Rev-up your summer beauty looks with these at-home remedies – all the ingredients are super-affordable and may already be in your kitchen!
Lemon Juice: Many young women have used a cocktail of lemon juice (yes, the kind you buy for 99 cents at the supermarket) and leave-in conditioner to lighten their locks in the sun. The lightening power of lemon can also be used to lighten dark spots on your skin caused by the sun or old scars. Swipe a cotton ball doused in lemon juice on the spots for ten minutes a day, and you will be amazed. Be sure to wash it off when you are done; exposing lemon-infused skin to the sun reverses the results.
Green Tea Bags: Filled with antioxidants that have awesome health benefits for the inside of your body, green tea’s magic also works on your complexion. Soak a green tea bag in hot water as if you were making a cup to drink and let it cool a little. Then, rub it evenly onto your face to reveal a healthier complexion. This remedy isn’t all superficial, either. While it does reduce redness and blemishes, it does so by removing the harmful toxins in your skin that cause them.
Coconut Oil: Coconut oil is more than just a craze; it definitely lives up to its hype. Use unrefined coconut oil as a leave-in treatment to soften and texturize hair; as a long-lasting moisturizer on skin and those stubborn cuticles (without the perfume-y smell of lotions); and even as a 20- to 30-minute mouth rinse to whiten teeth and boost gum health. There is virtually nothing it cannot do!
Matches: Thinking about ditching the dark eye make-up this season? Think again! Strike a match or two, blow them out and use the ash to create the coveted grunge-meets-glam eyeliner and eye shadow looks, using the same brushes you would for powdered eye shadow to apply it. You may need to add a couple drops of water to the ash to create your desired consistency.