Living frugally doesn’t have to mean that you can’t take good care of yourself and look your best. It’s important that you pamper yourself a bit so your frugal lifestyle doesn’t begin to feel like a deprived lifestyle. It’s true, though, that commercial beauty products can really be costly — and complicated!
The good news is that, with a little know-how and preparation, it’s not always necessary to break the bank in order to have products to help you look your best. Here’s a collection of simple, frugal beauty products for skin and hair that you can easily make at home from ingredients that are readily available and that you may already have on hand.
Homemade Beauty Treatments
Facial masks: Mix the ingredients for desired mask, apply to face (avoiding eye area), allow to dry, then rinse off with cool water.
- Normal skin – 1 mashed medium-sized avocado, ½ teaspoon lemon juice and 1 egg white, beaten until frothy
- Oily skin – ½ cup strawberry, cucumber or tomato puree and 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- Dry skin – 1 egg yolk, slightly beaten and 2 teaspoons olive oil added in drops to the yolk
Scrubs: Mix the ingredients and apply on appropriate part of body using a gentle circular motion.
- Face – ¼ cup oatmeal, 1 teaspoon honey and enough buttermilk to make a paste
- For rough skin throughout the body –
elbows, knees and heels – juice of ½ half a lemon and coarse salt
entire body – 2 cups ground coffee, ½ cup raw sugar or sea salt and 2 teaspoons massage oil
Toner: Mix the juice of 1 lemon with a quart of mineral water; apply to face with a cotton ball.
Puffy eye treatment: Apply cucumber slices or cold teabags to closed eyelids and rest for 15-30 minutes.
Intensive moisturizer: Coat chapped and dry hands liberally with petroleum jelly and wear cotton socks on your hands overnight.
Hair treatments:
- Strengthening protein treatment – Blend 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 3 whole eggs in a blender. Apply mixture to clean damp hair and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Rinse hair with cool water.
- Dry hair treatment – Wet and towel-dry hair. Apply warmed vegetable or baby oil to roots and massage gently into scalp. Cover head with a warm towel for 15 minutes. Shampoo.
- Oily hair treatment – Open an inexpensive beer (ale or lager rather than wheat beer) and allow it to sit and become flat for 2 hours. If it’s in a bottle, transfer the beer into an unbreakable container. Wash your hair, then pour the entire beer over your head, massaging throughout hair and scalp. Leave on for at least 2 minutes. Rinse completely with cool water. Follow with your regular conditioner if desired.
- Dandruff treatment – Crush an aspirin into your regular shampoo and shake well to distribute evenly.
These homemade preparations are natural and effective in addition to costing only pennies. Your arms and legs (and face and hair) can be beautiful and feel pampered without spending an arm and a leg on specialized beauty products. So go ahead and treat yourself. You’ll feel richer for it!
Do you have homemade beauty concoctions that are inexpensive and effective?
This article was compiled from various sources, including Haley’s Hints, by Graham and Rosemary Haley.
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Plain lemon juice is GREAT for getting rid of head lice and bugs. Not only does it do that it creates an environment where they do not want to stay. Apply to dry hair and leave for a few minutes before combing with a lice comb. No rinsing necessary. Also lemon juice is great for thickening fine hair, even helps the style to hold. Fleas hate lemon juice as well, deterring them and they don’t like to bite the host feeling uncomfortable. Wipe lemon juice near areas where you wish to paint and it will stop those tiny bugs dying in your wet paint. Enjoy these tips! I have enjoyed the ones on this page. Thank you.