There is a lot of buzz these days about making your own all-natural beauty products. Part of this has to do with the fact that buying beauty products in the store tends to add up fast, but it also is because there is growing interest and exposure to the chemicals that are added to a lot of store-bought facial products. This applies to face masks as well.
Sometimes, however, it is simply a hassle to run to the store for a facial mask. Instead, why not just make your own at home? It is far simpler than you may have realized, and it will be cheaper too. Better yet, you’ll know exactly what’s in that mask that you’re letting sit on your skin for 10 or more minutes.
Check out our 11 favorite, all-natural, DIY face masks below.
Avocado Face Mask
What It Does:
This face mask will make your dry, peeling skin look and feel alive again. The avocado and olive oil ingredients are particularly helpful for healing your skin cells because of the omega fatty acids. The honey and yogurt are there to soften your skin and liven it up a little.
Ingredients:
1 ripe avocado
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons yogurt
1 tablespoon honey
Instructions:
Mix or whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl until it’s a fairly even consistency. Apply all over your face with a cotton ball (but don’t put it near your eye area). Let it remain there for up to a quarter of an hour. Rinse it off with warm water and pat dry with a towel.
Papaya Face Mask
What It Does:
The papaya sitting around in your kitchen can be used to help with a dull complexion. Everyone wants to have their face glowing and baby soft, right? Papaya does this via the enzymes it contains, which work as an exfoliant. Your dead skin cells will be gently wiped away, leaving the remaining skin healthy and vibrant thanks to the egg white and honey.
Ingredients:
½ cup papaya
1 teaspoon honey
1 egg white
Instructions:
First, take the half cup of papaya and mash it thoroughly. Next, take the egg white and whip it. Mix together the mashed papaya, whipped egg white, and the teaspoon of honey until it is somewhat consistent in texture. Apply to your face with a cotton ball, leaving it for 10 to 15 minutes. Rinse off with warm water and gently pat dry with a towel.
Fun Fact: Did you know that store-bought face masks often contain chemicals? These chemicals may or may not be harmful – there is some potential that they are toxic, however. In fact, sometimes store-bought face masks cause the very harm they’re trying to prevent![1]
Banana Face Mask
What It Does:
Even though we call this the Banana Face Mask, there is more to it than just smearing a banana on your face. The baking soda and turmeric powder complement the banana nicely. While the banana provides your skin with some much-needed vitamin A, the turmeric powder chases away bacteria that cause acne. Meanwhile, the baking soda absorbs any oil that is unhelpful and excessive. This face mask can be used on a regular basis to help keep acne under control.
Ingredients:
1 banana
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
Instructions:
First, peel the banana and mash it in a bowl until it is soft and squishy. Then, mix in the baking soda and the turmeric powder until it is evenly distributed. You can use a cotton ball to apply it directly to your face. Leave it on for 10 to 15 minutes, then rinse it off with warm water and pat dry with a towel.
Cucumber Face Mask
What It Does:
This soothing face mask helps make your skin smoother – it also cools down your skin and any inflammation it might be experiencing, including redness. Even better, it’s one of the more enjoyable face masks because of its delightful smell and gentle exfoliating properties (thanks to the brown sugar).
Ingredients:
½ cucumber
¼ cup milk
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon brown sugar
Instructions:
Put the cucumber in a food processor and puree it fully. Drop the mush into a bowl and add in the milk, honey, and brown sugar. Mix it all together until it has a consistent texture, then use a cotton ball or pad to apply to your skin. Rinse it off after 10 or 15 minutes, gently scrubbing so the exfoliation can work best. Pat dry with a towel.
Fun Fact: Facial masks have been used in some form for thousands of years. Even Cleopatra was famous for using egg white face masks![2]
Yogurt Face Mask
What It Does:
This is one of the better face masks for people who have sensitive skin because the yogurt helps reduce redness. In fact, yogurt is generally considered the best base for soothing skin redness because of its proteins and probiotics. The cocoa powder, meanwhile, has flavanols that help sensitive skin calm down a bit in the irritation department. The honey makes your skin tighter and more vibrant. In a way, this skin mask both calms your skin down and also wakes it right up (in a good way).
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon yogurt
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
Instructions:
Mix together the yogurt and honey, then sprinkle in the cocoa powder until it is also fully mixed in. Then simply apply this soothing face mask to your face with a cotton ball, making sure to get all the spots (outside of your eye area). Allow it to remain there for 10 to 15 minutes, and then gently rinse it off with warm water. Pat face dry with a towel.
Oatmeal Face Mask
What It Does:
Because this oatmeal fast mask also contains lemon juice, it helps take away the extra oil that is doing no favors for your skin. The lemon juice also helps clear away dead skin cells that might be clinging on. The lemon juice is effective at doing this because of the alpha hydroxyl acids that it contains. Alpha hydroxyl is also useful in keeping your skin looking younger. The oatmeal in the mask helps the skin even out and be soothed after the lemon juice has done its part. Overall, this face mask is best used for people who have oily skin.
Ingredients:
½ cup oatmeal
1 egg
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions:
Cook the oatmeal (so you end up with half a cup of cooked oatmeal), and then allow it to cool. Be sure to prepare this in advance so you’re not waiting around for it to cool. Next, crack an egg into it and mix them together. Mix in the lemon juice. Apply the mixture to your face with a cotton pad and let it work for about 10 minutes, then wash it off with warm water.
