Homemade Mustard Face Mask For Flawless Skin
With the enormous growth of cosmetic beauty products in the past two decades, the charm of our traditional heritage “Ubtan” faded. It is only in the past few years we started to realize the the disadvantages of using the chemical loaded products we have been using on our skin. Ubtans and Homemade face masks are an indispensable part of our history and culture. Today I am sharing natural facial masks made with Mustard. These mustard powder ubtans and face masks for glowing skin work wonderfully on skin.
Benefits of Mustard For Skin
The most common form of using mustard on skin and hair is the oil which is extracted from the seeds.
Mustard Seeds are packed with oil that is know to be good anti-inflammtory oil.
Homemade Mustard Powder Face Mask #1
Mustard Seed Powder 1/2 tsp
1 tsp of Bengal gram flour ( besan )
Sesame oil 1/2 tsp
Water 1 tsp (or as needed)
How to Make and Use
Take the ingredients in a bowl and mix everything well to make a fine paste.
Apply this On application mild itching might happen which is normal, but if the skin feels burning sensation after applying this mustard face pack just wash your face immediately.
The phenolic compounds present in Sesame oil give it its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Vitamin E is the nutrient contained in Sesame oil it can potentially protect the skin from the damage caused by pollution, and toxins and even from UV rays.
This mustard powder mask will rejuvenate the skin, repair damage and will also fade away fine lines . It is also hydrating and nourishing mask that makes the skin flawless and supple.
Mustard and Rice Face Mask For Youthful Skin #2
While the mustard powder will make the skin flawless and supple due to its antioxidant properties Rice powder (flour) will brighten up the skin and prevent signs of aging.
Like how here in India we use Gram Flour as a common base of our face masks, Japanese women use Rice extensively in their skin care regime. In Japanese Skin care Rice is used in form of Rice water, Rice flour and boiled Rice.
Rice is incorporated in face masks and body scrubs as well.
Rice Flour 1 tsp
Mustard Seed Powder 1/2 tsp
Honey 1/2 tsp
How To Use
Mix all the ingredients and apply the face mask on face and neck except eyes and mouth. Leave it for 15 minutes.
Gently wash it off with lukewarm water
Apply this homemade Rice and mustard powder face 2 times in a week to reduce fine lines, wrinkles and dark spots.
Mustard Seed Ubtan For Glowing Skin #3
This last skin care recipe with Mustard powder is an Ubtan. Ubtan is a traditionally used in India as an exfoliant as well as a mask.
I have shared several recipes of Ubtans on this website. You can check them also.
How to make The Sarson (Mustard ) Ubtan
2 tsp Fullers Earth (Multani Mitti)
1 tsp Gram Flour
1 tsp Mustard Seed Powder
Pinch of Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Mustard Oil
Water to make the paste
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and water to get a smooth thick consistency. It should not be too runny as it will start dripping after applying on the face. A thick lump-free paste is what you are looking for.
How To Apply
Apply the face mask on the face and leave it for 15 minutes. When the face mask becomes dry, wet your hands and scrub the face gently to remove tha mask.
Do not apply too much pressure while scrubbing as it may cause redness and burning sensation on the skin.
This Mustard Powder Ubtan can be used once in a week along with any one of the above two face masks being applied twice a week.
Mustard And Aloevera Face Mask #4
Mustartd Powder is pungent in nature, it may cause tingling in the skin on application. This can be addressed using this Aloevera gel Mustard Seed face mask. Aloevera will have a cooling effect on the skin and will also impart all of its benefits to the the skin. Rashes, blesmishes, tan, wrinkles and fine lines all these skin issues can be countered using this homemade face pack.
Aloevera Gel 1 tsp
Mustard Seed Powder 1/2 tsp
Organic Raw Honey 1/2 tsp
you will want to combine all the ingredients in bowl and mix it well. Apply the face mask thus prepare on your face and neck and relax for 2 minutes. Rinse it off and pat dry your face. You will see a fresh glow on your skin. you can apply this Aloevera mustard face pack 2-3 times a week. Rest of the days you can skip the mustard seed powder and use a mask prepared with Raw honey and Aloevera gel.
