Being a teenager, obviously my hormones are all over the show and this significantly effects my skin. Especially before my period. I have oily skin which produces a huge amount of oil within a few hours of washing my face. I also have large pores, which are accentuated by the speed at which my pores block up with oil. I find I can’t use moisturizers as they block my pores even more.

Now I haven’t found a way to slow down oil production. But I do have a good remedy for people who get bad acne or have oily skin. I get really nasty pimples on my neck where I can’t see them or under the jaw where they’re painful and almost impossible to squeeze.

So I recommend a bath at least once a fortnight. Once a week is ideal but some people can’t really have frequent baths. Now this bath doesn’t need to be overly deep Just enough so you can lie back and relax, but get your back in the hot water. This will help open the pores. I recommend a few drops of tea tree oil in your bath as it will cleanse out the open pores and it’s a natural product so it’s safe on almost all skin types. Sensitive skin can’t handle neat tea tree oil (neat means pure, undiluted) but in the bath it’s enough to kill the bacteria in the pores and help dry out the skin. You can pretty easily have half your body in the water and half out if you’re tight on hot water and just roll over to soak your front in the water. Otherwise take a flannel and soak it and just plonk it down on your shoulders/back/chest/neck/face and let the heat open up the pores while the tea tree oil does it’s thing. I personally prefer to submerge my face in the water and let it seep in. 

Exfoliating before your bath is a great idea as it scrapes all the dead skin off the surface and lets the oil get right into the pores.

Along with this I recommend putting a few drops of tea tree oil into the basin of water you use to wash your face. Only use tea tree oil 2-3 times a week or you will overdry your skin which will make your oil production go crazy. After you get into a routine of doing this and you’ve been at it for a month or so, the gunk in your pores will start to come out a lot easier than previously and you should find your pimples start to lessen.

Its worked for me so I’d recommend it. 

I have found rosehip and lavender help. But it is a very very very slow process. Definitely verrrrry slow.

For anyone who suffers from either of these, or high stress levels. I would recommend having a look at this website. http://www.aroma.com.au/  And I’d recommend trying some of their oils. My mums used them for years and years, and I’ve started using them a little bit recently. If you prefer to be safe than sorry, then try these before you try sleeping medications which will fuck up your body and you will become dependant on them.

Natural essential oils can’t hurt you, unless you’re pregnant, if you’re pregnant I’d check before you use them. But ‘Be Relieved’ and ‘Be Calm’ work well as a combination. These are also INCREDIBLY good for your skin. If you have scarring or discolouration, dry or oily skin, these can even it out over a period of time.

If you’re interested, you’re going to want the massage/facial blend, like this.
http://www.aroma.com.au/product.php?productNum=53 They don’t come cheap, but if you want the best for your skin then it’s worth a try.

They also make one called, Be aware.. I think it’s be aware…. And if you’re having trouble concentrating it can help awaken the mind.

Be relieved can also help ease headaches, sinus problems and hayfever symptoms.

Don’t expect a miracle, they help, a lot. But they’re not a cure, they’re a remedy for the symptoms so you can sleep or relax and give your mind a rest. Nothing can “cure” insomnia, anxiety, or high stress levels, but they do work well if you can’t sleep or think properly. You’ll never recover without sleep.

So I’ve been trying out Rosehip oil on my scars. I have pimple scarring, boil scarring, and cut scars. I’ve been using the oil and taking a multivitamin for a boost up of nutrients, for about a month? And I’m already seeing results. They may be mild, miniscule amounts of results.. but they’re there. It’s working. Slowly.. I’m not seeing it on my older scars… yet.. But I’m sure I will.

Update on essential oil facemasks.
The Bergamot oil worked amazingly. I only needed 2 drops in my normal mixture, and it actually dried my skin out nicely without overdrying and got rid of my pimples! Anyone with dry skin should try out lavender oil in their facemasks for me. xo

I’m sure most of you know that lemon juice has skin whitening properties. Some people use it to get rid of freckles, some to just lighten skin.

But so does tumeric. (you get it powdered in the herb secton). You can actually mix lemon juice and tumeric powder into a paste and apply it to your skin. I’m unsure of how it would work on sensitive skin. But I doubt you could use both  on sensitive skin.
Anyway: you wanna mix the powder and juice  to make a PASTE. not a liquid. A paste. And apply that to whatever skin you want to whiten for 15-30 minutes before cleaning off. The only problem is, that tumeric can leave yellow stains. So you probably don’t wanna be going out if you can’t wash it out. But in staining your skin, it means the tumeric is deeper in your skin, which in a way is good, because it means it keeps whitening until the tumeric has been absorbed. It smells quite strong though. So I’d probably advise lemon juice applied with a cotton bud if you don’t like tumeric.

Both of these solutions will dry your skin out, so make sure to get a moisturiser. One with vitamin E will help your skin lighten even more. You MUST put a strong sunscreen on after using any of these techniques if you go outside. Even if its cloudy. They can make your skin photosensitive and give you more uneven skin than you started with.

If your skin is sensitive and lemon juice burns horribly, you can use orange or mandarin juice even. But obviously these will lighten skin a lot more slowly. Because they’re less acidic.

So, to finish up. Use it every day or at least twice a week and see how it works for you. When I get a job I plan on testing this myself, but currently I have no money and can’t buy lemons or tumeric… :P

It’s actually like almost the same as the Baking soda face mask but it’s less intense. I thought it’d be more intense but it’s not. I just crushed 2 asprin up into a small amount of water to make a paste and applied it like the baking soda one. So if baking soda is too strong, maybe the asprin one won’t be.

