Skin Care: What To Do In Times Of Emergency

Even with a tight skincare regimen and the right products, some days are just off days. You might wake up with a huge pimple on your face or bags under your eyes, or maybe you slept with your makeup on and you feel like a zombie in the morning.

On some days, these calamities are no big deal; you can shrug them off and just move on. On other days, it is imperative that you look your best. These quick fixes can help you to save face (every pun intended).

Overnight zit

Cucumber slices for eye bags. Photo_ WebMD

Going to sleep with flawless skin and waking up with a pimple can throw off your perfect plans for the day.

Dip a cotton ball in some lemon juice, and press it to the area for five minutes. Lemon juice will help to reduce the inflammation and make it less noticeable.

Afterwards, make a face mask with honey (and clay if you have some), and leave it on for 10 minutes. Crush some aspirin into the mask (for the salicylic acid), or add a few drops of tea tree oil for faster action.

Sleeping with makeup on

This is a grievous faux pas, but let’s admit that we have all done it. In the morning, save your skin by first taking off the makeup with your normal makeup remover. After that, do a deep cleanse to remove impurities and prevent breakouts.

To deep cleanse, first steam your face with hot water or a steamer. Then, apply a purifying face mask to draw out impurities; honey and clay is an excellent mix. After the cleanse, deeply moisturise your face to combat dryness. Your moisturiser should be a balance of moisture (water) and oil so that your skin does not dry out during the day.

Group of fresh lemon on an old vintage wooden table; Shutterstock ID 289188959; PO: today.com Photo_ Love Tea Chicago

Under eye bags

Instead of relying on makeup to fix your tired under-eye bags, make some tea.

Tea bags (green or black), can reduce eye bags in a matter of minutes. Refrigerate the tea bags before you shower and use them after. Caffeine in the tea reduces inflammation, and the coolness will help too. If you don’t have tea, then two cool slices of cucumber (refrigerated a bit for extra coolness) will do the trick. And if you have neither tea nor cucumbers, some good old ice cubes wrapped in a towel will suffice.

Pure honey. Photo_ Get Wallpapers

Swollen face

Nobody wants to go out looking like they swallowed an elephant.  So, get rid of your face’s puffiness by making an ice bath and dunking your face in it.

Plug your sink or get a large bowl, fill up to three quarters with cool water, then pour in a lot of ice. When the ice has melted into the water a bit, dunk your face into it and hold for as long as you can, then come back up for air. Do this repeatedly and your face will be back to its normal size.