Olive Oil - My Personal Favourite Natural Beauty Aid!

Olive Oil is one of my all-time favourite beauty aids, why's that?

1. Because it's natural - if you buy yourself some pure Extra Virgin Olive Oil and make sure you check the label carefully, there should be no nasty chemicals whatsoever!

2. It's Cheap - Or at least it's relatively cheap compared to a lot of store bought moisturizers on the market. You're looking at around £3.50 (or a few dollars) for a bottle and it lasts for so long!

3. It multi-tasks! - Not only can you use this directly on to your face, but you can apply it all over the body (liberally of course.. you don't want to slip off your seat!), as well as using it to moisturize your lips and even help keep your hair soft and shiny.

4. Oh, did I mention that.... - You can cart it from bathroom to kitchen. It's as great for you on your food as it is on your skin.

5. It's an AMAZING make-up remover - I use Olive Oil every single day to remove make-up. I use this to take off my hardcore mascara and it works so well. To remove make-up take a cotton pad and moisten with warm water, apply a small amount of olive oil, spreading it with a clean finger evenly over the pad. Apply the cotton pad to your skin gently and wipe off your face paint. Voila!

Myths About Olive Oil - "It'll Make My Face Greasy" - I thought so too before I tried it, especially if like me you have naturally oily skin anyway. However, in my experience this really isn't the case. Oily skin is sometimes caused by excessive drying that causes sebum to over-produce to compensate which results in greasy skin. As long as you don't go overboard with the oil it soaks in quickly and leaves your skin lovely, soft and healthy looking. It absolutely has never aggravated any spots and seems to help scars fade faster.

My current Olive Oil Regime

I've suffered with gross, spotty and acne scarred skin for as long as I can remember and I have to say, since using olive oil on my skin it is noticeably better. So much so that olive oil is practically all I use on my skin these days. I absolutely love the stuff, my friends may think I'm a weirdo for taking a bottle of oil with me to the bathroom but I'm the one with super-soft skin so who cares!

If the smell bothers you, try adding a few drops of an essential oil like lavender. I really recommend giving olive oil a chance, even if you have problem skin. Do not fear the oil!

Drinking Water for Clear Skin - Experiment

  For as long as I can remember I have read article upon article in girly magazines, seen pieces on TV, posts on the internet, and heard my friends talking about the benefits of water for the skin. 

 It seems to make sense. Water is good for your overall health, it aids your kidneys in flushing toxins from your body, it's good for digestion, circulation, and even your energy levels. It makes sense to me, then, that keeping your body well hydrated would have possible benefits for your skin.

Why have I not tried it?

I think the main reason for me is that I don't particularly like the taste of water. Especially the slightly-chalky-with-a-hint-of-chlorine water that leaves my taps! As a kid I was given fizzy drinks, sugary cups of tea and fruit juices. I'm used to tasting my liquids.

Another reason for me is that the supposed required 8 glasses of water a day seems like such a chore. I've tried to increase my water intake before but I've ended up getting lazy and going back to my old drinking habits in a few days...which is not to drink much at all. (Apart from at the weekends, but this type isn't very hydrating).

 I can usually get through the whole day fine on one cup of tea and a glass of fruit juice. 

I'm guessing my less than great skin, lack of energy and dry brittle hair could at least be partly to blame for this, which is why I'm going to try the 8 glasses/2 litres of water a day thing for the following 2 weeks.

I'm skeptical of needing as much water as this, and I've also read a lot of articles where people refute the 8 glasses a day rule. Water is obtained through food and even caffeinated or fizzy drinks to an extent; drinking too much can even be dangerous.

However, I think drinking more will overall be beneficial and I'm interested to see whether or not it will have much effect on my skin in such a short space of time. I know that out of my group of friends, whether it's a coincidence or not, the ones with the best skin do seem to be the ones who drink the most water. 

While I was researching this I found lots of arguments about which kind of water is best for your skin, bottled vs tap, room temperature vs chilled etc etc. I've decided to drink 2 litres of regular tap water a day. I know I whinged about the taste earlier but I resent having to pay for bottled water when I already pay for the stuff that comes out of my faucet. Also, there are the green issues of getting through a crap load of plastic bottles every week, not mentioning the fact that bottled water isn't any better for you (and in some cases may be worse).

To make this easier for myself, I'm going to fill a plastic 2 litre bottle with tap water every day and try to keep it with me at all times, at college, at the gym, in my bedroom, next to me while I'm watching the TV, and in my bag while I'm out and about..(I'll be needing a big bag, then). 

I'll update within the week to record my progress and note any changes in my complexion. For future reference, my skin as it is now is okay. Following the "no-wash" experiment, it's better than it was before, but it is still a bit dry, dull, a few blackheads, the odd pimple now and again and looking quite tired. Let's hope all this water injects a little life into it, as well as me!