Hippie Beauty "The At-Home Facial"

Whether you are 18, 35 or 60 years old or have dry, oily or combination skin, keeping your face clean is a MUST.  Clean and clear skin is a sign of good health and healthy girls always look GREAT! 

For another lazy Sunday (or just to keep yourself busy on a boring day), try giving yourself an At-Home Facial.  This facial does not replace a professional one, but it does help you clear your skin of those unwanted blackheads and blemishes.

Below are the steps to follow…

1.   Remove your makeup with makeup remover (either for eyes or an all-purpose type) and some cotton balls.

2.   Wash your face and gently exfoliate it, getting rid of any impurities and dull skin that clog your pores.  The best face wash is a soap-free, oil-free, and neutral PH face wash.

3.   Apply a facial scrub, moving your finger tips in a circular motion.  Be sure to focus on the forehead, the sides of the nose, and the chin.  This is where your skin’s natural oils tends to accumulate.  

4.   Rinse your face well and make sure not to leave any facial scrub on your skin.

5.   Steam helps to open your pores, which facilitates the cleaning of your skin.  The simplest way to do this is to boil water, pour it into a bowl, place your face over it (keeping a safe distance to where you are comfortable with the steam), cover your head with a towel to keep the steam inside.  Let the steam do its magic for around 5 – 7 minutes.  After your pores are open, you may clean your blackheads using your hands, covering your fingers with soft tissues.  Do this ONLY if you can be very gentle when doing so.  If you apply a lot of hand strength, the results might be unpleasant.

6.   Apply a mask (according to your skin type) on your face and neck, avoiding the eye area and lips.  You can make your own mask at home, but there are also plenty of options that you can buy at grocery stores and some apparel stores (like H&M).  I recommend their face masks.  They don’t make miracles, but they do leave your skin feeling nice and clean.  My favorite moisturizing mask, and the one I am using in this post, is Rich Chocolate.  After applying it, I can feel my skin is moisturized.  Another good H&M face mask is Vanilla Fudge, a self warming mask perfect for cleaning pores best for those with oily skin (because of the clay).  The trick with this mask is that it heats up while you are applying it and the warmth opens the pores, helping the mask to penetrate the skin better.

7.   Leave the mask on for 10 – 20 minutes, depending on the instructions on the box.

8.   Rinse your face with warm water, making sure not to leave any of the face mask on.

9.   Apply a tonic (according to your skin type) with a cotton ball.

10.                 Last but not least, apply moisturizer on your face and neck.  This is a VERY important step in any beauty routine.  Moisturizers keep the skin moist and hydrated, avoiding dry skin and premature age lines.  If your skin is oily, it is better to use a gel-based moisturizer.  But if your skin is dry, use a lotion moisturizer.  Use a special cream for the eye area since that is our bodies’ most delicate skin and it requires a different treatment.

Extra tip:  To exfoliate your face, you can use brown sugar with just a bit of moisturizer or almond oil, if you have dry skin.

For this shoot, I used Sephora makeup remover, Clarins exfoliant, H&M face mask, and Clinique face wash, tonic, and moisturizer.

Kiss kiss!

Photography: Yazmin Yeara

Author: Jenny Wendlandt

Editor: Jenny Perusek