Posts Tagged ‘vitamin E’

KITCHEN BEAUTICIAN

photos/post/design: Kristin Ess

Sometimes you just gotta Treat Yo Self with an at home beauty mask! This one is particularly for soft shiny hair but we’ll be doing quite a few for both hair and skin in the coming weeks. Oh, FYI- the Magic Bullet mixer has officially become one of our favorite beauty tools at TBD. You know– the one from the infomercials!? Normally we mash up “Kitchen Beautician” mask ingredients in a bowl but the other day we thought to try it in this teeny blender. Boom! Perfect size cup makes the perfect amount for one mask. Hope you have one at home! If not, try a food processor or a hand-held mixer. It feels so much better when the ingredients are blended– almost the same consistency as conditioner. Here’s how I make my favorite moisture mask:

Mixing:

  1. Split an avocado, remove the seed and spoon the whole thing into the blender bowl (or blender cup in this case).
  2. Add a little less than 1/4 teaspoon of Vitamin E oil. If you have Vitamin E gel capsules, pierce them and squeeze out the oil. If you’d rather, you can buy the oil for topical use.
  3. Pour 1 teaspoon of your favorite oil– jojoba, olive oil, sweet almond oil or coconut oil. I usually stick to olive oil because it’s worked wonders for me every time with this mask.
  4. Blend it up until it reaches a whipped/creamy consistency.

Application:

You can either put apply this all over or your can do the ponytail method! Put your hair up in a ponytail, saturate the ends and then cover with plastic wrap. Try to give it about 10 minutes at the least, go for 20 if you have the time! Then hop in the shower, shampoo and condition as usual. Blow your hair out or air dry for soft, shiny goodness!

KITCHEN BEAUTICIAN

photo: dan forbes/ny times

Seasons come and go, and as we’re all aware summer is quickly approaching. Spring is the perfect time to get your skin ready for the coming months. My favorite at home remedy for dry skin is simple: coconut butter and a couple drops of olive oil. Coconut butter is an incredible moisturizer and promotes elasticity in skin. Extra virgin olive oil is packed with vitamin E and antioxidants. These two are a mash made in heaven! :) Blend two teaspoons of coconut butter and 10 drops of extra virgin olive oil together in a bowl using the back of a spoon. Apply a thin layer anywhere skin feels dry once or twice a week. I use this on my lips, legs, arms, elbows, and hands. Cover and save the rest in the refrigerator. Due to the coconut craze right now, coconut butter should be pretty easy to find. It’s the perfect summer skin prep!

XO Lauren