Published 1 April 2019 ● Last Updated on 25 December 2020
Who among us doesn’t wish for a healthy glowing skin? The packaged products around our bathroom sinks, however, have more than just beautifying ingredients. Many have microplastics that leach into our seas and endocrine disruptors that mess our hormones… Moreover, they aren’t always as effective as (literally) food for the skin! Today’s article comes from the pen and kitchen of Deepali Sakhare, the Founder and Chief Formulator at Singapore-based skincare and haircare brand SVA: Back2Nature. She shares recipes derived from Ayurvedic wisdom and modern pharmacology to clean up your beauty regimen!
While we spend dollars behind expensive beautifying creams, it is the humble ingredients from our kitchen that actually work wonders for the skin. Most products available on the shelf are either a concoction of harsh chemicals or have minuscule percentage of skin healing ingredients. And worst, some synthetic preservatives used in these creams / lotions / body washes / shampoos are skin irritants, carcinogens, hormone disruptors and not environment-friendly. Imagine these ingredients are washed everyday into the eco-system and through food chain end-up on our plates!
It’s time we become mindful and put effort to choose better alternatives for cleaner environment and green living. What we choose to apply on our skin is connected to what we eat. We are a part of this food chain and hence owe responsibility towards it. Here are few alternatives that work just like store-bought products and they can be made right in your kitchen. With minimal efforts, of course ☺
I am sharing few of my favourite DIY beauty products that are real game changers!
Coffee-Cinnamon Body Scrub
Ingredients:
Brown sugar (fine crystals) – 1 cup approx
Coffee powder (fine to coarse) – 2-3 tablespoon. (You can use spent coffee powder as well.)
Cinnamon – a pinch
Coconut oil – 1-2 tablespoon (you can use any other oil of your choice like olive oil/ sweet almond/ sunflower oil)
Recipe:
Put the brown sugar in a clean class bowl.
Add 2-3 tablespoon coffee powder.
Add pinch or two of cinnamon powder
Finally, 2 tablespoon of coconut oil.
Mix well and use.
To use: Wet your skin under the shower. Scoop the coffee-cinnamon body scrub and exfoliate your skin in circular motion. Do not use hard pressure; it will bruise your skin. This scrub not only smells delicious but works like a charm for silky smooth skin. Coffee also works to reduce cellulite. This scrub can be used once a week.
Note: The bathroom floor may get slippery due to oil while using the scrub. Please take precaution.
Shelf life: Good to store for 2-3 months in an air-tight jar.
Probiotic Face Mask
Yes!! Without spending dollars you can make this one, right on your kitchen counter within minutes. Try it (Thank me later ☺)!
Ingredients:
Kefir / yogurt – 2 tablespoon
Manuka honey / Raw honey – 1 teaspoon
Turmeric – a pinch
Recipe:
Mix kefir / yogurt with manuka honey and add pinch of turmeric to make a paste. Mix well. Note: Do not add turmeric more than a pinch else it will stain the skin. Pinch is good enough!
To use: Apply a thin layer on clean washed face. Let it dry for 20 minutes and rinse with cold water. Use organic Bulgarian rose water toner after the mask for better results.
Us this mask once a week or at least fortnightly.
Shelf life: Do not store – Prepare and use fresh.
Make-up Remover (Rose Water/Jojoba Oil)
Ingredients:
Organic Rose water – 30 ml
Jojoba oil – 10 ml
Recipe:
Add Rose water in a small glass spray bottle.
To this add Jojoba oil.
Voila, your make-up remover is ready.
To use: Simply shake the bottle to mix Rose water and oil together. Spray the contents on a cotton swab and remove the make-up or grime. You will be surprised how well this works!! Even on water proof make-up.
TIP: Add Witch Hazel along with Rose water, if you use heavy / water-proof make up every day.
Shelf life: Use within 10-15 days ideally. (Hence, make in small quantities.)
Matcha – Rice Face Scrub
If you enter any beauty store, rice is the reigning ingredient in many high end skincare products. While I simply walk in my kitchen and make my own rice face scrub on a leisurely Sunday afternoon. You can too.
Ingredients:
Rice flour: 1-2 tablespoons
Matcha tea: 1 tea sachet
Sweet almond oil: 1 teaspoon
Recipe:
Take rice flour in a glass bowl.
Cut open the Matcha tea sachet and empty the contents in rice flour and mix.
Add sweet almond oil.
Mix it all together.
Your matcha-rice face scrub is ready.
To use: Take a teaspoon of powder in your palm. Add little water to make a paste. Apply on your face in circular motion and exfoliate. Rinse with cold water. Apply organic Bulgarian rose water toner after the scrub.
Shelf life: Good to store for 2-3 months in an air-tight jar.
These are my favorite DIY recipes from my SVA closet. These cost nothing, work beautifully and I am relieved that when I wash these ingredients down the drain, I don’t kill the eco-system. Hopefully you try these at your home and let us know your experience.
You can follow us on Facebook and Instagram for more such DIYs
-Deepali Razdan is the Chief Formulator for artisanal skincare & haircare brand SVA. She is completing her Diploma in Organic Skincare & Haircare from Formula Botanica, London. An avid DIYer for a decade now, she is the one bringing the age-old Ayurveda secret of washed ghee products to Singapore.
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