Few ingredients, but simple and beneficial and above all that you can find in the kitchen or at the supermarket. These are the face masks of the month of December that take care of both mature skin with dark spots and impure, oily and acne-prone skin. These masks recall the festive air you breathe in these weeks, they are fragrant, colorful and cheerful and easy to make. So, let's see how you can enrich your beauty routine in these days.
Anti-aging and exfoliating cranberry mask
With a beautiful intense red and spherical shape, cranberries brighten up the tables of this period, giving an extra note to sweets, fruit salads and also to other preparations such as fish and meat. But cranberries are also a concentrate of substances that are beneficial for our skin. In fact, the cranberry contains procyanidins and arbutin, with an illuminating action and against dark spots on the skin (Ebanks et al, Int J Mol Sci, 2009 - Zhu et al, JIDSP, 2008). Not only that, these small berries are also characterized by a high anti-inflammatory and anti-aging power, which makes them a unique beauty ingredient to regenerate and renew the skin and fight wrinkles, dull skin and even irritation (Blumberg et a, Adv Nutr, 2013). Let's see how to exploit these properties of cranberry by creating an anti-aging mask with exfoliating power. In a bowl pour 2 tablespoons of sugar, a source of glycolic acid with an exfoliating action (Prestes et al, An Bras Dermatol., 2013), and 2 tablespoons of grated coconut, which stimulates the formation of collagen (Lin et al., Int J Mol Sci, 2018). Combine 1 tablespoon of jojoba or sunflower oil, mix. Separately, blend 20 grams of frozen and thawed cranberries. Combine the cranberry puree with the mixture. Store in the refrigerator for no more than 4-5 days. Use as a scrub on clean, slightly damp skin, massage gently for one minute, then leave on for five minutes. Finally, rinse your face, spray a floral water, such as rose water, and complete with a drop of a serum oil or your face cream.
Mask with spicy aromas for oily and impure skin
This mask dedicated to acne-prone, oily and impure skin tastes like a crackling fireplace, herbal teas drunk in joy and in the warmth of the family and moments of serenity thanks to the aromas it releases. What a special pampering is to apply this mask on your face, to close your eyes and let yourself be enveloped by the warm embrace of spices that act for the well-being of the skin. But let's understand better. Grate 1 centimeter of ginger root, with an antiseptic and anti-inflammatory action, useful in inhibiting the bacterium Propionibacterium acnes, one of main causes of the formation of acne (Lin et al, Oxid Med Cell Longev, 2021), add a pinch of clove powder, with antibacterial and anti-inflammatory action (Han et al, Pharm Biol, 2017), a jar of Greek yogurt and 7-8 drops of orange essential oil. Orange essential oil has been shown to attenuate acne (Sun et al, Mediators Inflamm, 2020). Mix and apply to cleansed face, leave on for ten minutes, then rinse. Spray a hydrolat, such as lavender water that is soothing or lemon balm water that helps regulate sebum production and apply your usual face cream.
