Make Your Own Facial Peel

Carol Belanger

Facial peel masks, also known as chemical peels, are designed to remove the dead skin cells on the surface, and lift out dirt. They are applied to the face in a liquid form which bonds to the skin. Upon drying, the mask is peeled from the forehead down to the chin. In addition to removing dead skin cells and lifting out dirt, facial peel masks will nourish and smooth out the skin.

Prior to using a facial mask, you should warm the face with warm cloths to open the pores. The peel mask when applied will lift the dirt and oil out of these now opened pores.

Recommended Guidelines: Unless you have extremely oily skin you should not use a facial peel more than once a week.

Your mask should be prepared based on your skin type, if you are not sure of your skin type, see the article What Skin Type Are You?

The basic ingredients for a facial peel are:

1 TBL. Plain Gelatin
1/2 cup fruit or vegetable juice based on your skin type

Combine the ingredients and microwave until the gelatin is completely dissolved into the juice. Refrigerate the mask until it thickens, usually about 20 to 30 minutes. Your mask should be thick but on the other hand it should not be completely set-up so that you can not spread it on your face. Apply a light sheer layer over your face, avoiding eyebrows, eyes, and hairline. Relax for 20 minutes. When the mask is no longer tacky, it is dry. Peel from forehead to chin. Rinse with cool water and feel the new exfoliated skin.

Oily Skin Ingredients
For those that have oily skin, fruit juices are capable of restoring the skins natural acid and getting rid of excess oil. The most effective fruit juice is lemon. Lemon juice will decrease shin and reduce the appearance of large pores. Orange , grapefruit and lime juice are also recommended juices for oily skin types. In addition, adding a little carrot juice makes fine astringent reducing surface oil on the skin.

Dry to Normal Skin Ingredients
Fruit juices such as apple, raspberry, papaya, pear, and peach juices are highly beneficial for dry skin.

Anti Aging Cucumber Peel

*1 small cucumber (peeled and seeded)
**2 ounces of chamomile tea (steeped and strained)
1 packed of unflavored gelatin
2 ounces of green tea (steeped and strained)
1 ounce of aloe Vera gel

Puree cucumber until the mass resembles a paste then strain through a sieve or cheesecloth and reserve the juice. In a saucepan, combine the green tea, chamomile tea, and gelatin. Heat and stir over low heat until gelatin is dissolved. Remove from heat and transfer to glass bowl and add the cucumber juice and aloe Vera gel. Refrigerate until the mixture starts to thicken, about 25 minutes. Apply mask to face and neck and dry for about 20 minutes. When dry, peel mask from forehead to chin. Rinse with warm water and pat dry.

*The cucumber juice is an astringent that tightens the skin and smoothes out wrinkles and fine line.

**The Chamomile and green tea work wonders with alleviating puffiness, and the aloe Vera gel nourishes the skin with moisture.

For more natural skin care articles and recipes visit Complete Skin Care Therapy