Face Good

It's been awhile since I last wrote an article about DIY beauty methods! Given rising costs of living and worsening inflation, I'm back to experimenting with home remedies that are comparatively cheaper to branded facial products in the market.

Some fruits and vegetables, when in contact with your skin, produces natural moisturizing and nourishment effects and can remove wrinkles in the long run.

Brinjal Mask
Mash up a brinjal (unskinned), soak it in a small jar of rice wine and add about 2 to 3 tablespoons of natural honey. Keep in a sealed jar and refrigerate for a week. It helps to smoothen skin and remove wrinkles.

Banana Mask
Mash a banana, add half a tablespoon of olive oil and mix evenly until the mixture is very fine. This masks helps in eliminating wrinkles.

Water melon wipe
Wipe your face with a clean piece of watermelon skin and then rinse your face with clear water. This helps to refresh and moisturize your skin, thus preventing the formation of wrinkles.

Snake gourd mask
Juice a snake gourd and mix the juice with half a cup of rice wine and 2 tablespoons of honey. Apply it to your face and rinse off when dry. Snake gourd is effective against wrinkling skin.

Cucumber mask
Probably one of the most popular and easiest methods. Simply place slices of cucumber over your clean face. It helps to refresh your skin as well as soothe wrinkled skin.

Tomato Mask
Mix 2 tablespoons of honey with a glass of freshly squeezed tomato. Tomatoes protect skin against sunburn and premature wrinkling.

All masks are to be applied directly to skin for about 15 to 20 minutes unless otherwise stated, and washed off with clean water. However, before applying these masks to your face, always apply a bit of it to the back of your ear or neck to test for allergy reactions. Instead of applying the masks to your entire face, you can also do spot treatment by applying it just to drier, more wrinkled parts of your skin and monitor its progress to see if it works. As with all products, results and effects vary from person to person.

Here are some simple masks made from food that can be used to extract blackheads!

Green Melon Mask

You will need:
1 Green Melon
1 Facial mask sheet

Instructions:
1. Put the green melon in the blender, add in some water and blend.
2. Filter the mixture, setting aside the liquid for use.
3. Pour the green melon water onto facial mask sheet and wait for it to soak up all the liquid.
4. Cover face with mask for 20 minutes.

Apart from removing black heads, its cooling effect reduces infections and swellings. If you have pimples, you’ll soon be rid of them!

Egg nose mask

You will need:
1 Facial Mask Sheet
Egg White from 1 egg

Instructions:
1. Cut out from the facial mask sheet, the portion that covers the nose. This will be used for the nose mask.
2. Apply egg white on the nose mask
3. Place nose mask on nose. Make sure it sticks on your skin and don’t leave space for bubbles.
4. Sit in front of a fan to dry the mask. Once the mask is dry, remove it. You should be delighted to find black spots (your blackheads) on the mask!

Today's Friday! Woohoo! The weekend's finally here and I'm sure lots of people are going to hit the night spots to hang out with their friends until late since there's no work the next day. However, I'm going to head straight home today right after work because I'm going to pamper myself with a facial at home!

What's the rush though, you must be asking. You see, after returning from work, having dinner, doing the housework, bathing and washing face, it’s at least 9pm before one finally gets time to relax and start your home facial treatments. But did you know that 9pm and after are inappropriate timings for beauty treatments?

Our skin also has a biological clock. Between 9pm to 11pm, the skin is most sensitive, blood capillaries are weak and the body is most susceptible to decreasing blood pressure, water swelling, bleeding and infection. In this condition, beauty treatments like masks, moisturizers etc burden your skin and may lead to complications.

The best times to do your facial treatments are around 7 or 8 pm, or after 11pm.

4pm to 8pm is the best period to do beauty treatments. During this period, blood is high in oxygen content and the skin absorbs nutrients more efficiently.

After 11pm is the time when cells grow and split most rapidly. Hence, our skin is able to absorb nutrients from masks and moisturizers more quickly and thoroughly!

The subject at hand is only applicable to users of facial masks in clay or paste form. Many people perceive that such masks are economical because they only require a little of it each time to cover the entire face. That's how they make their tubes of mask last much longer than packs of 5-in-1 peel-off masks.

