Irritated face?

Ok, so I thought I’d post this because it’s relevant to myself right now. I have an irritated face from an allergic reaction. My face is tight, burning, itchy and irritated. Sounds horrible? If you’ve been there.. you’ll know it is. So what can we do? 

Let me tell you. Worst thing : Highly scented soaps. 
DO NOT and I mean do not use them on anything that’s irritated. Put them down and go buy a PH friendly soap. I reccomend Simple soap. Amazing. No smells, no alcohol. Just simple. Haha. 

Ok, other one. Increase those fluids. In the winter our skin is affected by the changes in weather (especially if you live in Scotland!) so increasing fluids help the skin cope.

 

Try using one of my cleansers that I have put up. The lemon skin scrub always works well but be sure to not scrub too hard, nice gentle circles.

Moisturise, Moisturise, Mosturise!! This should be your moto untill things clear up(again try simple!). Try  using one of my face masks after it should help balance things out too.

If your skin is particularly bad with feeling like its burning I’d reccomend a cold compress. Gently place it on your skin and move it around till it feels a bit soothed. Also, to help calm down the redness and burning feeling, try anything with aloe. This works great with sunburn it also works amazingly with irritation and should take some of that burning sensation away.

If you have any, using it sparingly and thinly you can use hydrocortisone cream. This will help calm down the redness and reduce itchiness ( please note, this is generally prescribed by your doctor. I’m not sure you can get it over the counter at the pharmacy) 

 

Remember hypoallergenic, this is one of the best words you can find on any product when your skin is really bad. Washing powders also provide this. So if and where possible, change to this till your skin clears up ( this also helps with eliminating if anything is actually causing your irritation that isn’t the weather) 

 

If you are taking a bath, try reducing the tempreture to luke warm as roasting hot water will only irritate the skin futher. Think the gentler the better.

 

Hopefully I’ve covered enough to give you some ideas as to how to deal with your skin. But remember, moisturise, drink more loads and rest.

 

Stephanie

 

 

Hi guys!

Sorry I’ve been M.I.A! It’s a mixture of not feeling well and not having a computer to my disposal. I’ve got a few things that I want to write about, few recipes for clear and natural skin that I’ve came across over the last wee (ok not so wee) while but I only have a limited amount of time on the computer but I will try my hardest to get things updated and back into the swing of things!

Is there anything you’d like me to write about? Should I broaden into make up ? Lemme know whatcha think!

Spots! Spots! Spots! OH MY!!

Ok, so nothing worse than spots girls. Not even make up can really hide them!

So what do you do?

Well let me tell you!

Stop, put that make up brush down, put away the make up bag and listen to me!

Make up will only and I reiterate it will only make it worse!!
You’re doing the worse thing you could ever do when it comes to spots because you are only clogging up your pores.

Put on mascara, eyeliner and lipstick and rock the natural look!

*FACT* Do you know ? Most guys prefer girls to look natural with only a little bit of make up so that it highlights her features not smothers them!

Anyway, let’s tackle these pesky spots together.

As always, lets start by flushing them out by drinking loads of fluids, because spots can be one of two things:

Toxins building up in your system from your diet or clogged up.

Water truly is our best friend my darlings!

Then at night, steam your skin, for this you are going to need:
Kettle (I know but jus’ sayin’)
A large towel
Cotton pads
Moisturiser
Time.

You don’t need one of those steamers if you don’t have one simply boil two kettles worth of water, pour it into the basin and sit with it on the table, hang your head over it and place a towel over your head and your basin.
Breath the steam in too, this is good for clearing any lingering bugs and clearing your system out! (this is also great if your sinus’s are blocked up!)
After a couple of minutes (I’d say 5 mins at least) take the towel off your head and place it over the basic to keep the steam in and wipe your face (see how dirty that pad is! That’s whats causing your skin to clog up!) then repeat once more!

You can follow this with a face scrub like the lemon and sugar one I mentioned earlier in the blog and then follow on with moisturizer and if it has aloe or mint then this will take the redness out of it.

Also anything with witch hazel in it is brilliant for your skin and not forgetting anything with glycerin as well! I adore it. I have eczema and it does wonders for it, generally I use Avon’s glycerin cream its not scented and thus great for sensitive skin.

My other tips are:
Wash your pillow slips when you have spots, this decreases the germs and bacteria responsible for spots spreading.

Try taking some multi vitamins, this sometimes helps your system as it could be low in vitamins that your skin needs to battle of bacteria.

Don’t pick at them, don’t squeeze them. Worst thing to do ever. I know it’s tempting but leave it to go away on its own.

Stop touching your face!