Butternut Squash Face Mask
What It Does:
If you are someone with frequent blemishes on your face, this face mask is for you. It fights acne by encouraging collagen production (thanks to the squash). You may have already heard that tea tree oil helps clear up and brighten skin. Honey happens to help with brightening too, so you’ll end up with brighter, less blemished skin.
Ingredients:
1 butternut squash
1 tablespoon honey
2 drops tea tree oil
Instructions:
Puree the butternut squash in your food processor until it is soft and mushy. Then, drop in the honey and drops of tea tree oil, mixing it all together into a nice, smooth paste. Apply it to your face with a cotton ball or cotton pad, and then let it sit for 10 or more minutes. Rinse it off with warm water. Try using this face mask once per week in order to maximize its effects.
Lemon Face Mask
What It Does:
If your skin has been looking tired lately, this face mask is for you. Its sugary, lemony mixture will not only be effective in refreshing your skin, but it will smell delicious and refreshing as well! What it actually does for your skin is calm it down, refresh it, and then make it look dewy and healthy. The lemon and the sugar both help exfoliate away the tired, dead skin. Meanwhile, the olive oil is there to hydrate the skin after the exfoliation. That’ll make your skin feel fresh and healthy.
Ingredients:
1 lemon
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions:
First, squirt out all the juice of the single lemon into a bowl or cup. Then mix in the sugar and the olive oil and mix it together as much as you can, at least so that the sugar is evenly distributed. Put the mixture onto your face by using cotton balls and let it sit for a few minutes (10 or so) so that the lemon juice can work its magic. Gently rinse it off with warm water, then pat your face dry with a towel.
Cocoa Avocado Face Mask
What It Does:
This is a face mask that brings in the big guns of the natural face care world: avocado, cocoa powder, and honey. The avocado is there to hydrate your skin, while the cocoa soothes your skin nicely and calmly. Finally, the honey will help with the antibacterial aspects as well as soothing any inflammation that might be occurring on your face.
Ingredients:
¼ avocado
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 tablespoon honey
Instructions:
Mash up the quarter avocado into a bowl. Mix in the cocoa powder and the honey until it is all evenly distributed. Make sure your face is clean and dry, then apply the mask to your skin with a cotton ball or cotton pad. Let it sit there for 10 minutes, then rinse it off with warm (but not hot) water. Be sure to use your regular moisturizer after that so as not to strip your skin of moisture right away.
Chamomile Honey Face Mask
What It Does:
There is a reason honey is included in so many of our face mask recipes – it works! Honey fights acne effectively because of its antibacterial properties. Also included in this recipe is nutritional yeast, which carries lots of B-vitamins that allow your skin barrier to do its job more effectively. This works best if you experience acne around the time of your period.
Ingredients:
2 bags chamomile tea
1 tablespoon honey (manuka or raw)
1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
Instructions:
Brew a single cup of tea with the two tea bags, thus ensuring it is strong enough for use in the face mask. Don’t do anything with it until it has fully cooled. Then, stir the yeast and honey together in a little bowl. Add a splash of chamomile tea according to the resulting consistency. If it is too thick, add a bit more – it is better to add too little than too much at first. Apply one (thin) layer of the face mask to your skin, and allow it to sit there for 20 minutes. After that, rinse it off with warm water and then pat it dry with a towel. Use your regular moisturizer afterward.
Orange Juice Honey Face Mask
What It Does:
This is our only face mask that includes orange juice. Oranges are known for their invigorating properties, and this OJ face mask is no exception. Mix it together with some honey so that it also has some hydrating, antibacterial properties. This face mask will make your face brighten up, doing away with dull, dead skin and making your face positively glow. This is one of the simplest face masks we have in our recipe book, but sometimes simpler is better.
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons orange juice
¼ cup honey
Instructions:
Simply combine the two ingredients and then rub it onto your face gently. Allow it to sit there for 15 minutes and then rinse it off with warm water. Pat your face dry with a towel and then use your normal moisturizer after that.
Summary: What Should You Do Now?
Did you ever think there were so many options for making a face mask sitting right there in your kitchen? Indeed, for just about any face type there is some sort of natural face mask that can be made right away at home.
The beauty of these face masks is that they are designed to be easy to make, no matter how recently you’ve gone grocery shopping. You won’t have to take a special trip to the grocery store in order to make these masks; instead, just open up your fridge and pantry to see which ingredients you haven’t thought to use before!
Action Steps: Tips for Making a Homemade Face Mask Right Now
Open your pantry to look for some of the following ingredients: honey, olive oil, sugar, brown sugar, lemons, or avocado.
Open your fridge and look for other ingredients, including cucumbers, milk, orange juice, eggs, or yogurt.
Assess your ingredients and cross-check them with the above recipes.
Make the face mask you have the ingredients for, or else the one that suits your skin type and skin problems the best.
References
[1] “Stop Buying Toxic Beauty Products – Make Cheaper, All-Natural Ones Right in Your Kitchen.” Wonder How To. 16 June 2015. <https://food-hacks.wonderhowto.com/how-to/stop-buying-toxic-beauty-products-make-cheaper-all-natural-ones-right-your-kitchen-0155482/>
[2] “5 Facts About Facial Masks.” Blog.MarioBadescu.com. Accessed 23 March 2018. <http://blog.mariobadescu.com/facial-masks/>
