Tips & Tricks I

Skin Care & Anti-Aging

Tips & Tricks I

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Here are some tips and tricks for skin care...

Basic daily skin care regime

Morning: Cleanse face with cleanser, use a toner on the face, a moisturizer for your skin type and finally a good foundation to protect the face preferrably with SPF 15 or higher.
Evening: Cleanse, tone, use a mask for your skin type left on the face for 10 min. twice a week, and moisturize.

Dark Elbows

If you have those ashy, scaly elbows try the lemon treatment. Cut up a lemon, squeeze the juice out, and sit your elbows in the lemon cups for 6-12 mins. The acids in the lemon will gently exfoliate your skin.

Whisk Away Shine

To absorb excess oil and shrink pores, stir one egg white into 10 drops lemon juice, and put the mixture on your T-zone (forehead, nose and chin). Leave it on for 20 minutes, then rinse with lukewarm water.

Banish Blemishes

Saturate a cottonball with Visine and hold over the pimple for 60 seconds. It removes redness so you can conceal it more easily. Next, dot on a concealer that's a shade lighter than your skin tone (a beige concealer with a yellow undertone is a foolproof bet). Blend and top with powder. Tip: Wait 60 seconds before topping concealer with powder so that it dries over the blemish and doesn't rub off.

Smooth Away Blackheads

An easy cure for a common skin glitch. Pulse a handful of fresh parsley in a blender unti it forms a paste. Boil water and pour it into a large bowl. Apply the paste to blackhead-prone areas, then hold your face over the bowl. The parsely, a natural humectant, and the steam team up to soften skin and loosen any blackheads

Chapped Lips

-Treat chapped lips with baking soda and water mixed enough to make a paste. Massage over lips and wipe clean with a damp washcloth.

-Dab a bit of Vaseline on your lips and rub gently with an old toothbrush.

-Crack open a vitamin E gel capsule and rub the gel on your lips.

-Rub olive oil or sesame oil on your lips.

Brown Sugar Body Scrub

Magic Ingredients:

Brown sugar - a skin polisher

Almond oil - super moisturizing

Cinnamon - a natural antiseptic that prevents body breakouts

Vanilla extract - smells great

Mix together 1/2 cup brown sugar with 1/4 cup sweet almond oil, a sprinkle of cinnamon and a drop of vanilla to form a paste. Take in the shower and slather on from head-to-toe!

Healing Dry, Cracked Heels

Start with a clean pair of athletic socks--you'll need them later. Wash your feet with a mild soap just before you go to bed. Apply an antibiotic ointment, such as Neosporin or Polysporin, to the cracks. Then, apply a generous amount of Vaseline petroleum jelly to the heels as well as to other dry areas of your feet. Carefully put on the socks, being careful not to get Vaseline on the outside of the socks. Now you can go to bed and let the Vaseline do its work. In the morning, wipe off any excess. Repeat this ritual every night for about a week.

Homemade Skin Care Solutions

- Exfoliate: Combine honey and sugar for a sweet way to soften your skin. The sugar will exfoliate and the honey helps your skin retain moisture. Wet your skin and apply the mixture. Rinse with tepid water.

- Tone: Herbal teas make a great toner. Steep mint or chamomile teabags. Allow tea to cool then apply to your face using a cotton ball.

- Moisturize: Pamper your skin with a plain yogurt or avocado mask. Both will soften, the yogurt works wonders for oily skin. Apply either and rest for 15-20 minutes while the mask takes effect.

The Right Time To Fight Wrinkles

Dermatologists say that sunscreen can neutralize the active ingredients in wrinkle creams containing retinol and hydroxyl acids and the creams themselves can make your skin more vulnerable to sun damage. Your best bet is to wear a moisturizer with an SPF of at least 15 during the day, and use your wrinkle-fighter at night.

Massage Away Cellulite with Grapefruit

The skin of grapefruit contains aromatic citrus oil that acts like a diuretic, tightening and firming skin. When combined with a massage, it enhances circulation and helps minimize the appearance of dimples, lumps and bumps.

