Which Witch (Hazel)?

[dszpiro]

I was just at the Thayer's web site (http://thayers.com/cgi-bin/miva?/Merchant2/merchant.mv+Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=thayers&Category_Code=TPWH) and I noticed that they have many different "flavors" of their Witch Hazel products. I was wondering if expert users of Witch Hazel could offer some insight on which is best.

Also, I picked up a bottle of Witch Hazel at the pharmacy in a local grocery store. It is not mixed with all of the other sorts of ingredients listed at the Thayer's site (e.g., aloe). Should I use this straight, or wait until I get some Thayer's?

Thanks,

[Coche_y_bondhu]

Hello Danny,

Thayers makes very good witch hazel products. I use only their alcohol-free formulations: lavender, rose and unscented. All work equally well for me. The rose is definitely rose and the unsented has no fragrance at all. The lavender is very sweet smelling, not at all like lavender.

I tried Wilkinsons WH, probably what you saw in the drugstore. It has alcohol in it and I don't like the scent at all.

Another excellent toner is Neutrogena Alcohol-Free Toner in the light blue bottle. This is the one I use the most. Very lightly scented, pleasant.

Hope this helps

Richard
Plao TX

[dszpiro]

Thanks Richard! I appreciate you sharing your experience.

I am going to have to double-check the list of ingredients in the pharmacy WH.

Cheers,

[rikrdo]

Currently enjoying the
TAR-Gete brand of Witch Hazel
Very effective and leaves me plenty - o - $ for other _AD's !

[reeffanatic]

I agree the lavender from Thayer's doesn't smell much like lavender but its not bad either. It (the scent) also doesn't linger and last too long. Here now gone in just minutes.

[GeeQue]

I mix a half cup of 100% aloe vera gel(dye free) with a half cup of witch hazel from the drugstore...this contains only 14% alcohol. I put both in a bottle and shake. If my math is correct, I now have only a 7% concentration of alcohol.

I have used the above conbination for some time now and love it. Usually resolves any minor redness after a shave within minutes

Last week I mixed the same but added 15 drops of peppermint oil. Unbelievably refreshing!

[rikrdo]

I mix a half cup of 100% aloe vera gel(dye free) with a half cup of witch hazel from the drugstore...this contains only 14% alcohol. I put both in a bottle and shake.
Unbelievably refreshing!


THAT....is a cool idea.
Thanks.

[ouch]

If you get one, get Thayer's rose. Better still get the rose and the lavender. Mix them together for ghetto DaVinci water.:drool:

[Skyguy]

You can use it as it is but when it runs out, you might also try a very nice one that's also inexpensive made by the Jason Company. It's called Jason WitchVera and is also a mixture of Witch Hazel and aloe vera. I use it every day and it's dynamite! You can buy it on the Internet, or most health food stores carry it but at a little higher price.

[Howard]

Also, I picked up a bottle of Witch Hazel at the pharmacy in a local grocery store. It is not mixed with all of the other sorts of ingredients listed at the Thayer's site (e.g., aloe). Should I use this straight, or wait until I get some Thayer's?


I use the pharmacy stuff, straight. There's no added perfume, but I have aftershaves and colognes for that.

[Stauff]

An alternative is Speick AS splash (why do I keep repeating this :rolleyes: ). It contains witch hazel, but also alum and camphor. Excellent and refined astringent! :thumbup1:

[tu00tf]

Sorry for the slight hijack, but--has anyone tried putting a product like Thayer's rose into an atomizer? I feel like this'll be an easier solution than messing around with cotton balls but will also give more even coverage than just splashing it on.

[Scotto]

Sorry for the slight hijack, but--has anyone tried putting a product like Thayer's rose into an atomizer? I feel like this'll be an easier solution than messing around with cotton balls but will also give more even coverage than just splashing it on.
That is what I do. Works great.

[moses]

I really like the aloe and witch hazel mix idea.

