8 great tips for beautiful face

The most important physical aspect of our body-it looks back at you looking dry, or oily or listless or the way you make it, i.e.: glowing and radiant.

Start by giving yourself 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes at bedtime.

The weekends can be used for longer treatments.
Lets start with the cleansing routine.

Tips 1:

Take 1 tbsp of un-boiled milk, dip a small pad of cotton wool in this and rub on the face gently. Use circular movements, use upward strokes on the neck area. Leave this on for 15 minutes. Wash with cold water.

Tips 2:

Take a thick slice of cucumber. Don't peel the slice, rub in a circular motion all over the face and neck areas. Wash after 15 minutes.

Tips 3:

Halve a tomato, gently rub over face and neck and wash after 15 minutes.

Tips 4:

Take the half of a lime peel, from which the juice has been extracted, rub this firmly on the face and the neck. Using a Scrub-(once in 3-4 days).

After washing off the milk or juice - take a tsp of oat bran or wheat husk or gram flour (besan). Make a paste with a few drops of water and rub the face and neck gently with this. This sloughs away the dead cells and gives the face a glow. Don't use soap, just splash on cold water that will act as an astringent and close the pores.

Tips 5:

Use green gram powder or rice flour mixed with curds instead.

Oily Skin: If the face is oily,

After a bath as a base for make-up use some diluted limejuice to dab on before application of foundation or any other make-up.

Tips 6:

Diluted buttermilk dabbed on the face and left for 15 minutes, gently wipe with moist cotton wool before applying make-up.

Tips 7:

Rub the face well with an ice cube.

Tips 8:

Slice an Apple into thin slices. Place these on the face and leave for 15 minutes. These soak up the extra oil and helps to close pores.

Drinking Water to Maintain Good Health

Water - The Beverage Your Body Needs Most

Drinking water is so important for good health. When you were a kid in school, you learned that each molecule of water is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. You may also have learned that it was great fun to fill up your squirt guns with water, at least until the principal caught you. What you may not have learned, however, was how much water you needed in order to be a healthy human being.

Why You Need to Drink Water

Your body is estimated to be about 60 to 70 percent water. Blood is mostly water, and your muscles, lungs, and brain all contain a lot of water. Your body needs water to regulate body temperature and to provide the means for nutrients to travel to all your organs. Water also transports oxygen to your cells, removes waste, and protects your joints and organs.

Signs of Dehydration

You lose water through urination, respiration, and by sweating.If you are very active, you lose more water than if you are sedentary. Diuretics such as caffeine pills and alcohol result in the need to drink more water because they trick your body into thinking you have more water than we need.

Symptoms of mild dehydration include chronic pains in joints and muscles,lower back pain, headaches and constipation. A strong odor to your urine, along with a yellow or amber color indicates that you may not be getting enough water. Note that riboflavin, a B Vitamin, will make your urine bright yellow. Thirst is an obvious sign of dehydration and in fact, you need water long before you feel thirsty.

How Much Water do You Need to Drink?

A good estimate is to take your body weight in pounds and divide that number in half. That gives you the number of ounces of water per day that you need to drink. For example, if you weigh 160 pounds, you should drink at least 80 ounces of water per day. If you exercise you should drink another eight ounce glass of water for every 20 minutes you are active. If you drink alcohol, you should drink at least an equal amount of water. When you are traveling on an airplane, it is good to drink eight ounces of water for every hour you are on board the plane. If you live in an arid climate, you should add another two servings per day. As you can see, your daily need for water can add up to quite a lot.

Twenty percent of your water need will come from the foods you eat. The rest of your water need should come from the beverages you drink. Water is the best choice. Sodas have a lot of sugar in them, so if you drink sodas, you may take in more calories than you need. Herbal teas that aren't diuretic are fine. Sports drinks contain electrolytes and may be beneficial, just look out for added sugar and calories that you don't need. Juices are good because they have vitamins and nutrients.

Caffeinated beverages will also add to your daily water need. Even though caffeine is a diuretic, if you regularly consume caffeine, your body will regulate itself to that diuretic effect.

Drink Enough Water

It may be difficult to drink enough water on a busy day. Be sure you have water handy at all times by keeping a bottle for water with you when you are working, traveling, or exercising. If you get bored with plain water, add a bit of lemon or lime for a touch of flavor. There are some brands of flavored water available, but watch for extra calories.

