There are lots of things you can do to help keep your skin healthy.  A healthy lifestyle and diet can make a lot of difference, no matter your skin type.  Exercise is really important, not just for your skin, but for your whole physical well being.  It improves circulation, bringing oxygen to the skin, giving it nourishment and feeling firmer.  Not only is it good for your skin, you’ll look good and feel better too!

Do Drink, Don’t Drink:
Do drink lots of water, it will keep the skin hydrated and clear.  The recommended amount is eight glasses a day.  Less than that and your skin could be left dehydrated, a number one cause of wrinkles.  Don’t overdo the alcohol!  It dehydrates the skin and inhibits circulation.  Not to mention destroying all those precious vitamins and minerals needed to keep your skin glowing.

Less Stress, More Rest:
Stress is not only bad for your skin, it’s bad for your health, full stop!  Stress can bring on a pimple attack and irritate already sensitive skins.  Most people need around eight hours sleep a night, otherwise we can become overtired.  Too little sleep will leave your skin looking dull and your eyes puffy.  Try to get the right amount, and you skin will look better for it.

Care and Cover:
Take care of your skin with a good skin care regime.  Cleanse, tone and moisturise, making sure you choose the right products for your skin type.  There are some great products on the market to choose from, so you should be able to find something that suits you.  Even if your skin is sensitive.  Make sure you cover up, use sunscreen ALL the time.  Not just when the sun’s shining!  Sunbeds can play havoc with your skin, especially if you overdo it.  So keep your skin healthy and keep those harmful rays to a minimum.

Herbal treatments are a great, natural, to look after your skin.  There are lots of products on the market today, with just a little effort you can make your own!  They can make great gifts and your skin will love them too!  Here are some really simple homemade herbal treatments for normal skin:

Sage & Apple Face Pack for Normal Skin:

Clean an apple and cut up into small pieces.  Puree the pieces in a blender, with 2 tablespoon of honey and 15 g of thoroughly bruised and chopped, fresh, sage leaves.  This can be replaced with two tablespoons of rosewater if you prefer, or if you don‘t have any sage handy!  Smooth the mixture over the skin and leave it on for 15 minutes.  Then rinse with tepid water.  Finish off by splashing the skin with cold water, to close the pores.  Pat dry with soft towel and apply a little moisturizer.  Your skin will be glowing!

Night Time Moisturizer:

This cream is quite rich and it can be good for skin that tends to be slightly dry too.  Before you get started, you’ll need these ingredients handy:

*    Light Rose
*    1 tsp beeswax
*    1 tsp lanolin
*    1tbsp almond oil
*    1/2 tsp wheat germ oil
*    1/4 tsp borax
*    3 tbsp rosewater, warmed
*    6 Drops essential oil of rose, or rose geranium

Melt the beeswax and lanolin together, stirring constantly.  It’s best to melt these in a container that is inside a pan of simmering water for this.  Next, warm the oils gently and gradually beat them into the waxe’s.  Now, dissolve the borax in the rosewater and slowly add to the oil and wax mixture, beating constantly until cool.  Finally stir in the rose oil as the mixture begins to thicken.  You are the creator of another great homemade herbal treatments for normal skin!  It’s easy when you know how!!

Using herbs for skincare is becoming more popular every day, with some major brand names marketing lots of new products to meet with demand.  That’s great, and lots of people are very happy with the results.  However, there are lots of easily available herbal treatments that can produce really effective results.  You just have to know which herb for which skin type to use!  Here are a few herbs for sensitive and dry skin types.

Allergic Reactions:
Not everyone may realise, not all herbs are good for all skin types.  Just because it is natural doesn’t mean it will be always be of benefit.  If you have any kind of allergic reaction you should stop use immediately.  Some of the most provocative herbs tend to be, Agrimony, Almond oil, Cocoa butter, Cowslip, Cucumber, Glycerine, Henna, Ivy, Lanolin, Lime blossom, Lovage, Nettles, Primrose and Violet leaves.

Sensitive Skins:
This skin can be really tricky, and the above herbs should try to be avoided.  If you make your own treatments, adjust any recipe to suit your particular skin.  This way you can cut down the possibility of an allergic reaction.  A good herbal extract is Houseleek.  This has is a healing, softening and soothing herb especially good for dry and sensitive skins.

Face Packs:
When applying face packs it is always best to cleanse your skin and smooth with a few drops of almond oil first.  Always wash the face pack off, thoroughly, with warm water. Avoid splashing your face afterwards, with cold water.  This makes the skin to contract, closing the pores and creates a drying effect.  Always apply a good herbal moisturizer, parsley’s good, immediately after.

Dry Skin:
Particularly good herbs for sensitive and dry skin include comfrey, fennel, marigold, red clover, borage, coltsfoot, lady’s mantle, salad burnet, marshmallow and elderflower.  Orange flower is a great skin tonic for dry skin, said to help restore the skin’s acid mantle.  It also treats broken capillaries and stimulates cell replacement.

Some great homemade herbal face packs, you can make at home.  Enjoy!

Lady’s Mantle Pack - This is a really great, stimulating, and refreshing face pack.