In reality, a skimpy, translucent layer of mask is insufficient to create a closed environment for your skin to rejuvenate. To ensure that your skin gets enough nourishment, you must be generous with your application, especially around the T-zone. Nobody ever said that beauty comes cheap :(

So what's the ideal amount that one should use? There isn't a standard to adhere to, as different products have different concentrations of ingredients. Generally, you should use about 3 - 4 blobs of the product, each the size of a broad bean. After application, the mask should constitute a thick and prominent layer.

You'll end up finishing your product a lot faster than you usually did, but take heart. At least you are finally putting your product, and consequently your money, into good use!

Here’s a recipe for a new face mask which I saw on the Taiwanese beauty show 女人我最大. It's a quick and simple respite for your tired face!

Ingredients: 1 egg, 2 tablespoons of honey, half glass of milk, flour

Crack the egg into a bowl and scoop out the egg yolk into another bowl. Add honey, milk and flour into the bowl containing the yolk and mix. Amount of flour added should be in accordance to your preference of how watery you want your mask to be. When the mixture is thoroughly mixed, apply it evenly on your face. Leave it on for 20 minutes and wash it off with lukewarm water.

It will nourish your skin and make it more radiant!

I hope everyone gets to greet your relatives during Chinese New Year with a joyful and glowing face!

It is very important to use the right technique to apply your mask. Simply rubbing it or spreading it onto your face in any old way may diminish the effect of your mask or even harm your skin.

Pre-facial Treatment
Your skin should be cleansed and absolutely free from make-up and dirt. Dab some toner on your face to balance out the pH value of your skin. After that, apply your mask. Some brands may specify that you apply a layer of oil, moisturizer etc. Usually these are meant to remove dead skin cells. Just follow the manufacturer's instructions.

Application technique

Paste or Clay mask
The layer of mask applied should be thick enough to conceal your pores so that the effects will be optimum. Wash-off masks are easier to manage as they won’t dry up your skin. After leaving it on your face for the recommended amount of time (according to the directions on the packaging), simply rinse it off with clean water.

The procedure for applying the mask is very important. Different parts of the face has slightly different temperatures. Start applying on your cheeks first, where the temperature is lowest, followed by the forehead, nose and chin. Avoid your eye rims and pimply or acne-infested areas to prevent an allergy reaction.

Sheet Mask
After spreading the mask on your face, adjust it according to your facial structure, ensuring that the mask adheres to every part of your skin. Tap your face lightly to dispel the air bubbles. For greater effectiveness, you can place an area of clear sheet wrap above your mask, cutting out holes in the nose area to facilitate breathing. Place a warm towel on top. This will prevent your mask from drying up, so you can leave it on your face for a longer time!

Additional tips
While you’re enjoying your facial, you can massage your face lightly to stimulate blood circulation. This will not be possible for clay masks though!

Don’t leave your mask on your skin for too long, especially if you are not using the plastic wrap method mentioned above. Usually, a suitable time frame is 10-15 minutes. Any longer and your skin will dry up due to lack of oxygen.

Do not think that just because you do regular masks, you don’t need other skincare products. Different masks have different uses, and they are not comprehensive. More importantly, have a healthy lifestyle, because basic skin care products are just for maintenance!

This method was revealed by the popular Japanese beautician Saeki Chizi on her talkshow about skin care. Apparently, many Japanese girls subscribe religiously to her shows, and we all know how Japanese girls are famed for their young appearances. It’s quick, painless and cheap, so let’s give it a go!

You will need:
- Normal cleansing facial mask. It can be any sort of mask; clay, peel-off, DIY… just get one that you normally use. However, do not use an overnight mask as this is not an overnight treatment.
- Permeable plastic wrap (the type used for wrapping food)
- Massage oil or lotion for face
- A steamed towel. To steam a towel, soak it in hot water, take it out and wring it dry, and put it in a microwave oven and heat for 30 seconds. Don’t heat it for longer than that or it may burn up.
- Facial mist spray
- Facial essence
- Facial cream
- Chilled towel (refrigerate a towel overnight)

Here's what you do:

1. Use a facial mask to correct surface problems on your face (such as zits and blemishes).

2. Place a layer of plastic wrap over your facial mask. Remember not to cover over your mouth and nose! Vapour moisture that passes back and forth the plastic wrap helps to moisturize your face. The effect will be more pronounced if you do your facial while having a soak in your bath tub (there’ll be lots more water and vapour).

