Store Your Custom Facial Toner in a Vintage Jar With Reusable Cotton Pads

This is a really fast little project which can brighten up your boudoir, save you some money, be green, and give you the freedom to mix your own beauty toner from a custom recipe (not included in this instructable).

Compare to a store-bought product like the First-Aid Beauty (FAB) Facial Radiance Pads, or to be a little more pedestrian, Stridex.

Step 1: Find a Funky Vintage Jar

Be sure that the lid seals airtight!

This is an old Avon cold cream jar I found on eBay.

Step 2: Select Some Pretty Cotton Fabric

I'm using a few pieces from a jelly roll (strips of fabric 2.5 inches wide, sold for quilting) of Amy Butler's Soul Blossoms.

Step 3: Cut Out Circles

I'm tracing around the lid of a smaller jar with an HB (semi-soft) pencil and cutting out the circles with pinking shears.

Step 4: Formulate Your Toner

Pour in your favorite brand bottled toner or make you own from witch hazel, salicylic acid, etc.

Step 5: Save the Dirty Pads in a Basket to Wash

Save the dirty pads in a place where they can air dry.  (This is an origami box I made out of an old Kliban Cats calendar.)  Later on, machine wash and dry them in a lingerie bag, and place them back in the jar with more toner.

As the pads get laundered, I expect them to soften and hold a little more toner.  Until then, I can use two at a time to get a little more padding if I need it.

This is a really efficient way to store and use your expensive toner!  No waste.

Please leave a comment!  Unless to say it's lame!  I know it's pretty simple, but maybe somebody out there will like it.

Thanks!

Comments

[Casavantwilliams]

As a recent college graduate, I am in the process of finding more ways to save money on the things that I love to use like homemade toner and now these pads! What an amazing and economical idea. I do have a few questions. The first is how would you launder these? In Woolite or regular detergent? Also, what is the size of the pads? I was thinking to use a larger pad so i can use more toner and have less pads to launder. Tell me what do you think?

[brighterfusion]

Hi Casavant,
Thanks so much for your comment!
This is how I launder them:

Put the pile of dirty pads into a small lingerie bag and separate them from each other so they will wash up more effectively.
Put through the washer and then just throw the lingerie bag into the dryer with the rest of the laundry.
When it comes out, they will be folded and bunched up. Check through them and rewash any that don't look like they got clean.
Use your fingers to stack and mostly flatten the pads. Then put them at the bottom of the pile in the jar. Since they'll be wet in there anyway, there's no point to ironing them first.
Add more toner.

For thicker pads, look for hand-crocheted small circles on Etsy. They're quite a bit thicker than these cotton ones -- more like a cotton ball would be. Personally, I like the cotton pads after they've been washed once or twice. It's just enough capacity to apply toner to my face and shoulders before they're mostly dry.

[CandyLV]

Brilliant!

[cjraabe]

What a great idea! I've recently moved to an area that does not recycle so am working on reducing. There's a recipe for homemade facial toner on Instructables today.

[scoochmaroo]

Lovely! I've thought of doing something very similar for a while, using flannel pads. Do you have a recipe for toner that you like to use?

[brighterfusion]

Hi! Thx so much for the post. You know, flannel would be so perfect for this use. Do you mind if I edit this to mention flannel?

Sorry, I don't have any recipes yet, but I am interested in finding or developing one. I've heard of people dissolving aspirin tablets to acquire liquid salicylic acid, which is good for acne. I'll have to play around a bit.