Homemade Facial

At times when workload is escalating, schedule jam-packed and days when you can barely manage to finish your daily chores, a good beauty pampering can raise your spirits. However, at times you struggle to get an appointment at the salon, or are just too tired to drive, it is at times like this when you wish you had a beauty salon at home. Well, not a very distant dream...you can have homemade beauty treatments to pamper yourself. With some simple ingredients that you can find in your kitchen, you can manage to make a really great homemade facial pack for yourself. Here is all the information you will need before you decide to go for a homemade facial.

Homemade facials

Having a homemade facial might not be as pampering an experience, since you would be preparing the face masks and doing all the procedures yourself, but if you are serious about skincare, then a homemade facial might be very helpful in maintaining that beautiful glow on your face.

How to go about a homemade facial?

Remember that while giving yourself a facial at home, you need to keep all the required things organized at a small table before you so that you do not have to get up and look for a particular thing in the middle of the facial. Here is the list of things you will need for a basic homemade facial:

• Clean towels: You need towels to gently pat your skin dry after every step in the facial. Keep some clean towels near you while you begin the homemade facial.
• Cotton balls: While removing the scrubs and applying the face masks it is better to use cotton balls which are not harsh on the skin.
• Fresh and clean water: You will need water to clean off the scrubs and the facemasks at every step. Keep plenty of water at hand while preparing for your homemade facial.
• Cleansing lotion: You can use your standard cleansing lotion or just use prepare a mixture of two tablespoons of yogurt and 1 ½ tablespoon lemon juice which acts as an effective cleanser.
• Skin-toner: Rose water is a very effective and easily available toner. In case you have some other branded toner that you regularly use, you can use that for sure.
• Exfoliating scrub: Exfoliation is an important step in any skin care treatment. Use coarsely grounded chickpea flour or oats as a homemade scrub. In case you have any other scrub like an apricot or walnut scrub at home.
• Moisturizer or body butter: Moisturizing your skin is of utmost importance. You your regular moisturizer and in case you are looking for a homemade moisturizing solution just mix 2-3 tablespoon mashed avocado with 1 tablespoon of honey and fresh cream.
• Steamer: Steam opens up the pores on your skin and helps to clear the dust and dirt in the pore. In case your don't have a home steam machine, just boil some water in a container and use it as a home-steamer.
• Face mask: A homemade face mask should be prepared in advance and kept at the table while beginning the facial. Ideas for homemade facemasks are given in later part of this article.

Steps to follow in the homemade facial

1. Cleansing: First of all clean your face with a splash of water and pat dry. Now apply a cleansing lotion with a cotton ball. Make sure you cleanse the face with adequate pressure and clean the area behind your ears, the neck and the face properly. Now take a fresh cotton ball and wipe off the cleansing lotion. Splash some water on the face and pat dry to complete the cleansing process.

2. Exfoliation: Use the steamer to expose your face and neck adequately to the steam. It can be a great idea to add some basil leaves to the steamer since it will benefit the health of your skin. Be careful with the steam; make sure you do not hold the machine too close to your face since excessively hot steam can actually damage your skin. Once you are done with the steaming and the pores are open, apply the exfoliating scrub and gently massage it on your face and neck to remove the black heads, dead skin and other dirt with special attention to areas on and around the nose and the forehead. Do not apply too much pressure since too much of scrubbing can damage sensitive skin. Gently remove the scrub with a cotton ball and splash more water to clean your face.

3. Moisturizing: Apply a good moisturizer that suits your skin type and gently massage your face across the cheeks, forehead and neck. Keep on massaging for at least 15-20 minutes and add more quantity of the moisturizer after every two minutes. Using a homemade moisturizing treatment at this stage can be good idea. Once you have massaged enough, remove the moisturizer with a cotton ball.

4. Facemask: Once you have reached this stage, apply the facial mask to your entire face, neck and shoulders with an application brush or a simple cotton ball. Place to freshly sliced cucumber slices on your eyelids and rest your head until the mask dries completely.

5. Toning: Once the mask has completely dried out, gently clean it off the face with some water. Use a cotton ball to remove the facemask completely. Soak a cotton ball in rose water or your regular toner and wipe your face with a toner.

Ideas for homemade face-masks

Here are some easy and effective ideas for homemade facial masks to rejuvenate and nourish your skin. Before you try out any of these masks make sure you check which one suits your skin type.

Refreshing Honey Lemon Face Mask

Ingredients:

Honey - 2 tablespoons
Freshly squeezed lemon juice - ½ Tablespoon
Fresh yogurt - 1 Cup
Glycerin - 2 tablespoons
Chickpea flour - 1/3 cup

Preparation: Simply beat the honey, yogurt and glycerin together to form a smooth blend. Now add the flour and beat again until you have a thick mixture.
Application: Apply the paste to the face, neck and even to the shoulders and hands if required. Keep it on for fifteen minutes and rinse off.
Benefits: The lemon juice and honey help to cleanse the skin, as the glycerin and yogurt moisturize to refresh and cleanse your skin making it amazingly soft and fresh.

Anti-tan Tomato Facial

Ingredients:

Mashed tomato paste - 1 Tomato
Cucumber juice - 1 Tablespoon
Mint leaves - 3 /4
Oatmeal powder - 1 cup
Fresh yogurt - 2 tablespoons

Preparation: Remove the seeds and skin of the tomato, mash it and add the cucumber juice, crushed mint leaves and oatmeal powder to form an even paste.
Application: Apply the paste to the face, neck, shoulders and hands. Keep it on for fifteen to twenty minutes and rinse off with lukewarm water.
Benefits: The tomato juice helps to reduce the skin tan and the mint refreshed the skin while the oatmeal, yogurt and cucumber have a soothing and cool effect on the skin. This mask works well for oily skin as well.

Moisturizing Sandalwood Mask

Ingredients

Sandalwood powder -31/2 tablespoons
Turmeric- ½ tablespoon
Fresh milk - 1 tablespoon
Rose water- 1 tablespoon

Preparation: Mix all the ingredients to form a thick paste
Application: Apply the paste on to the face neck and shoulders and leave it on for 15-20 minutes until the mask is completely dry. Rinse off with lukewarm water and pat dry.
Benefits: The sandalwood and turmeric improve your complexion while the milk and rose water moisturizes it to keep it glowing and fresh.

So the next time you are too tired to take that long drive to the salon, or just think your skin could use some pampering, try one of these homemade facials to give yourself a refreshing change! You will quite like it.