summer skin care

My Top 5 Home Remedies this Summer {DIY}

Swathy · April 4, 2012 · 35 Comments

Summers are beating the hell out of me and as I said earlier, I am not a fan of this weather at all. I prefer winters. So, I thought I would share my 5 favourite home remedies for skin.

Tomato

Yes, I am not a fan of lemon. I find it too drying for my skin and its too acidic as well so I prefer to garnish my salads and dals (lentils) and sabzi’s (curries) with lemon instead of applying it on face. Tomato is much gentler and equally amazing at almost everything.

It removes tan, blemishes and dark spots, evens out the skin tone and makes my skin bright and glowing. And, not only that, I can use it on my hair for the extra shine and to undo the effects of sun damage. And, it doesn’t leave my skin dry. And, its perfect even for sensitive skins for which is lemon is not really suitable.

And, since I am lazy, I take a slice of tomato from my salad and rub it on my skin and let ot dry up and then, I wash it off.

Cucumber

Who doesn’t love cucumber in summers? They feel so hydrating and cool to eat and not to speak of their effects on skin. They are again amazing at evening out the skin tone and removing the tan. And, I forgot to say this above but both tomato and cucumber are great on acne and breakouts too. It cools off ths skin inside and outside both.

Watermelon

Ok, this is not on my favorite fruit list and is highly unlikely it will ever make to one. But, I wouldn’t deny that its the fruit which makes me feel refreshing on the name itself and its a favourite among many people. Again, it gives a hydrated skin staying true to its name and also helps with blemishes and tan.

Coconut Water

Ok, to be frank, I have never used coconut water on my skin. But, I have heard so many people rave about it that it always makes me curious that how well does it do for the skin and hair. But, still, I can’t deny the changes it does to skin even from the inside ;D It keeps the body temperature cooler from the inside and is supposed to be amazing for the complexion.

Buttermilk

Yes, my favorite. Thought I love to drink it more than applying it on my skin, I do that sometimes. And, its just fabulous. Be it tanning or breakouts or blemishes or need for a glowing skin, this one remedy address to all. And, if you can spare a cup of buttermilk, add it to your bath as well. It shows a lot of difference.

So, those were my favorite home remedies for the summers. What are yours???

Summer Skin Care Essentials {Skin Care}

Swathy · March 28, 2012 · 6 Comments

So, summers have started burning my skin here 🙁 And, yes, I hate summers, a lot. I feel so hot and I don’t really like AC’s. I am more of a cooler gal!! Anyways, let us go through some summer skin care tips. And, I had meant to put up this post long long back but somehow laziness wore me down :S

Sunscreen: Must, Must and Very Essential!!!
Hats/Scarves/Umbrella (a light colored one): Accessories to protect yourself from direct sun rays.
Don’t go out after 10 and before 5. Rays are very strong.
Tanning happens very easily in summers so protect your skin.
Drink, Drink and Drink a lot and by drink, I mean water and herbal teas and fruit juices.
Shades/Goggles: Get trendy with wrap-around shades which match your face. They not only add a style statement but also protect your delicate eye area from the sun rays and prevent fine lines and wrinkles.

Day – time Routine

Cleansing: Don’t over-cleanse your face in the heat. I know sometimes the face feels a lot itchy and prickly and the immediate impulse is to wash it off which you should when you have just come back from prolonged exposure to the sun. But, not if your skin just feels the heat. Cleansing the face twice to at most thrice a day is enough. And, get a cleanser which helps control oil.

Toning: Very very important in summers as skin goes less on the hydration. Make sure you use face mists at regular intervals and apply it just before putting on the moisturiser to trap in the hydration.

Moisturiser: Heat is building up so you really don’t want a moisturiser which makes you look like an oil pan. Go light and easy on your body lotions and face moisturiser. Go for the oily moisturisers unless your skin too dry. They help control oil and keep the face shine-free.

Sunscreen: An absolute must and should not be ignored at any cost. Get a stand-alone sunscreen instead of moisturiser with spf claims. And, apply a good amount of sunscreen for adequate protection.

