Glo-Up

Self-Care Tips & Tricks

~ Wear clean, ironed clothes

~ Freshen up throughout the day - bring gum, wipes, tissues, deodorant and essential oils with you (apply to wrists and neck)

~ Put vaseline on areas (like your wrists and neck) then put your essential oils/perfume/cologne on to make the scent last longer

~ Tea tree oil is a great spot treatment

~ If you have to pop a pimple, make sure your hands are clean and you wash the area around it after to avoid the bacteria spreading and causing more

~ Vitamin E oil is your friend

Tricks

Dry Brushing

Dry brushing has many potential benefits, from smoother feeling/looking skin to helping with lymphatic drainage.

In dry brushing, you should brush the skin in the direction of your heart, starting at the hands and feet and then brushing up towards the chest. It can be done daily over the body, ideally before showering. Start off with soft pressure and then work up to a firmer pressure over time. However, don't brush too hard! Skin can be slightly pink after but it shouldn't be red or sting. If it hurts, use less pressure!

You can use any dry brush, I like mine with a handle so I can also reach my back.

How to do it:

1. Starting at the feet, I brush the bottoms of my feet and up my legs in long, smooth strokes. I typically brush each section of skin 10 times. For lymph flow, I always brush toward the heart/chest area where the lymph system drains.

2. Always brush towards the center of the body

3. Repeat the same process with the arms, starting with the palms of the hands and brushing up the arm toward the heart. Again, I brush each section of skin 10 times.

4. On the stomach and armpits, brush in a circular clockwise motion.

5. I then repeat the process on my abdomen and back, and then switch to my face with the more delicate brush.

Note: This isn't a medical treatment and shouldn't be considered as one.

Double note: If you have really sensitive skin or a history of eczema or other skin conditions, this is one healthy habit you best skip. As a gentler option, try a detox bath instead (recipes found in the DIY chapter)

Oil Cleansing

The basic idea of oil cleansing is to use natural oils in a specific combination to cleanse the skin and naturally balance the skin's natural oils. This produces much more nourished and moisturized skin that traditional soap and detergent based facial cleaners.

All you need are a couple of natural oils and a clean washcloth.

The most common oils are Castor oil and Olive oil. Castor oil helps to pull impurities from the skin making it ideal for oily or combination skin. Castor oil should never be used undiluted on the skin, and always add at least twice the amount of other oil as Castor oil when making an oil blend.

Other good oils to use are sunflower, safflower and coconut oil.

Oily Skin: 1/3 Castor oil or Hazelnut oil, and 2/3 Olive, Sunflower or other oil

Combination Skin: 1/4 Castor oil or Hazelnut oil, 3/4 Olive, Sunflower or other oil

Dry Skin: All nourishing oils like Olive oil, or a very small amount of Castor oil or Hazelnut oil added to the nourishing oils