_Sources:

_{Spigt MG, Kuijper EC, Schayck CP, Troost J, Knipschild PG, Linssen VM, Knottnerus JA. "Increasing the daily water intake for the prophylactic treatment of headache: a pilot trial." Eur J Neurol. 2005 Sep;12(9):715-8.}

_{Armstrong LE, Pumerantz AC, Roti MW, Judelson DA, Watson G, Dias JC, Sokmen B, Casa DJ, Maresh CM, Lieberman H, Kellogg M. "Fluid, electrolyte, and renal indices of hydration during 11 days of controlled caffeine consumption." Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2005 Jun;15(3):252-65.}

Beauty Basics - Eight Tips For Naturally Beautiful Skin

Not sure what to look for when choosing cosmetics? Need some advice on taking care of your skin? Here are eight tips to help your skin look and feel it's best.

1) Select moisturizers made with vegetable oils. The lotions, creams and body oils that you use should be made with vegetable oils, not mineral oil. Vegetable oils, (like olive oil, sweet almond oil, corn oil, etc.) contain fatty acids which help to moisturize and soften the skin. Mineral oil is derived from petroleum and does not contain anything that helps to nourish the skin.

2) Look for herbs and herbal derivatives in your cosmetics. Herbs and their derivatives (essential oils, extracts, infusions) contain natural chemicals which soothe, tone and help condition the skin. Two herbs which are especially useful in natural cosmetics are Lavender and Tea tree. The essential oils of both lavender and tea tree are gentle, natural antiseptics.

3) Once a week soak your feet in warm water, and gently exfoliate dead skin with a pumice stone. Follow up by moisturizing your feet with a natural foot oil or foot lotion.

4) Every week soak in a tub of bath salts. Salt, especially salts mined from the Dead Sea in the Middle East, are rich in minerals and help draw impurities out of the skin.

5) After a shower or bath, seal in moisture by using a body oil or lotion made from natural vegetable oils.

6) If you have blemishes and your skin is dry, moisturize your skin in the morning and at night with products that contain vegetable oils which are high in essential fatty acids. Essential fatty acids help to soften and hydrate the skin and they can also help soothe minor irritations. Vegetable oils that contain large amounts of essential fatty acids are: corn oil, sunflower seed oil, safflower oil, borage oil, blackcurrant seed oil and evening primrose oil.

7) Look for toners and astringents that are made without ethyl alcohol, rubbing alcohol or isopropyl alcohol. These ingredients are solvents that are extremely drying to the skin.

8) Every time you wash your hands, moisturize them with a natural lotion or cream to help them stay soft.

About The Author

Copyright: 2005 Ololade Franklin. Ololade Franklin publishes Making Good Scents(TM), a newsletter for people who make their own bath and body care products. For information about Making Good Scents(TM) visit http://www.MakingGoodScents.com

Quick Tips For Cleansing Your Skin

One of the most important factors of skin care is skin cleansing. Because dirt, pollution, residual makeup, etc. can cause havoc to the skin leading to skin ailments and even hastening of the aging process.

Here's what you need to do, obvious may be, but not practiced as it should be:
• Always wash your hands clean first. This will prevent the transfer of bacteria to your face.
• Start with your hairline first, as hairstyling products attract dirt, and then sweep cleanser over face and lips and down the neck to beyond where you apply foundation.
• After you've applied your cleanser, gently massage it in with the balls of your fingers and leave it on for a minute or so to allow make-up to melt away. Then use a soft cotton ball to wipe away dirt, pollution, and cosmetic build-up without tugging at the skin.
• Then wash face clean with water and a good quality face wash so that all traces of dirt is gone and skin becomes perfectly clean.

SKIN TONING

Toning is necessary for all skin types and should be made a part of daily skin care routine. Toning is refreshing, improves blood circulation and adds a healthy glow to the skin.
• Soak cotton wool pads in skin tonic and wipe face in outward and upward strokes.
• Each movement should end at the temples. Apply gentle pressure at the temples.
• While applying toner on the forehead, start from the centre and go outward on either side, again ending at the temples.
• Apply toner on chin in circular motions.
• Tone the neck too, stroking downwards from the chin.
• Tone around the eyes, but very lightly.

Making skin tonic at home is simple and easy. All you require is rosewater and witch-hazel. Rosewater is one of the best-known skin tonics and is easily available. Witch-hazel is available at a chemist or homeopathy shop. Toners vary according to skin types:

For normal skin
Mix ¾ cup rosewater with ¼ cup witch-hazel and store in a jar.

For very greasy skin
Mix equal quantities of rosewater and witch-hazel and store in a jar.

For dry skin
Mix ¾ cup rosewater, ¼ cup witch-hazel and ½ teaspoon glycerin or honey and store in a jar.

