
With a house full of teenagers we’ve had to deal with the sensitive subject of acne quite often. Fortunately, none of my children have what would be considered severe acne but they’ve all had “bumps” from time to time.
Now, I’m no acne expert, I’m just a mom, but I do know that no one wants to go around with “bumps”. So when a couple of my children were getting bumps a little more often, we began reading and experimenting.
We’ve tried a variety of products including ProActive (don’t judge, we were desperate) and everything we tried gave some results but they weren’t lasting and I didn’t feel like they were really good for the long haul.
We’ve also talked a lot about how diet affects our bodies, including our skin. I’m gonna be honest here, the idea of telling a teenager he/she can never eat certain foods again doesn’t appeal to me so I’ve asked them to just be aware of what they are eating and how their bodies are reacting. That’s not an area I can control anymore, they need to take responsibility for it.
While we were on vacation I read The Medicinal Gardener’s Handbook and read that sage can help draw out things like splinters, pus and heal skin. And it’s used to treat acne. I’ve also read that apple cider vinegar is very good for skin and people use it to treat acne.
I think it’s important to keep notes on the herbs I’m learning about. I use a plant profile worksheet to do this. If you’d like a copy of the worksheet, just fill out the form below.
So, I decided to make a homemade toner for my kids.
Here’s what you need:
40g of dried or wilted sage leaves
100ml Raw apple cider vinegar (I used Bragg’s – make sure it says it has the “mother” in it)
100ml Distilled Water

Heat about 2 cups of distilled water like you would for making tea. Then put the sage leaves and the hot water in a bowl and let steep for about 30 minutes. I put a plate over the bowl so it wouldn’t cool off. Strain out the sage leaves and put the “tea” in a jar. I measured out 1 2/3 cups. Add 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar. Put a lid on it and put it in the bathroom.
To use: dip a cotton ball into toner and squeeze out excess. Wipe over face and neck (and back, if needed) after washing. Let air dry.
Apple cider vinegar can be very drying. If find that it’s drying your skin out too much, then dilute it with distilled water.

Everyone agrees that it smells bad but that their skin is softer. The smell goes away after it’s dry. After a couple of days several of my kids were breaking out worse but I encouraged them to keep using it, hoping that is was just drawing out deeper impurities. Their skin is looking much better now.
I’m glad we’re doing this during the summer when their social life is a little less active.
If you just absolutely cannot stand the idea of putting apple cider vinegar on your face, one of my children found this herbal Acne Relief to work very well. We’re not using it now since I want to see how this toner does on it’s own but I’m open to using it in addition to the toner if they still need a little more help.
Natural Skin Toner for Acne

This sage toner is perfect for helping with teenage acne.
Materials
- 40g of dried or wilted sage leaves
- 100ml Raw apple cider vinegar (I used Bragg's - make sure it says it has the "mother" in it)
- 100ml Distilled Water
Tools
- Cooking pan
- Jar for storage
- Strainer
Instructions
- Heat distilled water like you would for making tea.
- Then put the sage leaves and the hot water in a bowl and let steep for about 30 minutes. I put a plate over the bowl so it wouldn't cool off.
- Strain out the sage leaves and put the "tea" in a jar.
- Add apple cider vinegar.
- Put a lid on it and put it in the bathroom.
Notes
To use: dip a cotton ball into toner and squeeze out excess. Wipe over face and neck (and back, if needed) after washing. Let air dry.

