At Home Facial

Photo by Breakingpic on Pexels.com

The one thing that I find I just don’t have the time to go out to do is get a facial. I find myself feeling quite lazy when it comes to actually getting all dressed and ready just to go out to get my face and neck all dirty again. So, tonight I decided to give myself a facial right in the comfort of my home. Of course, the relaxation that comes with having a professional do it for you was dearly missed, I still managed to achieve exceptional results.

Because I have very sensitive and dry skin I used the following combination of remedies. But you may choose any of the below that may suit your skin best.

My Personal Facial:
Oatmeal Cleanser
Rose Water Toner
Egg & Honey Mask
Almond and Mayonnaise Scrub
Olive Oil as my moisturizer
**Just remember: When you’re giving yourself a facial to take your time and relax. I would even prepare everything in advance so that each step can be done one-after the other without the interruption of having to prepare the products in-between. Finally, to top everything off, cut a couple of slices of cucumbers and chill them in your fridge until you are ready to apply your mask. If you don’t have cucumbers, soak cotton balls in rose-water and place them in a bowl in your fridge. Then when you apply your mask, sit back, put the cucumber slices or cotton balls on your eyes and let the mask dry.**

For a facial, follow the below steps to achieve best results:

1. Cleanse your face and neck with one of the below natural cleansers that best suits your skin type:
   • Milk Cleanser – Oily Skin: Mix 1 tsp powdered milk and 1 tsp water and gently massage for 2 minutes
   • Yogurt Cleanser – Sensitive Skin: Mix 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp plain yogurt. Apply the paste on to skin and leave on for 2 minutes. Then gently massage for another 2 minutes. Rinse with warm water.
   • Oatmeal Cleanser – Dry to Sensitive Skin: Mix 1/2 cup oatmeal and 1 tsp plain yogurt. Apply the paste on to skin and leave on for 5 minutes. Rinse with cold water.
2. Tone your face and neck with one of the below natural toner that best suits your skin type:
   • Lemon Juice – Oily Skin
   • Rose Water – Sensitive Skin
3. Pick one of the mask recipes to apply to your face and neck from the below:
   • Avocado Yogurt Mask – Dry Skin: Blend 1 ripe Avocado with 4 tbsp yogurt. Apply the paste on to your ski and leave on for 30 minutes. Rinse with warm water.
   • Oatmeal Banana Yogurt Mask – Very Dry Skin: Mash 1 Banana into 1 tbsp dry oatmeal and 2 tsp yogurt. Apply the paste onto skin and leave on for 20 minutes. Rinse with warm water.
   • Lemon Mask – Dry Skin: Mix 2 egg yolks, 1 tsp olive oil and 1 tsp lemon juice. Spread mixture onto face and neck and leave on for 10 minutes. Rinse off the with cold water.
   • Egg Honey Mask – Dry to Sensitive Skin: Mix 1 egg yolk and 2 tbsp honey. Apply paste onto skin and leave on for 15 minutes. Rinse with lukewarm water.
   • Coconut Milk Pineapple Mask – Oily Skin: Mix 1 tsp fresh pineapple juice, 1 tsp coconut milk and 1 tsp cornstarch. Apply onto skin and leave on for 10 minutes. Rinse with warm water.
   • Cucumber Mask – Oily Skin: Puree 1/2 cucumber, 1 egg white, 1 tbsp lemon juice and 1 tsp milk. Apply onto skin and leave on for 20 minutes. Rinse with cold water.
4. Exfoliate your face and neck with one of the following mixtures (Note: For any exfoliating method you choose, remember to GENTLY rub the mixture in a circular motion. Don’t be harsh and remember to get all major areas like your chin, nose and forehead. You can even gently scrub your lips with these to get any dead skin off):
   • Almond Honey Scrub – Dry Skin: Mix 2 tbsp crushed almonds and 1 tbsp honey.
   • Yogurt Almond Scrub – Blemished Skin: Mix 3 tbsp crushed almonds and 1/2 cup yogurt.
   • Almond Mayonnaise Scrub – Very Dry Skin: Grind 1/4 cup almonds and mix with 1/2 tsp mayonnaise.
   • Brown Sugar Scrub – Sensitive Skin: Mix 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, 1/2 cup almond oil, 2 tsp pure vanilla extract, 1 tbsp oatmeal, 1 tsp nutmeg and a pinch of Calendula petals.
   • Mint Oatmeal Scrub – To Rejuvenate Skin: 1/2 cup oatmeal and 1/4 cup dried mint. Mix with water.
5. After you have successfully completed steps 1-4, your face and neck should be looking quite youthful, fresh and revitalized. Apply a good moisturizer and you’re set.You may wish to choose one of the below moisturizer remedies to finish off your facial:
   • Chamomile Honey Lotion – Steep 1 c. dried chamomile in 1 cup milk for a few hours. Strain, keeping the liquid. Add 4 tbsp. Honey and 8 tsp. wheat germ to liquid mixture. Blend well and place in a bottle.
   • Anti-Aging Cream – Combine 1 ounce glycerin, 1 ounce witch hazel, ½ ounce rose-water, 3 tbsp. honey, and 3 tbsp. wheat germ oil. Massage the cream into your skin using a circular and upward motion. Store in a tightly sealed container at room temperature. It should last for at least 1 month.

