Shahnaz Husain's Homemade Cleansers
Renowned beauty expert Shahnaz Husain shares her ideas on how to keep your face sparkling and spotless by using these natural ingredients from your kitchen:
Facial Cleansing:
1. Almonds (Badaam): Pour hot water on the almonds and allow them to soak till the skin comes off. Dry them and grind them into a powder. Keep this in a jar. Daily add a little milk to some of the powder and use the paste to cleanse the face by rubbing the skin gently with it. Almond powder can also be added to face packs.
2. Cabbage: Cabbage is rich in vitamins and minerals. Boil cabbage in enough water. Cool the liquid and use it to wash the face.
Hands
Sugar and lemon juice can be rubbed on the hands to soften the skin and cleanse it.
Elbows And Knees
Lemon: Take two lemon halves and rub them on the elbows and knees. It cleanses the skin and lightens skin colour over a period of time. However, this remedy should not be used on facial skin.
Gums
Baking powder: Take a little baking powder and rub on the teeth. This helps to whiten and cleanse the gums.
Potato Power
* To lighten dark circles under your eyes, wrap a grated raw potato in cheesecloth and apply to eyelids for 15-20 minutes. Wipe off residue and apply an eye cream.
* Slices of raw potato (chilled if you like it better) are an excellent treatment for under eye circles. Just place the potato slices on your lids and relax for 15 minutes to half-an-hour. To make sure that you use this treatment everyday, make it a routine every night when you go to bed. No need to wake up to chuck those slices after use. Keep a cup next to your bedside on which you can place these so that you throw them away only the next morning. But do remember that you need enough good sleep and you also need to give your eyes enough rest to avoid dark circles. If you over-work your eyes you may find it difficult to get rid of dark circle.
Almond Oil Face Wash
* Almond oil is high in vitamin E content and is very effective for dark circles and even excessively dry skin.
* To make an excellent face wash, powder the almonds and mix with fresh cream or cold milk.
* Apply this mixture on your dark circles and even rest of the face and neck, leave on for five minutes and wash well with cold water.
* You will feel fresh and smooth after this face wash.
Fenugreek
* Powdered fenugreek and milk are said to tackle dark circles.
* Apply a paste of fenugreek mixed in milk on dark circles in the night.
* Wash off in the morning, and watch dark circles vanish for good.
A Natural Skin Bleach
* If you don't have pimples or sensitive skin try this. Use the watery layer you find on yogurt/curd and take about a teaspoon of it.
* Add a couple of drops of lemon. Apply this mixture evenly all over your face. Leave on for as long as you can (for half an hour minimum to even leaving it overnight). This acts as natural bleach.
* If you want to get rid of a suntan, use this mask overnight after a long day under the sun. You will not have any tan the next morning!
Sandalwood & Rosewater Sunscreen
* This cooling herb has medicinal properties that help heal without leaving behind any scars. What's more, sandalwood is a natural sunscreen and protects the skin against heat and radiation. No, you don't need to you walk around with a sandalwood mask on your face all day!
* But by applying a mask at least once or twice a week, you help your skin become sun-resilient. Sandalwood may be expensive, but remember that a small piece of sandalwood can last for years.
* Try to get the rarer Rakta Chandan or red sandalwood. This reddish variety (unlike the common yellowish variety) has the best properties of the wood minus the fragrance.
* Pour some water (rose water preferably) into a mortar and then rub the sandalwood stick till you get a paste of medium consistency. Apply and leave on skin till dry and wash off gently with lukewarm water.
