5 Favorites for Skin Care

Here are five scrumptious, skin-nourishing treats for your complexion. You probably have all of these time-honored favorites in your kitchen cupboard, and your skin will thank you for bringing them out!

Try these five easy ways to hydrate, cleanse, and exfoliate so you can have skin that is beautifully smooth, clean, and clear:

Oats and Cream: This is a gorgeously simple way to treat your skin. Just grind 2 or 3 tablespoons of rolled oats in a blender and mix with enough heavy cream to form a paste (use skim milk if your skin is oily). Apply to a clean damp face, throat, and chest rubbing gently in a circular motion, and rinse well with cool water.

Apple Cider Vinegar: The malic acid in apple cider vinegar helps slough off dead skin cells. Just soak a cotton pad with a mixture of one part vinegar and one part water and apply to a clean, dry face, throat, and chest like a toner. If you skin is especially oily, use it full-strength. (If your skin is very dry or sensitive, try the oats and cream, or yogurt instead.)

Yogurt: Lactic acid is an alpha-hydroxy acid, and yogurt is so mild that even highly sensitive skin can use it. Refreshing and exfoliating, yogurt will even out skin tone, fade freckles over time, and generally leave your skin soft and smooth. Just apply a thin layer of plain, organic yogurt to a clean face, throat, and chest, then lie down and rest for 10 to 20 minutes. Rinse with cool water. So mild you can use it every day.

Unripe Papaya: The perfect answer for flaking, dry, rough skin or a fading tan. Just mash papaya and apply like a wet mask to a clean face, throat and neck and leave on for 10 to 20 minutes. The enzyme “papain” (used in meat tenderizer) will do wonders for softening your skin. Rinse with cool water. May be used once a week.

Organic Olive Oil: The anti-aging trick of countless Mediterranean beauties: just apply a thin film of organic olive oil to a clean, damp face, nceck, and throat before bed, massaging in circular motions until the oil is absorbed.