Skin care does not have to cost a lot of money. You can make skin care treatments from items you already have in your own home. Not only will these items cost less–or, perhaps, nothing–they will be free from preservatives. Set aside an evening for a homemade spa treatment. Put on some soft music, light some candles and pamper your face, hair, body, hands and feet.
Facials
Whether you drink coffee or not, used coffee grounds make a great facial and body scrub and the caffeine stimulates your skin, according to Shelly Ballestero in her book, “Beauty by God.” Gently rub the grounds onto your face, let them set for one minute and then rinse them off. For a body scrub, step into the shower and rub the grounds all over your skin; let them set for 10 minutes and rinse off.
For smoother skin, try a milk and honey mask. Mix a few drops of honey to 1 tsp. milk. Spread it over your skin, let it dry and wash off.
Lemon juice is a natural skin toner. Saturate a cotton ball with lemon juice and apply to face. Take the squeezed halves of the lemon and stick them on your elbows for 10 to 30 minutes.
Plain yogurt tightens your skin. Spread over your skin and leave for 20 minutes. Rinse with lukewarm water.
Smooth a 6-oz. jar of baby food bananas under your eyes for 10 minutes. Rinse clean. The potassium helps eliminates dark circles under.
Hands and Feet
Make a brown sugar hand and foot scrub. Mix 2 tbsp. brown sugar, 2 tsp. aloe vera gel, 1 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice, 2 tsp. ground oatmeal (use a coffee grinder or food processor), 1 tsp. honey and 1 tsp. almond or olive oil. Mix until it resembles a paste, massage into hands and feet, and then rinse clean.
Use olive oil on your cuticles. Before you go to bed, spread a small amount of olive oil on your nail’s cuticles and let it stay for 5 minutes. Then, massage your nails and cuticles.
To lighten yellowed fingernails and toenails, Ballestero recommends denture tablets. Find a bowl that you can fit your fingertips or toes into and fill with water. Dissolve two denture tablets in the water and soak your nails for 5 minutes.
Hair
Pamper your hair once or twice a month with a homemade deep conditioning pack with ingredients from your pantry or medicine cabinet. Open a vitamin E capsule–or take a bit of olive oil–and apply it to your hair; use more if your hair is thick or long. Gather your hair on top of your head and put on a disposable shower cap or a plastic vegetable bag from the produce section of the grocery store. Place a folded towel in the microwave for 1 minute or until warm; wrap around your hair. Leave for 15 to 20 minutes, and then wash your hair with a gentle shampoo.
Finishing
Make a dusting powder by mixing 8 oz. tapioca starch, 4 oz. cornstarch, 4 oz. arrowroot powder, 7 drops ylang-ylang oil and 14 drops of grapefruit oil. Put dry ingredients in a container with a lid. Shake to mix well. Apply oils to an absorbent cotton pad and place in the container with dry ingredients; shake well. Allow to stand for 24 hours and shake again; repeat for another 24 hours. Remove the cotton pad; the dusting powder is ready to use.
Make a finishing spray with glycerin. Mix one part glycerin with nine parts water. Pour into a small spritzer bottle. After applying your makeup–and your mascara is dry–spritz your face to set the makeup. Spritz your face throughout the day to refresh your skin.
Photo Credit
- getting a facial image by Kelly Kane from Fotolia.com
