A Worthy Attempt to a Suave Beauty!

One has to agree that life is all about Varieties! Even Yogis who give up a common man's lifestyle find new places to meditate to discover new levels in meditation. We are no exceptions. We look forward to varieties in the food we eat, the places we visit, the colors we choose to wear, and recreations we choose to entertain ourselves. After a week of chores and mores, each one of us needs a short-session of rejuvenation, as a means of digression from the mundane work. While few of us may go for a run, the rest of us tend to have an extended period of soaking. When the soak comes with a blend of exfoliation, invigoration and beautification, none of us would want to miss it.  Since I have no idea of what men do to rejuvenate, I would like to share a Facial procedure for women, which can be easily done at home in a more natural way. People are getting more wary of the chemicals used in facial creams, and hence a majority is opting for restoring the skin using simple kitchen products free of toxins. Nothing can pamper your skin as much as a pure stuff does. The rule is, if you want a glowing, gorgeous skin, look no further than your kitchen!

I came across this 13 years ago in a weekly Tamil magazine "அவள் விகடன்", a periodical that touches all issues of women. I had written it down in my beautiful Tamil handwriting (I love to write in Tamil), but I never made any serious effort to practice facial regularly by myself. Now that even I have set on a journey looking for new things, I opened that page of my diary where the secret of beautiful skin lies! There are many articles in blogs, online magazines, forums, and newsletters on facial ingredients and procedures. For those who undergo this very often, it may even sound trivial. Since I was so excited after trying it a couple of times now, I thought I would share it here:

1. Cleansing: Take a medium sized cucumber, peel it, grind half of it and eat the rest! Now, to the cucumber paste, add three tbsps of yogurt, and mix them both well. Apply it on the face, neck area and hands. Massage it gently with the finger tips in a circular motion. Continue doing it for about 15 minutes, after which rinse thoroughly with warm water.

This helps the skin clear off the dirt deposits.

2. Scrubbing: Now that the skin is tender and soft, scrubbing becomes easier. This is to shed off the dead, and dry cells on the skin surface. Green gram lentil powder is a wonderful scrubber that is being used since ages. Mix three tbsps of split green gram lentil powder with cold milk to make a paste. Apply it on the face and neck area. Leave it until it gets dry. The moment stretch is felt wash it off with warm water.

3. Toning: Toss three ice cubes in a bowl, and add a few tbsps of rose water. Allow the ice to melt, then soak a cotton ball or muslin cloth with it. Gently pat the moist cotton on your face until all the liquid is used up.

Give a break of 10 minutes to continue with the next procedure.

4. Moisturizing: Soak 10 almonds in water the previous night. Peel off the skin, grind the almonds with a few tbsps of cold milk and apply the paste on the face and neck area. Leave it for around 20  minutes until dry. Once a stretch is felt a wash is preferred.

5. Face pack: Grind few carrot pieces and few grapes (seedless) together to which add half tsp of turmeric (kasthuri manjal),  a few drops of Vitamin E oil, a tsp of honey and gram flour (besan) to make a paste. Pack it up evenly. Leave it until dry. Wash off with warm water.

Those who do not have Kasthuri manjal can use a turmeric root from whole foods. Peel off the skin to use a half inch piece in the pack.

It is laborious, but the benefits associated with it are evident in a long term. Natural way is always better than the easiest chemical way. To make it easier on the day, make few powders in bulk and store them airtight. Doing this once every two weeks keeps the skin healthy and fresh without blemishes. The more it is practiced, the better it begets!

If you don't have time to do all these, mash a ripe avocado, add some olive oil to it, mix well and apply it as a pack. If you still consider it impossible, smear some raw organic honey on the face, leave it for some time, wash off and pat dry skin. The idea is to do something different and feel happy!

Please do share some exquisite protocol you may have!