A’ Salt & Beauty.

I have a vivid image from my younger years seeing my petite mom in the morning, standing wrapped in her robe, hair pinned back in a loose bun while she boiled a pot of water on the stove. Her right hand propping the lid open tilted toward her with clouds of steam billowing right into her face. Welcome to beauty tip 101.

This is just one of those things that my “DIY” mom started doing before any spa had a hip facial steam contraption. Or maybe they did, but she saved a few bucks with this at-home facial regimen — and you can’t beat never having to get dressed to get gorgeous :) After she would steam for a bundle of minutes, it was over to the sink with her salt shaker for a quick little face exfoliation.

*Especially* when you are in middle school, you tend to find things that your parents do weird, embarrassing, or on a really involved day– mortifying. My kids’ days are coming. This steaming the face thing was one of those things that I thought was all of those things, but after she would scrub her face and let me feel how soft it was, I was like—“oOoooh- nice.” And it’s a trick I still use today.

I don’t have the patience for the steaming part, but I should. Even if you’re just making pasta, you could lean in for a few steam clouds. I just always forget. I will, however, take some salt (or baking soda works well too!) to the face 2-3 times a week and it makes the skin so velvety. Do thi right after the shower and that takes care of the steam-step :) Even RDK has done it and thinks it’s pretty sweet! Men deserve a little pampering too.

I mix a few pinches of salt (table not kosher) with a face soap (I’m using Revision at the moment). Splish, splash and finish with a serum or oil and you’re set with that dewy, runway look– or something like that ;)

I was an avid user of the St. Ives Apricot Scrub (very gritty texture) for like twenty years —until last fall it was pulled from shelves due to this little debacle about it actually tearing the skin and causing long-term damage. Sweet. I’ve started to see it again in stores, so I don’t know if the claims were dismissed or they have tweaked the recipe. Since I do love a good exfoliation, to be safe I’m sticking with my (mother’s) homemade remedies for now. And it doesn’t hurt that it’s kinder to the change purse!

Would love to hear your fave beauty go-to’s. We’re all in this together; Band of Beauty.