Summer brings longer days with higher temperatures, as well as sweet, juicy and sometimes tropical fruits.
It brings me so much joy to walk into the grocery store and find my favourites like papaya, plums, grapes and all kinds of berries - all the yummy fruits we patiently wait through winter for.
As much as we all love munching on these yummy fruits, it’s as good for your skin as it is to eat. Simply mush up the right fruit combos and you can create your very own all-natural face mask.
Here are a few of my favourite fruit face masks to prep and keep your skin soft and hydrated.
Papaya / Pawpaw (refreshing skin)
Not many people are fond of eating this tropical fruit even though it’s packed with nutrients. Thankfully great for the skin as well so you don’t have to eat it if you don’t like it. Here’s how to make a skin refreshing mask.
Pawpaw. Picture: Pexels
Ingredients
2 pieces of papaya
1 tsp of honey
Method
Mash or blend the pieces of papaya into a smooth pulp.
Then add the honey to the pulp.
Smear a generous amount on to clean, dry skin. Leave the mask on for 15 to 20 minutes.
Rinse with cool water and gently pat dry.
Mango (refreshing)
There’s nothing like that first bite into a sweet ripe mango and the juices dripping down your hands and arms. Not minding the stickiness of it all. Oh so worth it. As good as it is to eat, it’s just as good and refreshing for your skin.
Mango. Picture: Pexels
Ingredients
1 ripe mango
3 teaspoons oatmeal
7 almonds which have been soaked overnight
2 teaspoons milk
Method
Mash chopped up pieces of the mango
Blend the oatmeal into a powder and mix it into the almonds creating a paste.
Mix all the ingredients, adding milk until blended.
Apply the blended paste to your face and neck. Leave the applied mixture on your skin for 15 minutes. Rinse thoroughly then gently pat your face dry.
Banana (Oily skin)
Bananas are a fruit we get to enjoy all year round but that doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate it in summer. No fruit bowl is complete without bananas. It’s the grab-and-go fruit which easily doubles up as a quick breakfast. They are a go-to fruit for your skin as well.
Banana. Picture: Pexels
Ingredients
Half a banana
Half a teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Method
Mash the banana. Mix in the rest of the ingredients to create a pulp.
Apply generously on clean skin.
After 20 minutes remove the mush with cool water. and wash it off.