So, tell us what you’ve used for acne or “bump” that has worked well for your family.
I have my daughter using a mixture of coconut oil (3 T.) and tea tree oil (8 drops). She puts it on after she washes her face before bed. She still gets a few “bumps” but not as many as when she hasn’t used it in a few days. Wish I knew about it when I was growing up 🙂
oh, that’s a good idea!
Witch hazel. From webmd: In manufacturing, witch hazel leaf extract, bark extract, and witch hazel water are used as astringents to tighten the skin. They are also included in some medications to give those products the ability to slow down or stop bleeding. Those medications are used for treating insect bites, stings, teething, hemorrhoids, itching, irritations, and minor pain.
How does it work?
Witch hazel contains chemicals called tannins. When applied directly to the skin, witch hazel might help reduce swelling, help repair broken skin, and fight bacteria.
Thanks for sharing!
My daughter says raw honey works wonderful.
I’ve heard that, although none of my kids will try it. Maybe I can convince them.
I use Witch hazel via cotton swab a few times throughout the day to get my over oily face a little nicer and then take a Q-tip and spot treat with Tea Tree Oil, after my shower, before I go to bed (I also use African black soap with shea butter to wash my face, but only at night before bed)…I have very sensitive skin and found this to work for me over the Braggs Apple cider vinegar…everyone is different and all these suggestions are definitely worth a try…I also come from using Proactive (clearing throat with embarrassment lol) I had some teen acne, but going into my 30’s it has become embarrassing! Hope you find what works best for your teens!:) Wishing all good luck and clear skin!! 🙂
lol…sometimes, desperate times calls for despdrate measures. I’m glad you found something that is working for you, if this doen’t work, we’ll be trying some of these other suggestions. Thanks so much for sharing!
Ang, who replyed on june 22..I have very sensitive skin and with summer coming I need to be able to wash my face with drying it or having it break out. I ,too, didn’t break out as a teen but being a 40 year old mom isn’t fun with “the bumps” Where is you find the soap..africian black soap and could you give me a better idea of your regimen …I am not very good in the whole beauty department..Thanks , keri
I’ve used lavender oil before. Just put some on the end of a q-tip and apply to spots. It helped mine clear up! I did notice that over time it wasn’t as affective, so I give my skin a break from using it all the time.
I’ve not heard of using lavender oil, we’ll have to try that! Thanks for sharing.
We use lavender for everything skin related. It is very skin loving and healing. I apply it to cuts and burns neet and they heal much faster and without scarring. I do agree that you need to take a break from it though if you are using it continuously on your acne.
We also use a toner of 4:1 raw apple cider vinegar (Bragg’s) to water. It helps to rebalance the pH of your skin.
Another strategy that we’re using is the oil cleansing method at night. I originally mixed coconut oil with castor oil and it had been working well for me but not as well for the teens in our house. I also read that in some it can actually clog pores, so I switched to olive and also to jojoba oil which is a bit lighter to go with the castor oil. Castor oil is very drying but effective so we mix our oils 30% castor to 70% whatever other oils we are using at that time. You can look up the oil cleansing method online for a complete description and steps to follow. Basically you massage a quarter size amount of the oil mixture into the skin and use hot wash cloths applied to the face to steam open pores and allow the applied oils to attract out the oils and impurities in the skin and then thoroughly but gently wipe it off. You should steam your face several times to achieve the full potential of the method. I usually do only about 3 times but some prescribe much more. There is no need usually to do anything else like applying moisturizer but if I have occasion or spot of dryness I dab on just a bit of the oil I steamed with or straight jojoba which absorbs very quickly. No need to oil cleanse again in the morning. Just wash with warm water and a clean wash cloth and a swipe of the ACV toner. Hope this helps someone.
What great information! Thanks you so much for sharing the oil cleansing method. I’m sure it will help someone. It’s great to hear all these different things that have worked for different people.
I may need to try that. I love lavender!
Great ideas in the post and comments! Between Lupus and food allergies, my skin gets frequent breakouts and rashes. I have tried nearly all the ideas people have mentioned and found my skin likes fractionated coconut oil, Jojoba oil, and witch hazel best. I use tea tree oil with them as well.
Does it have to be fresh sage leaves? I have dried in my seasoning cupboard.
No, it doens’t have to be fresh. I would let it steep longer if I were using dried, though. Let me know how it works out for you.
Love that stuff! Thanks for sharing at Green Thumb Thursday; come back this week http://homesteadlady.com/green-thumb-thursday-7314/. My oldest is eleven but her diet is so clean that I’m hoping we miss a lot of the acne trouble I had when I was her age. We’ll see! If not, I know what to do now.
I hope so, too. My kids all eat pretty much the same and 1 has had acne worse than the others and 1 rarely ever gets a pimple. Its very interesting to me. I also see the breakouts coming and going and I believe a lot of it is caused my raging hormones.
Thank you so much for posting this. I have been dealing with adult “bumps” forever. I’m trying to not go back on chemical cleansers or medications. I just tried the oil cleanse method and it didn’t work well for me at all. My skin had a bad reaction to it, so now I’m back to square one. I have tried everything under the sun except this, so I will definitely give this a try as well. Thanks!
My daughter just entered her teens and on came the acne. She had tons on her forehead and hairline. We tried spot treatment, noxema, oxy, etc. and nothing worked fast or well. Figured we try the Citrus Clear products more before seeing a dermatologist. Glad we did because Citrus Clear did the trick! Saw big results overnight! Was 90% better day 2 and has remained under control (when used consistently). She has very sensitive skin and Citrus Clear products did not make her turn red, itch or dry out. It’s given her self esteem a much needed boost.
oh, that is good to know, Dorian. I might have to try Citrus Clear with one of my teens, this is helping but not completely clearing it up. Thanks for sharing!
I bet your toner will smell a lot better and have some additional purifying power if you added some mint, lavender, or rosemary, either fresh in the decoction, or drops of essential oil in the finished toner.
Just be careful of the amount of mint and avoid putting it near your eyes.
Thanks for the tip!