Ways to use honey

There are many ways to use honey

From it’s healing, medicinal properties to making your face glow, the golden goodness has got you covered (literally!)

We’re going to walk you through the best ways to use honey so you can get the most out of your jar. As we have three different types of honey, which each hold a different consistency, flavours and properties, we’ll be focussing on ways to use pure honey using our Scottish heather honey. 

 

How to choose pure honey

Firstly, let’s cover how to choose pure honey. Each honey producer will differ with phrases of how they market their honey so it’s valuable to understand the difference between raw and pure honey - check out our blog raw honey versus pure honey here that will quickly clarify for you!

When deciding how to choose pure honey, there’s two steps you can take. Firstly, check the label for these key phrases:

• Straight from the hive
• Unpasteurised
• Never heated above the temperature of the hive

If these are nowhere to be seen, you can look further into the ingredients on the jar. Ingredients such as...

• Sugar
• Rape seed oil
• Corn syrup

...mean additives have been used to artificially sweeten and dilute the pure honey. So if you’re rightfully looking for natural honey that contains all the goodness from the hive, remember this! Our honey is 100% Scottish honey where the bees do all the hard work and we take it in its most natural form.

Honey in food

Many people ask us how to use honey in food. We have loads of recipes for ways to use honey in food, from dinner to dessert, to recipes for the kids and cocktails for the adults!

Follow this link to find our range of recipes for inspiration on how to use honey in food → RECIPES!

Honey for dry lips

Due to pure honey’s antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and wound healing properties, it has been used for centuries as a remedy for skin care and a number of health conditions. Let’s have a look at taking your jar further than the kitchen, and try some proven skin care hacks!

Do you suffer with cracked, dry or irritated lips when the seasons change or all year round? Honey can work as a gentle exfoliator due to it’s slightly grainy texture, and can help remove dry skin from your lip. It can also help moisturise your lips and protect them from infection.

Choose pure honey (like our Scottish heather honey) and simply apply it to your lips throughout the day or overnight. We would recommend leaving it on as long as it lasts, or until you’ve accidentally licked it all off!

 

Honey for face mask

To get started, check out our blog on the history and benefits of using honey for face masks here, then which honey is best for your skin here.

Now let’s dive into a few DIY, at home honey face masks with ingredients you will most likely already have in your cupboard!

WARNING: Do not try this at home if you are allergic to pollen, celery, honey or other bee-products. Test a drop of honey on your face to ensure no reaction will happen when applying over your entire face.

How to use honey on your face

 

The simplest option is using honey as a face wash. The consistency of honey makes it a natural exfoliator removing dead, dry and flaky skin.

1. Use 1-2 teaspoons of pure honey on your face
2. Allow it to sit for a minute or two
3. Rinse with a warm face cloth. 

The next easiest option is using a combination of honey and cinnamon and using it as a face wash too. Both ingredients are packed full of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

1. Mix 2 teaspoons of pure honey and 1 teaspoons of cinnamon
2. Apply to your face for a minute or two
3. Rinse off with a warm face cloth
   
   

How to use honey for a face glow

Honey, turmeric and lemon make a fantastic facemask. Turmeric and lemon are great for skin-brightening as turmeric has antioxidant properties and as everyone knows, lemon is bursting full of vitamin C.

1. Combine 1 tablespoon of pure honey, 1 teaspoon of ground turmeric and 1/2 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice
2. Apply to your face
3. Leave for 10 minutes
4. Rinse off with warm water
   
   

Honey for face acne 

Honey, lemon and baking soda makes an acne-fighting face mask. Much like honey, baking soda has anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties. Combined with the honey and lemon, it creates a great exfoliating and moisturising mask.

1. Combine 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon honey and 1 teaspoon baking soda and mix
2. Apply gently on your face and leave for 15 minutes
3. Remove with warm water

Hair mask with honey

Due to honey's many therapeutic properties, making a hair mask with honey may help moisturise your hair and scalp, promote hair growth and restore shine! It truly is a superfood.

Honey for hair growth

Honey is commonly used as a treatment for wounds due to its ability to encourage cell growth. This stretches from medicinal purposes to beauty treatments too! Evidence shows that honey can also promote the growth of epithelial (skin) cells. The scalp is full of epithelial cells that make up the many follicles and ducts that are crucial for hair growth.

Honey for hair conditioning

Hair masks for conditioning treatments are very popular and effective at restoring moisture to hair. They include important vitamins, minerals, and other beneficial ingredients. Due to honey’s high properties of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals it hosts similar moisturising properties to keep healthy and conditioned.

Hair mask with honey recipes

As an at home beauty treatment, you want to keep it as simple and effective as possible. We recommend two different hair masks...

Hair mask for dry hair 

All you need is honey, olive oil and a mixing bowl!

1. Mix 8 tablespoons of honey and 60ml of olive oil in a bowl.
2. Apply from roots to the end of your hair and leave on your hair for 15-20 minutes
3. Then rinse out

Hair mask for moisture

All you need is plain, full fat yoghurt, honey and coconut oil! The protein in yoghurt acts as a cleanser for your scalp and strengthens the bonds in your hair. As we all know, coconut oil is effective at moisturising and softening your hair.

1. Mix 3-4 tablespoons of honey and 2 tablespoons of coconut oil
2. Warm in a microwave for 15 seconds
3. Once cooled, add 70 grams of plain, full fat yoghurt and mix well until the ingredients are blended
4. Apply to your hair and leave in for 15-20 minutes
5. Rinse out
   
   

Honey Medicinal Uses

Honey has long been utilised as a therapeutic ingredient in traditional medicine. More recently, Oxford University provided research evidence that backed up this belief and proved that pure honey is in fact more effective than over the counter medicines and antibiotics at treating respiratory illnesses such as coughs and colds!

Many people ask us how to use honey for a sore throat. Check out our blog for honey, lemon tea with a spicy kick here. Mixing honey in with a hot beverage not only sweetens the drink, but evidence shows it helps relieve sore throats by forming a protective film thus soothing the cough and alleviating symptoms.

Pure honey is high in antibacterial and antifungal properties which means it contains hydrogen peroxide which acts as an antiseptic. This means it is known to fight infection and able to help wounds by regenerating the tissue.

Honey is also great for helping digestion. It is considered a prebiotic which means it helps the good bacteria in your gut. To get the most of the healing properties, it is recommended to simply consume 1 teaspoon of honey a day!

 

Honey is so versatile that the list is endless! We love to hear how our loyal customers use their honey. Pick up a jar today from our shop HERE and let us know how you use your honey!