Facial Steaming

As mentioned in a previous post, my skin was going thru somethin (and I was not happy about it, at all)!

Well, instead of continuing to boo-hoo about it, I did a little research and realized a couple of things.

First, the aloe vera that I'd been using (and storing in the refrigerator) had exhausted all of its medicinal uses (I don't mean to sound gross but, it lost its 'snot-like' consistency).  I figure I can afford a dollar a week to purchase a new aloe leaf, so that's exactly what I'm going to do because I'd been going 3 weeks from that one leaf.

The second thing I realized is I need to do a little extra every once in a while, so I will be incorporating a 10 minute facial steam* every Sunday.  Not only will my skin get some nice simple pampering, but it forces 'busy-bee-me' to stop and actually sit down and take a rest - if only for 10 minutes.

I started off this facial steaming treatment by using an exfoliating scrub (Queen Helene's Pomegranate and Raspberry scrub), and toned with witch hazel to get rid of any left over particles and residue.

I brought a kettle of water to full boil and then added the following dried herbs to a tea strainer (1 tbsp chamomile, 1 tbps fennel seed, 1 tbsp rosemary -- these herbs were specific to my combination skin since this NY humid weather is wreaking havoc on everything).

Placed the tea strainer in a medium size bowl (the bowl was about the size of my head), poured enough water to cover the tea strainer, grabbed a towel, and sat my behind down with my head under the towel and over the bowl for 10 minutes (I timed myself by listening to 4 'quiet storm' songs).



I will admit that afterward I wasn't expecting much, but I took a look in the mirror and the best way to describe what I saw was that it looked like my skin had been fed, and fed real good.  I then applied a thin layer of jojoba oil to my skin and hit the sack for the night.  Along with purchasing a new aloe leaf this week, and immediately seeing results after I applied it to my skin, I am content with the immediate results and look forward to getting back on track with my skin care regimen.  (Also note that this morning I did not use any facial cleansers.  I simply allowed the steam from the shower to open up my pores, used witch hazel as a toner and applied the fresh aloe gel to my skin).

*It is recommended that one does a facial steaming only once a week.