HAIR
I see this is a fantastic opportunity to give our hair a
break from heated appliances, if you are anything like me and use heat almost every
day in regular life - your hair will appreciate the break. Treat your hair with hair
masks before each shower and try to wash your hair less frequently – this will
allow more time for it to be left alone. I have been using the Loreal Dream
Lengths hair mask, you can simply leave it on ten minutes before your shower,
although I tend to leave it on longer. I feel that it is making my hair feel thicker
and look shinier after using it every week.
Now, I’m not saying I have gone cold turkey on the heated
appliances, when I wash my hair twice a week I allow my hair to air dry for a short while before I finish drying it it off with the use of a hairdryer, I usually dry
it straight and only if it looks frizzy will I run the straighteners over it,
but only once – there isn’t a special occasion to go to (apart from maybe the
facetime catch-ups). Aside from that, I have come up with several no heat
hairstyles for days in-between hair wash days. I will share these in a separate
post!
BEAUTY
I think it is fair to say we will all appreciate our nail technician
and beauty therapist a little bit more after all this. In a bid to look presentable,
here is what I have been doing:
Eyebrows
I’ve been on a journey with my eyebrows, after like a lot of
us did overplucking and ruining them in my teen years, I have finally got them
to a place that I am happy with. In the last 3 years, I have been having them
waxed and tinted, and letting them grow to be thick and be able to achieve an
arch shape – that we all desire. Nowadays, I avoid touching my eyebrows with
tweezers at all between appointments. I don’t want to ruin the work my beauty therapist
has achieved, so as I’m not able to see her during this time but still want to
somewhat maintain them, I simply brush my eyebrows into place using an eyebrow
brush and very carefully pluck the hairs that are obviously out of place. I
feel this makes them look neat and presentable until my next appointment. I have
seen some people have tinted their own eyebrows at home, this is something I may
look in to. Is there a tinting brand you would recommend?
Nails
After having acrylic nails and then SNS on my nails for the
past 4 years, the idea of not having these and having to do my own nails seemed
daunting. I remember I previously bought (and hadn’t used) a gel kit, complete
with the perfect nude colour and professional LED lamp.
To achieve an at-home manicure I started by soaking the SNS
off my nails, which was easier than I expected. I did so by using acetone nail
polish remover on balls of cotton wool, placing them on each nail and wrapping
them in strips of cut kitchen foil, I let them soak for 30 minutes before scrapping
the SNS off with my cuticle pusher, and filing away any excess.
To use the gel kit was simple. To use it you simply file your
nails to the desired shape, I went for short and round. Apply the base coat polish,
put this under the lamp for 30 seconds. Apply your colour polish, I applied 3
coats for this nude, drying each coat under the lamp for 30 seconds each time.
Before finally applying the top coat polish, I left this under the lamp for 60
seconds to ensure it was set. Before wiping it away with a cotton pad. This is
the perfect isolation activity!
Skincare
This unknown time can be stressful, and you may be indulging
in extra sweet treats (I’ve been baking every other day), this can show on our
skin and lead to extra breakouts. To protect our skin, we should give it some
extra TLC. I am lucky enough to have a draw full of various sheet masks, my favourites
are the Garnier moisture bomb tissue mask and I love the range that Sephora do –
I have collected a number of their face and eye masks on trips abroad, as
unfortunately, they are not available in the UK. If you cant access a store to
buy a facemask and don’t have any at home, this is a great homemade face mask
recipe, that you can make with ingredients that you’re likely to already have
in your kitchen.
What you need:
- 1 tablespoon of manuka honey.
- ½ teaspoon of Dead Sea salt.
- ½ teaspoon of Aloe Vera gel.
How to use it:
- Measure out and thoroughly combine the ingredients.
- Use a flat make-up brush to apply the thick mixture over your face, avoiding your eyes, eyebrows and lips.
- Leave the mask on for around 15 minutes.
- Wash the mask away with warm water and pat your face dry with a clean towel. Patting your face dry with a microfibre cloth, this will prevent your skin from becoming irritated and red.
Honey is a beneficial ingredient to use in a homemade face
mask. It is packed with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties, which
can help to calm, soothe and soften your skin.
I hope these tips help with your isolation beauty maintenance;
the salons will be open before we know it!