Another thing! Did you know that honey, believe it or not fights off alot of bacteria when used. So here I have some nice new face masks and spot cures.

Quick fix!

Apply this straight onto the spot itself:
Mix honey, tooth paste(NO GEL, I’ve used Colgate Total), and some see salt together and apply straight to the spot, leave on for 10-20 mins (I’ve used Colgate Total)

It’s not you honey, it’s egg face mask

What you need:

• One small bowl
• One tablespoon of .honey
• One tablespoon of olive oil
• Yolk from a raw egg

Whip these three ingredients into a creamy mixture.
Apply “goo” to a freshly scrubbed face and wait twenty minutes with your fingertips.
Wash off mask with a warm wash cloth.
Splash your face with some cold water. Look in the mirror and smile at your pampered face and rejuvenated skin.
And follow with moisturiser (simple is recommended)

Acne be gone!!
This is another recipe that I have, this works for acne as well :

Take a small bowl
Put a cap full of witch hazel in it
A cap full of apple cider vinegar
and squeeze a 50p size amount of toothpaste and put this in as well
mix until its thick
apply on face morning and night
I recommend that do not rinse it off until you see it beginning to peel then when it does, rinse off, wash your face with a non scented soap (simple works best) you can tell that its working,it may tingle a bit so don’t be alarmed!

So don’t you see, you don’t have to suffer, poke, prod and cover up those spots. There is plenty of natural and penny saving remedies. None of them break the bank and you end up with beautiful, healthy skin.

I hope you like my blogs so far!

If you want me to cover anything in particular or would like advice on anything please leave me a comment and I’ll try and cover anything and everything!

Stephanie

So let’s talk hair!

Hair, made up from  91 percent protein, amino acids and about 3% water and whether it’s brown, green, blue, black, red, ginger we as lassies take out hair for granted! 

We comb it harshly, we back comb it, we curl, straighten and blast it with the hairdryer because we are in that much of a rush that we just need it dry, we bleach it, dye it and have it all sorts of funky colours!

Our poor hair! If hair could talk I’m sure it would be saying “excuse me but I’m feeling a little run down! Could you treat me please!”

Healthy hair should look glossy, full of life and shouldn’t really have any split ends. A bit like us, if we run ourselves ragged then it shows just like our hair so it is only fair we treat it once in a while!

So let me introduce you to my tips. 

The number one tip to healthy hair is of course getting the split ends cut but how often depends on how long.

For long hair it should that breaks and is prone to split ends as much as 6-8 weeks  this will keep your hair strong and healthy or for a trim 6-12 weeks, for medium hair hair 6-12 weeks or if its short and your keeping it that way it’s 4-8 if you want to keep that “just cut” look.

Coloured hair is going to suffer more, I dye my hair red every say, 6-8 weeks because as all girls will know, roots are horrible! If you color, highlight, perm, or chemically straighten your hair on a regular basis, you may notice that your hair needs trimmed more frequently due to breakage, split ends etc. Chemical processes can cause all the problems us girls face with hair from  breakages,split ends or become very dry. More frequent haircuts may help prevent over-drying and breakage and like I said, it makes your hair appear more healthier and stronger 

Growing your hair out! Now this is important. There is a myth, a rumour if you shall, that not getting your hair cut will enable it to grow faster when in actual fact there is no truth to this. The main key to growing your hair out is communication to your hair stylist or hairdresser. Regular small trims will keep it healthy, strong and free from breakages and split ends which causes the “oh, we’ll have to take a couple of inches off” comment and it ends up being like 10 inches instead and your back to square one. So open a dialogue, talk to your hairdresser, tell her your plans and take care of your hair!

Conditioner! I’ve heard people say they don’t use it, me, personally if I don’t you have more chance of getting a brush through highland cattle’s coat than my hair! It’s just impossible! So I need to use conditioner. Now I know there’s always that question of how long should we leave it in for. Really it can be anywhere from two minutes to twenty and it also depends on what kind of conditioner as well and if you want a deep conditioning treatment or just a general conditioning. If you don’t have time to do a deep conditioning, leaving the conditioner on for roughly about five to ten minutes under a shower cap to maximize the heat from the scalp will help the conditioner penetrate a bit better. This is also a little tip (especially if you dye your hair red because hot water makes red hair dye rinse out quicker especially when it comes to conditioning!) if you rinse the conditioner out with cold water (I know it sounds and is horrible but if you grin and bear it I promise it’s worth it!) this will help seal the cuticle of your hair tightly, sealing in the proteins from the conditioner, making your hair more manageable and shinier.