3. Remove your mask and plastic wrap according to the time span you are supposed to use the mask for.

4. Massage your face with massage oil/lotion. This will help your skin to regain its radiance, elasticity and intensity. Simultaneously massage the lymph nodes on your face (under your chin and on your cheeks) to promote the removal of toxins and reduce facial swelling.

5. Place a steamed, warm towel over your face for five minutes or so, until the towel has cooled. This will open up your pores, allowing your skin to absorb moisture and nutrients.

6. Spray mist on your face to refresh skin.

7. Apply facial essence to nourish skin.

8. Apply a layer of facial cream which will act as a protective layer, locking in moisture and nutrients inside your skin.

9. Turn in early and have a good night’s rest.

10. On the second day, before you put on make-up, use a chilled towel to cover your face for five minutes. This will minimize your pores and make your make-up last longer.

One last milk mask for this series before I go on to something new next week! If you are plagued with age spots and uneven pigmentation, this mask will help you to fade the problem spots and restore even skin colour!

You will need a tablespoonful of milk, two tablespoonfuls of Hydrogen Peroxide Solution (H2O2), three tablespoonfuls of pearl powder and a little water.

H2O2 solution has been used to treat acne as well as diminish marks caused by acne. However, bear in mind that it can be quite drying and irritating especially on sensitive and dry skin. Milk does help to alleviate some of the dryness, but go for a solution with as low a concentration as possible. 3% concentration is the most commonly available one often used as antiseptic. Most pharmacies should carry it, so do consult the pharmacist on its contents and concentration. H2O2 with a concentration of 10% and above can burn skin!

So back to the mask! Mix the above-mentioned agreements together until it becomes a nice gooey mixture. Apply it to your face. Be careful not to touch the brows and area around the eyes because they are too delicate to handle the H2O2. After the mask dries, rinse off with warm water.

Tip: Masks are great for deep cleansing. However, if you have no time to make your own masks, you can simply pour a little milk into your face wash basin, dip a mask sheet in the wash basin and place it over your face. Once the sheet dries, wait a few minutes and then remove the sheet and rinse your face with water.

This article is shared at Face Good on Facebook! Please join it if you have a facebook account, and discuss and contribute!

In my previous article, I wrote about the wonders of milk, and using fermented milk to make masks. However, it seems some people really dislike it (my mum. oh dear. she nearly threw up because of the smell). So if you think that fermented milk smells too bad for your liking, here are a few more milk masks, made from fresh milk! Take your pick!

#1
Mix three tablespoonfuls of fresh milk with three tablespoonfuls of pearl powder and stir until it becomes an even gooey mixture. Apply it all over your face. Once the mask is dry, wash it off with warm water. You should only use this mask twice a week or less.

#2
Mix a tablespoon of fresh milk, a few drops of olive oil and 1 table spoon of pearl powder together until you get a nicely even mixture. Apply it to your cleansed face. When it dries, wash off with warm water. This helps to reduce wrinkles and maintains your skin’s suppleness and elasticity. Similarly, only do this no more than twice a week, and if you use one, don’t use the other.

#3
Mash 50g of strawberry. Juice it by placing the pulp in between porous sheets or a porous bag. Pour the juice into one glass of fresh milk and stir evenly. Massage this all-natural strawberry milk mixture over your face and neck. Wash off after 15 minutes. This cleanses, tones and moisturizes your skin and prevents wrinkles!

This article is shared at Face Good on Facebook! Please join it if you have a facebook account, and discuss and contribute!

I’m back with my first post for the New Year! I hope everyone’s New Year started out great! My new year was tonnes of fun, but I’m so exhausted! I’ve been staying up past 2am for the countdown and parties. My poor skin’s gone through the mill! To make up for the late nights and unhealthy food and beverages, I’ve been giving my skin a treat – milk masks!



Since historical times, milk has long proven its worth in beauty and skin care. Concubine Yang, one of the four great beauties of China, was famed for taking a milk bath everyday. Even in modern times, Fan Bing Bing, touted as one of the greatest beauties in Chinese entertainment, revealed milk baths as one of her beauty secrets!

However, milk baths are rather extravagant, and not all of us have bath tubs to begin with! On the other hand, using milk on your face once in a while is pretty affordable!

For this week and the next, I'll share with you some recommended DIY treatments and masks derived from milk!

Wrinkle-removal & whitening mask

Milk is rich in dairy fat, vitamins and minerals. It has natural moisturizing properties and is easily absorbed by the skin. It prevents skin from drying, and reduces dry wrinkles. It is a great all-natural skin care product!

