Be ready to bare it all this summer with these DIY beauty tips and quick fixes, that’ll have you primped and primed to drop your towel in no time.
It’s all in the glow
While there’s no quick fix cure for cellulite or stretch marks, a faux glow can instantly minimise their appearance. For those with dry skin, your saving grace is a gradual self-tanning lotion will condition dry skin while it colours incrementally. If you’re olive or too impatient to wait a week, try the Sunescape Hydrating Self-Tan Mousse. For last-minute colour, try a wash-off tan such as Le Tan Wash Off.
Fancy feet
Summer means lots of days spent barefoot on the beach, so treat yourself to a DIY foot treatment using a treatment foot soak followed by a scrub to get rid of the post-winter dead layers of skin. Don’t have time for a pedicure? Smooth your heels with a pumice stone, saturating them with cream and drenching each nail and the surrounding skin with cuticle oil to hydrate.
Smooth things over
Give yourself a healthy glow by exfoliating and moisturising religiously. Try a body scrub like the Clinique Sparkle Skin Body Exfoliating Cream. Salt and sugar scrubs are oil based, so don’t use them right before applying fake tan as they’ll cause streaky results. As for moisturiser, treat your skin to a body oil, applied under running water and dry off. A foaming face wash will remove the dirt, oil and sunscreen after a day at the beach.
Wax off
If you’re the waxing type ensure you exfoliate first to create a smooth canvas and prevent in-grown hairs. If shaving is more your thing, choose a five blade razor and slather a moisture rich gel to soften the hairs before you start gliding over the area with light strokes. Those with dark hairs on pale skin may prefer laser hair reduction, however, hair can grow back due to hormonal changes and may require touch-ups.
Slip Slop Slap
Opt for a SPF 50+ broad-spectrum sunscreen that protects from both UVA and UVB. You can never overdo it in terms of SPF count. SPF 30 blocks 96.67 per cent of UV light, while SPF 50+ blocks 98.33 per cent. Physical sunscreens go on AFTER your skincare routine (but before make-up) and start working the second they hit your skin.
Firm up
No cream can destroy cellulite, but the right lotions can improve skin tone and texture. Choose products that contain topical diuretics such as caffeine and firming agents like coenzyme Q10 and the Palmer’s All Over Body Firming Lotion.