For my friend James, he wanted some meal plans for lunch at school. And he wants to slim down, even though he’s already a flippin’ skinny bitch! :D:D:D

Each weekday you must take:

1-2 Servings of carbohydrates: (Bread, rice, pasta, potato are your main sources) So lets say you take a sandwich or a container of rice(to the equivelent of 1 or 2 sandwiches).  Carbos are essential for a functioning body and brain, slow burning energy which keeps you awake and concentrating. They DON’T make you fat. Like some idiots think. Anything will make you fat if you eat too fucking much of it.

1-3 Servings of fruit or vegetables: Whether it’s an apple for 1 serving or a handful of dried fruit. High in vitamins (generally vitamin C) and nutrients, also a good source of fibre. Citrus fruit will help clear your skin of acne.

1 Serving of nuts/seeds/dried fruit: A handful of them. Almonds, Peanuts, Pistachios, Cashews, Hazelnuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, there’s a tonne! Raisins, sultanas, Prunes, Apricot, mango, or even banana chips. There are heaaaps of dried fruit. BEST source of fibre. Good nutritional value.

1 serving of…. I don’t know what this is classed under:
Natural popcorn (it’s great for your digestive system) Even salted popcorn should be okay. You need salt or you’ll get dehydrated and die.
Rice Crackers! You can get decent flavoured ones that aren’t too bad for you. Or plain wholemeal crackers with some cheese.
Corn thins: like the ones I had in a picture recently, puffed corn shit, just put something on them. Low fat peanut butter, or banana and cinnamon. It can be savoury or sweet.
Natural corn chips: They’re great! and quite nice too! if you can make some decent dip and take it to school or work it can be better. But they’re fine by themselves.

ADJUST THE SERVING SIZE TO FIT YOUR BODY. Don’t starve yourself, but don’t gorge until you’re full. It can take a bit of trial and error.

Tips:
Choose crackers over biscuts! Get something you like to put on them. Whether it be cheese, cucumber, capsicum, tomato, sprouts(alfalfa: so good for you!), Tuna, chicken, or a healthy dip. Anything really. I don’t know what people put on crackers.

Choose water or pure orange juice(with pulp) over cordial or soda: Water is great, unfortunately our water is not H20 it’s not hydrogen and oxygen, it’s a fuckload of chemicals mixed with hydrogen and oxygen. So unless you live rural and have your own water supply it isn’t that good for you anyway. Orange juice with pulp is good, because citric acid is great for your skin and for your wellbeing. Oranges are a huge source of vitamin c also. So it keeps up that immune system.

AVOID COFFEE AND TEA. (herbal tea is okay) but caffiene will dehydrate you. Or cut down on it.

TREAT YOURSELF.
Don’t deprive yourself of things you like to eat. Otherwise you’ll get sick of your diet and BINGE on crap food. Just have something you like once a week or once every 2 weeks at the most. Whether it’s a handful of lollies, a whole row of chocolate. Just don’t eat too much, You could even stretch it out over the week. eg: You can eat one piece of chocolate a day, or 4 m&m’s a day. Or one lollie a day. Or a piece of pie every day.

Choose a fruit pie over a mince one. (Bake your own fruit pies.) It’s still a great treat. But it’s not as bad as the golfball of fat from a meat pie.

Bake!Bake!Bake! Bake your own cookies and your own muffins! Put nuts and fruit in them. You can still make chocolate chip cookies! But you can make banana and chocolate chip! Or strawberry and white chocolate.

Dark chocolate IS actually good for you. In SMALL doses.


And last but not least. Remember to do exercise. Whether it’s running(not recommended for the big chested girls. you’ll get black eyes. believe me!), walking, swimming, sex (if that’s your cup of tea). Or even weights, sit ups, press ups. Whatever floats your boat. :D There’s tonnes you can do.

Why this mask?
Okay, I say +citrus because I didn’t have any lemons. I only had mandarins. But that’s okay, I don’t need strong citric acid as my acne is already dying down, from the baking soda one last week.

Now then, honey has strong hydrating properties from what I know. I used natural honey. Egg white has a decent amount of vitamins which are great for the skin, it’s a gentle exfoliant AND it can make your skin a bit more taut and firm! AND it’s natural! Now then, the citrus juice I used, I just squeezed 1/3 of a mandarin and let the juice run in to the mix. Only add citrus fruit juice if you have acne. Otherwise it can dry out your skin and lead to acne.

RECIPE:
Ingredients:
1 egg white
1 tsp of honey
1 small citrus fruit (only if you have acne)

Method:
I  just got a small teacup, and put an egg white in there, I just cracked one side of the egg and the white just poured out, the yolk stayed in there. Then crack it in half completely and get the excess out by moving the yolk from one half off the eggshell to the other. Some egg white will be left in the shell without the yolk in it.

Then grab a tsp of honey, and use a thin whisk, and whisk it to mix it. As the honey is too thick to be mixed via spoon. it will be a little frothy on top. That’s good!

OPTIONAL: Squeeze in as much citric juice as you think you need for your acne. Or to dry the skin. Lemon or lime would be the strongest juice. Then oranges/tangelos. Whisk in with the original mix.

Now throw on an old top, go to the bathroom and using your fingers, smear it all over your face and neck as thick as you can get it without it running off your face and dribbling everywhere.

When it’s fully dry, wash it off with a warm soaked flannel or some warm water.

TIPS
It can take a while to dry. I’d advise lying down with your eyes shut. Because your eyelids stick to your brows lolololol.

It takes about 20minutes to dry. So put on some music or have someone to talk to. It dries shiny and a little rough, but transparent.

If you have any questions about food intolerances feel free to ask. I know a ton about the digestive problems of intolerances.