First of all, place a glass of milk in a warm part of the house for a few days. This will cause the lactic acid in the milk to ferment, thus releasing its anti-bacterial properties. Scoop up about 2 tablespoons of milk and set aside. Add a tablespoon of pearl powder paste to the rest of the milk and stir until it becomes a gooey mixture that is thick enough to stay on your skin surface.

Do not choose low-fat milk or skimmed milk. Freshly collected, unprocessed milk straight from the farms is the best, but this is not very conveniently available, so you can make do with packet milk.

Here’s how to milk the treatment for all its worth!

1. Using some milk from those 2 tablespoons of milk that you previously set aside, apply it onto your face. Massage it all over your face for about one minute.

2. Wipe your face clean with a warm towel.

3. Apply the milk mask thickly to your face. Rinse off with warm water after 20 – 30 minutes.

4. Dab green tea water or alkaline toner (because lactic acid is acidic) to your face and wait till it dries.

5. Massage the remaining fermented milk all over your face. You don’t have to wash this away. However, if you can’t tolerate the smell from it, you can use fresh milk, or mix fresh milk with fermented milk. Pure fermented milk is still the most effective though!

After doing this five or six times, you should find that your skin looks visibly better!

Tune in next week for more!

On another happy note, I've created a Facebook group for Face Good! It's still rather empty but I'll spruce it up soon and invite more members. Apart from discussing my articles posted here, you can discuss anything and everything to do with beauty. So do come and join up and contribute your wealth of knowledge, and invite your friends!

And I’m back with more cheap and quick fruit DIY masks for healthy skin!

Orange Mask

Effects: Removes layer of dead cells on skin and stimulates cell growth. Has great anti-oxidant effects, especially great for people who face the computer all day long.

What you need: Yogurt (100mg), honey (100mg), freshly squeezed orange juice (100mg)

How to make it: Stir everything together until it becomes an even mixture.

Apply mask to face and wash off after 15 minutes.

Grape mask

Effects: The skin and seeds of grapes have antioxidant effects and can help to slow down skin damage and ageing.

What you need: 10 fresh grapes

How to make it: Mash the grapes, including the seeds.

Apply the mask to your skin, gently pressing your face with your finger tips to stimulate absorption. Rinse off with warm water after 20 minutes.

Watermelon Moisturizing Mask

Effects: Replenishes moisture in both dry skin and oily skin and calms sensitive skin.

What you need: A quarter of a watermelon, mask sheet

How to make it: Remove the watermelon skin and seeds. Place the flesh into a bowl and use a spoon to flatten it into pulp.

Apply mask evenly to face and cover with a mask sheet. Rinse off with cold water after 10 to 15 minutes. This mask is so gentle it can be used everyday.

The weather’s been horribly hot and humid recently! A cold glass of fruit juice or a crunchy fruit straight from the fridge brings great relief! How about giving your face a treat too?

Mixed Fruit Mask

Effects: Moisturizing, Whitening, Anti-inflammation

What you need: Egg white from 2 eggs, skinned/peeled fruits cucumber (yes, cucumber is a fruit), lemon, banana and lychee

How to make it: Add all the skinned/peeled fruits into the juicer and juice them. Add egg white and stir until the mixture becomes evenly pulpy.

Apply the mask evenly on face and wash off with warm water after 15 minutes. This mask can be used once a week.

This is a very natural and economical method to nourish your skin as fruits have moisturizing properties and are rich in a variety of vitamins. Egg white helps to tighten pores.

Apple Mask

Effects: Cleansing, Moisturizing, Whitening, Anti-Oxidizing

What you need: An apple, a plain mask sheet. People with sensitive and dry skin can include some fresh milk or olive oil, while people with oily skin can include egg white.

How to make it: Peel the apple and mash it up into pulp. If you have the above-mentioned skin condition, add the extra ingredients into the apple pulp and stir until even.

Apply mask to your face and cover with a mask sheet. Rinse off with clean water after 15 to 20 minutes. This mask can be used every alternate days. After 20 days, you should see some results.

Apples are great nourishment for all skin types. It has skin smoothening, moisturizing and whitening properties, and is known to reduce the appearance of dark pigmentation, freckles and acne scarring.

I will share more fruit masks with you in my next post, so stay tuned!

More DIY masks to reduce acne scarring!

