The Cheapest Beauty Tips You’ve Heard in a While …

Tue, 3 July 2012 10:55AM

Don’t get me wrong. I love a beauty splurge. Especially of the skincare kind. While on maternity leave, I had the pleasure of road-testing Lancôme Absolue L’Extrait. It comes in at a cool $450. Why? Well it’s a formulation steeped in high-tech plant-stem-cell science, that’s spun into a lusciously rich rose-drenched lotion. And, if I do say so myself, my skin is looking really quite plump and pleased with itself.

However, I don’t think I can give this ritzy cream all the credit for my complexion’s state of affairs. Because I also committed to several other skincare steps while in babyland. And, you know what, they’re not only really quite genius, but they’re also almost free. Truly! Here they are …

Eat Carrots. In my quest to quickly lose some baby weight, I nibbled on carrots and hommus whenever a snack attack took hold. And, funny thing happened after a few weeks: I seemed to look quite glowingly tan. Despite hardly having stepped outside the nursery. Turns out, I have read, there is such a thing as a carotenoid glow. In fact, in one study, by the University of Nottingham, it was found that subjects displaying a carrot-induced tan were considered more attractive than those showing off the real thing. Fun fact: the betacarotene content carrot converts to vitamin A in the body – and vitamin A revs up collagen. Always a good thing. Fun fact 2: Jennifer Aniston apparently drinks a carrot-and-green juice every morning. So that’s surely one of her super-glowy age-defying skin secrets.

 

Cleanse with a Washer. Wiping off your cleanser with a damp face cloth is the quickest, easiest, cheapest way to exfoliate. And, as you would know, exfoliating not only smooths skin, it also allows all other treatment products to absorb more effectively. Just remember to, uh, wash your washer regularly, to keep nasty skin-hating bacteria at bay.

Drink and Eat Water. It’s not simply about those clichéd eight glasses of H2O. The most effective way to keep your system hydrated – and cells supple and plump – is to also eat water-dense foods. So, salads and soups. I lived on these the past two months and never once saw a scrap of dryness on my skin, despite the plummeting mercury. Did you know: the way to know if you’re drinking (or eating) enough water is to make sure your wee is clear.

Sleep, sleep, sleep. Not so easy to do when you have a baby, right? Well, touch wood, bubba is currently sleeping right through the night, with only the occasional fifteen-minute feed somewhere in the middle. Which means, I have also been sleeping well, as has my skin. One secret I must share: an app called White Noise (the Lite version is free). The various sounds – from crashing waves to chirping crickets – are designed to help you (as well as baby) unwind and drift into dreamy beauty sleep.

What about you, Primpettes, what are your top budget beauty tips?

What are your top beauty foods right now?

And what about beauty sleep – how do you ensure you get enough?

Kat x

Posted by: Katrina Lawrence

Google Profile

Comments (12) Print Send to friend Share

Tags: anti-ageing, budget, exfoliation, glowy skin, health, healthy, jennifer aniston, juice cleanse, lancome, sleep, tan, vitamin a, water