However girlies, this is only isn’t a long term solution, this is a temporary remedy for damaged or dry hair however the conditioner helps to add strength, manageability, shine and luster shine to the damaged hair while it grows long enough to be trimmed at your next salon visit.

So I hope that helps a little. 

Also, if you do use shop bought conditioner, use sparingly, concentrate on roots rather than tips and if you want it to do its job properly, use clingfilm or shower cap whilst in the shower, do the rest of your business and then wash out. The heat will help the ingredients.

Hair can also benefit from some home made stuff too and it doesn’t have to break the bank. So here’s a few to try:

ava-go-baby!

(You’ll find because avacado is such a wonderful fruit it gets used alot!)

• 1/2 mashed ripe avocado
• 1/2 tsp olive oil
• 3 drops lavender or rosemary essential oil

Mix well together and apply to hair focusing on the tips, leave on for 10 mins and wash out and ta-da! Lovely hair!

Dangerous dandruff!

(sorry I’m terrible at names ha-ha!)

• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 tsp tea tree oil

Mix well together, massage into scalp leave in overnight. To save your pillows, I’d reccomend sleeping with a breathable shower cap. 

All natural!

I was suggested this one ages ago. Some of it I’m like really?! But it works! So here ye go!

• 1 avocado (peeled and mashed)
• 1 small ripe banana
• ½ cup of coconut milk
• ½ cup of beer (flat)
• 1 teaspoon Olive Oil
• 2 egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
• 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
• 2 drops of lavender or rose essential oil for fragrance (optional)

Mix up all ingredients together until smooth and has the consistency of a paste. You can adjust consistency of mixture with more/less coconut milk if necessary.
After shampooing and rinsing your hair, rinse out extra water in the hair (so its wet but not soaking!), part your hair into small sections and then apply the conditioning treatment from hair roots to tip.
Put shower cap on and cover with a towel to seal in treatment. Leave in for 20-30 minutes, which is enough time to watch eastenders or corrie or whatever or maybe even do one of my masks or scrubs! Or even ead a good book and listen to your favorite music or just savor the peace and quiet.

Once done, unwrap your newly conditioned hair. Rinse out the mixture and then lightly shampoo and condition as usual. Store left over all-natural conditioner for the next time.

coca-nutty!

This sweet smelling treat is wonderful as a conditioner and polisher (but dont eat it now ha ha!)

You’ll need :

3/4 tablespoons of plain yoghurt
1 tablespoon of unsweetened coca powder  
1 teaspoon of coconut milk or oil

Mix all of these together into a smooth paste and apply to hair, leave in for 20 mins and then wash out. Ta-da!

Bananarama!

What you’ll need:

2 bananas

1 egg white

2 tablespoons natural yogurt

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons honey

Steps:

First you have to mix!
take the banana and mix it and mush it down into as a pulp with the smaller pieces the better ( you could possibly use a blender or a food processor or something to that effect) just try not to leave too many junks, then in another bowl mix the egg white dont over mix it just enough to have some air to them then add the egg white to the to the banana and add in the other ingredients too and mix thoroughly, once you’ve done that shampoo your hair, rinse, towel dry and brush it through. (Now whether you want to do the next bit whilst your in the shower is up to you or you can just wash your hair over the bath tub, dry it and wear a very old t shirt or something you are due to wash because you will get messy!!)

Next:

Completely cover your hair from root to tip with you hair mask. And bring out that good old shower cap and put it over your hair, or wrap your head in cling film. Get a towel that you’re just about to wash and wrap it around your head to prevent any further dripping.

And either continue on with your shower or go make a cup of tea, listen to music, chill out, watch the tv or read a book,whatever you want, just leave it in for 30 mins and then wash it out, shampoo (you may have to do this twice if you’ve mushed it down really well) and comb your hair with a fine tooth comb to take out any excess chunks. Now you dont need to use conditioner but if you feel the need to a very small amount can be used but generally once dry many have found that all they needed was a heat protection spray! 

And last but not least for deep conditioning, if you use full fat mayo, leave it in for 10-20 mins and wash it out! You’ll have fab hair in no time! 

So there you go! Hope you like one of them! 

Ok for some final tips before I wrap this up because you must be getting bored of me! I’m getting bored of me! Ha ha ha ! 

Ok so, 

Do you know that washing your hair every day is bad for your hair? You’re hair needs the essential oils that it creates to protect it from the environment. So, if you feel the need to wash it, pin it back, put it in a bobble or use some dry shampoo.

Massaging your head helps these essential oils occur and it also helps the blood circulation to the follicles which helps promote healthy hair growth and prevents hair loss

Brushing hair distributes hair oils. Natural bristles are best because they absorb and distribute the oils and trap dirt and dust.