USE A FOAMING BATH TO TONE YOUR SKIN

• Bathing foams with plant extracts like mint and rosemary are ideal for maintaining your skin’s firmness.
• They tone the skin by providing nutrients and improving blood circulation.
• For instance, balsam (which contains pine extracts) improves breathing by improving oxygen intake.
• And finally remember that toning foam baths are also great energy boosters.

HOW DO I CARE FOR MY SKIN THIS WINTER?

Winter’s here and it’s time to watch out for dry skin, coarse hair, shriveled cuticles and rough hands…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.
To give body skin a glow, add a spoonful of olive oil to a bucket of hot water for your bath. This gives a glow to the skin. If the skin is very dry massage with warm olive oil fifteen minutes prior to bath.

Beauty Tips - Avoid Make Up “Leaking” Problems During Summer

Problems with the “leaking” foundation or lip gloss? Want a natural make up that also covers the little imperfections of the complexion? Check out the following easy steps for summer make up

Summer is the season of the year during which women want to be the most beautiful and admired. This is when we go on holidays, have fun and meet new people. This is the time when we want to make use of all the resources in order to look glamorous and fresh at the same time.

However, most women have troubles in choosing the most appropriate make up during summer, because the sun will always “melt” the hydrating foundation we wear the rest of the year to cover imperfections, the lip gloss that gives full volume to our lips or the creamy eye make up that brightens our iris and makes our vision more seducing and tempting.

But there are plenty of cosmetic solutions meant to avoid these beauty “accidents” that could attract the ironic looks of the others towards us. Instead, the summer make up tricks will attract only admiring glances.

For start, avoid as much as you can the use of foundation. We all know how protective it is because it covers the little flaws of our complexion – as nobody is perfect, isn't it? However, during summer try to replace the usual foundation with a tinted cream that will not be “liquefied” by the sun rays and will also give you a fresh, trendy look by making your face mildly tanned. Tinted face powders also work, as long as you don't have a dry skin.

Therefore, use tinted moisturizers if you have a dry skin and tinted face powders if you have an oily or mixed complexion. Besides giving our faces a bronzed natural look, the tinted creams will moisturize the dry skin and will not allow it to get dehydrated, while tinted face powders will absorb the excess sebum from the oily skins.

Nevertheless, if one still wants to stick to the foundation use during summer, she should switch to an oil free formula of the foundation or try to dilute it with an oil free moisturizer. Also bear in mind that during the hot season foundation should be used only for the center of the face in order to confer brightness to the complexion or only for the areas with problems.

Under eye foundation, especially if it consists of a creamy under eye concealer, can also cause problems. Many of us have problems with the under eye shadows or bags. But if we use concealer in excess for these eye problems during the hot season, the heat outside is very likely to make the foundation leak and the effect will be rather a hilarious one.

Instead, try applying night eye creams in the evening that will reduce the shadows or bags under the eye and will also give us a fresher look. Or, if you still have problems, cover the dark eye circles with a bit of powder or stick under eye concealer. And don't forget that the concealer of the dark eye circles should be one or two shades lighter than the color of your complexion, not much lighter or darker than the natural color of the skin.

The “liquefying” problem may also occur in the case of creamy eye shadows or lip glosses. In the case of eye shadows, try replacing the creamy ones with fine powder eye shadows in soft tones of peach, pinks, beiges. You can also use face powder on the eyelid as a foundation for the eye shadows, especially if you have oily eyelids.

For the lip gloss, you should try to avoid face powder as foundation because when you will come to apply the lip gloss they will form a heterogeneous compound that does not look very good. Instead, try applying small amounts of lip gloss that will provide your lips with glow and volume without looking loaded.

Source : Softpedia

Nail Care

Your nails may be craving something - If your nails are weak, splitting, fragile etc, the problem could be traced back to an inadequate water intake.

Most people don't drink nearly enough water. Drink up!

What to do about brittle nails

The most common nail wreckers are harsh detergents and water, which can stress nail fibers. So be sure to put rubber gloves on while you clean or do dishes.

Also, avoid using perfume lotions that usually contain alcohol if your nails are brittle. It will only make your nails worse.

It may be possible that your calcium intake is low, as well.
How To Give Yourself A Manicure

Whether you prefer your nails to be long or short, they can still look stunning with a little know-how.