DIY Beard Oil Recipe For Men | Essential Oils and Carrier Oils For Beard
What Is a Beard Oil?
DIY Beard oil can be best explained as the oil used for nourishing the beard. Oil is often considered as a cause of greasiness and clogged pores in beauty care. but when it comes to hair care using oil to moisturize, smoothen and strengthen hair is considered very important.
Most of the posts here are about beauty care for women, but during this lockdown imposed by the Covid19 pandemic, men were found worrying about their facial hair as their visits to salon were barred. This is what inspired me to write this article which is absolutely dedicated to men. The skin underneath the beard is just as the skin on the rest of the body and that too needs moisture and nourishment to stay healthy.
The hair of the beard is beard hair is typically coarse in texture, very different from the texture of your head hair. Ingrown hair and itchiness in beard hair is very common.
While beard has always had its own trend like French beard, stubble etc, maintaining it has been a common concern. If your choice is a Goatee or a stubble you will probably have less itchiness and irritation. But if you like to don full beard you will need to take special care to keep your beard smooth and healthy. To take proper care of your beard you must use products that are specifically designed and formulated for beard. Beard Oil, Beard Conditioners and beard Comb are some products that you must invest in.
DIY Beard Oil Recipe to make at Home
Before you start making your beard oil you need to have the ingredients handy. Now this recipe is very simple, it does not require any infusion through sunlight, we just require to blend the oils together.
The two types of oil that goes in your DIY Beard Oil recipe are the carrier oils and the Essential oils.
Which Oils Are Best for Beards?
The carrier oil can be selected depending on the availability and the properties you are looking for in your beard oil.
The Carrier Oils For Homemade Beard Oil
Sweet almond oil
Sweet almond oil is one of the most popular carrier oils used in the making of skin and hair care products. It is used both in Ancient Chinese Medicine and in Ayurveda for eg Rogan Badam Shirin. It absorbs very well and moisturizes the skin.
Jojoba oil
Jojoba oil has amazing benefits for hair because it, boosts shine,it is a natural conditioner for hair and scalp, deals with dryness, strengthens the hair follicle, and makes frizzy hair manageable. Jojoba has excellent conditioning properties thus it makes an amazing beard conditioner.
Argan Oil
Argan oil is a native to Morocco. It is also a very lightweight oil and does not leave the skin greasy. Ideal for making skin care products for daily application. It is rich in fatty acids, Vitamin E and antioxidants. Thus, it makes the hair smooth, repairs damage and stimulates growth. Because of these properties Argan oils is used in many leave-on hair serums.
Coconut Oil
Cold pressed virgin coconut oil makes a perfect hair oil all by itself. It is a fantastic product for people with dry and damaged hair. It also promotes hair growth.
Castor oil
Castor oil is particularly known for its hair growth and strengthening properties. In India Castor oil ( Erand ka tel in Hindi ) has been used since time immemorial. What adds to its glory is its anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties. Because of which it again gains a merit to find a place in the ingredient list of your favorite beard oil
Best Essential Oils For Beard
Essential oils add many beneficial qualities to your beard oil and also allow you to customize your oil with a scent your man is sure to love.
Essential oils for Dry Hair: Clary Sage, Rosemary
Essential Oils for Oily Hair: Lemon essential oil,
Essential oils for Itchiness: Rosemary essential oil, Chamomile
Essential oil s for hair growth: Vtiver, Peppermint, Cedarwood essential oil
Essential oils for dandruff treatment: Lemon Essential oil
DIY Beard Oil Recipe
Even if you are not a diy type, just give this beard oil a try. It is only blending and you are done.
Ingredients
15ml argan oil
7.5 ml jojoba oil
7.5 sweet almond oil
2drops Cedarwood Essential oil
2 drops rosemary essential oil
2drops sage
Instructions
Take the Carrier Oils in a glass jar
Add in the essential oils with a dropper.
Gently swirl the jar to blend together the carrier oils and the essential oils.
How To apply:
Drop sufficient amount of oil in one hand and apply on the beard.
