You can be gorgeous at thirty, charming at forty, and irresistible for the rest of your life.” Gabrielle Chanel
Skin Brightening Rice Powder facemask with honey and lemon
My skin is what can only be described as mature, I am fortunate in that I have Chinese skin which doesn’t wrinkle so much, but the signs of age are starting to show. Since Chinese skin is more prone to pigmentation and age spots, I have always used a sunscreen and kept out of direct sunlight as much as possible.
Yesterday, though, in spite of all the sun protection, the little dark marks on my skin seemed more noticeable and there were a few more freckles which must have appeared while we were on holiday. Even though I have been using Clinique’s dark spot corrector and day cream, it looks as if my skin needs more help.
Whilst I like the idea of aging gracefully, with the signs of age acting as markers that define who you are, I think it’s equally important to do as much as possible to maintain healthy looking skin,
Thinking back to a time when I was at home with my mum, she would use rice in many of the beauty treatments she made at home. I think history must be repeating itself, my daughter calls me a hippie because of my enthusiasm for all things home made. I used to think the same of my mum.
So back to the ingredients for the skin tone brightening face mask – Rice is the staple food in Chinese cooking. It is also an ingredient that features in many beauty products. My mother used to keep the rice water (soaking the rice removes the starch to help improve the texture as it cooks), rather than throwing away the starchy water, she would save this and use it as a toner.
It contains PABA, (Para Aminobenzoic Acid) an ingredient you find in expensive skincare products, as well as ferulic acid, (an antioxidant), allantoin (anti-inflamatory) as well as vitamins C and E. In recent studies, it has been proven that rice and ricewater can improve and brighten skin. Some have even reported it can give skin a translucent glow.
As I want to use Rice in a facial, the best way to do this is a face mask using the rice in a powder form, so that all the goodness in the rice can soak into my skin.
I have simply put a small handful of Jasmine white rice into a hand blender pot and whizzed this until the rice has become a fine powder.
Once the powder is ready, add a teaspoon of honey, this is great for skin as well. I like to use this in masks because it will bind and hold the rice powder in place on my skin and act as a moisturiser.
I’ve included a very small amount of lemon juice and grated the skin of the lemon peel, both of which will also have a lightening effect on skin. But on their own, I think would be too harsh on mature skin, so just a teaspoon of lemon juice.
I’ve included some rosewater to make the paste the right consistency (You can add more if the paste is too thick),
Spread the facemask on your face and leave for 15-20 minutes. I love using a face mask on a Sunday morning soaking in a bath whilst the kids are still asleep – there’s just enough me time before the house awakes.
Once you’ve finished with the facemask, wipe away with a warm towel and follow with a facial toner and moisturiser as usual. There’s just one last thing, if you’d like to make your own Rosewater cleanser and toner in one, click on the link for the recipe.