Exfoliation is especially important during the cold weather months, when the skin tends to get dry, build up layers of dead skin cells, and lose its glow. Exfoliating at least twice a week, depending on your skin-type and sensitivity, will not only help deep-clean and smooth your skin, it will also unclog pores and accelerate the skin's natural shedding process. This is key to your skincare routine because it allows your serums and moisturizer to penetrate your skin's layers to work their magic, rather then floating on the surface of dead skin cells.
I've tested a number of exfoliators lately looking for gentle, but effective scrubs for different skin types. Here are my favorites:
St. Ives Apricot Scrub
An oldy, but a goody. This classic affordable scrub is gentle and hydrating enough not to irritate dry skin, but still has enough scrubbing power to get rid of those dead skin cells. Because the exfoliating pieces are larger, this is not the best for cleaning out clogged pores despite the fact that the label indicates that it eliminates blackheads. If blackheads are a concern, I would recommend one of the exfoliators with finer particles. Otherwise, this is a great gentle scrub that most people with oily to dry skin can use at least several times a week without causing irritation. However, I would not recommend this scrub for extremely dry or extremely sensitive skin.
Lush Coalface
One of my all time favorites from my combination-skin days. For oily to normal and combination skin, this bar-form scrub is ideal. It will clean out your pores thoroughly and make your face truly squeaky clean. Seriously, very squeaky, try it. This is not a scrub for the faint of heart, but it is also surprisingly non-irritating for its effectiveness. Perhaps because it is all-natural, I can still use this scrub occasionally even though I have drier skin now, and it does not leave my face red or irritated. This is not, however, a skin-softening exfoliator. This is the best scrub for men too: it will clean out the pores around hair follicles on the face, giving men a cleaner shave and preventing in-grown hairs. My fiance's been diminishing my supply.
Kate Somerville ExfoliKate
This exfoliator is the creme de la creme of exfoliators. It's not cheap and it's not gentle, but it's so effective, all you have to do is apply it like a mask without rubbing it in and leave it on for no more than 30 seconds. The enzymes do the work for me, and my skin feels soft as a baby's when I'm finished. I can only leave it on for about 20 seconds before it starts to irritate, and I certainly can't use it more than twice a week, but it is the very best exfoliator in that my skin feels both clean and soft after use. And I feel like I really get the most out of my serums after using ExfoliKate first.
Cosmedicine Medi-Morphosis
This is a self-adjusting exfoliator with tiny scrubbing crystals that dissolve automatically when your skin's had enough. Well, that's how it's supposed to work anyway. I feel like this is THE BEST exfoliator by a landslide for those with severely clogged pores and stubborn blackheads because the crystals are so fine. That said, I cannot use this exfoliator all over my face. It's simply too irritating for my cheeks and forehead. I occasionally use it around my nose and chin when I get clogged pores, and it is supremely effective. I feel like this would be ideal for anyone with oily to combination skin no more than once or twice a week. Also, I once used this product the morning after using an acne-spot treatment, and my skin peeled. So this is simply too powerful of a scrub to mix with any acne treatments. I suspect that it would probably not interact well with retinol-based products either. This is very effective, but I would just caution to use it with care, and not at all if you have sensitive skin.
Ole Henriksen Sugar Glow Face Scrub
Alright, for those with dry and/or sensitive skin, this is the one you've been waiting for. It's from my favorite active-natural skincare line, and it's very gentle and leaves the skin feeling soft and hydrated. It just gets rid of those dead skin cells, which even dry skin needs, without irritating. And it smells good enough to eat (like an orange dream bar).
Homemade Oatmeal Scrub
For those with extremely dry or extremely sensitive skin or just a glamazon on a budget, a homemade oatmeal scrub is an easy, inexpensive treat that will still get rid of those pesky dead skin cells without drying or irritating your skin. Simply take 2 generous tablespoons of oatmeal, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, and add enough warm water to make a paste. Then simply scrub your face in circular motions (concentrating on the T-Zone) and rinse with warm water. Your skin will feel smooth and softened.
Showing posts with label Home Remedies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Home Remedies. Show all posts
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Home Cookin: An Aspirin a Day
For the occasional blemish, here's a recipe for a quick homemade paste that will calm redness and swelling quickly. Take a non-coated aspirin (or two baby aspirins), crush it with the back of a spoon or chop it with a knife, and then mix in a bit of water to form a paste. Apply to the affected area and leave on for about 15-20 minutes before washing with warm water and a washcloth. This makes a great spot treatment, and it actually helps kill the bacteria to keep it from spreading and causing a full-fledged breakout. It's a great quick-fix, and it's less drying than most store-bought spot treatments (and much more cost-effective too!).
You can also use aspirin to make a great purifying mask. It will help clean and minimize pores, and it makes dull dry skin soft and luminous. For the mask, take four non-coated aspirin tablets, crush or chop, add a few drops of water, and blend with a honey to form a paste. Usually, about a 1/2 teaspoon of honey does the trick but add more if it looks dry or doesn't spread easily. Apply to the full face (avoiding the eye area, just like any mask), and leave it on for about 10-15 minutes. Then rinse the face with warm water.
