Time to Pamper Yourself with a DYI Facial

Hello ladies,

TGIF! Like many others, I love to be pampered and feel relaxed once in a while. The weekend is a perfect opportunity to unwind and recharge my energy. Whenever possible, my Friday nights are reserved for me to do all beautification that I need. My most favorite activity is getting a facial and as much as I love to go to the spa, sometimes it is quite expensive to book an appointment. Also, I feel uncomfortable being tucked tightly under a blanket. After some research and practice, I find out that doing facials at home is affordable. With some easy to find items, you can transform your home into a spa as well.

Image courtesy of Melbourne Grant Hyatt

What you need:

• Makeup remover: if you wear makeup, you need to remove it before getting a facial;
• Gentle skin cleanser: I use Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser but any face wash would do;
• A steamer: if you already have one, that's perfect! Otherwise, boiling some hot water and steaming your face with a towel on top of your head is fine as well. You can add some herbs to the water such as lavender or rosemary if you like;
• Some face massage oil or lotion: I find jojoba oil to be a good face massage liquid as it glides well and does not break me out;
• Face masque: for oily skin, a clay face masque is preferred. For normal to dry skin, a moisturizing face masque is more suitable;
• Toner and face moisturizer;
  
• Some soft towels to wipe your face;
• Optional: soft music, candles, aromatherapy fragrances.

Step 1: Remove all your makeup and steam your face

Image courtesy of eHow

After removing all of your makeup and wash your face, you can steam your face to open up the pores. The steam should feel comfortably warm, not burning hot. If you don't feel comfortable, either stop the steaming process or move your head higher. Usually, I would steam for 5 minutes as my skin is sensitive and I don't want any broken capillaries on my face.

After you finish steaming, lightly pat your face with a towel to remove excess moisture and proceed to step 2.

Step 2: Give yourself a face massage

Image courtesy of Balance Medical Spa

For a long time, my DYI facials were nice but lack the result that I wanted. Then one day it dawned on me that instead of jumping from steaming to making a face masque, I need a face massage in between. Since my skin is sensitive, most facial massages ended up with massive breakouts. However, I saw this video from Emyli's blog and I really enjoy it. The massage gave me a glow afterward and jojoba oil really moisturizes my skin.



One note: please do not skimp on the massage oil or lotion as you do not want to drag your skin. The motion should be smooth and with minimal friction. Since it is a massage, you should apply more pressure to the movements.

Step 3: Doing a facial masque and relax

Image courtesy of Whalewalk Inn

After doing a facial massage, you can lightly pat off the moisturizing oil or lotion with a damped cloth. Depending your skin type, you can apply a layer of face masque to your face and leave it on as the product is instructed. This is the time to relax and I prefer to lay down, turn on my music, close my eyes, and enjoy the moment. If you have cucumber, you can put slices of cucumber on your eyes like in the picture. Otherwise, two cotton balls soaked in water are also good. Sometimes I even doze off during this part of the facial!

Step 4: Wash, tone, and moisturize your face

After the masque is dried off, you can remove it with warm water and a face cloth. Then using a cotton ball, you soak it with your toner and apply all over your face. Since my skin is acne-prone, I use a toner with salicylic acid and wait for it to dry. The last step is to moisturize your face with your favorite moisturizer and voila, you just gave yourself a facial!

A facial should be done once a week as it is an intensive process and some of the products used can dry out your skin. If you have an event, a facial should be done 3-4 days ahead so your skin would have time to settle down. With continuous use, you can get a nice glow on your face.

That's all for today. I hope you're having a wonderful weekend and as always, stay gorgeous!

With love,
Your Makeup Blogger

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