Good for dry and sensitive types.  First you will need to make a really strong infusion of lady’s mantle.  This is simple, but essential.  Add 1 tbsp of the chopped herb to 150 ml of boiling water.  Then allow it to cool.  Mix two tbsp of the infusion with 3 tbsp of wheat germ and 1 tbsp of honey.  Make sure it is well mixed before smoothing onto the skin.  Then leave for twenty minutes. Remove the pack with tepid water and rinse with cold water. Pat the skin dry with a soft towel and apply your favourite moisturizer.

Fennel Seed Pack - a really good treatment for oily skin.

Mix together 50 g of yogurt, 3 tbsp of honey, 2 tbsp of oatmeal and 3 tbsp of a strong infusion of fennel seeds.  The infusion needs to be made from 3 tsp of crushed seeds, to 150 ml of boiling water, and left to cool.  Smooth on to the skin and leave for 10 to 15 minutes. Rinse with warm water and then DAB with cold water.  Pat the face dry with a soft towel and apply a good moisturizer.

Juniper Face Pack - another great herbal face pack, leaving your skin stimulated & glowing.  Make a strong infusion of juniper made by steeping 25 g of juniper shoots in 150 ml of cold water for 24 hours.  Mix into a thick paste, the white of an egg and 1 tbsp of kaolin (or fuller’s earth is just as good).  Then add 2 tbsp of the juniper infusion.  Spread the paste thickly over the face and leave to dry for 15 minutes.  Remove and rinse with tepid water then Dab with cold water. Pat dry and apply moisturizer.

For our skins to function properly, and they do have a function other than looking good! it needs to be well cleansed at least once a day.  Preferably twice a day.  A good skin cleansing program is important, as it has several necessary duties to perform.  First and foremost, cleansing removes dirt and old make-up.  It also takes away the dead skin cells which otherwise remain on the surface of the skin, spoiling its appearance and preventing it from breathing.  Cleansing also softens the skin. 

Cleansing Steps

Begin the cleansing process by using a suitable cleansing lotion or cream.  It should be smoothed over the skin; then left on for a few moments.  Then remove gently with a tissue. For most skins types, washing a good non-alkaline soap and warm water is recommended.  This ensures all traces of the cleanser or make-up are removed, leaving your skin ’squeaky’ clean.  Immediately afterwards use a freshening lotion, tonic or rinse.  Making sure it is suitable for your skin type of skin.  Finally, follow up with a light application of moisturizer.

Steam and Clean

Some skin types can be especially prone to feeling clogged or looking dull.  This can make people look grey, as opposed to the healthy pink glow that just shouts “healthy!”.  If you are looking a greyer shade of pale these days, a herbal facial steam will help put the colour back in.  Facial steams, using herbs, are a simple and effective way to deep cleanse and pep up tired looking skin. They also help the removal of blackheads and are very good for people suffering from pimples, acne or large pores.  For those, especially, a good skin cleansing program is important.  If you have particularly dry skin, a few drops of almond oil should be applied, as a film, before steaming. 

If you are tired of acne then there are various methods that you can use top get rid of acne.  Acne is an especially ravaging disease on your skin.  It can cause discolorations and dis- configurations on your face and on your skin.  It is not always an easy illness to treat and thus it is always better to focus on the preventative measures against acne.  There are many skin treatment methods that you can use to prevent acne or to get rid of acne once you have it.  Some of these treatment methods are also home remedies and thus you can try these acne home treatment methods to prevent and to treat cane related problems.

Acne Skin Care

1) You can always use acne products that allow you to have natural and hygienic skin.  There are many skin cleansers which will clean the skin pores to create effective hygiene on your skin.  With these skin gels, skin lotions or tonics; you can also wipe off the excessive oil that may have accumulated on your skin (which can cause further clogging and thus a more fertile ground for acne causing bacteria).  However, you have to make sure that the products, which you are using is anti allergic in nature.
2) Nothing substitutes washing your face with lots of water during the day.  This will help hydrate your face and it will help cleanse your skin.
3) If you are allergic to various chemical substances, then using acne creams and acne gels may be out of the question.  In cases like these, you can always make home remedy solutions for best treatment.  These home remedy skin treatment solutions include:
- Using toothpaste as a solution to acne.  It is a tried out and effective skin care method.
- You can coat your face or other acne effected areas in honey.  Many research shows that using honey has anti bacterial and anti biotic properties against bacteria and germs.  Thus honey will neutralize acne causing bacteria and it will help stimulate collagen production in your skin.
- You can also use salt and vinegar as a home skin treatment method for acne.  By flushing the area with salt and vinegar mixture for 15 minuets, you will be able to reduce the facets of acne and relieve its symptoms.
4) You must drink lots of water.  Drinking more than 10 glasses of water will help you greatly in your fight against acne.  Water is the best detox agent there is and thus the toxins which can accumulate in your body and in your skin can be just transported and flushed away.  Also drinking water helps neutralize the pH balance in your body and on your skin.
5) Use vitamin supplements in pill form and as an external ointment.  Vitamins such as Vitamin E and Vitamin B 5 have been found to be extremely effective against acne and it has been shown that they can rejuvenate your skin considerably.

Acne Skin Care is Easy

So as you can see, acne skin acre is relatively easy.  You can use over the counter acne creams and acne cleansers as well as home remedies mentioned above for an effective acne solution.