3 Steps To Bringing Your Skin Back to Life

Every year, during season changes,  my skin goes through a painful phase of dryness and unappealing complexion. Beautiful skin can be so hard to achieve for many of us. There are so many factors that play a huge role in how our skins behave such as genetics, hormones, lack of sleep, aging, or simply the change in weather. Thankfully some of these we can control with homemade facials and innovative treatments.

I’ve always been a huge fan of face masks. I do them at least once a week religiously. My mom taught me to use them as early as 9 years old. Yup! My mom was a skin goddess. People would go crazy over her skin and she looked at least 15 years younger. Her precious secret….face masks and lots of moisturizing. She was also an incredibly happy soul which I think made a huge difference in her physical appearance 🙂

A few weeks ago I started getting really dry when the weather changed. But this time, it was a different type of dryness. It was much more intense than in the past. My skin was even itchy and no matter how much face cream and oils I put on, nothing was helping. I started freaking out as you can imagine. The only thing that made sense about my overly dry skin was, “I’m getting older and my skin is changing”. I don’t remember my mom ever complaining about dry skin. So I started thinking and remembered how she would swear by avocado. I remember the one time she smashed 2 avocados and smeared them all over my hair. Avocados are one of those beauty secrets Puerto Ricans swear by. Put them on your hair, skin, or eat them if you want to look younger and more beautiful.

This is when I decided to experiment with this old school family and culturally idealized food and came up with my own homemade face mask that helped bring my skin back to its normal PH balance.

I googled what others amazing ingredients Mother Nature offers that help rejuvenate and hydrate. And ladies, this is by far one of my favorite skin healing face masks ever. My mom would be proud. I will share every step of the process along with my recipe for this rejuvenating gem. It’s so easy and you can do it at the comfort of your own home with ingredients you most likely already have in your kitchen for less than $20.

READY?!!

Step 1

DEEP EXFOLIATION: Try making your own exfoliator with sugar, salt, or even baking soda if looking for a finer scrub. I like to add coconut oil making it easier to spread but you can use olive oil, almond oil or whatever favorite you happen to have in your cabinet. The point is to exfoliate and get rid of dead skin without stripping your skin away of its natural oils which is why I like exfoliating with these.

Step 2

STEAMING: My mom would have me steam my face when I first hit puberty and was struggling with breakouts. You probably have your face steamed with any good professional facial and there’s a reason for it. Steaming helps open up the pores to help penetrate products and also assists in keeping your skin damp and dewy. It’s also a great way to help prepare the skin before applying your key products or the mask which we will dive into next.

**You can get a facial steamer at Sephora, Amazon, or even Target.

Step 3

THE FACE MASK: So the most important thing to keep in mind when doing this mask is to do it at least 3 days in a row and to keep it on for as long as possible. Meaning, 1-2 hours but to be honest, I highly suggest applying it as soon as you get home from work and going about your afternoon with it on. I personally worked on my website, cooked dinner, and even watched an episode of “Ray Donovan” with my love before washing it off. Once rinsed, follow by your favorite serum, moisturizer, and night time oil.

HERE IT GOES…

FACE MASK INGREDIENTS:

-1/8 of an avocado smashed—Excellent source of vitamin E, potassium, and lecithin that help nourish and moisturize the skin.

-1 tsp of jojoba oil-Vitamin E and B—Complex Vitamins. Helps soothe and calm the skin assisting with redness and excessive dryness. Also known for its anti-inflammatory properties.

-1 tsp of coconut oil—Natural antibacterial and anti fungal. Excellent moisturizer.

-1 tbsp of honey—Antibacterial. Full of antioxidants. Moisturizing, slows down aging, and helps create glowing skin.

Mix and apply throughly. I always like to use any left overs on my hands. Remember hands will always reveal your age quicker than any other part of your body. They too deserve to be cared for.

I hope you found this post helpful and it helps bring your skin back to life.

“Beauty is when you can appreciate yourself. When you love yourself, that’s when you’re most beautiful.” –  Zoe Kravitz

xo,

Vilmaliz