Ultimate DIYs that will change your skincare game forever
By: Nikita Debnath
Tags: Skin Care Tips, Home Remedies, Natural, DIY, Skincare

Had with the vagaries of your skin breaking out?

Or scared to use those chemical exfoliators on that “ragged” skin of yours?

Let’s pretend for a moment, I am your grandmother and you are the distressed teen with countless skin problems.

I have a visual of sleeping with makeup on. Eating crappy fast food day in and night. So, I am not going to play the blame game here and put it all on my genetics. In retrospect, I can only tell you the myriad of things I have put on my face and the money I paid for chemicals (not that they are bad or do not work). The key to good skin is minimum products and natural ingredients.

In this article, I will list 5 ingredients that will change your skincare game forever.

By the way, I have sensitive, combination skin, dehydrated acne-prone skin — I break out my skin also becomes flaky, so I swear by these.

If these do not appeal to you, you may cease reading but the following enlisted are firsthand tried and tested.

Red Lentils (masoor dal):

Masoor Dal exfoliates and brightens the skin. If you have oily skin, then I would recommend skipping the milk. Soak masoor dal in milk or just water as per your requirement (you can store it for about a week). Keep it overnight or 2–4 hours would do. Make a paste and apply it to your face, neck and even body. Let it sit for 30 minutes.

This common dal removes the dullness and the dead cells, removes tan. I assure you regular application of this facemask will give you brighter and plum skin.

For extra benefits add in raw turmeric or orange peel (if available).

Potato:

I started using potatoes on my face after watching a video by Huda. She suggested using slices of potatoes on your face but that did not work for me. Instead, I take half a potato and grate it and then squeeze all the juice out (you can keep the peel but make sure it is clean). I keep it on till it dries up.

Potatoes have tremendously help me with getting rid of hyperpigmentation, dark circles and it also lightens the acne scars. All of this is because the potatoes have a skin-bleaching enzyme called catecholase. I use potatoes in my morning skincare.

Coffee:

Coffee has anti-oxidants that makes the skin look firmer, brightens and calms sunburns. I use coffee in my night skincare regime.

I take a packet of instant coffee and add cold milk and apply it all over my face and neck. I let it dry and I wash it off.

I also incorporate coffee in a body scrub weekly. This exfoliates the skin and removes the dead cells and prevents in-grown hair and strawberry legs. I take instant coffee with equal amounts of sugar and a little bit of coconut oil and rub that all over my body. It makes the skin baby soft.

Rice flour:

Rice flour has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties. I used rice flour daily on my body. I do not use rice flour on my face because the lentil pack is a holy grail.

I mix rice flour and yoghurt and apply it to my neck and my body. I keep it on for an hour and a half. For extra protection, since I get a lot of sunburns, I add one grated tomato as well. This will kiss that tan goodbye.

However, there is only one problem. You smell like yoghurt all day, even your clothes.

Tomato:

Tomatoes are rich in Vitamin C and antioxidants that protect your skin from sun damage. It also enhances the production of collagen and the regeneration of cells.

On days when my skin feels oily, I grate one tomato, cucumber and mix it with besan or chickpea flour and lemon juice. I keep it for 30 minutes. The chickpea flour helps with the absorption of excess oil, tomato brightens the skin, cucumber calms the skin and also keeps it hydrated and tightens pore while the lemon heals the acne marks and also fights the bacterias that cause acne in the first place.

I always cleanse my face before using any pack. Even though I use these DIYs religiously I always follow them up with my usual skincare routine that consists of a toner, serum, sunscreen and a moisturiser. But I no longer invest in facemasks or sheet masks.