Winter Remedy: Honey Yogurt Turmeric Mask

I love the cold winter weather. I’m not a fan of the snow on the roads, but the cold never phases me; I guess, living in Canada for the past 30 years will do that to you.

The cold, fresh air in the winter makes my skin glow and my makeup stays put all day. But it does make my face extremely dry. I’ve bought expensive creams and serums to aid with the dry skin; nothing seems to work as good as my household remedies. So here, I’m giving you my best tested home remedy to soothe winter skin.

This is a quick and easy remedy that will allow you to conveniently find all the ingredients right in your fridge/cupboard or local grocery store.

The first and most important of all: honey. Honey has tons of healing properties. It’s known as a natural antibiotic and can be used as an anti-inflammatory and moisturizing miracle worker.

Yogurt has lactic acid in it; which will help dissolve dead skin and tighten pores. It’s also cool and applying yogurt on your face just gives your skin a refreshing feeling.

Turmeric will help fight acne and heal scars. This ingredient also has anti-inflammatory properties which will target pores and calm redness in skin.

Mix the three ingredients together and you’ve got a magic mask to deal with all the cold, windy days of winter. Plus, you’re skin will feel refreshed, smooth and soft and love you for this magic potion.

Yogurt-Honey Mask

Ingredients:

• 1-2 tbsp yogurt
• 1-2 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp turmeric powder

Directions:

1. Mix ingredients together
2. Apply with a brush or fingers evenly on face and neck. You can even apply the mixture to your hair if you have time to wash your hair; otherwise stick to applying it to your face only.
3. Leave on for 20-25 minutes or until mixture dries on your skin

To Remove:

1. Wet hands with lukewarm water and rub on face in a circular motion for 2-3 minutes. This will give your skin a good massage and exfoliate dead skin. Make sure to use gentle circular motions as you don’t want to aggravate the skin.
2. Rinse off with cool water
3. Apply a light moisturizer, if needed. I personally don’t need it after this mask as it leaves my skin feeling hydrated and smooth.
4. The next morning, I apply Vaseline to my t-zone and lips and my moisturizer on the rest of my face. The Vaseline creates a barrier for my sensitive area against the cold winter air. Plus, applying a light coat of Vaseline helps my makeup go on smoother.

Try this mask at least once or twice a week depending on how much healing and refreshing your skin needs.

Don’t forget to let me know how amazing your skin feels after trying this or share your remedies with me and get featured on my blog (I’m always looking for new people to feature).

Xoxo ~ Tamana

Product Review: Birchbox.ca

Have you heard of Birchbox.ca? It’s a website that allows you to test out different products every month. For $10 plus shipping, you can receive 5 new samples monthly. I think it’s a great way to test out products without committing to the high-price before you’ve actually tried it out.

Of  course, I signed up for it and just received my first Birch box. My samples came in a beautiful box and wrapped in tissue. It arrived exactly when they said it would and they even provided tracking information.

They gave me a $10 coupon off my next purchase of $35 or more; which is fantastic because I actually like one of my samples and am hoping to buy it before I receive my next order.

