Soak It Up! These 20-Minute Beauty Baths Will Make Your Winter Skin Glow
Slowly sinking into a warm bath after a long day is one of life's greatest pleasures. The relaxing heat melts your worries away, and the luxurious salts, soaps, and solutions you soak in make you feel glowing and refreshed. But a hot bath doesn't only make you feel amazing — it can also help you look your best. Adding inexpensive, easy-to-find ingredients to your bathtime ritual will make your skin appear brand new. Simply find the mix that targets your biggest beauty bother, toss it in the tub, and step in. Keep reading for three DIY beauty baths that will suck your worries right down the drain.
Rashy? Try baking soda and apricot oil.
Winter’s biting air can leave your skin red, itchy, and irritated. A combo that combats and calms it? Baking soda and apricot oil. Baking soda may rebalance skin’s pH levels, restoring its barrier and reducing inflammation, says New York City dermatologist Debra Jaliman, MD. “And apricot oil’s linoleic acid and vitamin E hydrate, renew and repair skin so it’s soft and smooth.”
To do: Mix ? cup of baking soda and 6 drops of apricot kernel seed oil, like NOW Foods Apricot Kernel Oil (Buy from Amazon, $32.98 for pack of 3). Just keep in mind that baking soda might not be a good fit for you if you have sensitive skin. Spot-test and check with your dermatologist to decide what's best for you.
Puffy or sluggish? Try Epsom salts and grapefruit oil.
To step out of the tub feeling slim and energized, opt for Epsom salts and grapefruit oil, says Janice Cox, author of Natural Beauty for All Seasons (Buy from Amazon, $20.96). Epsom salts may help trigger reverse osmosis, which pulls excess salt and toxins from the body to fight bloat, and diuretic grapefruit oil can help flush out fluids — plus, its scent boosts energy. Tip: Drink a cup of water before and after a detox soak to prevent dehydration.
To do: Add 3 drops of grapefruit oil (Buy from Amazon, $18.99) to 1 cup of Epsom salts.
Congested? Try mustard powder and eucalyptus oil.
Alleviate that heavy-headed feeling with ? cup of a pre-made blend of mustard powder and eucalyptus oil. Cox says the powder’s warming properties may open your skin’s pores and stimulate sweat glands, so you sweat out cold-inducing toxins that are stored in the body’s tissues.
Eucalyptus oil’s antibacterial properties could even help fight against certain types of germs, while inhaling its compounds can cut down on mucus production to help you breathe better. An added perk? The oil also has astringent properties that may help clear up pesky bacne (or back acne).
A version of this article originally appeared in our print magazine, First For Women.
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