Cristina's Natural, Inexpensive Beauty Tips
Sunday October 12, 2008
My friend Cristina is visiting me from Lisbon, Portugal, and shared some of her favorite natural beauty tips from her country. "These are tips that you use when you don't have a lot of money," she says.
Cristina mixes an espresso-sized cup of vinegar in a gallon jug of cold water and rinses her hair after after a shampoo and conditioning. "It's the last water that you pass through your hair," she says. It leaves her dry, coarse hair shiny.
When she was younger and had oily skin, she mixed lemon with clay mud and applied it to her skin, let it dry and then washed it off. The mixture cleared up her sun spots and made her oily skin more normal. She was careful to use sunscreen after using lemon juice on skin.
Her mother for years has put used coffee grounds on her face while it's still warm, lets it dry and then washes it off. She says it brightens her skin, removes spots and evens out her skin tone. The grounds also act as a natural exfoliator.
In the winter, when her skin is very, very dry, she applies Nivea creme "from toe to neck" after a shower and her skin stays soft all winter. You don't need special cremes for hands, feet and neck, she insists.
Sometimes she puts hot water in a bowl, puts a towel over her head and bends her face over the bowl to steam her face. This would open her pores so that she could exfoliate properly.
The Portuguese mix olive oil (don't use extra virgin because it smells too strongly) with an egg yolk to create a hair masque. It's good for the scalp and combatting frizziness.
Cristina mixes an espresso-sized cup of vinegar in a gallon jug of cold water and rinses her hair after after a shampoo and conditioning. "It's the last water that you pass through your hair," she says. It leaves her dry, coarse hair shiny.
When she was younger and had oily skin, she mixed lemon with clay mud and applied it to her skin, let it dry and then washed it off. The mixture cleared up her sun spots and made her oily skin more normal. She was careful to use sunscreen after using lemon juice on skin.
Her mother for years has put used coffee grounds on her face while it's still warm, lets it dry and then washes it off. She says it brightens her skin, removes spots and evens out her skin tone. The grounds also act as a natural exfoliator.
In the winter, when her skin is very, very dry, she applies Nivea creme "from toe to neck" after a shower and her skin stays soft all winter. You don't need special cremes for hands, feet and neck, she insists.
Sometimes she puts hot water in a bowl, puts a towel over her head and bends her face over the bowl to steam her face. This would open her pores so that she could exfoliate properly.
The Portuguese mix olive oil (don't use extra virgin because it smells too strongly) with an egg yolk to create a hair masque. It's good for the scalp and combatting frizziness.
Comments
You can also do what I do and use olive oil for a hot oil treatment for your hair. Just take 1/4 cup and heat it in the microwave for about 10-15 seconds. Rub it into your wet hair and scalp and then leave it for 15 - 30 minutes. It leaves your hair very soft and nice.
I’ve also used the steam treatment for my face. You can just heat some water in a pot on the stove, preferably filtered or distilled water, and when it boils turn off the burner. Put your face over it with a towel over your head so the steam goes into your face. This is wonderful for your pores. It is especially good for people who have acne or minor skin conditions.
steaming your face always works especially during winter when you have a blocked nose or throat just add a methol ointment to open up your lungs
Steaming face worked very well with my oily acne-prone skin. I used to do it weekly or bi-weekly. Now my face is more normal than oily so I use it less often. But this method really works to take out impurities in skin.
Also, I tried egg + olive oil treatment for hair too and my dry curly hair never looked so soft and frizz-free in my life!!! Now I do this treatment biweekly or at least once a month.
Thank you for ur tips!!!
My mom is 81 but her skin is amazing. She uses Strivectin, granted, but her real secret has always been a bi-weekly scrub of olive oil and salt. She makes a masque of this, leaves it on for a few minutes, scrubs a bit and rinses it off, following with her moisturizer.
Thanks for the useful tips.
Thanks for good article