Any good sybarite, apart from enjoying the good eating and drinking also knows about health and beauty through natural ingredients. This is nothing new on the contrary the trend of natural skin and hair care comes from ancient practices.

Lets take a look at the princesses that cared so much about their looks that would rather use great ingredients on their bodies than on their dishes.

In ancient Egypt the use of several natural ingredients to preserve beauty was quite popular but it was the famous Cleopatra Filopator Nea Thea or Cleopatra VII, the last queen of Egypt, that took it to the extreme asking for a daily bath of donkey milk and honey to hydrate her skin. The mythical Egyptian gold bath was filled with approximately 80 gallons of fresh milk with honey and essential oils for the queen to be submerged while two ladies pampered her with sponges.

Later on we find Elizabeth I of England who also had several members of staff to take care of her hair and to prepare the luscious milk baths she took three times a week. These baths were a mix of goat and cow milk.

Empress Elizabeth of Austria better known as Sissi, was very well-known for her extreme beauty practices and diets. The most memorable apart from her three our a day hair ritual,  was the use of goat milk to keep the tone and elasticity of her skin intact. She travelled with her goats to ensure she would have her baths at the right time with fresh milk.

Why milk?

Milk contains lactic acid which works greatly against aging by rebuilding natural collagen. The second main component that makes this baths efficient is the alpha hydroxy acid that promotes exfoliation by breaking down the protein that holds dead cells to the skin making it appear and feel drier. It is important to mention the addition of honey to lock hydration and it also works as an anti-bacterial.

For a more realistic milk bath recipe click here.

Read more about Sissi’s practices here.