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Take time for yourself and a do it yourself facial mask

Making facial masks at home is not only about making the face mask yourself, it is also about taking and making some time for yourself. Time to slow down, time to unwind, time to treat yourself to a relaxing face mask in this case

It is even an essential part of your beauty routine. You can just quickly whip up some skin care recipe and get it over with, no problem. But then you're missing out on a big part of the whole fun and its effects on you.

Create a comfortable atmosphere

Plan some time for yourself, relax. Or maybe you want to invite your best friend or some friends and make it into a fun home-spa day or evening; anyway make sure you can't be disturbed

Take off your shoes, switch off the phone(s), dim the lights, put on the music you like and shift your mind to nice and happy thoughts. Open up a bottle and pour a glass of that nice bubbly stuff or whatever it is you enjoy drinking so much and relax even more. Find your genuine smile

Next step is to follow the instructions for your homemade facial mask of choice and take the time to enjoy. Remember that relaxing by itself is already half the recipe

Set up a workable workplace

Don't wear your newest or best clothes some of this stuff can get quiet messy…and that's exactly part of the fun. Wear a bathrobe if you like

Have a few towels at hand, same reason, you never know…

Tie or keep your hair back with a hair mask, rubber band, towel or whatever is most comfortable to you

Ingredients and instructions

An obvious one: make sure you have the ingredients and the instructions ready to go. If a specific recipe needs to be prepared a considerable time before applying it, make sure you also take the time for this. The anticipation and the road to the final application of your face mask are very much a part of your home-spa experience

Always try to use fresh and organic ingredients, this will increase the effectiveness of your recipe

When you have to use water to make a facial mask, use soft or distilled water. The harder the water the higher the mineral count and the more chance of a dry and irritated skin. You can use tap water after you boiled it

Be aware of what and how much you use

If you're not sure about what effect the whole mask or a specific ingredient might have on your skin, do a patch test on a small part of skin (e.g. behind your ear) and wait 20 minutes to see how your body reacts. Talk to an aesthetician or dermatologist if you think your skin is especially sensitive

Before you apply anything, first...

Before applying any facial mask clean your face and neck with fresh water. Take off all cosmetics, creams, lotions, in short: everything you put on it this morning or yesterday

Use a non abrasive, non aggressive soap if necessary. When finished, pat your skin dry

And / Or you could make/take a hot shower or a steam bath to clean and open up your pores. For some useful steam bath benefits, suggestions & ideas visit our steam bath page

How to apply a homemade facial mask

When you apply a facial mask start at the chin area and move up to the cheeks and forehead. You can either use your fingertips or a specific face mask brush or spatula. Then continue to the nose, apply from the bridge of the nose outward toward the cheeks. Keep your lips, the area around the eyes and eyebrows clear. Finally, apply the mask on your throat/ neck, moving up from the bottom

In case of discomfort

When you still DO experience any discomfort while you're wearing a facial mask, rinse it off and clean your skin. Try to find out what caused it, so you can later avoid the ingredient or ingredients that are responsible.Test by doing a patch test on a small piece of skin (e.g. behind the ear) this way you'll see the effect of the specific ingredient on your skin

Space it and change it

As a general guideline, don't apply masks more often than about twice a week, also try to change ingredients every once in a while this way your skin doesn't get "bored" of the same old ingredients and you keep it fresh for yourself

Make it more luxurious!

Make the experience into a complete homemade spa facial treatment. Turn off the phone, put on some music and make it luxurious. Steaming, cleaning, exfoliating/ scrubbing, facial masks, body masks, bathing/ showering, toning, moisturizing and finally ultimate relaxation. Make your home spa day a sweet treat, any day of the week. You deserve a day (or two...) like this every now and then!