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BEAUTY ON A BUDGET – 5 Great Tips to Save Money on Skin Care by Natural Skin Care Love on July 28, 2014
Beauty on a Budget – 5 Tips to Get Great Looking Skin and Keep Your Cash in Your Wallet The price of beauty in this day and age is staggering. Every year the beauty and cosmetics industry rakes in billions of dollars from women (and men) eager to fork over their hard earned cash on the latest lotion or potion that promises to make them more beautiful. The natural organic skin care segment (though still in its relative infancy) is no exception. In fact, organic skin care products are oftentimes more costly than their chemically laden counterparts. So no matter how you cut it, it often seems impossible to achieve the beautiful skin that we deserve without spending boat loads of cash … Or is it? The good news is that beauty on a budget is, indeed, achievable. With a little savvy and some strategic spending you can have great looking skin and still have cash in your wallet at the end of the day. Below are some tips that I’ve discovered that will help you stretch your skin care dollars …
First Look Within
Beauty on a Budget
I’ve said this before – and risking the chance that I might tick you off, I’m going to say this again. Beauty starts from the inside-out …. Period. There is no possible way that you can achieve gorgeous, radiant skin if you’re not properly nourishing your body. The good news is that when you commit to the lifestyle habits that promote beautiful skin, you will save tons of money on skin care products because you will not need as many of them. When you emanate beauty from within, the natural skin care products that you choose will be used to enhance your beauty rather than manage your skin care issues. When you nourish your body properly, Mother Nature will safeguard your skin care budget by resolving the skin conditions that are troubling you.
Spend Your Money Smart One of the biggest secrets to maximizing your skin care budget is simply knowing which products are worth the extra cash. Every organic skin care company on the market has dozens of products in its line. Between cleansers, toners, serums, creams, and body products you could easily spend hundreds of dollars per month on your skin care toolbox.
Don’t get me wrong – all of these products are fabulous and highly effective. And if your beauty budget allows you to splurge on the entire product line, go for it. However, if you’re someone who wants to be a bit more frugal, there are easy ways to stretch your skin care dollars. The truth is that there are many products in your daily skin care arsenal that can easily be substituted with more affordable natural organic options. Why spend $20, $30 or more on an organic facial cleanser when you can get great results from a $3.00 product? Instead, spend your money where you will get the most R.O.S.C.I. – return on your skin care investment. Here are just a few of my favorite affordable natural skin care substitutes: Kiss My Face Olive Oil Cleansing Bar – Super moisturizing cleanser great for all skin types Humphrey’s Lilac Witch Hazel Toner – Alcohol free, this toner beautifully balances the skin’s PH, softens the skin and closes pores. Twin Labs NAPCA Moisture Mist – A naturally derived humectant that attracts moisture and holds it in the skin. It is wonderful used in conjunction with other moisturizers and is great used alone in humid climates. Suitable for all skin types. Pure Emu Oil – Truly one of the best overall moisturizers on the planet. Best results are achieved when applied after a treatment serum. Emu oil has some unique properties that enable it to drive nutrients (from serums) into the deeper layers of the skin. This is a very economical option, as a few drops go a long way. This being said – there ARE a couple of products that cannot be substituted and are worth every penny spent: Serums – these are food for your skin that allow critical nutrients and antioxidants to be absorbed into the dermis. Antioxidant serums are necessary to scavenge damaging free radicals from the environment. You can check out some of my favorites by reading this review. Sunscreen – We all know the importance of wearing sunscreen on a daily basis. Unfortunately, most commercial sunscreen products contain dangerous chemicals that do more harm than good. Choosing an organic sunscreen that contains only natural mineral sun blocks is well worth the extra money. My preferred brand is John Master’s Organic Sunscreen. Though it’s a bit pricey, it is exteremely luxurious. And because it contains shea butter and olive oil, it serves a dual purpose as a great daytime moisturizer as well. Though the above skin care products cost a bit of green (no pun intended!), the money you save by making smart substitutions will make the investment more manageable.
Ditch the Dermatologist Over the past 20 years or so, dermatologists have been using microdermabrasion to successfully treat a multitude of skin conditions. To this day, it has remained one of the most popular and effective skin care treatments available. Whether you’re dealing with skin discoloration, fine lines and wrinkles or moderate acne scarring, a series of microdermabrasion treatments will leave your skin looking brighter, smoother and more radiant than it has in years. The challenge for many however, is the cost factor involved. When performed at a dermatologist’s office or expensive med spa, a single microdermabrasion session will cost anywhere from $150 -$250. So, a series of microdermabrasion treatments can easily set you back a mortgage payment or two. Luckily for us, there are now some fabulous personal microdermabrasion machines on the market that are affordable and highly effective. Though they are obviously less powerful than the dermatologist’s model, personal microdermabrasion machines can be used as frequently as 3 times a week at your convenience in the comfort of your
home. And their results are remarkable. A good personal microdermabrasion machine is about a $300 investment. But when you do the math, you will see that the machine will pay for itself after 2 or 3 treatments. And over the course of a year (or years) you will have saved thousands of dollars. That’s what I call a great R.O.S.C.I!
Patronize Your Local Cosmetology Schools In my opinion, cosmetology schools are one of the most underrated and under-utilized skin care resources that we have at our disposable. Many people think that because the services are performed by students that the results will be sub-par. In reality, the majority of cosmetology students are talented and highly skilled individuals. And what most people don’t know is that all services are supervised by at least one or two seasoned instructors. Virtually every cosmetology school has an esthetics clinic, where all types of facial treatments are offered at about a third of the cost of salon procedures. Thankfully, there is now a multitude of ‘green’ cosmetology schools popping up all over the country. These forward thinking institutions are educating their students about the dangers of toxic product ingredients and the benefits of offering natural organic hair and skin care solutions. As such, the services performed by their students use only organic ingredients. I highly recommend that you give them a try. Where else can you indulge in a luxurious organic facial or body treatment for $20 or $30?
Do It Yourself When it comes to achieving beauty on a budget and maintaining your natural organic standards, there is no better avenue than ‘doing it yourself’. From cleansers and masks to body scrubs and bath soaks, there is a plethora of incredible homemade skin care recipes that will give you a glowing complexion for pennies on the dollar. The downsides of do it yourself skin care are obvious. There’s an amount of research and testing involved in finding the most effective homemade recipes for your skin type. And of course, there’s the time factor. Many busy people simply won’t have the time or the inclination to justify making their own organic skin care products. That being said, the advantages of DIY skin care are equally obvious. First – many of the ingredients you already have in your kitchen cupboard. And since most ingredients are available in bulk, your homemade skin care recipes will cost a mere fraction of their store bought counterparts. Second – you also get to do your own quality control, so you are assured that only the finest ingredients are being used. If you see the advantages and you are so inclined, here’s a small sampling of some terrific homemade skin care recipes for you to try: Soothing Oat Facial Cleanser DIY Toner for Sensitive Skin Homemade Toner for Acne Prone Skin DIY Moisturizer with Shea Butter Homemade Pumpkin Mask
DIY Bath Bombs So there you have it – beauty on a budget can be achieved by anyone. I hope these tips have been helpful … Here’s to the beautiful skin that you deserve!