Forget the Hacks – Get Skincare RIGHT!

Tags

avoid, care, caution, contouring, damage, face masks, hacks, homemade, ingredients, mask, masks, microneedling, moisturiser, skin, skincare, slugging, social media, SPF, spoons, sun, sunscreen, tan, tears, TikTok, Vaseline

Photo by Joanna Kosinska on Unsplash

These days, because the internet and social media give anyone who wants one a very public mouthpiece, there’s a lot of false information floating around which claims to be true. This is especially relevant when it comes to skincare and barely a day goes by without a new “hack” hitting TikTok, claiming to be the latest skincare saviour or correct way to do things. There are, however, plenty of people out there putting paid to these myths, and we thought it was time we weighed in too! 

Homemade Face Masks

While there’s no doubt that there are plenty of ingredients in your kitchen which are can be good for your skin, there are also a lot which can be damaging. One such ingredient is sugar, which many claim makes a good exfoliant when added to face scrubs or masks. In fact, using sugar to exfoliate your face can be highly damaging and actually cause micro tears to your face, leaving you open to infection. If you want to exfoliate, opt for a non-physical exfoliation product such as Elemis Superfood Blackcurrant Jelly Exfoliator which will gently yet effectively exfoliate, leaving skin feeling soft and smooth.

Frozen Spoons

There are lots of tutorials on the web showing people using spoons which have been stored in the fridge or freezer to perform facial massage and lymphatic drainage. While the theory behind is is fairly sound, using a spoon is less than ideal. They’re usually made of a non-optimal material such as metal and they’re not specifically shaped for the contours of the face. Swap your spoon for a Hayo’u Beauty Restorer and we’re positive that your facial massage routine will start to show MUCH better results. 

Slugging

For those of you who don’t know, slugging involves covering your face with a thick layer of Vaseline and leaving it overnight as a way of hydrating the skin. It originated in Korea and made it’s way across the globe thanks to social media, however it’s NOT something we’d recommend. At all. While soaking your skin in something nourishing to encourage moisturisation is fine, using a product like Vaseline (which, let’s not forget, is a petrochemical…) is a really bad idea. Aside from suffocating your skin and blocking your pores, it can actually be more drying and cause your skin to parch completely. If you must slather your face in something, opt for Elemis Superfood Night Cream, which is designed to deeply hydrate and nourish your skin without the risk of damage. 

SPF Contouring

This trend is one that really blew our minds! Certain TikTokkers were advocating for only putting sunscreen on small areas of the face, so that you’d tan more in other areas, to create a physical contouring effect without using make up. Obviously, this is just beyond daft, and potentially a very dangerous thing to do, and we can’t imagine anyone taking this seriously. Properly protecting your skin from the sun using a product like SkinCeuticals Advanced Brightening UV Defence SPF 50 is one of the best ways to protect your skin from the damaging effects of the sun – and we do mean ALL OVER your face! 

Home Microneedling

While we aren’t suggesting that microneedling is totally out of the question, we have serious reservations about doing such an invasive treatment without proper medical training. Microneedling, for those who aren’t in the know, involves using a device which rolls lots of tiny needles across your face, making minute holes in your skin as it goes. The theory is that it allows the skincare to penetrate more deeply, but in reality, the risk of introducing bacteria, and therefore infection, is really high. Devices which pierce the skin should be sterilised in a medical grade autoclave before each use…not just left in your bathroom cabinet! If you make the sensible choice of leaving your microneedling to a professional, we do recommend using Medik8 Ultimate Recovery Bio-Cellulose Mask in the days after treatment.

Easy food hacks for a happy kitchen

Tags

airtight container, apples, bananas, big shop, blender, bowl of soup, carrots, celery, cereal, chicken crown, chop, crips, cup, double batch, eat, environment, food, food bank, food saving, freeze, freezer, fresh, fridge, friend, fruit, hacks, homemade chicken nuggets, hunger, ice cream, landfill, microwave, nasty taste in the mouth, next week, nutrient packed smoothie, olive oil, pizza, potatoes, prevent, pudding, scoop, snacks, soft, soup, throw away, veg, waste, zip lock bag

By the end of the week, if you are anything like us you’ll have half a loaf of bread going mouldy, apples that are beyond bruised and milk that is well and truly on the turn.

Due to busy lives, eating out and BOGOF offers from the supermarkets, we tend to waste more food than ever which isn’t good for our pockets or the environment and leaves a nasty taste in the mouth – literally.

We have put together some easy to follow food saving hacks that really work.

It is better to get less and waste less and you can do this if you plan your meals for the week. Work out which nights you need to cook and factor in lunch boxes, snacks and guests and you’ll soon notice the difference to your wallet.

Only buy what you need. Many people do a ‘big shop’ and stack their trolley high with goods for the week. You may well find that if you shop little and often, especially for fresh produce, you will waste less and save more.

When you do shop, make a list and stick to it. Even better, shop online and use a template list you know works.

Check your fridge is clean and also set to the right temperature.

Make sure you put crisps, cereal and snacks in an airtight container or zip lock bag. This will prevent them from going soft and losing their flavour which means you can eat them rather than chuck them.

The freezer is your friend. Over ripe bananas can be frozen then used for cakes and smoothies. Freeze past their best herbs with olive oil and you have a ready made stock cube and if you know you aren’t going to eat that chicken crown, freeze it for next week.

When you make a pasta bake or bolognaise, cook a double batch and either for lunch the next day or freeze for next week.

Use up fruit and veg by blasting it all in your blender and making a nutrient packed smoothie.

If you have sad looking carrots, celery, potatoes, peppers and onions, don’t bin them. Simply peel, chop and cook them in a pan and you’ll have a healthy, warming bowl of soup in no time.

Bread doesn’t keep forever so put half a loaf in the freeze and take it out as needed. If it does go stale, toast and use a croutons or blast in the blender and you have breadcrumbs for homemade chicken nuggets.

Don’t waste any ice cream, scoop portions into freezer bags when you buy a tub and you’ll have instant pudding with nothing left over.

Don’t throw away that left over pizza, wrap and put in the fridge, then when hunger strikes put it in the microwave with a cup of water for one minute. This will add moisture to the air and the pizza stop it drying out so when bell goes it’ll be fresh and tasty once again.

Find out if there is a local food bank near you and give them anything you know you won’t use.

Got a hack you love? Drop us a line and let us know.

Team Pure Beauty