The samples that were included in my Birchbox were pretty good, except for one. But the size of the samples was disgustingly small. I mean, I understand they’re samples, i was just hoping they would be slightly bigger then they were. Here’s what I received:

Bain de Terre | Arian Oil & Passion Flower Color Therapy Styling Oil
Smell: Strong smell – but has not troubled my allergies or trigger my asthma to act up. I love how my hair smells after using this product. (5/5)
After application results: My hair felt smooth and shiny – just like the packaging said it would! (5/5)
Overall rating: (5/5) I love this product!
Would I buy it: The full size is decently priced ($13.00 via Google search), but once my sample runs out, I’ll see how the feel and will probably end up buying it!

Coastal Scents | styleEYES Eyeshadow Palette – formalEYES
Smell: N/A (0/5)
After application results: The pigmentation of these eyeshadow was amazing! (5/5)
Overall rating: (5/5) I love how the colours complement my skin tone.
Would I buy it: Of course! Full palette with 8 beautiful natural shades for only $16.00.

Dr. Lipp | Miracle Balm
Smell: N/A (0/5)
After application results: Soft, non-sticky. But wears off fairly fast. (2/5)
Overall rating: (2/5)
Would I buy it: No. It wore off so quick and my lips still felt chapped.

Harvey Prince | Hello Body Creme
Smell: Strong smell – but has not troubled my allergies or trigger my asthma to act up (3/5)
After application results: Soft, hydrated hands. (5/5)
Overall rating: (4/5) Besides the smell, I do like this product.
Would I buy it: I’ll stick to my L’Occtaine. $26.00 for 12oz. plus shipping is not worth the buy for me.

Salon Gioje | Keratin Protein Mask
Smell: My hair smells absolutely amazing. So amazing after washing that even Dev complimented me on it. (5/5)
After application results: Soft and shiny. (5/5)
Overall rating: (5/5) I love it!
Would I buy it: Most likely. But at $40 for 250ml. it’s a bit steep in price.

My overall rating on my Birchbox is 4/5. The sizes of the samples are quite small. But I did end up liking most of my samples and will probably order at least two of them once the sample runs out. For $10 plus taxes, this was a great experience. I can’t wait for my next Birchbox to arrive!

Another Bucket List Item Checked Off

 Today, what can I say about today? Today I had one of the most exciting experiences of my life. One of my long-time bucket list items have been to have a makeover done on tv. And what better place to do it than on The Marilyn Denis Show!

I grew up watching Marilyn. I remember her show was one of my mother’s favourite daytime talk shows to watch. I remember my mother always raving and boosting about how fabulous Marilyn was. And I’ve seen Marilyn transform women into their truly potential best self.

Today, Marilyn and her team gave me the opportunity to transform my boring, all-black date-night look into a va-va-voom look. Her team and the amazing and successful stylist, Denise Caldwell ignited the confidence in me that I had lost so many years ago.

 

For a woman, who at one time in her life always felt like a million bucks and then through a devastating divorce and years of feeling like she didn’t deserve to be beautiful; and then to turn her into a diva through the help of an enthusiastic and confident fashion stylist, hair and makeup gurus and an opportunist talk-show host, is one of the most exhilarating experiences a woman can have. Today, I felt like I was 20 again and like I was a stunning, desirable and confident woman again; the first time in over 12 years.
How do I thank you Heidi Allen for giving me this opportunity? How do I say how much you’ve inspired me Denise Caldwell? And how do I say thanks hair and makeup gurus for bringing back years of lost confidence? But most importantly, how do I say thank you Marilyn for giving average gals like me this experience of a lifetime and memories to last forever.

 Thank you The Marilyn Denis show and team for bringing back the me I thought I lost years ago. Xoxo

Product Review: L’Occitane’s Shea Nail & Cuticle Nourishing Oil

L’Occitane’s Shea Nail & Cuticle Nourishing Oil

Since I’m working in a brand-crazy area now, I’ve been walking around and discovering new stores daily. I knew of L’Occitane prior to working here, but had never been to the stores. I recently visited a store and was offered an out-of-this-world hand wash and massage. They first exfoliated my hands, washed them, applied cuticle oil and then massaged them with a luxurious, velvety hand cream. The whole experience was just amazing and my hands felt as soft as a baby’s skin.

The one product that really stood out for me during my hand-wash and massage, was the cuticle oil. It really did wonders to my dried out cuticle, of course, I purchased a tube of it, along with hand cream. So, I’ve been using this cuticle oil on my hands for the past week and can honestly say, my cuticle haven’t looked better in years. The price was a bit high, but you use such little product that it justifies the size and the results are fantastic. 