Red wine with Honey

Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of honey into a small glass of red wine. Stir until the mixture is even and apply on your face. When about 80% of it has dried up, wash away with warm water.

You use this mask every alternate day.

Citric acid stimulates cell renewal, thus causing dark pigmentation to lighten and makes skin smooth and whiter. Honey has moisturizing and nurturing purposes. However, people who do not react well to alcohol (such as getting red patches on skin upon consumption) should not try this method.

Green bean and Bai Zhi mask

You can use this mask 2 to 3 times a week.

This mask has detoxification and cleansing properties and will be especially suitable for people with oily faces.


Bai Zhi is a Chinese herb that you can get from a Chinese medicinal hall or the supermarket.

Pearl Powder and Yoghurt Cream

Mix about a teaspoon of yoghurt (natural yoghurt, not flavoured ones!) with a pinch of pearl powder and apply the cream to your acne scars before you go to bed. You don’t have to wash it off.

This can be done once every day.

Do refrain from adding too much pearl powder even if it’s famous for beautifying properties. Too much of it can clog your pores. Just a pinch will do, and it should be fully absorbed into the yoghurt.

Choose skimmed or low fat yoghurt to avoid the formation of oil bumps.

Acne scars are more bothersome than pimples! At least the most humongous pimples go away after a couple of days if you leave them alone, but acne scars can stay up to several months! Acne scars can be concealed, but if not done well, especially when they’re dark and require lots of coverage, your multiple layers of make-up could draw more attention to your blemished visage.

Here are some tried and tested home remedies by myself and my friends which have lightening effects or help to speed up the process of skin cell renewal so that your scars take a shorter time than usual to fade out! Do be reminded that the results for home remedies vary for everyone! Some remedies don’t work for me while others work particularly well. You can try a few to see which works for you, but don’t use more than recommended. Also, don’t try to use several different types simultaneously on a regular basis. You wouldn’t be able to monitor its effectiveness, and more importantly, it may be too much for your skin to bear.


Pearl Powder and Egg White

Pearl Powder and Egg White soothe irritated skin and have lightening purposes. Mix egg white from an egg and a pinch of pearl powder so that the mixture becomes a gooey mask that you can apply on your face. It helps to smoothen skin and lighten scars.

Use this up to twice a week.

Seaweed Mask

Stir 20g of seaweed (dried ones from the supermarket, not seaweed snacks!) into clean water (boiled and cooled till mildly warm). Wait for the seaweed to expand so that the little flakes are stirred evenly with the water. Then take up the wet seaweed and cover your clean face with it. Do this when you’re lying down because you’re obviously going to have issues doing it standing up. After 10 minutes, wash off the seaweed with clean water and apply your regular moisturizer and creams that you use after the toner.

Use this twice a day.

Aspirin mask

This is actually quite a popular home remedy. Some people swear by it while some claim it doesn’t work. Again, this is rather subjective and dependent on many factors such as your skin type.

Pound 5 – 6 aspirin tablets into powder. Add a ladle of clean water and stir to mix.

For first time users who wish to test for sensitivity, apply a little of the mixture on the back of your ear.

Apply the mixture evenly on your face. Wash off after 25 minutes. As aspirin mask is quite drying, do put in more effort in keeping your skin well-moisturized at all times.

You can use this mask once or twice per week.

I have a few more remedies to recommend in my next update. Look forward to them!

This mask works like a dream! I used it once for the very first time about 2 nights ago. I applied it to me whole face, left it on for about 20 minutes and rinsed it off with luke warm water. The effects were instantaneous. My skin felt smooth and I could no longer feel those pesky white heads that were previously on my T-zone. It is really effective in removing surface impurities and degreasing the skin!

A friend of mine recommends this for spot treatment. If you only have selected problem areas, your T-zone for example, just apply the mask to it instead of you entire face. Usually, if you’re using the mask for your entire face, you are recommended to use it about just once a week or so (otherwise, the harshness and cost of the product will be too much to bear). For spot treatment, you can use it more often, perhaps 3 or 4 times a week. It will help with oil control and set your problems right more efficiently.

Beauty effects aside, this product has a fragrant smell, which I find very soothing. It’s wonderful to lounge in my favourite arm chair, taking in the refreshing scent as I pamper my skin. It’s a real treat after a long day’s work! Some people may however, feel a tingly sensation when they use the mask, especially if they have sensitive skin, because the mask is really pretty strong. For these people, I’d advise you not to use the mask so frequently. Perhaps once a fortnight would suffice.

