Warm Strawberry Facial Mask

Hey, everyone! I know it's been a while since my last beauty blog; I've been busy working on my Crohny's Kitchen blog (click here to check it out), as well as some secret projects that I hope to reveal (beauty and health related) and release on Etsy in the near future. Excited! Anyway, tonight I'm working on one of said projects and I decided to concoct an all natural beauty facial mask to wear for a bit. Yay multi-tasking! And of course, I decided to share this with you.

What you'll need:

• 1 strawberry, preferably organic (you don't want any ickies on your face from pesticides)
• 2-3 tablespoons water

Yep, that's it!

Directions:

Prep your face by cleansing it with your choice of facial product, then rinse. Place your strawberry (remove stem) and water in a small microwavable container, then warm for a few seconds (I did 15) in the microwave. Don't over heat it, you don't want the strawberry to be cooked, just softened. Mash thoroughly with a fork and mix with the water until it's well combined. Don't worry about it being smooth, there will still be a few chunks. Wet a wash cloth with very warm water (just don't burn yourself), wring it out, and apply to your face for a few seconds. Then, dip a cotton facial pad or cotton ball into the strawberry liquid and apply all over your face. I like using a cotton pad because it absorbs the liquid, and allows me to easily remove any large chunks of berry before applying. Once applied, allow to dry for 10 minutes, then rinse away and apply your favorite moisturizer.

Benefits: I call this the warm strawberry facial mask because I use heat from the wet cloth to warm the face and open pores, and I use heat to warm up the strawberry and water, which I feel allows it to penetrate the skin more efficiently. Strawberries have naturally occurring salicylic acid, which is great for acne-prone skin, black heads, etc, without being too strong (as may be the case with facial products that contain it, along with other chemicals). Strawberries also contain vitamin C, which aids in the production of collagen (which can be lost due to deficiencies, sun damage, etc, and loss of collagen leads to a tired, aged appearance), and is full of antioxidants. And those are just two examples out of the numerous benefits of vitamin C! Your whole body benefits from this vitamin, but your skin absorbs 20 times more of it when it's applied topically rather than taken internally. Whoa! 

If you'd like additional benefits for your skin, you can add honey for its antibacterial properties, or all natural greek yogurt for its abilities to exfoliate and soften the skin.

There you have it! An all natural, and super simple, warm strawberry facial! Treat yourself to some strawberries for a snack, too. :-)

Until next time!