witch Hazel

Witch hazel is an astringent produced from the leaves and bark of the North American Witch-hazel shrub (Hamamelis virginiana), which grows naturally from Nova Scotia west to Ontario, Canada, and south to Florida and Texas in the United States.^[1] This plant extract was widely used for medicinal purposes by American Indians and is a component of a variety of commercial healthcare products.

Witch hazel is mainly used externally on sores, bruises, and swelling. The main constituents of the extract include tannin, gallic acid, catechins, proanthocyanins, flavonoids (kaempferol, quercetin), essential oils (carvacrol, eugenol, hexenol), choline, and saponins. Distilled witch hazel sold in drug stores and pharmacies typically contains no tannin. Witch hazel hydrosol is used in skin care. It is a strong anti-oxidant and astringent, which makes it very useful in fighting acne.^[1] It is often used as a natural remedy for psoriasis, eczema, aftershave applications, ingrown nails, to prevent sweating of the face, cracked or blistered skin, for treating insect bites, poison ivy, and as a treatment for varicose veins and hemorrhoids.^[7] It is found in numerous over-the-counter hemorrhoid preparations.^[3] It is recommended to women to reduce swelling and soothe wounds resulting from childbirth.^[8]

Some great uses for Witch Hazel 
http://www.wisebread.com/15-wonderful-uses-for-witch-hazel 

One of my ideas is to make an aftershave lotion for my husband, using the Witch Hazel with
lemon essential oil (he likes the lemony scent) and see what he thinks of it!

Another idea is to use this as a toner for the face, you can add some fragrance to it but I think just alone is good too!
I have just come across some glycerin with rosewater in it ...so my idea is to combine a bit of glycerin and vitamin E oil with the Witch Hazel and use that as a moisturizer - not sure yet what it will be like!

Will update when I have tried it...stay tuned...and go out and buy some now!