HOLI-NESS

Holi is round the corner but while we enjoy the festival the synthetic colours may adversely affect our skin and hair. Here are a few smart tricks that you need to follow before and after the celebrations to safeguard from skin and hair woes.

PRE-HOLI:

1) The first rule, invest in colours that are skin-friendly. You may buy herbal/organic colours or make them at home.

You can try Organic India Festive Herbal Gulal and Sattvic Farm’s Natural Gulal. Those of you who have been using herbal colours since few years now can give a try to DIY version made at home. I’m definitely up for it!

Here’s how you can make one at home:

– You can keep gram flour/corn flour/rice powder as the base.

– Take any food colour and dilute it in water and mix it with the base. Let the mix dry under the sun or you may put it in the bake at low heat.

– You may use beetroot, mehendi leaves, Aparajita, Palash and Marigold flowers instead of food colours to get pink and yellow colour. Blend them in grinder and mix with the base. Keep in mind in the mix 2/3 will be powder of flowers or vegetables while 1/3 of the mix will be the base. Similarly you may mix neem leaves to the green  made from mehendi leaves.

2) Massage oil in your hair an hour or a night before to protect your scalp and strands from damage. For oils you may pick from Forest Essentials Organic Cold Pressed Virgin Coconut Oil, Jhelum Loves Mane Tamer Hair Oil and Kama Ayurveda Bringadi Intensive Hair Treatment Oil. My personal favourite is from our in-house brand Jhelum Loves, the blend is a perfect mix of cold pressed coconut, olive and apricot oil with all the essential oils necessary for different hair concerns.

3) Avoid keeping your tresses loose, instead tie them in a bun or ponytail.

4) Wear loose full-length dress without any deep cut or plunging necklines so that very less of your skin is exposed to the colours.

5) Another important fail safe rule to prevent the colour from seeping into the skin is applying a BB Cream or foundation. A moisturising cream or oil with a thick layer of sunscreen will also work. Aesthetician Ruby Biswas recommends, Jhelum Loves Roseate Face Oil to be used. For sunscreen you can choose from Neutrogena Ultrasheer Dry Touch Sunblock SPF 50+ and La Shield Sunscreen Gel SPF 40.

6) Coming to the digits that are most important for me because I can’t afford to soak them in Holi colours. So to avoid this apply a top coat on your nails, cuticle oil on the cuticles and for inside of the nail bed, press your nails against a soap bar.

POST-HOLI:

1) Avoid using hot water for cleansing your skin and hair, try and remove the colours with cold water first.

2) Shampoo your hair properly without applying too much of friction. A paraben and sulphate-free shampoo will be ideal. You can try Aroma Magic Moisture Boost Shampoo Argan & Avocado Sulphate & Detergent Free and Jhelum Loves Headstart Shampoo. Avoid using any heat styling appliances for the next few days.

3) You can go for an oil massage the next day or try a DIY hair mask. Mix apple cider vinegar, one ripe banana mashed, honey and 1 tsp coconut oil. Apply and remove it after 15-20 minutes. Also schedule a hair spa 2-3 days after the festival to get your hair back to health.

4) For face first try and remove the colour with cotton pads soaked in coconut oil. Secondly, use a mild face wash like Jhelum Loves Honeytrap Face Wash or Pears Oil Clear Facewash. And no matter how much you feel like scrubbing the skin to get rid of the colours, avoid doing so.

5) Next necessary step after cleansing is applying a good moisturiser or face oil.

6) You can also try a few face packs later to heal the skin. Aesthetician Ruby Biswas recommends a few:

– Apple cider vinegar with papaya pulp, one grated apple and honey.

– Curd, honey and apple cider vinegar.

These need to be kept for 15-20 minutes and rinsed off with water.

7) A facial after 3-4 days would be better. A lymphatic drainage inclusive facial can detoxify and repair your skin instantly. Not in a mood for going for a facial? How about a DIY lymphatic drainage? Read our story “De-puffing Massage” to know the steps.