– Shahnaz Husain
A bridal care regime of head-to-toe beauty is important because every part of the body deserves attention. Neglected hands and feet can really mar the entire effect, no matter how beautiful are your dress, jewelry, or makeup. Start the regime at least a month before the wedding. For acne or blemishes, get treatment in good time. Here is a total home-care program, comprising of daily and periodic treatments.
Daily facial cleansing: For your daily care routine, cleanse twice a day.
Normal to dry skin: Take half a cup of cold milk and add five drops of any vegetable oil. Choose from olive oil, sesame seed oil, or sunflower oil. Put this in a bottle and shake well. Cleanse the skin with it, using cotton wool. Keep the leftover mixture in the fridge.
Oily skin: Mix rose water, cucumber juice, and lemon juice in equal quantities. Apply on the face and wash it off after 10 minutes with plenty of water. Also, use it for skin with acne.
Combination skin: Take one-fourth teaspoon of lemon juice and add one teaspoon each of cold milk and cucumber juice. Wipe the face with this, using cotton wool. Rinse with plenty of water.
Moisturizing Lotion: To 100 ml of rose water, add one teaspoon of pure glycerin. Shake well and keep in a jar. Use for dryness of oily and acne-prone skin.
Daily Nourishing of Dry Skin: Use a nourishing cream for night nourishment. After cleansing, massage your face with a few drops of water, with outward and slightly upward movements. Wipe off with moist cotton wool.
Daily Eye Care: Take pure almond oil and apply sparingly on the skin around the eyes. Massage lightly on the area, using only the ring finger, for one minute around each eye. Leave on for 15 minutes and wipe off with moist cotton wool.
Daily Lip Care: Apply pure almond oil daily at night and leave on overnight.
Facial scrub – once a week for dry skin and twice a week for oily/combination skin
Normal and dry skin: Take one teaspoon of each gram flour (besan) and almond meal and add one teaspoon of olive oil and powdered milk.
Oily and combination skin: To one teaspoon of each gram flour and lemon juice; add one teaspoon of rice flour and 2 teaspoons of yogurt. Apply on the face. After 15 minutes, moisten with water and rub gently. Wash off.
Twice a week – face Mask: Mix ripe papaya pulp with 3 teaspoons of oatmeal and one teaspoon each of honey and curd. You can also add egg whites to this mixture. Increase the quantities of these ingredients to get the right consistency. It should be a thick paste, which does not drip. Apply on the face, avoiding the lips and area around the eyes. Wash off after 20 to 30 minutes.
Eye Brightener: After applying the face mask, soak two cotton wool pads in rose water and use them as eye pads. Lie down and relax. This is extremely relaxing and refreshing and a great restorer of both body and mind. Rose water actually has a calming effect, helps to remove fatigue, and brightens the eyes.
Daily Care Hands & Feet: Mix together 3 tablespoons of rose water, two tablespoons of lemon juice, and one teaspoon of pure glycerin. Apply on hands and feet and leave on for half an hour. Wash off with water.
Hand Care – every third day. Take lemon juice and coarse sugar. The grains of sugar should be large. Mix them just before use. Apply on the hands and rub gently till the sugar dissolves. Leave on for 5 minutes and wash off with water. Take fresh orange peels, and pierce them with a fork. Rub the peels on the hands to brighten them.