2014/04/25

Sugar Face Scrub

Another very simple recipe for natural cosmetics is my apple juice - sugar - scrub:

Simply mix 1 tablespoon of regular sugar with approx. 1/2 -1 tablespoon of 100% apple juice. Let it sit for a few minutes. The sugar will reduce its size a bit and make the peeling more gentle.

Start scrubbing it into your face, massaging it gently into your skin. It's also great for your lips! And you smell like a toffee apple afterward - delicious ;)

Afterwards wipe everything with a wash cloth. (Works better with hot water!)

I do NOT recommend using this scrub if you have raw skin or sunburn. I suppose it would sting quite a bit!

Since the fruit acid might make your skin a bit dry I recommend using a good moisturizer or oil afterwards.
Lately I used the oil cleaning method before to remove make-up, then used the sugar scrub and did another round of oil cleaning afterwards again.

It seems to work for my skin so far and many YouTubers made videos about great results of the oil cleaning method, so why don't you give it a try and see if it works for you too?! ;)

Enjoy taking the extra time for yourself and smelling like a coconut toffee apple ;)

Julia
xoxo

2014/04/21

Oil Cleaning

The oil cleaning trend seems to become more and more popular every day, so I figured I'd give it a try.

First off, what is it and why would someone want to do it?!
Basically, you use any kind of edible plant based oil instead of make-up remover or other face washs to clean your face. Searching YouTube for videos, olive oil, coconut oil and pumpkin seed oil are popular suggestions.
It's supposed to help with any kind of skin problems. Personally I have very dry parts but also tend to get pimples and blackheads here and there.

I use coconut oil, because I think it smells better than any other oil. Coconut oil has a creamy consistency. I need about half a teaspoon of it for my whole face. Once you put the creamy coconut fat in your hand, your body temperature will melt it into oil. Put the oil onto your face as you would with any face cream and massage it into your skin. You can even put it onto your eyelids and eyelashes. Then place a big hot wet wash cloth on your face and leave it for a few seconds. You may put your hands over it to create even more heat. Start wiping the oil off your face, rinsing your wash cloth several times in hot water until you removed the oil completely.
Personally I air dry my face afterwards, but you may obviously use a towel.

Results so far: I did it only twice so far, but my skin feels very soft, even on the next day and it really works way better than any make-up removers I've tried. It didn't do anything for clearing my skin up so far, but that probably needs more time..
Conclusion: I want to use coconut oil more often to clean my face to see if it helps with my blemished skin.

Btw: Coconut oil is also great for baking or giving a little special touch to your asian dishes!
If you don't like it in the kitchen, you can use it for your skin and even your hair (but only on the hair-ends) to repair it's split!

Enjoy pampering yourself ;)

Julia
xoxo