A little self-care goes a long way. It’s important to take care of physical, mental and spiritual well-being. However, we are so caught up in life’s rigmarole that we often forget to take a moment to sit down to catch up on things for ourselves. Experts say that a self-care routine helps to be more confident and also makes others respect us more, because when we learn to respect ourselves, others follow suit.
However, in today’s fast paced life, this can become rather challenging. Sometimes, we tend to neglect ourselves and all the stress shows on our faces as dull skin or limp hair. Here are some DIY mask ideas for face, hair and feet with easy ingredients available in every kitchen to help rejuvenate effortlessly without an expensive parlour trip.
FACE MASK (for face, neck and arms)
- Gram flour 4 tbsp
- Milk 2 tbsp
- Few strands of saffron, optional
- Rose water- I tbsp, optional
- Turmeric- ½ tsp
- Lime- 1 tbsp
- Honey- 1 tbsp
- Vitamin E capsule (optional, available at any pharmacy)
Mix the above ingredients to achieve a paste like consistency. Add milk if thick. Add more gram flour if it’s too runny. Apply the paste to your face, neck and arms. Let it dry. Once dry, apply water to wet it. Rub in circular motion to loosen it up and wash it away with only water. Do not use soap after washing this to clean your face. This mask can be used for normal skin. If skin is too dry, avoid lime. For very oily skin, substitute milk with curd.
HAIR MASK
- Fermented Rice water- 1 cup, approximately
- Flax seed powder- 1 tbsp
- Methi seeds- 1 tp
- Coconut oil- 3 tbsp
Heat the coconut oil (virgin cold pressed preferably or any hair oil). Soak a teaspoon of fenugreek seeds in the warm oil and leave it overnight. Save the rice water drained from cooking everyday rice and let it ferment overnight. You can refrigerate this fermented rice water for use for up to two days. Mix a spoonful of flax seed powder with few spoons of rice water to make a paste for your hair length. Add the strained coconut oil to it.
Apply it on your hair evenly, lengthwise. For longer hair you can increase the amount of coconut oil and flax seed powder, use rice water to adjust the paste consistency. Leave this for an hour before shampooing. This helps for frizz control and gives shine and volume to hair. For extremely dry hair, substitute coconut oil with olive oil. For oily hair, add the juice of a lemon to the paste. This mask works as a pre-shampoo conditioner.
FOOT MASK
- Gram flour or rice flour- 2 tbsp
- Rock Salt/ Himalayan salt/ Epsom salt- 1 tp
- Baking Soda- ½ tp
- Lime – 1 tbsp
- Green tea leaves- 1 tp
Mix all the ingredients to make a paste. Adjust consistency with water. Apply on the feet and leave it to dry. Wrap a cling film if possible to avoid it from falling. Once the mask is dry, apply a little water to wet the pack and rub in circular motion with a pumice stone. Wash it clean with water. The green tea helps as an antioxidant to pull out toxins. The baking soda and lime help to remove odour and dry flaky skin. Gram flour serves as a scrub to remove dead and rough skin. The salt helps to relax tired and achy feet. Moisturize your feet overnight with coconut oil or any moisturizing cream.