Use a beard comb to set your beard.
For best results, apply daily to washed, dry beard.
3 Super effective Homemade Face Masks For Oily Skin | Deal With Greasy Skin Naturally At Home
Oily skin is a result of overactive sebaceous gland. When the sebaceous gland starts producing higher amount of a fatty substance called ‘Sebum’ the skin tends to appear oily, the oil can be touched and felt on the surface of the skin.
The correct approach to deal with the grease is to try and remove the oil from the skin surface and not to disturb the activity of sebaceous gland.
Homemade face packs for oily skin are made with natural ingredients, the main objective of these packs is to reduce the oiliness by just working on the surface of the skin, it is not suggested to adopt any method that focuses on altering the activity/ function of the sebaceous gland.
Homemade Face Masks For Oily Skin
Try These Amazingly Effective DIY Packs For Oily Face
Natural Mud Pack or Clay Mask
The mud pack is indeed worthwhile. To be true, the Clay masks provide only a temporary solution for managing the oily skin and you must not expect long term results from mud packs. They clear the skin and remove the oil from the surface of the skin
Fuller’s Earth and Potato Juice Pack
Take 2 tsp of Fuller’s Earth or Multani Mitti as it is commonly known in India, add 1 tsp of fresh potato juice. Mix the ingredients and adjust the consistency of the pack by using Rose water. Apply this face mask all over the face and neck, let it dry. Remove with wet cotton balls. This face mask will give the skin an instant freshness and cooling effect. It will also clear the grease from the top layer of skin.
What is Multani Mitti and Where is it found ?
Multani Mitti is the name used in India, in other parts of the world it is referred as Fuller’s Earth. Contrary to the Indian name which means Clay from Multan, this amazing clay is available in several countries all over the world. Its main characteristic is of a an absorbent which makes it work amazingly on oily skin to remove the grease from the skin.
Orange Face Mask for Oily Skin
Oranges are great for oily skin, they contain high amount of Vitamin-C and Orange juice has excellent toning and astringent properties.
To make the Orange Mask, take orange juice and freeze it in form of cubes. Rub these frozen cubes of fresh Orange juice on the face. This juice will the kill the dullness and oiliness and will bestow, instant freshness and shine.
You can make a face back by mixing orange peel powder with fresh orange juice and rose water. This mask is helpful in cutting down the oiliness and also works as an effective natural skin toning pack.
Banana and Lemon Face Pack
Both Banana and Lemon help in removing the excess oil produced by sebaceous glands. Use a ripe banana to make this mask. Mash one ripe Banana and add lemon juice to it, apply this pack on the face and let it sit for 15 minutes. If the mask becomes too runny in consistency and its not holding on to the skin you can consider adding half a tsp. of oatmeal.
If your skin is sensitive to lemon juice you can try using Orange juice in your Banana face mask.
Tips for Oily Skin Care
- Do not use cream or cream based beauty products.
- Use Astringent. Instead of washing your face several times in a day, which strips of the oil leaving the skin too dry, keep astringent pads with you and use them for cleansing the face.
- Use baby powder
- Baby powder is mild and refreshing; you can use it to cover the oiliness anytime during the day.
- Be careful While Choosing Cosmetic Products
- Basically the cosmetic beauty products are categorized in two types, one is ‘Oil Based’ and other is ‘Water based’. People with oily skin must always opt for water based products.
With these simple tips, oily skin can be managed easily and naturally without taking any expensive beauty treatments.
DIY Fenugreek Hair Pack for Effective Hair growth
Hair needs to be taken proper care of for it to stay healthy. And for proper care, one needs to understand his/her hair properly and use the right treatment packs for its well-being. There are several wonder ingredients available right in our kitchen that have proven to be more effective against general hair problems like hair loss, acne, dandruff and hair breakage than the pricey chemical stuff.
Using fenugreek (Methi seed in Hindi) for hair has existed since the time of our forefathers and you would have your grandma suggest it quite a lot of times. Of course, we probably never understood the gravity of the situation then. Alas! It still isn’t too late. Fenugreek has been tried, tested and proven to offer a myriad of solutions to your everyday hair problem struggles, chief of them all being hair loss (everyone’s nightmare!) and re-growth. These are easily found in your pantry or at the max you will have to reach an Indian grocery store and it won’t even cost that much!
