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Nottingham | Style > Beauty

Beauty Treatments From Your Kitchen Cupboard

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Naomi Upton Student Contributor, University of Nottingham
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Harriet Dunlea Student Contributor, University of Nottingham
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Nottingham chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Essential life hack time. You don’t have to waste your money on products that won’t necessarily work; open your fridge and let Mother Nature preen you pretty.

Tips to apply to all these treatments:

●     With skin, begin by opening pores by putting a warm flannel over your face for a few minutes. After treatment, rinse your face with cool water to close pores.

●     With hair, always do a final rinse with cool water to close the cuticle of your hair, making it shinier and less prone to frizz.

Let’s go!

Olive oil and egg hair mask

Sounds gross? I admit, it’s not the nicest experience ever, but this is a brilliantly nourishing solution for damaged ends that have seen too many hours of heat styling and colouring.

●     What you need: 2 eggs, two tablespoons of olive oil, warm water

●     Whisk the eggs and add the oil to them in a small bowl. Dilute with a small cup of warm water. Apply to hair over the sink, either straight from the bowl or with a brush. Massage it into your scalp. Leave on for 15 minutes then rinse off.

Milk as a toner

For oily skin, use skimmed milk, but whole milk works best for dry skin. Apply to a cotton wool pad and sweep all over a freshly cleansed face.

Honey skin saver

Honey is so clever. Prized for its antibacterial and healing properties, it creates a great mask for your skin by itself. You can also:

●     Add half a tablespoon of cinnamon to a few tablespoons of honey and mix, apply to skin for 10 minutes then rinse

●     Cinnamon can irritate sensitive skin so do a patch test on your hand first.

●     ALTERNATIVELY Mix honey with yogurt for an ideal mask for dry skin.

●     OR Mix honey with lemon juice for a mask that helps to lighten acne scars and marks

 

Garlic spot treatment

Apply a small slice of garlic to a spot for a few seconds (too long and it will burn, so take care.) Leave for 10 minutes, then rinse with cool water. It works!

Coconut Oil – for everything!

Ok, so it may not be in your cupboard right now, but I hope I can inspire you to invest in this miracle. It’s also a healthy alternative to normal cooking oil!

●     Body- apply after your shower/bath for super soft skin that smells delicious. If you have dry skin, you can apply it to your face too as a daily moisturiser.

●     Lips- coconut oil in solid form can be applied just like a lip balm.

●     Tamer- rub a little between fingers to treat flyaways.

●     Scarring- coconut oil can be used to reduce the appearance of acne scarring.

●     Shaving cream- your legs will feel like silk. Or dolphins. Or dolphins made of silk. This is a brilliant natural (and in the long term, cheaper) alternative to shaving cream.

Remember, these treatments are just the same as shop-bought beauty products: everyone’s skin is different, but finding a homemade treatment that works for you will save you money and time in the long run. So have fun!

 

Edited by Caroline Chan

Image sources:

http://www.epicurious.com

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/

http://www.hopinghealth.com/

http://cdn2.hubspot.net/

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Naomi Upton

Nottingham

Naomi is a third year English student at Nottingham University and Co-Editor in Chief of HC Nottingham. Naomi would love a career in journalism or marketing but for now she spends her time beauty blogging, attempting to master the delicate art of Pinterest, being an all-black-outfit aficionado, wasting time on Buzzfeed, going places, taking pictures and staying groovy. 
Harriet Dunlea is Campus Correspondent and Co-Editor in Chief of Her Campus Nottingham. She is a final year English student at the University of Nottingham. Her passion for student journalism derives from her too-nosey-for-her-own-good nature.