Tag Archives: beauty

Raw Honey Face Mask

Why, hello! Happy 2018. It’s been a minute. Did you know that honey is not only a delicious treat? A raw honey face mask is an easy, affordable way to leave your skin radiant and pores refined, without any unwanted additives. Look! Me with no makeup.

“After” Raw Honey Face Mask

A Raw Honey Face Mask leaves skin radiant and pores refined

It turns out, honey is not just good for baking! We give the Little Birds honey when they have a cough or sore throat. I’ve long known about it’s antibacterial properties and heard it’s good for skin. A friend uses raw honey as a face wash.

This week, I was taking a close look at my pores, and figured honey couldn’t hurt. I also tend to have red patches on my skin. The lady I see for facials thought my skin could be sensitive to seasonal allergies. Which made me think of how local pollen, or honey such as San Diego Honey’s Pollen Plus, soothes seasonal allergies. Why not applied topically?

How to apply raw honey as a face mask

  • Over just washed, clean skin, I took a little raw honey and simply spread it over my face with my fingers, focusing on the T-zone, and avoiding my hair line.
  • Leave on 20-30 minutes. If you want to take a steamy bath, it couldn’t hurt, but I did not. Rinse with warm water. No need to wash off with soap (please don’t!)
With Honey Face Mask On

Raw Honey Face Mask. Apply to face, leave on 20-30 minutes, rinse.

My results from using a raw honey face mask

  • My skin felt very soft
  • My skin felt well-moisturized
  • Pores were clean, refined and smaller
  • Skin tone (aka red patches) were evened out considerably
  • My skin had a radiant glow, as though glowing from within, but not looking shiny or oily.

I should add that I am not wearing any makeup on my skin in the “after” photo. To be honest, I may have cheated a little bit with my eyebrows. If you look at the before photo, you’ll see why! (For those that are curious, I’m wearing Benefit’s Ka Brow in shade #3.) But honest to goodness, no foundation, tinted moisturizer, or concealer (nor photo-retouching) — I wanted to show off how nice the honey left my complexion.

Which honey should you use for a face mask

The most important step is selecting raw honey. Alternatively, honey that has been cooked or processed looses many of its helpful properties. If you are in Southern California, I recommend the San Diego Honey Company, to get the most benefits of local honey. You can buy online or pick some up at Specialty Produce (below.)

San Diego Honey Company at Specialty Produce

Personally, I picked Buckwheat Blossom Honey as it has an extra high level of antioxidants and is known for its health benefits. Other good choices include the hyperlocal Coastal Wildflower or the Pollen Plus. A citrus infused or the ginger lemon honey might make an interesting honey face mask, too.

RAW HONEY FACE MASK

Have you ever used honey as skincare? Want to try it? Pin this article to save it for later!

Getting My Color Back (Amazing Lash Feature)

The last time I went to the zoo, I overheard a tour guide talk about the flamingos. Everyone knows they are pink because of their food and has heard, “You may notice the babies aren’t bright pink yet because they haven’t had the time to develop their color.” drained flamingo
But this time I heard something new. She said that the mothers of young birds lose their bright color, too. They give so much of their energy to raising their babies they literally fade to pale pink or white. Raise your hand if you can relate!

So… funny thing: you may not know this about me, but there was a time I was on exhibit at the San Diego Zoo.livingfountain I was actually right across from the flamingos, near the entrance, and heard the speech of the tour guides several times a day. I downplay it, but as a classical statue that came to life as a living water fountain, there was a beauty and glamour I now miss. I got to travel internationally as a performer, but perfected the show at the zoo.

And now, if I’m at the zoo, I’m just another mom in running shoes, juggling two small kids. No more red velvet curtain and dramatic music to mark my entrance.

But guess what? I’m starting to get my color back! The good news for flamingo parents is that they gain this color back eventually as the chicks become independent and eat on their own.* And a friend and I were invited to try out lash extensions at Amazing Lash in Carmel Valley. To be honest, she never made it as her son ended up sick, and well, priorities…

Lash extensions are semi-permanent lashes that are individually glued to your natural lashes. They last a few weeks and fall off as your lashes naturally fall out. I have stick straight lashes that point down and had always wondered about extensions.

before

I think they came out pretty. What do you think? In the photo below I am not wearing any eye makeup at all. “I woke up like this,” the ads boast.

after lash extensions

I also wanted to show a comparison of lash extensions to what I look like with eye makeup. I thought that would be a more telling comparison. So in the next image, I’m wearing two-coats of mascara and eyeliner, and mechanically curled my lashes.

before with makeup

Below, again, I didn’t put on any eye makeup. That’s how they look! (And that’s a crappy selfie with a cell phone. I wish I had a real photographer and real camera to show them off.)

Abby - Baby Birds Farm

The studio in Carmel Valley is new, and is very clean and upscale. I learned that all of the lash artists are either licensed estheticians or licensed cosmetologist, but that they have to be licensed. They have four different styles to choose from. I went with the “natural” and they get more dramatic from there. I’m really happy with them because they look better than any applied eye makeup, yet it’s not too much to wear to work with no makeup. They feel light and nothing like fake eyelashes.

Amazing Lash Carmel Valley

The staff was friendly and my stylist was a sweetheart. I actually had an issue with one of my natural lashes falling into my eye under the weight of the extension. It was curling into my eye, poking me, and I couldn’t remove it without ripping out some adhesive. I called the shop the next morning when I realized what was going on, and they got me in instantly. The stylist fixed me up, and there was no charge. Disclaimer: I received the initial lash application free as part of a blogger outreach program. However, the experience I’m sharing, and the before and after photos are all mine.

About Amazing Lash

Amazing Lash Studios are retail salons that apply semi-permanent eyelash extensions with a proprietary, patented process to your own lashes, replicating the curve and size of natural lashes. It is patented application process that enables our highly trained staff of licensed estheticians to complete the service in a fraction of the time required at traditional outlets. Currently there are two locations in San Diego, Carmel Valley and Mission Valley.

*Flamingo reference and flamingo image credit