By Colleen Nelson
I love winter. Snow, hot cocoa, ice skating. But, with all of those great, magical things comes something less pleasant: dry skin. Being from Colorado, I am no stranger to dry, damaged skin during the cold months. Luckily, there are a few natural remedies that you can make yourself. Here are my top three moisturizing facial masks, all with just two ingredients.
B-AN-AN-AS
What you’ll need:
-1 banana
-1 tsp honey
Mash your banana up into a thick paste. If you have a potato masher lying around, that’ll work well. If you’re feeling lazy, pull out the food processor or blender. Mix in the honey, apply it to your face and neck, and leave on for 15 minutes before washing the mask off with cold water to lock in the moisture. If you can get over the texture of the mushy banana, this easy-to-make mask will become your best friend.
Green with envy
What you’ll need
-½ very ripe avocado
-¼ cup honey
Again, using a potato masher or food processor if you have it, mash the avocado into a creamy paste, then add the honey. Avocado is the superman of fruit (Yes, it is a fruit. Who knew?). First of all, it’s yummy. Second of all, it has all of the major vitamins and healthy fats that you need. This mask is incredibly hydrating, and reduces the itchiness caused by cold, dry, winter wind.
The bee’s knees
What you’ll need
-2 tbsp honey
-1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
Honey is good for so much more than sweetening your cup of green tea. It is a miracle worker. This sweet mask will sooth damage and balance your skin’s pH. Honey is a natural humectant, meaning it draws moisture from the air and locks it into the deepest layers of your skin. To sweeten this mask even more, honey is an antibiotic that prevents the bacterial backup that causes break-outs. What more could you ask for? Remember to thank a honey bee.
Pro tip: Use a brown sugar facial scrub before applying the moisturizing masks. It will help get rid of the dead, dry skin and make way for that baby-soft feeling. Mix 1 tbsp brown sugar, and 1 tsp of coconut oil or olive oil.
What are your favorite face masks? Tweet us @litdarling!
About Colleen
Colleen is a Journalism student at the University of Texas at Austin. Originally from Boulder, Colo., she is a yoga-doing, chai-loving, adventure-seeker at heart. If she’s not taking a jog around Austin’s nature trails, you can probably find her enjoying the live music scene. Some of her wardrobe is bohemian chic, and some is southern sorority worthy—Lilly Pulitzer, seersucker, and a LBD with her grandma’s pearls. The rest of her closet looks like she lives on a ranch—tattered blue jeans, plaid button-ups, and cowboy boots probably still with some dirt on them from last weekend.
