Beauty Never Tasted So Good

Natural skin and hair solutions you (probably) already have at home

Of all the gifts Mother Nature has bestowed upon us, food is undoubtedly the greatest. It can wake you up, put you to sleep, help with your allergies and even, well, just be there for you. But we often forget that our kitchens are loaded with functional foods that don’t need to go in our bellies to keep us healthy!

So go raid your pantry, stare into the fridge for a few minutes and toss out those chemical-ridden potions you picked up at the drugstore—here are 13 tips to keep your skin and hair in impeccable shape using ingredients from your kitchen.

For your skin

• Brown sugar makes a great natural exfoliant, and if you’ve baked cookies in the last year, you’re bound to have it in stock. Mix it in equal parts with olive oil and scrub away. Once you rinse, you can follow with a moisturizer, but the olive oil helps with that.

• Oatmeal tightens the skin and keeps it soft and smooth. Mix ¾ cup with ¼ cup water until it’s a paste and apply like a mask. When it itches, it’s dry. Off it comes!

• Soften even the roughest elbows by resting them in grapefruit halves for 15 minutes. You’re gonna look like a goof, but it really works!

• Garlic is a natural antibiotic that stops pimple-causing bacteria in their tracks. Spot-treat pimples by rubbing on crushed garlic mixed with water and leaving on for 10-15 minutes. But please, for heaven’s sake, RINSE WELL. Garlic repels more than vampires. Best to avoid this trick if you’ve got a date.

• Avocado is a super-moisturizer that can diminish age spots and reduce pore size. Try dissolving one teaspoon of the dermatological miracle that is honey into two tablespoons of hot water, then mixing in half an avocado. Put it on, leave it on for 10 minutes, and rinse. The other half of the avocado is just enough to make some awesome guacamole. Olé!

• Keep that greasy shine away all day by lightly dusting your face with cornstarch.

• Blackheads can be uprooted with a simple mixture of baking soda and enough water to make a paste. Open your pores with hot water, then rub the mixture on and leave it on for a minute or two. Rinse with warm water, close those pores up with cold, and you’re done.

• A facial health list wouldn’t be complete without cucumbers. Between their antioxidants and deep-cooling effect, eye puffiness is as good as gone. But please don’t eat them afterward.
 

For your hair

• Coconut milk, besides being a crucial component of a piña colada actually worth drinking, can strengthen the heck out of your hair and prevent breakage. Refrigerate until firm and apply to your hair one section at a time. Root to tip, comb through, repeat! Cover with a shower cap for twenty minutes. Don’t get into any arguments, ‘cause you’ll be impossible to take seriously while wearing a shower cap. Rinse (after removing said cap, of course).

• Egg yolks make an amazing natural moisturizer for dry hair. Whip 2–4 depending on your hair length and massage into your scalp. After 20 minutes, rinse with cold water. Save the whites — they make for a delightfully frothy whiskey sour.

• The yeast in beer does wonders for your hair’s volume. Pour one through your freshly washed hair and rinse. Drink another at a leisurely pace throughout.

• Yogurt stimulates growth, and its lactic acid helps combat dandruff and the maddening itch that accompanies it. Massage into scalp, leave on for 15 or so minutes and rinse! There’s really no use for flavors, but if you like mixed berry, knock yourself out.

• Use lemons to get natural highlights while relaxing in the sun! Comb a few lemons’ worth of juice through the sections you want lighter (yes “the whole thing” is an option), and sit outside for as long as you feel like. Get a good book. Grab a cool drink (and some sunscreen). Think about your hair.
 

That should be enough to get you started. Next time you reach for your bathroom vanity or medicine cabinet, remember this list and remember that chemicals are short-term solutions that can cause long-term damage. Hit the kitchen and pamper your body naturally.

Hey, it’s WAY cheaper too.