Fruits are a treat by Mother Nature. They have a positive effect within our bodies when consumed as well as a nourishing effect on our skin when applied. A fruit facial mask is a simple, quick and inexpensive way of rejuvenating and hydrating your face. Besides being natural, homemade fruit facial masks are free from chemicals, perfumes, preservatives and other artificial supplements because you make them at home! Treat your skin with a moisturizing homemade fruit facial mask and protect your skin during the dry winter season.

Zesty Lemon Facial Mask

Lemon is rich in Vitamin C and is believed to be a naturally nourishing for our skin. Not only does it have the capacity of unclogging and tightening pores, lemon also helps in fading away age spots, freckles and acne scars leaving behind gorgeously soft and bright skin.

To Prepare: Mix together 2 tablespoons of flour, lemon juice and egg whites. Apply mixture to your freshly washed face. Leave the mask on for at least 20 minutes before washing it off with lukewarm water. Apply a moisturizer after washing off the mask.

Sweet Kiwi Facial Mask

Kiwi is rich in Vitamin A, E, C and citric acid making it helpful in the deep moisturizing of your skin and also increases your blood circulation. Kiwi also deep cleans your skin, washing off excessive oils and tightening pores. Nothing can be better than kiwi juice for your skin.

To Prepare: All you will need is 1 egg yolk, 1 tablespoon of kiwi juice and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Mix the ingredients well and apply the mask to your face. Leave the mask on your face for about 10 to 15 minutes before wiping it off with a damp washcloth.

Tangy Tangerine Facial Mask

Tangerine works well with treating dry and flaky skin. Containing potential ingredients such as vitamin C, B, folate, magnesium, beta-carotene and potassium, tangerine helps in rejuvenating and hydrating your skin.

To Prepare: Hydrating your skin with tangerine is very simple and inexpensive. You need tangerine juice and an egg yolk. Mix these ingredients well and apply evenly on your facial skin. Leave the mask on your skin for about 30 minutes before washing it off with cold water. Find your skin flawlessly hydrated skin once the mask is washed off.

Banana Rose Facial Mask

Banana is a fruit rich zinc, iron, magnesium, potassium vitamin A, B and E. Banana works best as an anti-aging agent.

To prepare: Mix together a mashed banana, two tablespoons of oat flour and one table spoon of rose water. Blend all the ingredients well and apply on your face and your neck. After about 15 to 20 minutes wipe off the mask with a damp washcloth and then wash off any remaining mask with lukewarm water.

Not only are homemade fruit facial masks rich in vitamins, they are also pure, chemical-free, inexpensive and effective. Have fun making them at home and let Mother Nature take care of your skin.

About The Author: Kate is a blogger by profession. She loves writing, shopping and traveling. Recently she used Wella Hair Color to give her hair a new look. These days she is busy writing an article on Casio Watches for her blog styleguru.com.

• Perfect for normal or combination skin, Orange Peel Soap includes organic orange oil to gently cleanse with a bright, citrus scent. Organic orange peel is added for light exfoliation while rosemary extract acts as a natural preservative.

• Patchouli Olive Oil Soap is great for all skin types, but especially soothing to dry skin. In addition to olive oil it includes hemp oil, one of nature’s best emollients, to help repair the skin’s moisture barrier. Patchouli essential oil is blended with lavender for a nice balance of warm, earthy, herbal and floral.

Beginning January 1, 2012, for each bar of Olive Oil Soap sold, LATHER will make a donation to Clean the World, allowing five soap bars to be recycled, sanitized, and distributed. Since 2009, Clean the World has collected, recycled and distributed more than 9.5 million soap bars to children and families in need in the United States, Canada and more than 45 countries, with the goal of preventing millions of deaths caused by hygiene-related illnesses.

The full line of LATHER Olive Oil Soaps that will contribute to Clean the World include: Yuzu, Seven Seed Lemon & Rosemary, Rose Tangerine Lavender, Clove, Wild Mint, Lemongrass, Rosemary & Peppermint, Oatmeal Lavender, Honey Almond, Lavender Lime, Orange Peel, and Patchouli.

LATHER, which also creates amenity collections for hotels and resorts nationwide, has already donated nearly 200,000 bars of hotel soap to help advance Clean the World’s global hygiene revolution. The soaps filled 20 pallets that were received at Clean the World’s Las Vegas recycling operations center in November.

