Are you suffering from tired, inflamed and unhappy skin? Celebrity make-up artist Rosie Lewis shares her tips on transforming your skin with natural and pure ingredients, and tells us what we should be adding to our masks and moisturisers. She’s a true believer in natural health and has great skin of her own to prove it!
Hey Rosie, over to you:
I got interested in natural organic skin care when some of my clients became allergic to products they had used for years. They came to me for shoots with dry, inflamed unhappy skin due to chemical sensitivities, so I became determined to find another way to healthy skin without using chemically loaded products. I became obsessed with making my own face masks and treating skin as a living organ and just like our insides, it needs nourishment not chemicals to thrive.
Effects of Super Greens on Skin
I always tell my clients to think about their skin differently – to remember it’s a living organ and takes a lot of looking after. Just as we watch what goes into our diet, we should be equally as mindful as to what we put on our skin. As with food, all things topical enter our system and have an effect on the health of our skin and appearance...you really do get out what you put in!
Super greens have the most amazing transforming effect on our skin. Packed full of huge quantities of easily digestible vitamins and minerals, they protect and rejuvenate our skin. Super greens like chlorella contain an array of nutrients including folic acid, Vitamin D and iron, that help to build brand new cells...the result is clearer healthier skin! Our skin takes the brunt of our lifestyle and is often affected by partying, alcohol or lack of sleep.
I work with a lot of young actors who have less than 8 hours sleep a night! I ply them with face masks and recipes rich in chlorophyll that gives plants their bright green colour. It’s so beneficial in renewing complexions of partied-out clients, because it oxygenates blood and gives a healthy glow and replaces lost nutrients.
Green Tea powder is awesome! Perhaps The lesser known or used version but I’m obsessed with it. I find it’s a great anti-inflammatory for swelling or bruising too. It’s incredible also for reversing signs of sun damage or sunburn. If a client has been away or I have a shoot abroad I take it with me and use it with avocado as a calming face mask.
Peppermint is another skin saver. Again it’s associated with tea but I use it as a natural astringent to clean spots or cuts on a client. It’s gentler than witch hazel but has a deep cleaning effect that’s gentle. I love to use it to combat redness on the skin.
Watercress is the most amazing anti-oxidant for skin and I love its peppery taste. I find it’s a natural cleaning agent for skin blockages and flushes out toxins. It also seems to shift excess water retention and bloating. Winner!
I also adore fennel - I love its liquorice taste and have converted quite a few clients by taking the tea into work! I find this flushes out toxins, helps to plump skin up and rehydrates.
Spirulina is a miracle plant! It’s the all-rounder for me. Totally nourishing and packed with protein for rebuilding overworked skin. It’s high in beta-carotene which aids skin softness, which less face it, is what we all want! This is my fountain of youth in a pot. I have it in my bag add it to smoothies on shoots and in salads.
How to use Superfoods in your Skincare:
Oily skin: Crush 2 spirulina tablets. Mix with natural yoghurt and some rock salt. (Natural yoghurt is great at minimising pores) leave on skin for 5 minutes then gently with a warm washcloth massage in circular motions avoiding eye area to get a cleansing exfoliating treatment.
Dry skin: Avocado all the way! Mash 1/2 an avocado add some organic rosehip oil and some green tea powder to bind. The result is calm, radiant, smooth skin.
Mature skin: Mature skin has different demands and needs as much care as acne prone skin or dry skin. Flax seed oil is an obsession of mine I have it in place of olive oil to plump and hydrate. Take 2 teaspoons of flax seed oil some honey and spirulina powder. Leave for 10 minutes for a beautiful boost.
Common skin woes I see are dryness redness and dehydration. Along with pore blockages and general thirsty skin I always advise clients to feed your skin as you would your body. Try natural face masks and see what works for you. Incorporate lemon juice for excess oily skin. Avocado and rosehip oil for dryness and flaxseed oil for mature skin. Give soaps and face washes a rest for a week. Use warm peppermint to cleanse and calm skin with wash cloth...sometimes I even put some peppermint tea in my bath...gorgeous!!
8 Skin Saving Rules
- Water water water!! It's what we're made of and benefits skin massively. Try flavouring with a squeeze of lemon or lime or add skin boosting liquorice root.
- Don’t overload skin with synthetic moisturisers. These block pores and stop skin breathing. Try natural oils instead.
- Cleanse!!! Use a warm washcloth and flaxseed oil to remove dirt and make up...amazing.
- Tone it up!!! Peppermint is a great astringent put some peppermint tea in the fridge, take it out in the evening and with a cotton pad wipe across your face and neck and feel your skin tone up and refresh!
- Don’t pull at your skin or rub to harshly especially around the eyes. This skin bruises really easily so handle with care.
- Cucumbers are an old but a great trick. Face mask it up! Have a look at the ideas above. Egg whites and lemon juice give an instant tightening effect. I do this before events for tip top skin.
- Sprinkle that spirulina! It really is a wonder powder I use it in food and drinks. I also add it to cleansers for my clients as I feel it gives their skin that extra boost
- Green tea powder. Get some! We all need its anti inflammatory properties in our life. I mix it with my moisturiser at night and can always rely on it to give skin that glow it needs especially for the coming winter months.
Thanks Rosie!