You can also use aspirin to make a great purifying mask. It will help clean and minimize pores, and it makes dull dry skin soft and luminous. For the mask, take four non-coated aspirin tablets, crush or chop, add a few drops of water, and blend with a honey to form a paste. Usually, about a 1/2 teaspoon of honey does the trick but add more if it looks dry or doesn't spread easily. Apply to the full face (avoiding the eye area, just like any mask), and leave it on for about 10-15 minutes. Then rinse the face with warm water.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Home Cookin: The Oatmeal Mask
Oatmeal is a classic home remedy for all kinds of skin woes, particularly poison ivy, bug bites, rashes, eczema, sunburns, chicken pox, and general skin irritation and redness. Aveeno makes many soothing skin-care products with an oatmeal base, but you can easily make an oatmeal paste at home that you can use to soothe irritated skin. You can use this paste as a spot-treatment for bug bites, which will reduce swelling and redness, and help keep itching at bay. You can add a half-cup of the paste to a warm bath for a rash on the body or to sooth a sunburn. You can also use the paste as a facial mask to help soothe redness and irritation and give your skin a healthy refreshed glow. The paste even makes a great spot treatment for an annoying red pimple underneath the surface of the skin. It won't treat a pimple as effectively as salicylic acid, but it works well to treat redness and inflammation for those pimples that haven't quit hit the skin's surface. You can also use the paste as a refreshing mask for the feet, which helps soften callouses and soothe blisters.
Start with 1/2 cup milk and microwave it for one minute on medium-high power. Then dissolve two tablespoons of honey in the warm milk, stirring well. Next, add 1/4 to 1/3 cup oatmeal to make a paste. You want it to be thick enough that it is sticking together and all the liquid is absorbed, but not at all dry. How much oatmeal you will ultimately use can vary depending on the type of oatmeal you use (old-fashioned, 5-minute, instant) and what type of milk you use (fat-free, whole, soy, almond). I prefer to use a milk with at least a little milk-fat like a 2% and a stove-top oatmeal rather than the instant stuff. But you can use anything you have on hand. Just add more oatmeal by the spoon-full if it's too wet or more milk by the spoon-full if it's too dry. It should have the texture of a moist somewhat sticky paste, definitely thicker than a bowl of oatmeal for eating. You can use it as is or at a teaspoon of an oil like lavender oil for extra soothing or tea tree oil for acne. Olive oil is a good one for the feet.
For a spot treatment for bug bites or acne, simple apply a liberal amount of the paste to the affected area and let it dry for 45 minutes. As a mask for the face or feet, apply generously and allow to dry for 45 minutes. If you're applying it to the feet, I would suggest pulling on some cotton socks so you can be mobile while the mask dries. Then rinse with warm water and a washcloth, no soap necessary. Your skin will be soft and smooth, and it should feel a lot less irritated.
If you have a larger affected area, like a sunburn or poison oak or a rash on a large portion of your body, it's best to use this in the bath. Simply take a 1/2 to 3/4 cups of the paste and run it under warm bath water. Soak for at least a half-hour. This will require some clean-up afterward, so even though I like to have the loose oatmeal so I can rub it into any particularly bad spots while I bathe, it is a chore to clean up. Especially if you're already sore with a sunburn, etc. To avoid clean-up, simply take the paste and put it into a sachet bag to hang on your faucet and let the water run over it. You'll get most of the same benefits. If you don't have a sachet bag handy, you can make one at home with a coffee filter and just use a rubber band to tie it closed and a second rubber band to hang it on the faucet. A little sieve from the kitchen would also do the trick.
This little home-remedy may not work the same miracles as the latest $75 anti-aging serum, but it's a great easy-to-make concoction that is affordable and effective, particularly for irritated and/or inflamed skin. If you prefer to purchase the pre-made oatmeal treatments, check out Aveeno's long list of oatmeal and milk-based products.
Start with 1/2 cup milk and microwave it for one minute on medium-high power. Then dissolve two tablespoons of honey in the warm milk, stirring well. Next, add 1/4 to 1/3 cup oatmeal to make a paste. You want it to be thick enough that it is sticking together and all the liquid is absorbed, but not at all dry. How much oatmeal you will ultimately use can vary depending on the type of oatmeal you use (old-fashioned, 5-minute, instant) and what type of milk you use (fat-free, whole, soy, almond). I prefer to use a milk with at least a little milk-fat like a 2% and a stove-top oatmeal rather than the instant stuff. But you can use anything you have on hand. Just add more oatmeal by the spoon-full if it's too wet or more milk by the spoon-full if it's too dry. It should have the texture of a moist somewhat sticky paste, definitely thicker than a bowl of oatmeal for eating. You can use it as is or at a teaspoon of an oil like lavender oil for extra soothing or tea tree oil for acne. Olive oil is a good one for the feet.
For a spot treatment for bug bites or acne, simple apply a liberal amount of the paste to the affected area and let it dry for 45 minutes. As a mask for the face or feet, apply generously and allow to dry for 45 minutes. If you're applying it to the feet, I would suggest pulling on some cotton socks so you can be mobile while the mask dries. Then rinse with warm water and a washcloth, no soap necessary. Your skin will be soft and smooth, and it should feel a lot less irritated.
If you have a larger affected area, like a sunburn or poison oak or a rash on a large portion of your body, it's best to use this in the bath. Simply take a 1/2 to 3/4 cups of the paste and run it under warm bath water. Soak for at least a half-hour. This will require some clean-up afterward, so even though I like to have the loose oatmeal so I can rub it into any particularly bad spots while I bathe, it is a chore to clean up. Especially if you're already sore with a sunburn, etc. To avoid clean-up, simply take the paste and put it into a sachet bag to hang on your faucet and let the water run over it. You'll get most of the same benefits. If you don't have a sachet bag handy, you can make one at home with a coffee filter and just use a rubber band to tie it closed and a second rubber band to hang it on the faucet. A little sieve from the kitchen would also do the trick.
This little home-remedy may not work the same miracles as the latest $75 anti-aging serum, but it's a great easy-to-make concoction that is affordable and effective, particularly for irritated and/or inflamed skin. If you prefer to purchase the pre-made oatmeal treatments, check out Aveeno's long list of oatmeal and milk-based products.
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