Treat your feet
Give your toenails a break from gel and polish in the chillier months of the year, but don’t neglect your feet. Get rid of hard skin and callouses, and pamper your feet with daily foot cream. You can also enjoy a relaxing foot soak; simply add a quarter cup Epsom salt, a quarter cup sea salt, half a cup of baking soda and some lavender oil to hot water.
Smooth operators
Weekly exfoliation gets rid of dead cells and unclogs follicles leaving your skin feeling soft and moisturised. Why not make a natural sugar scrub at home and ask your tween daughter to help – she’ll love doing this with you plus they make such lovely gifts.
You will need:
- A quarter cup coconut oil
- 15 – 20 drops essential oil, such as lavender, lemon, mint or rose
- 15 – 20 drops vitamin-E oil
- Brown or white sugar
- Botanicals such as lavender buds, lemon zest, mint leaves or crushed rose petals.
How to do it
- Pour the coconut oil, essential oil and vitamin E oil into mixing bowl and stir to combine.
- Put the sugar and botanicals into a food processor and blend until well combined. Set aside.
- Pour the oils over the sugar, mix well and store in an airtight container or sealed glass jar until ready to use.
Quick Tips
- You can use salt instead of sugar, but most people find sugar gentler on the skin.
- Pink rose petals create a soft pink hue so you could add a little Mica powder to enhance the colour.
- If you want to make a stronger scent, add a few more drops of your essential oil to the scrub.
- Your scrub should last for about a year, but go by the expiry dates on the essential oils.
Bath Time
Next time you run a bath and have half an hour to yourself, add two cups of Epsom salts to the warm water and soak in them for at least 20 minutes. The salts draw out toxins, help with bloating, water retention and stress release. Turn off your phone, light a candle and put on some soothing music.
Get Glowing
Self tanners work wonders to make you feel slim and they guarantee a sun-kissed glow about eight hours after you apply them. Treat yourself to a professional one if you aren’t confident enough to do it at home, and if you do your tan in the evening, sleep on a towel over your sheets.
Wear your Mask
A weekly face mask really gives your skin the nourishment and boost it needs in winter; here are some homemade ones you can whip up at home:
- Moisturise & hydrate: avocado, honey, banana and plain yoghurt
- Brighten & tone: baking soda, honey, lemon juice an turmeric
- Exfoliate & smooth: baking soda and water
- Refine & tighten: coconut oil, egg white, lemon juice
* Pictures: pexels.com