Jen

I have been using the Natural Acne Wash daily. It’s strong enough to exfoliate and kill skin bacteria, but not so harsh that you get dried, flaky skin. It’s made with 2% salicylic acid, olive leaf extract (to kill germs), willow bark extract (to reduce inflammation), acai pulp oil (antioxidant), carapa guaianensis seed oil (contains omega 3′s and has antibacterial properties) and balsam copaiba resin (reduces inflammation and fights bacteria). It also has essential oils such as tangerine, rosemary, bergamot and lavender.

The Natural Acne Healing Moisturizer has SPF 15 to be used daily. It’s non-greasy and helps to even out skin tone while fighting acne. It has willow bark, lavender oil, rosemary oil and bergamot oil to heal, calm and exfoliate. It also contains 1% salicylic acid – which, in my case, is just the right amount to exfoliate and keep acne at bay without drying out my skin.

I also use the Overnight Pimple Eliminator when I see a breakout coming on. It dries a bit, but not too much (like a lot of other spot treatments out there). It reminds me of the Mario Badescu spot treatment – it comes in a glass bottle and you apply a small dot of the white liquid directly to the areas that need it. Since it’s white, this is best used for nighttime. Sulfur, zinc oxide and tea tree oil kill bacteria and in most cases I have seen my zits either disappear faster or disappear before they even break out!

The prices are very reasonable too! You can buy Happy Me products online or at Duane Reade, CVS or Kinney Drugs.

Jen

Let’s face it: the older we get, the more high-maintenance we become.  I’ll be the first to tell you, dear readers, that I just celebrated my 35th birthday not long ago; one of my presents to yours truly? Trying to take better care of myself–which also means paying more attention to the needs of my complexion….

I’ll also be the first to admit that I have an overall aversion to most moisturizers, including those made for oily or otherwise “troubled” skin.  Maybe it’s just me, but plenty of non-comedogenic products have made me break out, so now I’m often reluctant to try anything new.  However, I also realize how unhealthy dehydration is–and since I get to sample some amazing stuff as a beauty editor–let me tell you about Pomega5′s cruelty-free green tea moisturizer.  Hooray for antioxidants and their key benefits, which include:

• green tea extract: an anti-inflammatory that reduces sun damage and risk of irritation; prevents collagen breakdown
• pomegranate seed oil: an omega-5 fatty acid; this powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory stimulates collagen renewal (and other skin-rejuvenating actions)
• verbena oil: an antiseptic/anti-bacterial distilled from the verbena (lemon) leaf; known to relieve anxiety, boost concentration & uplift mood
• jojoba oil: a moisturizer rich in omega-9 (antioxidant); also unclogs pores & reduces stretch marks/wrinkles
• vanilla extract: a rich source of antioxidant polyphenols; sensuous, calming & a known protectant

Sounds great (at least in theory), right?  But what about those dreaded zits?!  As fantastic as the ingredients all are–botanicals can still exacerbate the tendency to break out–I’m also happy that this does not seem to be an issue with Pomega5‘s moisturizer.  I use it under Tease Zone.

Jen#2

Press sample provided for review purposes.

Product image and info courtesy of Pomega5.com and wikipedia.org.

An S & G display at my local Target had caught my eager product-seeking eyes recently, and since I was looking for a new body wash to try (what product junkie doesn’t crave something new?!) I decided to drop $9.99 on a  16.9 fl. oz. bottle of Clean, Girls Skin Softening cream cleanser.  Talk about ten bucks well-spent: this creamy lotion lathers well and is lightly scented with Mist You Madly’s™ beautiful notes of bergamot, blackcurrant, magnolia, freesia, vanilla and musk (fragrance info courtesy of The Soap and Glory Daily Muse).  Girls–and guys–with sensitive noses need not be afraid; nothing offensive about this delectable combo.

Ingredients include:

• Natural vanilla fruit extracts

• Orchid extracts

• Built-in Moisturizing Matrix

• Perfume

How to use:

• Rub a handful of Clean, Girls™ onto slightly damp skin until it forms a thick, luxurious lather, and then rinse.

• Dry off, and follow with moisturizer if you feel you must.

Because I loved this cleanser so much, I look forward to trying other products, all of which are available at many Target locations within the US.  (If you prefer, you may also order online from target.com.)

Soap & Glory Clean Girls body wash

Click here if you’d like to learn more about Soap & Glory.