Minimize blow dryers, hot rollers, curling irons, and chlorinated swimming pools. If you use a blow dryer hold it at least 6 inches away from the hair and use a low setting. It’ll minimise the damage.

And there you go, all I have to offer on hair!

Hope you like it!

Stephanie!

Tired looking eyes and skin?

My whole blog in essence is to show you that what you buy out of the supermarkets and high retailers and high street stores and chains isn’t as good as natural products and things that you can make yourself that cost a whole lot less or even free! 

There is NOTHING worse than dark eyes and dark circles and skin that shouts “I had a late night and I hate mornings!”
So follow me as I take you through some simple things that you can do to have skin that glows and looks like you’ve slept as good as sleeping beauty!

Ok, so there a lot of things that we can do to help ourselves things like sleeping a full 8 hours of undisturbed rest means not only our skin but our brain is ready to function fully for the next day. 

Cleanse, tone and moisturise ever morning and every night, take off make up and never go to bed with it on!

As I’ve said before staying hydrated helps skin in many ways ( I won’t bore you but if you need a refresher, see the blog before)

Eating fruit (5 a day) which are full of anti oxidants like grapes, strawberries,kiwi,cran berries and blueberries are great for the skin

Exfoliation, this is one things I love to do and it should be key to everyone’s regular skin care regime. I recommend 2 times a week just to scrub off that dull rough skin and with winter coming along and drying up our wee faces it’s important to keep our skin in top tip condition! So let me give you some recession proof scrubs that won’t bust the bank!

(As with all scrubs, tie back your hair, wipe off any make up, steam your face and then scrub!)

Well scrub me lemons!

The juice of one lemon 

1-2 hand fulls of sugar 

Mix them into a bowl till you have a moist-ish scrub (not watery but not pure sugar either)
Once you’ve washed and steamed your face, scrub this all over your neck and face going in circular motions as this helps blood flow and circulation to the face (be careful not to get any in your eye!) don’t worry if you by mistake eat a little, it tastes like lemonade! Once you’ve scrubbed everywhere, rinse off, slash cold water and moisturise.

Oat-so-licious!

This one is stimulating, thoroughly cleansing 3-in-1 scrub! It Smooths, tones, and hydrates, how fab is that!

1 Tbsp. ground oatmeal (don’t use the instant stuff)
1 tsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. yogurt

Combine and apply.
Optional extra!! Let your scrub double as a face mask! Let it sit a few minutes before scrubbing and rinsing.

Banana nutty!
A very fine textured, delicious-smelling scrub. This can also double as a mask.

2 tsp mashed banana
2 tsp rolled oats
1 tsp milk
1 tsp honey

Ooohhh Honey!

This can double as a body scub aswell as a face scrub! So two for the price of one!

1 tsp. of honey
1/2 tsp. of sugar (either cane or brown — both work well)
Blend in bowl. Apply.

Rinse very thoroughly, as this recipe can be sticky but well worth it considering the results!

Hope you find at least one to try out of them! 

Anyway next thing! At least once a week try having a face mask, you make it yourself. Anything with aloe, mint or cucumber which are known for their calming, soothing and cooling. So here’s a few to try:

What you are going to need:

• 1/2 cup Cucumber solid parts (without juice)
• 1/4 cup of finely chopped fresh Mint leaves
• fresh Water

Got that? Right lets go! 

Wash the cucumber and cut it into pieces. Put these in a food processor and really mash them up. Pour it through a clean piece of cloth (called straining) and throw the juice away, just keep the solid parts. You’ll need 1/2 cup of this

Put these cucumber solids together with a bit of fresh water in a pan and warm it up over a slow heat on the cooker (you could also use your microwave of course…about 4 minutes.) Then add the chopped mint leaves, stir and continue to heat it (if you use a microwave, about 5 minutes on medium strength)

Take it off the heat source and let the cucumber mint mix cool down until it is cool enough to apply

Spread this gently and equally with your fingertips on your clean face and neck: keep the eye area clear

Now lie down, relax and leave the mask on for 15 minutes and relax and breathe..1…2..3…aaaaahh!

Then wash it off with cold water; pat your skin dry with a clean towel

Other ones I have are : 

oat so honey!

Stuff you’ll need

• 1 tbsp oatmeal, finely ground
• 1 tbsp live, organic yogurt (not the flavoured stuff)
• A few drops of honey

Prep:

Add the yogurt to the oatmeal in a small bowl and mix together.

Warm a few drop of honey. To do this, warm a spoon under hot water for a minute, then add a few drops of honey to the spoon.

Stir the honey into the yogurt and oatmeal mixture.