Description from their website: Soften your cuticles and strengthen your nails with this Nourishing Oil. Our new formulation has 30% shea oil and comes with a brush applicator for easy, clean application. To use, gently press on the tube and apply to cuticles with the brush before manicuring. Massage to soften the cuticles and help strengthen nails.

Here’s my results: 

Application: Quick, easy and mess-free (5/5)
Smell: Strong smell – but has not troubled my allergies or trigged my asthma to act up (3/5)
After application results: Soft, hydrated cuticles (like when you get a fresh manicure) (5/5)
Overall rating: (4/5) Besides the smell, I love this product and am completely hooked.
Would I buy it again: Of course, these cuticles aren’t going to hydrate themselves!
Would I recommend it to a friend: Absolutely!

Buy it here: L’Occitane en Provence

Product Review: Origins’ Clear Improvement® Active Charcoal Mask Pods

Photo taken from: Sephora

Many of you may have heard of the new charcoal masks that are out in the markets these days, promising amazing results for your pores and complexion. Well, luckily for you, I recently bought one to test out and have some feedback for you!

I picked up the  Origins’ Clear Improvement® Active Charcoal Mask Pods from Sephora. I decided to buy the pods because they allow me to use them four times and I can easily throw out the packaging without having to deal with a tube or figuring out the correct amount of product to use.  I’ve only used them twice now because of lack of time and energy. Plus, you’re only supposed to use them once every couple of weeks.

The wow-factor of this charcoal mask is that it left my skin feeling incredibly soft, even and refreshed. The crap-factor is that it did nothing for my pores or so I didn’t notice any “wowing” effect on them.

The first time I tried the mask, it took longer than the 10-15 minutes to dry and using it in the shower wasn’t all that helpful because you’re supposed to soak your face with warm water, apply the mask, leave it for 15 minutes and then rinse off. Seriously, who has 15 minutes in the shower to be sitting with a mask on their face? I mean, a girls gotta wash her hair, scrub, exfoliate her skin/face, shave, and all that other stuff. Plus, being in the shower with it on doesn’t allow the mask to fully dry because you’re constantly getting little sprays of water on your face.

The second time I applied the mask (2-weeks later), I decided to take my shower first, so that the steam would open up my pores and then apply the mask. I let it dry while I was blow-drying my hair and then wiped it off with a cold, wet towel to help close the pores and remove the mask. I think the second time around, I got better results.

But like I said, I didn’t notice an incredible difference in my pores. My face was glowing and feeling gorgeous though!

Here’s my overall ratings: 

Application: Quick, easy and a little messy (5/5)
Smell: No smell! Yay! (5/5)
After application results: Soft skin, even complexion but no effects on my pores (3.5/5)
Overall rating: It doesn’t change your pores but it does leave your skin looking radiant. (4/5)
Would I buy it again: Yes! I love how my face looks and feels. Plus, I haven’t noticed any patchy, flaky dry skin where I normally would.
Would I recommend it to a friend: Absolutely!

Buy it here: Sephora

Here’s some info from the website:

What it is:
An active charcoal mask to clear pores.

What it is formulated to do:
When environmental toxins, dirt, and debris get under your skin, its waste-filtering system gets jammed, pores get clogged, and skin looks cloudy. Nature’s complexion clean-up crew gets to the bottom of skin’s overcast condition and clears the way for it to act its best. Activated charcoal acts like a magnet to draw out deep-dwelling pore-cloggers, white China clay absorbs environmental toxins, and lecithin dissolves impurities. Skin breathes a sigh of relief.

I’m Still Here

I disappeared last week after saying I was going to write a bunch of new posts. I have been battling a terrible throat and ear infection that has left me drugged with painkillers and antibiotics. But I’m getting better and I’m still here. 

I hope to have some new posts up soon. Here’s what you can look forward to:

• More weekly recipes from my parent’s kitchen
• More DIY beauty remedies
• Mommy in training posts on handling a toddler and the sometimes crazy, terrible-two year old
• More weekly stories and adventures on my life and family

So stay tuned and wish me good health. For when I return, I’ll have lots of goodies for you!
~Tamana