From at-home sugar scrubs to egg yolk masks, we see ridiculous beauty ‘recipes’ every day of under catchy titles like: “Skip the Spa!” and “Do it Yourself!” Each one tries to convince us that we can get the same results as real professional skin care products – We just have to raid the refrigerator (or head to the grocery store) and follow the recipe. It’s always the same hype – they claim to be effective, easy, and cheap. But when we read these, we just shake our heads and think, “Not only are these claims untrue, these DIY recipes are no substitute for the real thing, especially if you have problem skin.“
We only have ONE skin. It’s the largest organ of the body, and it needs to be treated with some real care and respect. When you truly break down these DIY beauty recipes, they’re far from being easier (or even cheaper), and in some cases you can even do more damage to your skin if you aren’t careful. Here’s the 3 biggest reasons food should belong on your plate, not your face.
1. DIY Beauty Ingredients are INNEFECTIVE and UNSTABLE
We cannot stress this point enough. Quality and stability is everything when it comes to your skin. When you see “pumpkin, papaya and pineapple extracts” listed as ingredients on a foaming cleanser, they have been formulated specifically for use on the skin, and are stability tested to ensure they will be consistently effective, and stabilized for safety. You know exactly what you are getting – and you’ll get the exact same activity level and response each time. Only a stable, lab engineered professional formula created to provide the results we all want and need for our skin can be trusted. This is your skin we’re talking about!
2. You say TOMATO, We say BURN
Let’s look even closer at some of the DIY ingredients that can damage your skin:
Fruits and vegetables that contain acids:Papaya, Pineapple, Oranges, Apples, lemons, limes, etc. Great to eat, not so great on your face when you grab it out of your fridge. Why? Have you ever eaten two jalapeño peppers that look exactly the same, but one is much hotter than the other? You can’t tell until it’s too late. Acids, even natural ones, can burn the skin. Only trust the real deal – an exfoliator from a professional skin care line.
Scrubs: Raw sugar, table sugar, brown sugar, steel cut oatmeal, cornmeal, natural clay kitty litter (Really? – just wow.), or just plain salt. Again, not stable. They can also scratch or scrape the skin due to sharp edges causing irritation and redness. Again – these are items that not tested for the skin. A true professional skin care physical facial exfoliator will be formulated and shaped to be effective without scraping up the skin, adding a polish skin smoothing results.
Fats: Avocado, pure shea butter, eggs, mayonnaise, and yogurt. Certain natural fats are being recommended as moisturizers you can create. Here of course the issue again is efficacy – and freshness.
3. DIY – The I stands for INJURY
As skin care professionals, we’ve been truly shocked at some of the steps we’ve seen in these recipes. This may be why these are free recipes online. We’ve read to put a steamed towel or oils in your microwave and apply it to the face. Or, boil a pot of water, and hover your face over it to get the “steaming” benefits of a professional facial. In fact, you could seriously injure or burn yourself. Find out why and when pros use steam during a facial in our myth busting blog post and, in the mean time, boil water for pasta only! We even watched a DIY video on how to perform extractions at home with a straight pin. The potential for infection and scarring is real, folks!
ASSURANCE, STABILITY and RESULTS: WORTH EVERY PENNY SPENT.
Look, if you have absolutely perfect skin, go ahead and make that avocado mask. But if you have skin issues that you’re serious about – like acne, wrinkles, rosacea, or problem pores, there is no substitute for the real thing. Choose professional skin care every time, and know you’re going to get the skin care you want.
Ready for even more expertise?
Estheticians spend many hours studying skin physiology, microbiology, clinical sanitation, as well as looking at thousands of skins and performing thousands of facials. Put your skin in the care of a licensed professional that not only knows what your skin needs, they also have the professional products and tools to get the job done, with safety, and consistent results in a safe, clean and relaxing professional environment. Book a facial treatment at a Bloom spa Partnership Spa today.
