You can step up your skincare routine without a trip to the spa thanks to these homemade treatments.
Maria Velve, a Toronto "green beauty expert," shared three easy face mask recipes that you can make with common ingredients found in your kitchen.
The toning, moisturizing and exfoliating masks will add some extra glow to your skin.
Velve spoke with Narcity about the masks and shared her tips on creating the perfect spa day at home.
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Prepping your skin
Velve says the first step in any at-home beauty ritual is steaming your face.
"Not only does it open up the pores [...], it also helps your more expensive products penetrate deeper, it helps people who have sensitive skin or people who have dryness because you're giving all this hydration to your skin."
To steam your skin, fill a large bowl with boiling water, lean over it, and cover your head with a towel.
Velve suggests adding tea bags or your favourite essential oils for a soothing experience.
After 10 minutes, your skin is ready for a mask.
DIY Toning Mask
Ingredients:
- 10 red seedless grapes
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp water
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 5 drops essential oil (optional)
Mix the ingredients in a food processor or blender, adding more water or cornstarch to reach the desired consistency.
"You place it on your skin, and the antioxidants of the grapes will tone and firm up the skin," Velve explains.
"You leave it on for about 10 minutes, and then you rinse clean. Proceed with your skincare after that."
Homemade Moisturizing Mask
Ingredients:
- 1/2 pitted avocado
- 2 tbsp Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp honey, preferably manuka
Mix the ingredients together and apply to your skin for at least 10 minutes.
"The plain yogurt has alpha hydroxy acids, [so] you're getting actually a bit of an exfoliation," Velve says.
"The honey is a humectant so it helps draw moisture to the surface of the skin. It also has amazing minerals in it, it's antibacterial, so [...] this could be even for someone who has acne."
"And then the avocado, where do I start with avocado? You get the fats for your skin and fantastic nourishing ingredients."
Exfoliating Mask Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup ground almonds or oats
- 1 tbsp baking soda
- 7 drops lavender essential oil
- 5 drops Frankincense
This powder mask can be stored on the shelf to use whenever you'd like.
Mix the ingredients together in a sealable jar. When you're ready for your spa treatment, mix the powder with water or an oil of your choice to turn it into a paste.
"With this one, you have to be gentle because [it's a] physical exfoliant," Velve says.
"Just gently massage it to remove the dead layers of skin."
Velve suggests steaming and treating your face once a week, especially if you wear a mask a lot or suffer from the dreaded mask acne.
"If you are wearing [a mask] consistently, your skin is going to be suffering from it."