How does fenugreek aid hair growth?
Hair is basically made of a protein, keratin and hair requires a generous amount of protein, vitamins, and minerals like iron, potassium and sulfur for its proper growth and fenugreek/ fenugreek seeds has these aplenty in addition to possessing medicinal properties, nicotinic acid and lecithin which are all good fodder for your hair follicles to feed on. These treat your follicles and are extremely effective in strengthening of hair which in turn prevents hair breakage and causes an increase in hair volume due new hair growth. Additionally, a hormone antecedent, diosgenin present in fenugreek seed exhibits estrogen like properties and is extremely helpful in hair growth. Estrogen is a wonder hormone that helps greatly in hair growth, the reason why pregnant women seem to have been exempted from hair loss problems, for a short while. Fenugreek seeds also possess moisturizing properties that bring shine, luster and bounce to your hair.
How to use Methi Seeds For Hair Care?
Fenugreek can be used alone or in combination with other ingredients, also easily available in your pantry like lemon juice, coconut oil, curd, coconut milk etc. Read on for tips on how to use the wonder ingredient for the betterment of your hair.
1. Soak 1/4th cup of fenugreek seeds in a cup of water and leave it overnight. The next day, use the soaked water to rinse your hair once and let it stay. After an hour, wash using lukewarm water. This helps in growth of hair in the long run as shown in this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?
2. Alternately, soak the fenugreek seeds well overnight and grind them into a paste the next day. To this paste, add coconut milk/ coconut oil/ olive oil and mix well and apply to your scalp and leave for 30 minutes before washing off with a mild shampoo or just water. You can also use powdered fenugreek seeds instead of soaked fenugreek paste. This helps in attaining the benefits of both coconut oil and the fenugreek seeds and also aids in preventing hair loss and curing areas with damaged hair.
3. Fine, smooth paste made from overnight soaked fenugreek seeds mixed with one tablespoon of lemon juice when applied to your hair proves effective against dandruff.
No medicine shows these instant effects. For you to be able to reap the effects of your hard work, you would have to follow a strict routine. Use fenugreek seeds for your hair for at least a month or 6-8 weeks to be able to see results. You’ll see a visible change in the way your hair looks and feels!
How To Make Reetha Shampoo At Home For Clean Shiny Hair
This homemade shampoo made with Reetha, Amla and Shikakai is very common in India, and almost every family has its own way of using these super ingredients for cleansing and conditioning their hair. This tradition of making natural shampoo with dried soap nuts (reetha), shikakai pods and amla chunks is passed down from the ancient times and is practiced in modern era too. Apart from being used in homemade and herbal recipes, these three ingredients are also used in different formulations in a variety of hair care products floating in the market, not to forget Amla or Amalaki is a part of “Triphala”, an Ayurvedic combination of three fruits which have several vital benefits for health and beauty. There are a plenty of products prepared using these three fruits and each fruit has its own characteristic that makes its application beneficial for hair growth, shine, and overall hair health.
The Base Ingredients To Make Reetha Shampoo At Home
Reetha
Reetha in Hindi aka Soapnut is known for its excellent cleansing properties and is even used for cleaning laundry which makes it a very good option for adults and children who are allergic to the chemical based detergents. One more unique application of soap berries is in cleaning jewelries, but the most popular use is to make hair care products.
Benefits of Reetha For Hair
It is an excellent cleanser
It gives shine to the hair
Provides softness to rough hair
It helps in getting rid of the nasty dandruff
Shikakai
Shikakai is a herb that is known as “the fruit for hair” its remedial properties for hair has been acknowledged since ancient times and it still continues to be among the most favorite herbal remedy for hair health. It has mild pH thus gently cleanses the hair without stripping off the natural oils from the hair. Shikakai contains Saponins that are natural foaming agents, this is from where shikakai derives its cleansing properties. Shikakai is also used in combination with Reetha and Amla which makes its even better as a natural shampoo, but its works good on its own too.