Find it in: Origins Gloomaway Grapefruit Body Gloss or simply massage grapefruit oil in small circles over affected areas.

Turn Back the Clock With Caviar

The new must-have ingredient in face creams? Caviar! The proteins revitalize skin on contact so you look years younger. Find it in: La Prarie Skin Caviar.

Start the Morning With a Flip

Before you get out of bed, lie on your back and hang your head over the side of your bed. "Reversing" circulation sends energizing blood and oxygen to your brain, nourishes skin cells and gives you a rosy glow.

Shrink Pores with Tomato

Naturally acidic tomato is a terrific pore-tightener. And smaller pores mean smooother, more flawless skin. Mash 1 ripe tomato in a bowl, then dab on clean, dry skin using a cotton ball. Leave mask on for 5 minutes. Rinse well with warm water.

Dry Skin on Legs

If you have very dry skin, especially on legs, avoid using loofahs or abrasive body scrub. Don't spend too much time in hot showers and avoid harsh soaps with abrasive detergents. Opt instead for a gentle natural soap and a good oil-free moisturizer, which should be applied on damp, post-shower skin

Ease Puffiness and Undereye Bags

Potato eye compress - Their soothing coolness delivers a mild astringent action to ease puffiness and undereye bags. Simply place chilled slices over eyelids for 3 to 5 minutes. The old standby, cucumber, works just as well.

Reduce your risk of Varicose Veins

--Aim for about 20 minutes of walking, biking or other exercise daily. Staying active will not only keep your weight down - a risk factor for developing varicose veins - but will also keep leg muscles toned and circulation optimal.
--If you smoke, talk to your doctor about quitting. Smoking is known to damage veins and elevate blood pressure, two things that can lead to varicose veins.

--Wear graduated compression pantyhose if you're on your feet all day, but avoid tight socks and knee-highs, which can restrict circulation.

Erase Frown Lines

The exercise cure: Horizontal Line Eraser

To Do: Place your fingers in a line along forehead; close eyes and feel a slight pull on the brow, eyes and nose, then push fingers up to hairline; repeat 3 times.

The cosmetic cure: Amino Acids

The hottest new development in skin care is Argireline, an ingredient derived from amino acids that diminishes the release of the neurotransmitter required for muscle contractions.

Cold Sores

How can you limit its duration?

1) Have your doctor prescribe a standing order of Acyclovir so that the moment you start to feel any precursory sensations it can be called in.

2) Clean the area gently two or three times daily with tepid water and a mild soap. Pat dry with a paper towel.

3) Apply Polysporin ointment with a cotton swab twice daily to help prevent bacterial infection.

4) Try taking L-Lysine tablets, which may reduce healing time. Some claim that taking the amino acid daily will help reduce outbreak frequency

What SPF Really Means

SPF, or Sun Protection Factor, measures a product’s ability to shield the skin from UVB rays -- the ones that burn your skin. The amount of protection depends on your skin’s natural ability. If you normally burn after 15 minutes in the sun, a lotion with SPF 15 will give you 15 times that 15 minutes, or 150 minutes of protection. But that is only half the story. The sun also emits dangerous UVA rays that, while they don’t burn your skin, will cause aging damage like lines, wrinkles and sagging skin. These rays are also responsible for skin cancer. Unfortunately, at this time there is no standard of measure for UVA protection. Read the labels carefully for ingredients such as zinc, titanium dioxide or Parsol 1789 (also known as avobenzone), all of which block UVA rays.

Let Coconuts Give You Show-Off Feet

Coconut is packed with emollients such as vitamin E and glycerin, which hydrate dry, rough skin by locking in moisture, so feet stay supple and soft.

To do: Fill basis with 1 1/2 cups coconut milk and soak for 10 minutes, then slough away dry spots with a pumice. Or try Burt's Bees Foot Creme.

Spice Up Your Skin Care

Surveys reveal women who wash with cleansers containing peppermint oil feel twice as awake as those who don't. Why? Peppermint oil stimulates circulation while gently purifying and cooling skin (an instant pick-me-up!)