• Wash and dry your hands.
• Using a double-sided emery board, file nails using a gentle stroke. Avoid corners of your nails as this can weaken them.
• Begin to shape your nails. The most popular shape to use is oval, but choose what is most suited to your hand and finger shape.
• Check to see how well you have done. Run your nails over an old pair of pantyhose. Your nails should not snag the hose.
• Apply a softener to your cuticles. Allow to site for a minute or so.
• Transfer hands to a bowl of warm water and soak for an additional few minutes.
• Gently push back the cuticles. This should not be painful. If hangnails are present, carefully clip them.
• Apply hand lotion and begin to massage the palm of your hand with the thumb of your other hand. This will help to circulate the blood. Work your way over the remainder of the hand and then repeat giving equal time to the other hand.
• Before color is applied to nails, they must be cleaned and the easiest way to do this is with an orange stick that has been wrapped with cotton. Dip into nail polish remover and then rub over the surface of the nail. Check the nail for any creamy residue. When none remains, your nails will be ready for polishing.
• Time for color. Pick up a small amount of polish on your brush and paint one stroke down the center of your nail. Your brush should hold just enough color to accomplish this. Stroke the sides of the nail and you are done. The nail should be completely colored in three strokes. Allow to set for a minute or so before applying the second coat.
• Wait until polish is set (dry to the touch) and then apply the top coat. Don't skip this step as it not only adds life to your manicure, it will protect your nails as well.
• Sanitize all of your equipment with alcohol and when they are dry, store them away until the next manicure.

Nail Tips:

• Nail polish can be stored in the fridge.
• If your nail polish is too thick, try thinning with a polish thinner.
• To prevent the cap from sticking, coat it with a little Vaseline to prevent this from happening.

Cosmetic Tips

Make-up timeline

To ensure your eyes stay healthy and free of infection when using make-up, heed the following due-date rules. Throw out your mascara after three months, powder eye shadows every nine to 18 months, and cream eye shadows every six to 12 months. Sharpen your eyeliners often to keep them clean.

Mascara mistakes

To avoid mascara flake-off or smudging on your face, apply a thin cost of mascara to top lashes only. Then run an eyelash brush through lashes to prevent clumpy mascara build-up.

Get a rosy glow

Want your face to radiate a healthy glow? Try using a gel blush or cream (instead of powder) in a rosy shade of pink to create a more natural look. Gels or creams are more transparent and blend smoothly – rub it on the apples of your cheek and blend up towards the eye for a glowing complexion.

Minute manicure

Need a fast fix for unpolished nails? File nails into a square shape, buff them to create a bit of shine and apply a clear coat of polish. Next rub in cuticle oil around the edges of the nail and moisturize your whole hand. It takes less than 15 minutes and will give your appearance a polished look.

Brow etiquette

The trend in eyebrows for this season is natural looking, not sparse and skinny. Use a tinted brow definer or eyeshadow to fill in scanty brows.

Fix tired feet

Pamper your tired feet with a luxurious footbath. Fill a basin with warm water and add a few drops of essential oils. Next place marbles or small stones (found at your local garden centre) into the basin. Run your toes and soles of your feet over the marbles, and relax for 15 minutes.

Eye/lip pencil care

Before sharpening your eyeliner or lip pencil, place them in the freezer for 10 minutes. They will harden slightly and not break when sharpened.

Eyeliner hint

Women with deep-set eyes should use liquid liner instead of regular pencil eyeliner, to prevent smudging in the crease of the lid. Liquid liner does not smudge as easily.

Nail polish know-how

Is your nail polish from last season too thick? Chances are the polish has begun to thicken at the bottom of the bottle. Add a bit of nail polish thinner to the bottle to get the maximum use of your nail polish.

Foundation tester

When picking out a concealer or foundation, always test the colour on the inside of your wrist. The skin there is the most unblemished and will give you a good idea of how it will look on your face.

Extend your foundation

Want to extend the life of your foundation and cut down on heavy concealer? Mix a drop of it with your natural moisturizer to create a luminescent look for your skin.

Curl your lashes

Before curling your eyelashes, heat the curler with a hair dryer for a few seconds. Test to make sure it is not too hot, then apply to eyelashes. The heat will lock in the curl on extra long eyelashes.

Foundation secret

Apply foundation to your face AFTER you have done your eye make-up. This helps you to fix any last minute smudging from mascara or eyeliner under the eyes.

Lipstick trick

Love matte lipstick, but feel your dry lips wreck the look? Apply a lip balm to lips before starting your make-up routine. By the time you have done your eyes and rest of the face, your lips will be moisturized and ready for the matte lipstick.

Manicure tip

If you have been sloppy applying nail polish, simply soak nails (when dry) in warm water for a few minutes and then rub off extra nail polish gently with a finger.