Ways and means towards getting a Radiant Blemish Free skin

As kids our mothers and grandmothers always insisted that we used 'haldi'(turmeric) and 'besan'(gram flour) instead of soap specially for cleaning the  face . We never could understand the reason but it was a must .

 Even before weddings  the bride to be is  applied  'ubtan' made out of turmeric, gram/wheat flour  sandalwood paste and oil/milk --and whats more we are  not supposed to take bath for a week during this ubtan ceremony --AND THEN when we do take a bath on the day before the wedding ---WOW !! what a transformation glowing and blemish free skin .This whole Ubtan episode begins with the haldi ceremony when friends and relatives smear both the bride and the groom with turmeric paste .And this marks the begining of the auspicious function which ends with  the brides departure from her parental home to her husbands abode .

The reason behind this Haldi ceremony and the application of Ubtan is that haldi or turmeric being an antiseptic , an antibiotic  and a blood purifier   works miraculously to make your skin glow and shine on the wedding day ..

Recipe for the Ubtan is as follows ----along with the function of the various ingredients

• Gram flour or besan---exfoliates
• Turmeric or haldi----has antibiotic properties which  can really help clear pimples fast and also remove blemishes .Turmeric also has anti-ageing, anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties which can keep wrinkles at bay 
• Sandalwood powder or chandan---- Sandalwood has anti-bacterial trait and hence it is used as a herbal antiseptic
• Milk---is a whitening agent and also helps in keeping the skin smooth .
• oil -----prevents the skin from the drying effects of  the flour 

Babies in our family as in most Indian families are bathed with ubtan instead of soap because apart from the fact that soap has harmful chemicals the other reason is that ubtan helps in reducing unwanted  body hair --one can actually see the superficial unwanted hair come out gently with the ubtan and it is also said that the gentle circular motion which is used to apply ubtan arrests hair growth .

There are many more natural beauty agents  from off the Kitchen shelf OR from inside the refrigerator because like they say don't apply that on your skin which you cannot eat '

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 A list of "Off the kitchen shelf" or "from inside the fridge" beautifying agents are as follows and they are all tried and tested  the time required to get the desired results is mentioned alongside 

• Honey–15 minutes
• Oatmeal & Water Paste–leave on until it’s hard
• Avocado–20 minutes
• Strawberries and honey (about 1 TBS)–10 minutes
• Strawberries, plain yogurt (paste)–15 minutes
• Strawberries & Cornstarch (2 to 1 ratio)–mash strawberries very well and mix in cornstarch. When a paste, apply then remove after 30 minutes
• Bananas (ripe)–15 minutes. Can also add 1 or 2 TBS of honey to the banana.---banana is specially good for tired skin apply slightly over ripe bananas on your face see the desired effect in just fifteen minutes 
• Papaya–5 minutes
• Grapes and honey (paste)–25 minutes
• Kiwi, 2 TBS yogurt (plain), 1 TBS fresh orange juice–15 minutes
• Yogurt (plain)–20 minutes 
• Orange peal is another excellent product for glowing skin --can be used dried in powder form or even boiled when fresh it is a miracle for instant results  as   are banana and papaya ..I normally boil fresh orange peel just before my bath rub it into my skin  and come out with a glowing skin .If applied as face wash you can actually feel the glow and sparkle visible through  the corner of your eyes .
•  .Rubbing watermelon peel on your face and neck tightens the skin and also prevents wrinkles .
• Apart from these above mentioned natural ingredients we all know the benefits of lime juice, fresh cream , multani mitti  fresh coconut water when rubbed on our facial skin. The bark of the walnut tree when rubbed on the lips gives it a natural red colour the kind found on the lips of Kashmiri girls , and these barks are easily available in any shop selling natural and ayurved products. .
• Not to be forgotten is grated potato  --the magical remedy for dark circles around the eyes . either put the grated potato in a muslin cloth and spread around the eyes or squeeze it take out the juice and apply around the eyes .It also helps in lightening dark elbow skin 
• Rose water---is a cleanser as well as a beautiful perfume which helps in giving the skin a sweet fragrance.

       There are innumerable natural products which are much better than artificial  beauty aids as they give desired results without the side effects of the chemicals used in the synthetic products.  

 Vicco Laborataries has been instrumental in bringing Ayurved to the common man in an easily available and affordable price range together with the right ratio combination . Since childhood we have seen VICCO TURMERIC CREAM  do wonders to our skin ----it not only prevents oily skin ,fights pimples and clears blackheads but  as a mother I have always trusted it to soothe my kids minor cuts and burns and even insect bites I use it in  summers too to give a cooling  effect to sun burns and allergies and rashes. 

In short Vicco Turmeric cream is my man Friday ready to help me and save me from all emergencies and calamities .

It is an important constituent of not only my dressing table but also my first aid box 

Now that it is come   in its new avtar as Vicco Turmeric Cream with  foam base  it will be included in my toiletries as a face wash taking the place of soap .


 http://www.viccolabs.com/product-turmeric-cream-with-foam-base.php