I’ve replaced my expensive cleansers with the bargain drugstore staples Epsom salt and aspirin. The backstory: in preparing to move here, I purchased about $400 worth of my favorite facial cleansers and moisturizers. I did this to keep me out of pizza face territory through autumn until my trip home for Thanksgiving because I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to find the exact same products here in London. I’m talking about those fashionable, expensive dermatologist-developed brands that charge $85 for a measly 1.7 ounces and contain beauty buzzwords such as glycolic acid and amino peptides. Several bottles of those products are now left in my bathroom cabinet, unopened. What happened? I discovered that adding a teaspoon of Epsom salt to a gentle cleansing cream is a great way to not only exfoliate the skin, but also control oil production and prevent breakouts*. So far, it is doing the job that my fancy creams did not. Aspirin is another equally cheap** facial gem, as it contains acetyl-salicylic acid (a beta hydroxy acid) and thus a great exfoliant, acne treatment, and anti-aging cream (who knew?). Here are two recipes for both facials.

The Epsom salt wash
Frequency: daily
Ingredients:
-one teaspoon of epsom salt
-a gentle, bare bones, oil-free cleanser (think Cetaphil or Neutrogena Deep Clean)
-a few drops of water to soften and dilute the salt
Directions: mix into a paste and cleanse face for two to three minutes

The aspirin mask
Frequency: weekly or bi-monthly depending on skin type
Ingredients:
-five to ten plain aspirin tablets crushed in a small bowl (be sure not to use versions with added ingredients)
-two to three drops of water
-one tablespoon of honey
Directions: mix into a paste, apply and leave-on for roughly 15 minutes

*And while I’m on the topic of breakouts, the beauty alteration that has rocked my world the most is my change in diet. Mind you, I’ve always been a fairly healthy eater, but I generally believed that breakouts were caused by hormonal imbalances and/or poor skin-care regimens only. Turns out, that certain foods can trigger certain hormones that trigger breakouts. Case in point: white flour. I moved to London and began indulging in those organic white bloomers from the bakery down the street in my neighborhood, pain au chocolate aux amandes and cappuccinos during my time in Paris, and bowls of penne with my salads in Milan. Little did I know, white flour is widely known as skin enemy numero uno in health food circles (and don’t let me get started on refined white sugars and dairy products). Our bodies simply aren’t equipped to digest the stuff properly and that can lead to a host of complexion woes. That also means that my much sought after dermatologist whose client list includes A-list actors and bona fide supermodels is not necessarily preaching the truth when he says that foods don’t trigger breakouts. (And he’s not the only one, most dermatologists claim the same thing.) That said, I’ve replaced my cravings for white bread with oatmeal and whole grain bloomers and swapped out the white sugar for raw honey. I’m also avoiding non-organic dairy like the plague. My skin has since lost its oil slickness and my energy level has increased to boot. Now if I can just beat these damp weather-induced colds.

**Speaking of cheap, I popped into a little bath and body spot in my neighborhood. It was stocked with tubs of “eco-friendly epsom salt bath soaks” fortified with frankincense and mandarin essential oils for a whopping 18 pounds (about $28 dollars in the US), which seemed way overpriced considering that Boots sells a container of epsom salts at the same size for only 2 GBP. It turns out that epsom salts are becoming a trendy ingredient in the world of sustainable beauty. Don’t drink the marketing Kool-Aid.

Posted: November 9th, 2008  Category: Life, Palette  Comments: No comments#