Apply the mask to the face.
Leave it on for 10 minutes or so rinse off with some water first, just try splashing it off then follow with a warm washcloth.

Apply moisturizer and tada! 

Plain and simple!

Ingredients needed are :

• 1 tbsp natural yogurt, room temperature (not lowfat or non-fat)
• 1 tsp runny honey (microwave for a few minutes to soften hardened honey)

Prep:

Combine mixture, then apply to face. 
Let sit for 15 minutes, just chill out and relax

Wash face with steaming washcloth. 

For dry skin, use an extra teaspoon of honey or if you have oily skin add a few drops of fresh lime juice.

 

Avcadooooo!

I think the best time to use this is after exfoliating your skin
Ingredients:

 

• ½ very ripe, soft avocado
• ¼ cup honey

Preparation:

Mash the avocado in a bowl, then stir in honey.
Apply to skin and leave for 10 minutes. 
Rinse face with a cool washcloth.

 

So there you go, face masks that won’t break the bank. 

Other tips are:

Stew tea bags (you can use twinning’s or normal its up to you) and then squeeze them out to their damp and apply to closed eyes. If your looking for something to cool eyes down follow the same steps but put in the freezer for a couple of minutes!

 

Freeze two slices of cucumber and apply on closed eyes! 

 

A bag of frozen peas, this contorts to the shape of your face and helps battle puffiness.

 

Decrease the salt- yep, unfortunately salt can cause puffiness so if you keep an eye on your sodium intake you should experience less puffiness

 

Do an eye massage! This also works brilliantly for headaches! If you use your ring fingers to press your way from the inner to the outer corners of your eyes then move to your temples and down your jaw. Repeat to help flush excess fluid

 

Two cold tea spoons, pop them in the freezer, place on eyes till they warm and the puffiness will go!

 

A quick make up tip, to draw eyes away from dark circles as a quick fire tip and to draw it out of the bag where you haven’t had time to do anything then apply a few more coats on the upper eyelid with a good mascara. You’ll look fab! 
.
If you are finding in the morning your skin looks a bit worse for ware round the eyes, take a ice cube (that’s been left out for a couple of minutes to become a little watery) and run it around. It’ll take down puffiness and will sure wake you up a bit!

 

So there you go folks! I hope you find something that works for you!

 

Stephanie!

“What you do, the way you think, makes you beautiful.”

I believe everyone should feel beautiful and that it shouldn’t cost an arm and a leg! Beautiful skin is easy to achieve if you keep it simple.

So this is how we will start. Simple tips !

My first blog proper blog is on hydration or the lack of it!

It’s important to keep hydrated as dehydration is you’re worst enemy when it comes to skin as it can lead to a build up of toxins which is bad for you and your skin. Your body is made up of 60% of your body weight but it does essential things like water flushes toxins out of vital organs, carries nutrients to your cells and provides a moist environment for ear, nose and throat tissues. So really, you, your body and your skin rely on your daily intake of water! So, remember to keep yourself hydrated so in turn you do the same for the skin.

Fizzy juice is  your worst enemy girls! Not only bad for your pearly whites and tends to bloat you and bag you up but it’s bad for your skin, I know if I drink loads of it I’m more prone to getting spots! And I’m sure you are all like me when I look in the mirror and my first thought is “Oh, no!”

So girls, the question a lot of people are going to ask is “how much should we drink?”

Well, you should drink 2.2 liters which is roughly 9 cups of water a day! Not everyone likes the taste of water so, if you don’t like water on it’s own, try it with a slice of lemon or lime or squash for a different taste! 

What I tend to do is make up bottles of squash and keep it in the fridge so I can pick one up as I go, I use old bottles which not only saves pennies but I’m recycling too, so I’m doing my little bit for the environment. Woo! I also take a bottle to bed with me in case I get thirsty during the night so I can keep hydrated during the night. 

Hangovers! It is believed that hangovers is the body’s way of saying that it’s dehydrating from the night before. My tips for fighting this horrible feeling that we have all experienced (Now don’t lie! ha ha!) is for every couple of drinks you have in the venue you are in, have a soft drink or a glass of water then when you get home, grab one of those handy ready made bottles of squash that you made up and drink that before sleep. This will help combat some of those nasty “morning after the night before” feelings we get the next day!

I hope you like my first blog so far!

Stephanie!

 

I hope 

Hello from the blogger!

Hi there Girlies! 

Just thought I’d say a few words before getting down to business!

I have been giving out some information and it seems like a lot of people seem to find things I know helpful or useful! I always just thought the information I retained in my head was just useless but if you girls like this and find any of this useful, I’ll keep posting my tips and ideas! 

Stephanie xx