Lately, Traditional Medicines from the East have been gaining more credibility because they have proven to be reliable and lack side effects. So I decided to pick up some masks from the Imperial Herbs series to try out. I’ve used one and I must say that the effect is really good and almost instantaneous. My skin feels revitalized and properly hydrated when I remove it. It emits a glow that lasts throughout the next day.

I appreciate that they use only natural ingredients and no preservatives. For people who are sensitive to alcohol or just have sensitive skin in general, this mask might be for you. I’ll keep you updated if I get any more insights about this product!

I’ve been using the DOUCEUR D'EAU Masque from Methode Jeanne Piaubert for two weeks. I’m going through a busy week with several sleepless nights, so I used it twice a week. Usually, my skin looks drab and oily after several late nights, but this time round, my skin maintains its clear and fresh look. The masque has an intense purifying effect. It is also gentle on my skin. Unlike some in-depth cleansing masks that produce a slight prickly sensation, this one doesn’t at all. It feels soothing upon application.

I’ve been using it with the DOUCEUR D'EAU Gel, so its effect may have been better enhanced through a combination of both cleanser and mask of the same series than if it was used on its own. But I intend to use both for my beauty regime anyway!

Singaporeans who are interested in purchasing these products and others in the MJP line (which I’ll try to review really soon), you can get them from any local Beyond Beauty outlet.

To anonymous: With regards to the prices, I actually don't have them at hand as I'm using the samples. But I called and asked since im going to need to know when I buy it next time. It costs SGD 90. You can call any Beyond Beauty outlet for further clarification. Their contact info are listed on their website.

Description from website:

“Love Lettuce is a wonderful lavender scented, rich green exfoliating mask for normal to oily skins. We make it with an infusion of nutritious agar seaweed, balancing lavender oil and chlorophyll to control your skin's oil production and china clay to penetrate the skin and absorb the dirt you've picked up from the atmosphere. As you wash it off, the ground almonds and almond shells gently remove dead skin cells to give you a fresh-from-the-market-garden look (and scent). Apply to clean, damp skin avoiding the eye area; leave on for ten minutes then gently massage in with damp finger tips before rinsing off with warm water. At least four treatments per pot.”

Doesn’t this look like ice cream? My friend bought this back for me from Australia. It has to be stored in the refrigerator, and I love how nice and cold it feels on my skin. It’s great to use in the morning because it refreshes me and puts me in a pleasant mood to face my day ahead.

The mask absorbs oil and leaves my face nicely moisturized and evenly toned. It has exfoliating beads which helps to massage my face and relax it, but they are very coarse and big, so be gentle when applying and rinsing. My skin glows and feels soft like silk after treatment. The process is highly enjoyable because of the soothing scent that the mask exudes.

However, it only has a 3 week shelf life. This is a testament of its freshness, but this means you’ll have to use it up quickly to avoid wastage replenish it frequently. This can be pretty pricey to use on a regular basis.

This is a more intensified treatment than the rice water facial wash! The production process of the rice water is rather similar to that of the facial wash, except the amount of water used is less.

The ingredients are uncooked white rice and fresh water.

The steps are as follows:

1. Pour white rice into a container, followed by sufficient water to cover the rice.

2. Rinse rice briefly and pour away the water.

3. Pour in a little less water than the first round. Rinse and pour out the water for storage overnight. It should feel thicker than the rice water obtained from that used to make facial wash since less water was used. By morning, the water should be milky white and contain lots of sediments.

4. Separate out the sediments by pouring out the water (as much of it as possible) into another container. Do not dispose off either.

5. Before your bath, massage the rice sediments onto your face. 15 minutes later when the sediments has dried up, massage the rice water obtained from step 4 onto your face until all the rice water has been used up.

6. Allow the mask to dry naturally.

7. During your bath, wash the mask away with warm water.

8. Use cold water to rinse your face so that your pores will shrink.

Tip: You can make a rice bran paste mask (using the above steps with your rice bran). It’s more nutritious and you can just do it once a week.

Enhancement: When your rice mask dries, you can use your hands to gently rub away the sediments. It’s supposed to help your skin absorb some of the minerals from the sediments better when you are rubbing your face. However, if the mask is too dry, you can only remove it by warm water because aggressive rubbing is bad for your skin. You can also add flour to the sediments (before applying it to your skin) to increase its stickiness.