For a while I used just drugstore witch hazel. The 14% alcohol was not enough to really burn much, even with a good scraping.

More recently, I have ceased to really see the point, so I have not been using witch hazel or "toner" at all.

I do LOVE Aqua Velva splash, though....

-Mo

[dszpiro]

I mix a half cup of 100% aloe vera gel(dye free) with a half cup of witch hazel from the drugstore...this contains only 14% alcohol. I put both in a bottle and shake. If my math is correct, I now have only a 7% concentration of alcohol.

I have used the above combination for some time now and love it. Usually resolves any minor redness after a shave within minutes

Last week I mixed the same but added 15 drops of peppermint oil. Unbelievably refreshing!

I was inspired by this simple formula so I picked up some aloe gel at CVS and mixed-up a batch. I put some drops of rosemary oil for a nice aroma.

I am very pleased with the results! The mixture avoids the gooey-ness of straight aloe gel and but has more of a balm feeling than straight witch hazel. Considering that 1.5 cups of this cots me a whopping ~$3.50, I can't go wrong! :thumbup1:

Thanks for this tip! Cheers,

[Quagmire]

I've been using a pure witch hazel with a few drops of peppermint or lavender. Works great and it's cheap. But adding aloe gel sounds good so I might have to try that out.

[Phog Allen]

Hey guys. Go to your local WallyWorld and head to the pharmacy section. They should have one gallon jugs of aloe vera juice there for about $8. I think this is for health food types who drink it. I think when I checked the label it had nothing but 100% aloe in it. The aloe gels have a thickening agent added to them. I'm not saying it's bad or good, just that it's in there. I personally like my A/S products to be just thicker than water. The old Vitaman A/S gel was like this. It was aloe based but only thicker than water. Great stuff. Too bad the idiots changed it.

Regards, Todd

[Scorpio]

I use the local Grocery store brand witch hazel with no alcohol. I put it in a atomizer and it lasts much longer. Mucho cheap, same result.

Rafael

[rikrdo]

UPDATE:

Today I purchased some straight glycerine and added it to my blend of Banana Boat soothing gel with Aloe and generic Witch Hazel.
Just super.
Altho I think I will thin out the mix a little more and check the results.

Also....thanks to all who have commented on the Corn Husker lotion.
Picked some of that up as well. Great stuff.

[dszpiro]

UPDATE:

Today I purchased some straight glycerine and added it to my blend of Banana Boat soothing gel with Aloe and generic Witch Hazel.
Just super.
Altho I think I will thin out the mix a little more and check the results.

Also....thanks to all who have commented on the Corn Husker lotion.
Picked some of that up as well. Great stuff.

I have made a 1:1 mix of aloe gel and witch hazel (i.e., approximately 4 oz. of each) which seems very pleasant. Proportionately, how much glycerin do you recommend adding?

Thanks,
Danny

[rikrdo]

Hey Danny,

Sorry about giving you a hard time in your HoF entry ! :redface:
I am still experimenting and unfortunately I am NOT a very good scientist.
I am using the 50/50 mix of WH to Aloe gel and then adding a couple of "seconds" pour of glycerin...not a hard stretch considering my alcoholic tendencies.
I would say if the ratios are WH:AG:G
then maybe 10:10:1

Im am still looking to put this concoction into an atomizer so it may need a little more thinning. Who knows? It sure feels good. :thumbup1:

[dszpiro]

Hi Rick!

Thanks for your posting into my HoF entry: I guess I should have gotten around to this a little bit sooner! :redface:

And thanks for the info on the glycerin mix. I have some glycerin that I pick-ed at a drug store and I'll add a bit to the home made WH-aloe gel mix too.

Cheers,

[misterjoshua]

I picked up a few 2 ounce atomizers from, I think, QED and use Thayer's Lavender and Thayer's Rose. Contrary to expectations, I prefer the rose scent, though I sprayed on some lavender directly I came home.

Josh