Looking on the bright side of 2020, at least we had plenty of time to experiment with home beauty treatments from the kitchen! Here are CosBeauty’s favourite DIY beauty recipes to help you look and feel your very best, all in the comfort of your own home.
Simple concoctions from the cupboard can help smooth and moisturise skin, heal lumps and bumps, lighten brown spots, give shine and bounce to your hair … and it all smells and tastes yum!
Hair Care
Rosemary, Honey and Olive Oil Hair Conditioner – this nourishing conditioner blends two ingredients from nature – honey for shine and olive oil for moisture. It is enhanced with rosemary essential oil to stimulate hair growth.
Ingredients
- ½ cup honey
- ¼ cup warmed olive oil (2 tablespoons for normal to oily hair)
- 4 drops rosemary essential oil
- 1 teaspoon of xanthan gum (available in health-food stores)
Method
- Place all ingredients in a small bowl and mix thoroughly
- Pour into a clean plastic bottle with a snug-fitting cap
- Place a small amount of the mixture onto slightly dampened hair
- Massage until it is evenly distributed through your hair
- Cover your hair with a warm towel (your microwave or dryer can heat it up) or shower cap; leave to condition for 30 minutes
- Remove the towel or shower cap; shampoo lightly and rinse with cool water
Remedies tailored to you
Liquid castile soap is an excellent soap base for shampoos, and can be found in most health-food stores. It is made from vegetable oil, which is rich in fatty acids that add to the shine of your hair, and phosphorous, which enriches your hair. It may contain a combination of almond, olive, coconut, jojoba and hemp oil, and will remain fresh for a year.
For a remedy to the ailments mentioned below, simply add two to four tablespoons of the oils listed in the respective categories to castile soap. For the herbs, add three tablespoons to two cups of boiling water. Steep the herbs and allow them to cool for 30 minutes. Add to two cups of castile soap and pour into a container.
- Dry hair – Coconut oil, jojoba oil, green tea, marshmallow, myrrh, peppermint.
- Oily hair – Cedar wood, green tea, lemongrass, orange, patchouli, tea tree oil.
- Normal hair – Chamomile, sage.
- Damaged hair – Chamomile, coconut oil, jojoba oil, olive oil, rosemary, sage, thyme.
- Frizzy hair – Coconut oil, jojoba oil, olive oil.
- Dandruff – Nettle, rosemary, tea tree oil.
- Promote hair growth – Horsetail, Indian hemp, nettle, rosemary, sage.
- Hair loss/thinning hair – Rosemary.
In addition, the following can be added to shampoos:
- Baking soda – to get rid of build-up
- Lemon juice – for life and shine
- Apple cider vinegar – for shine and bounce.
Tip: Use a tiny amount of olive oil, warmed by the fingertips, on the ends of your hair to hydrate hair and seal split ends.
Out of hairspray? Mix a bit of lemon juice with water for a natural lemon-scented hairspray.
Skin Care
Peanut Butter Dry Skin Healer
Ingredients
- 1 to 2 tablespoons of peanut butter
Method
- Massage peanut butter into rough patches of skin
- Leave on for about 15 minutes and wipe off with a paper towel
- Rinse with warm water.
Miracle Whip Exfoliator
Method
- Apply a thin layer of Kraft Miracle Whip all over your face and neck
- Leave for 10 minutes, then massage gently
- The dead skin cells on your face will roll off
- Rinse your skin in water, then cleanse as usual following your regular beauty regime.
Note: If you apply it every day, in six to eight weeks your skin should be completely renewed.
Chocolate Facial Mask
Recommended for normal skin, this creamy mask is an excellent moisturiser that will leave you with soft skin.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder?
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream?
- 2 teaspoons cottage cheese
- ¼ cup honey
- 3 teaspoons oatmeal
Method
- Mix all ingredients together (a bullet blender is ideal) and smooth onto face.
- Relax for 10 minutes, then wash off with warm water.
Blemishes
Tomatoes today, gone tomorrow!
Ingredients
- 1 ripe tomato, chopped
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon instant style oatmeal or old-fashioned rolled oats
Method
- Blend all ingredients, until just combined, into a paste
- Apply to blemished skin, making sure the mixture is thick enough to stay in place
- Leave for 10 minutes
- Remove with damp washcloth, rinse and tone.
Other fruity tips
Lemons
As a natural astringent, it pulls impurities out of the skin, leaving it smooth and beautiful.
Garlic
With well-known antibiotic properties, it’s an excellent treatment for pimples and acne. Apply peeled, mashed garlic cloves to pimples and other skin blemishes.
Hit the trouble spots
For Sunspots
Apply odourless castor oil or vitamin E nightly.
Apply lemon juice to the spots.
Freckles
Dissolve some sugar into the juice of one lemon. Apply mixture to each freckle with a soft brush.
Soothing Eye Bags
Take two wafer thin slices of cucumber and a warm, damp washcloth
Method
- While reclining in the bath, place one cucumber slice over each eye.
- Cover your eyes with a warm washcloth to hold slices in place and relax for 10 minutes.
- Fine lines will smooth out and your eyes will feel refreshed and soothed to prepare you for a good night’s rest.
Note: We recommend this particularly if you’ve been crying that day, as it helps remove puffy red eyes. You can also try this with wet English tea bags, as the caffeine will reduce swelling.
Whole body care
Aphrodisiac Bath Blend
This skin treat helps to relax the mind, while the properties of the essential oils stimulate sexuality and euphoria.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons fresh cream
- 4 drops ylang ylang essential oil
- 3 drops neroli essential oil
- 2 drops bergamot essential oil
Method
- Combine all ingredients in warm bath water and soak.
Cleopatra’s Secret
The legendary queen of ancient Egypt was famous for her beautiful skin. Her secret was that she soaked in baths of fresh milk. As the lactic acid in milk is an alpha hydroxyl (a natural mineral that dissolves the glue that holds dead skin cells together), it cleanses the skin down to its deepest layer.
Ingredients
- 2 to 4 cups of fresh milk or buttermilk
Method
- Add fresh milk or buttermilk to the bathwater as the tub is filling
- Soak for a good 20 minutes
- Gently rub your skin with a washcloth to remove dead skin. Rinse your body thoroughly after soaking.
Hand and Foot Treatment
Strawberry exfoliant – strawberries contain a natural fruit acid, which aids exfoliation.
Ingredients
- 8 to 10 strawberries
- 2 tablespoons apricot oil or olive oil
- 1 teaspoon of coarse salt, such as sea salt
Method
- Mix together all ingredients into a paste
- Massage into hands and feet, then rinse and pat dry.
But if you don’t have the inclination to make your own, you can find a comprehensive list of treatments for every body part at Aesthetic Advisor!