Check out some of my other posts under the heading of Summer Skin Care.

Dry Skin and Cracked lips in Summers {Reader’s Query}

Swathy · June 1, 2011 · 4 Comments

Dry Skin and Cracked Lips in Summers are a very unusual occurrence and can be due to the nutritional deficiencies in the body, especially of B-complex Vitamins. So, my first advise would be bring a change in your diet. Eat a lot of Vitamin E (almonds and other dry fruits, take care while eating cashew nuts coz they are high in cholesterol too). If you are a non-vegetarian, then eating fish in huge quantities would be good because it is high in B-complex vitamins. Replace your chicken with fish and other seafood. And, for egg-eatarians, eggs are extremely healthy and rich in B-complex vitamins. Now, coming to vegetarians, don’t despair. You too have a lot of choices – cereals, milk and other dairy products, pulses and vegetables.

Now, the most important part of the diet which is often over-looked. Salads. Make a colorful salad everyday and add seeds (lots and lots of them) – flax seeds (which probably are not available in India), sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, papaya seeds and all the other seeds which are available. Seeds have all kinds of minerals and vitamins and you can use them in almost everything from salads to curries and desserts. Seeds and Nuts have essential fatty acids which make the skin soft and supple from inside. So, gorge on them.

Now, let us talk a little about skin care routine. Cleanse, Tone and Moisturize is something you have heard a lot about. So, use skin care products which are suitable to your skin type.

Or, otherwise, you might want to go for besan + milk for a cleanser as an alternative (definitely use it at night). Another alternative is Episoft cleanser. Ask for it in the pharmacy. It is a little difficult to get but the Apollo people generally get it for you. If you are unable to get it, the next best option is Cetaphil cleanser which is available very easily. These cleansers are extremely gentle on the skin and clean it without drying it.

Now, let us talk about a toner. Stay away from alcohol toners in case you are using them. Read the ingredients of your skin products and chuck out all those which have anything saying ethyl alcohol or denat alcohol. But, do not chuck out product having cetyl alcohol. Only ethyl and denat alcohol dry the skin. All others are useful for cleansing process. Or, you can simply use rose water.

Moisturizer is a little tricky coz not all moisturizers suit us so I can recommend Cetaphil moisturizer. I haven’t tried it but have heard rave reviews about it so you can give it a try or use something which already suits you.

Apart from the CTM routine, one thing which should not be neglected is exfoliation. Yes, you should exfoliate regularly even if your skin is dry. Twice a week with a gentle exfoliator is good idea. Natural apricot scrubs are a good option or using besan is also another good option. They are gentle and would not harm the skin. And, moisturize repeatedly. Buy a good body lotion which is thick enough like probably Nivea classic might suit you or some other intensive body lotion. Do not have a bath in extremely hot water.

Another good option is oil massage for the body using almond oil or coconut oil or sesame oil once or twice a week. That will moisturize the body very well and also simultaneously exfoliate your skin. Oil is a very good option for removing the flaky skin which is generally a reason for dry skin. Also, while massaging your body, be sure to apply oil in the belly button as it is somehow magically linked to soft lips.

Coming to cracked lips, exfoliate twice a week using the tooth brush or this lip scrub. And, always use a lip balm. Well, I would say don’t go for vaseline but go for shea butter or cocoa butter based lip balms. If you are able to find them, well and good. Otherwise, a simple nightly treatment for your lips is to apply a tablet of Evion (Vitamin E) daily on your lips and massage them. Also, include your face in this treatment.

Coming to health reasons, now, you might have naturally a very dry skin for which you can actually visit a dermatologist. The doc will get a few blood tests done and probably would be able to tell you even without the blood tests what is wrong with your skin. So, in case, all the above treatments don’t work, go to a dermatologist in 2-3 weeks time. Don’t ignore.

And, don’t forget, hot temperatures and extreme humidity can also cause dryness of the skin so always keep your skin hydrated from the inside.