Facial Steps - How to Do a Home Facial For Dry, Normal and Oily Skin

Knowing how to do a home facial using your favorite homemade facial recipes is a brilliant way of giving your skin a quick pick-me-up, to exercise it by activating circulation and for bringing nutrients and oxygen to the surface. You can do a home facial using homemade face masks or you can do a steam facial. Nearly all face masks contain a high percentage of water; the rapid evaporation that follows application causes them to be cooling, soothing and contracting. Doing a home facial is an excellent way to pamper yourself, relax, and improve your complexion.

Follow these professional steps to do a home facial, it takes about half an hour.

\"Face Masks\"

Step 1 Smooth your hair away from your face and neck, tie or clip it back out of the way.

Step 2 Apply a cleanser using skin contouring motions (see below):

Neck: use long alternating strokes from your collar bone to jaw line.
Cheeks: from the centre line, smooth upward and outward from your chin to your ears, nose to temples; stroke your nose bridge downwards and the sides outwards.
Forehead: stroke upward, in high arcs to your hairline.
Eyes: using one tip, finger pat, starting in the centre between your eyes, making a semi-circle going outward both above and below your eyes.

Step 3 Tissue or rinse off depending on cleanser.

Step 4 With a cotton wool pad, apply your toner to remove last traces of the cleanser.

Step 5 Dot a light moisturizer on your forehead, cheeks and chin; blend in.

Step 6 Rinse with clear lukewarm water.

Step 7 Apply a mask all over your face and throat; leave a free circle around your tender eye area.

Step 8 Cover your eyes with cotton wool pads soaked in milk or a non-alcoholic freshener. Leave the mask on and relax lying down for 20 minutes.

Step 9 After 20 minutes remove all traces of the mask, blot your face and throat with a towel; finish off with a thin film of moisturizer.

Homemade Facial Recipes

You can use the following natural homemade facial recipes when do a home facial; leave them on for a minimum of 20 minutes, and then thoroughly rinse off with clean lukewarm water.

Crushed strawberries: use them alone or mixed with oatmeal.
Ripened pears: give an astringent action to oily skin.
Cabbage leaves: apply the juice from a few green cabbage leaves.
Cucumber mask: grind or mash enough to cover your face; this is refreshing.
Honey mask: 2 tablespoons of honey and ½ teaspoon of lemon juice or cider vinegar.
Brewers' yeast facial: 1 teaspoon of powdered yeast and 2 teaspoons of warm water; adjust consistency so it spreads like a paste.
The beaten white of an egg - with the optional addition of ¼ teaspoon of lemon juice or cider vinegar; good for oily or balanced skin.
Another version of an egg-white facial is to beat it with a tablespoon of skimmed milk.
Mix an egg yolk, a few drops of cider vinegar and a little vegetable oil; good for dry skin.

Steam Facial

You will find giving yourself a steam facial is stimulating. Steam encourages the pores to push out dirt and impurities; it promotes perspiration and stimulates circulation.

If you have sensitive skin or broken veins do not be tempted to do a home facial without seeking advice from a professional first.

Steaming with herb infusions is most beneficial. Pour boiling water over herbs in a bowl; make a towel into a head tent and steam your face over the bowl for 10 minutes. Blot your skin dry, tone, then moisturize.

The following herbs cans be used individually when you do a home facial or combined for your homemade steam facial:

For cleansing, soothing: camomile, lady's mantle, nettle, rosemary, thyme.
For tightening: peppermint, elderflower, tincture of benzoin, gum arabic.
For drying: yarrow.
For healing: leek, comfrey, fennel.

When the mask is taken off, you will notice the blood vessels have expanded and your skin looks rosier; fluid from the enlarged blood vessels plumps up the inner layer, smoothing the skin and compressing the pores.

There will be a definite improvement in the appearance of your skin, and although this 'mask effect' is temporary, the skin is exercised and stimulated.

Experiment with different facial masks to find which suits your skin the best.

Be warned though; don't do a home facial using a mask you haven't tried just before a major event such as your wedding or an important date. The action of the mask will bring all the impurities in your skin to the surface. This could mean you will have a mild breakout for a few days.

If you have oily skin you need to use a mask twice a week, if you have dry or normal skin, you only need to do a home facial once a week.

Facial Steps - How to Do a Home Facial For Dry, Normal and Oily Skin

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