Benetits of Shikakai For Hair
Low pH value helps retain the natural oil
It is a natural de-tangler
It cleanses and conditions the hair
Amla
Amla or India Goosberry is regarded as a wonder berry on account of its tremendous medicinal and remedial properties. I can go on and on writing about this amazing fruit which is a power house of Vitamin C and is packed with antioxidants. It is called Amalaki in Sanskrit and is one of the ingredient in the Triphala other two being Haritaki and Bibhitaki. Its is also the main ingredients in the popular Ayurvedic preparation “Chyavanprash”, it also an excellent natural Eye tonic according to Ayurveda. Talking about hair it is immensely beneficial for strengthening and the darkening the hair.
Benefits of Amla For Hair
It promotes hair growth
Prevents premature graying of hair
It helps in controlling hair fall naturally
It darkens the hair
It is a natural hair tonic for overall hair health
Steps For Making Reetha Amla Shikakai Shampoo
This DIY cleanser for hair has all the qualities that you would like your shampoo to possess, this shampoo cleanses, conditions, stimulates hair growth, manages the frizz and imparts a lustrous volume to your hair. All that it takes is a little extra time and effort than what your store bought shampoo will take.
This recipe is equivalent to a hair spa, it provides all the nourishment that a good hair spa treatment imparts to the hair. The recipe I have taken here to share with you is my mother’s recipe, this is one regime that my mother used to follow till the time I got married. She had this old wok made up of iron in which all the ingredients in dried form were soaked overnight and were used next morning to shampoo my hair.
The Recipe is totally chemical free and it calls for following ingredients
Reetha / Ritha/ Aritha ( soapnuts) dried : 7-8
Shikakai dried : 3-4 pods
Amla Powder: 2 tsp.
How To Make
To make your shampoo at home you need to begin the preparation a night before , once you have arranged all the required ingredients you are good to go.
Step 1 : Soak Ritha and Shikakai in water in an iron utensil if available, else use any other bowl that you have. Let it soak overnight, soaking will infuse the water with the goodness of both the fruits and it will also make them soft and make it easy to use them next morning.
Step 2: Next morning add amla powder to the water and it sit for another half an hour.
Step 3: Crack open the Ritha and Shikakai and discard the seeds.
How to Apply
Step 1: Wet your hair
Step 2: Take the fruits between your palms and rub them till they start forming the lather.
Step 3: Apply this lather to your hair and scalp and massage gently as you would do while shampooing your hair with your regular shampoo.
Step 4: Rinse off
Step 5: Repeat from step 3 for one more time.
Step 6: Wash your hair thoroughly, also remove all the bits of soap nuts and Shikakai from your hair
Thats It! You are done!
Also Read: 3 Inexpensive Natural Shampoo Recipes
You will not require any conditioner after this homemade shampoo as shikaki will prevent the hair from getting entangled, leaving it smooth and manageable.
You will be amazed to see how shiny and silky your hair has become, your hair will be clean and smooth and very healthy after applying for few weeks.
Precautions While Using This Shampoo:
Ensure that the shampoo does not enter your eye as both Ritha and Shikakai have compounds that can irritate the eyes and can cause redness and severe itching in the eyes.
This Natural shampoo with the combined goodness of all the three primary ingredients used will certainly promote hair growth, prevent hair fall, prevent graying of hair, will keep the scalp and hair from drying off thus leaving it lustrous, shiny and dandruff free.
Where to buy the ingredients?
You can drop in to your nearest herbal or Ayurvedic store to get these ingredients, if you find it difficult to locate one just log it to amazon and you can order from there.
Give this homemade shampoo a try and do come back to share your experiences in the comments.
Buy The Ingredients From Amazon To Support |
Reetha (soap nuts) |
Shikakai |
Amla Dried |
Bottom Line
homemade shampoos can be a little time consuming and they may not produce too much lather, but the bottom line is they are free of chemicals and that is why I feel they should be tried atleast once. If you loved this recipe of rettha shampoo you can take it to the next level by trying Homemade Hair Conditioner Recipes.