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Skin N Season

No Junk Food This Summer!
In summers, skin becomes oily easily, to avoid that keep away from oily-food and junk-food. Drink 12-15 glass of water everyday and wash your face as often as possible. Instead of using soap, use face wash and herbal products. Keep your hair tidy and non-oily and don't let it come in contact with your skin often.


Beat The Heat With Cold Water
This is the time that you should avoid hot water baths completely. To beat the scorching heat, and feel fresh either take a cold water bath or splash cold water on your face in the morning to aid circulation and stimulate the skin. You could even rub ice on your face. As water is a natural astringent, it improves the texture of the skin, making the tissues firm and strong.


To Avoid A Sun Tan
To avoid tan and an oily face during summers avoid being under the harsh rays of direct sunlight as much as possible. It would also help to use a good sunscreen on your face with SPF (sun protection factor) ranging from 20 to 40. If your job demands that you remain outdoors for a major portion of the day, reapply sun tan half way through the day (but do wash away the grime that would have settled on your skin before reapplication). Avoid usage of an oily cream on your face, as more than doing good it could be harmful. Avoid creams especially during the nights since it clogs the pores.


Summer Hair Care
During summer your hair can become pretty sticky because of humidity. So increase the frequency of hair wash to daily or once in two days.
Note: You might believe that frequent hair wash is damaging to the hair. It would be only if you use very strong shampoo or use too much of shampoo. You could opt for mild shampoos (especially herbal shampoos) and condition your hair at least once a week to prevent damage.
Two, drink lots of water and juices.
Three, avoid exposing your hair directly to the sun, it makes the hair dull and dry.
Four, if you are used to hot baths then give your hair a final cold rinse prior to turning off the shower. This helps close hair follicles, thereby protecting the hair roots.


Cool Cleanser For Oily Skin
Summer's can cause havoc to oily skin. Here a cleanser you can easily make at home to keep the oil off your skin. Mix:

* ½ cup mint leaves (available at any vegetable mart)
* 1 litre distilled water (at chemists and gas stations)
* 5 gms camphor powder (chemists and groceries)

Boil the mint leaves in the water until it reduces to half. Let it stand until it cools and then add the camphor powder. Keep this mixture in the fridge and wipe the skin regularly with this cleansing tonic. It leaves your face wonderfully cold and clean.  


Freckle Free
Freckles can cause a lot of worry to young girls, especially during summers as they darken with the sun. Though freckles will not disappear completely, here is a lotion, which will help in lightening them:

Add one teaspoon of rum, glycerin, and rose water each to five-tea spoon of strained fresh lemon juice. Mix and apply this lotion to areas having freckles and wash off after10 mins.


Sunscreens: Your Protective Summer Umbrella
Excessive sun-exposure can lead to loss of moisture from the skin, dark patches and even premature aging. The skin needs physical protection against harmful rays which is provided by sunscreens.
A few tips on buying and using sunscreen lotions:

* A good sunscreen should provide protection against the sun's UVA and UVB rays.
* Check the SPF or Sun Protection Factor on the label. This is denoted by a number and is related to duration of sun-exposure. If your skin is more sensitive, choose a sunscreen with SPF of 20 and above.
* Apply the sunscreen about 20 minutes before sun-exposure. This gives the skin time to absorb it.
* Carry your sunscreen while holidaying by the sea or in the hills. Reflective surfaces, like water and snow actually increase the effects of UV radiation.
* Reapply sunscreen if you stay in the sun for a long time. It's a good idea to carry one in your handbag.
* Rubbing a mix of papaya, cream and sugar into the skin before your bath is also said to remove skin tan.
* Juice of ripe tomatoes when applied over tanned body parts helps in getting rid of the tan!

Winter Care

Nail Care In Winter
To get rid of dry nail cuticles during winter use a special manicure. For this you will need the juice of two slices of fresh pineapple and two table-spoons of vodka. Dip your nails in this mixture and rub them gently. If done regularly, your nails will be absolutely healthy and soft.


Winter Hand Care
If manicuring is not done regularly, especially during winter, your hands tend to get dry and rough. To overcome this, mash two ripe bananas, mix with the juice of one lime and some husk of oat. Apply this mixture on both the hands. When dry, scrub gently and wash with plain water. Your hands will become as soft as lotus flower.


Winter Hair Care
Dyed or permed hair gets affected easily by the cold winter weather. Hair becomes dry and looks dull, the ends tend to split resulting in loss of hair. To prevent this you need special hair conditioners. `Banana Pack' is one such conditioner. To make this you need about half a dozen ripe bananas, two eggs and half-cup beer. Mash the bananas well and mix with the rest. Apply this to the hair - from the scalp to the tip. Keep the conditioner for at least half an hour before washing it off with a mild organic shampoo. The protein of egg and moisturising property of bananas will make the dry hair soft and silky.


WINTER CARE WITH POTATOES
With age the skin gets dry naturally. If proper care is not taken during winter wrinkles may appear pretty fast. You may prevent this with the help of a potato. Simply grate it and squeeze out the juice. To this mix the juice of a lime. Soak a piece of cotton in the mixture and apply the mixture to your face and neck. Allow the mixture to dry till you feel the pull on the skin. Wash off with luke warm water. For pimpled skins do not use this pack since the acidic lime juice may aggravate the pimples on the skin.  


How Do I Care For My Skin This Winter?
Caring for skin becomes a daunting task during winters. Skin turns ultra sensitive and tends to give in to the pressures of pollution and seasonal imbalances rather easily. A few simple tricks will however, ensure that skin stays supple and pretty pink, here is how:

* Use cleansing milk to dislodge dirt and grime especially during winters and if you suffer from dry skin.
* Use a generous helping of moisturizer for a smooth, clean complexion. However do not apply moisturizer while stepping out of the house, that way you will only attract more dust, the best time to dab on the magic option is in the evening, after a warm bath.
* Your face will thank you for the invigorating cold cream and skin tonic massage you give it just before hitting the sack.
* Limit the use of make-up during winter months, as skin tends to burst into pimples.
* A spoonful of olive oil added to water checks dryness and should be massaged into the skin at least fifteen minutes before a bath.  

How Do I Get Rid Of Dry, Flaky Skin?
Chapping is a common bane that gets worse during winters. If the problem is chronic, it can cause the skin to bleed. Here are a few ways to get over these irritants.

* Limit the use of soap during winters.
* Olive oil smoothens dry skin to a great extent, so use it generously.
* Cleansing the skin is another priority area that should not be overlooked.
* Moisten a cotton swab, dab on some cleansing milk and cleanse the skin with this.
* Tomato and Raspberry juice is an excellent cleanser during bitterly cold winters.
* Do not use plain water to wash face at nights, instead dip a face towel in hot water, squeeze out the water and wipe face with this. When the skin feels warm, it is time to massage in some skin tonic and almond oil.
A word of caution here: Do not wash the skin with unheated milk as this may lead to the pores opening up.


Get A Rosy Glow This Winter
Winter tends to rob the skin of essential moisturizers leaving it feeling dry and dead. Besides the routine cleanse, tone, moisturize routine one needs to take extra care to reintroduce the lost softness.
A few hints to get that rosy glow this winter:
If you suffer from dry, itchy skin, add a cup of vinegar to your bucket of bath water.
Two three tablespoons of rose water add a tablespoon of glycerin and two tablespoons of lemon juice. Apply this to the body after your bath. It will leave skin feeling soft and supple.
Soak two handfuls of moong dal (without skin) in water. Grind this coarsely with a dash of milk. Use this exfoliate to soften skin.
Once a week massage body with sesame seed (til) oil. Wet a rough washcloth or towel and use it to scrub the body during bath.
Use moisturizer or body lotion immediately after you shower. Damp skin soaks in the moisturizer faster.  

The Amazing Benefits Of Facial Massage
Suffering from dry, chapped, wrinkled skin? Well, you are not the only one to suffer the vagaries of nature. Even the most fair-skinned amongst start wearing our age on our face after a certain time and it is not always easy to camouflage it behind a ` I accept smile'. Massaging the face is an easy and important part of beauty regime to keep wrinkles at bay. Besides softening the skin, another good effect of moisturizer massage is that it stimulates blood circulation and removes dead skin. Massage is also known to tighten certain skin tissues that tend to go flabby and give the face a worn out look.

A few must dos for face massages:

* Remove all traces of makeup, dirt and grime before massaging the face.
* Never exert pressure on the face while massaging it.
* Massage should always be done with a light, feathery touch of fingers.
* Fingers should move in a swift, light but firm way.
* Fingers should move in an upward and outward manner towards the temple.
* Facial massage should not last beyond 20-25 minutes.
* Tie a head band and drape a towel below the shoulder before you start the facial massage.
* Dry skins should be massaged with cold cream.
* Olive oil with a few drops of lemon juice is ideal for oily skin.

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