Love Yourself Sunday beauty routine

Hey guys! Before I tell you today's activities, can I just ask- Does anyone ever have those days where everything is wrong, even though your life is actually pretty great? Is it just me?? Ugh, I hope not. These days make me feel so selfish. There are people in the world that are starving or homeless but here I am all sad because I feel fat or just gloomy for no reason... 

Today was one of those days for me. I spent all morning feeling sorry for myself, curled in my covers, binge watching Netflix, and actively deciding to not to shower, until I realized just how pathetic I was being. 

"Why am I doing this to myself?"

I realize, you really have to love yourself to enjoy a happy life. In that light, I believe the first step to loving yourself is to take care of yourself. Showing your body some TLC is a refreshing and positive way to express your appreciation for the fine gift of life we all have received. 

Today's TLC: MASKS AND MORE MASKS!!

(Actually just two masks)

One mask for hair, another for your face!

Hair: 

During summer, our hair and skin goes through a lot of damage. With endless exposure to sun and chlorine, I find that my hair tends to be more dry in the summer. It thus breaks more easily and is more prone to... split ends. (Dun dun dun).

But I have found a simple and natural way to restore my golden strands back to life- coconut oil. 

I used coconut oil for everything. Like, seriously, everything. But this is just one of the millions of ways it helps make you beautiful.

All you need to begin is a brush and organic coconut oil. 

First, towel dry your clean wet hair, then brush thoroughly through to get any tangles out.  

Grab a tablespoon or so of coconut oil. Make sure that it's mostly melted, then run it through your hair. Focus on the ends and tips since this is where most damage occurs. 

Once you have used most of the product on the ends of your hair, rub what is left on your fingers into your scalp, gently massaging. 

Your hair will seriously feel (and smell) like heaven. After you're done, wrap your hair in a top not or towel. For best results, sleep in the oil, then, the next morning, you can either just rinse the oil out with warm water, or use shampoo and conditioner to get a thorough wash. You will notice a significant change in the texture of your hair. My new goal is to do this at least once a week! 

Ok next!! SKIN TIME. Heaven knows my skin needs some TLC. 

Tonight I decided to make a homemade clay mask, using four simple ingredients I already had at home. 

They were: Edible Earth clay, water, maple syrup, and tea tree oil. 

The Edible Earth clay is a mixture of natural calcium bentonite and montmorillonite clays. 

Some of it's benefits include remineralizing cells and tissues, promoting bacterial balance, and assisting in heavy metal and chemical detoxification. With all these benefits, it's no doubt this clay will do wonders for your skin. 

To make this mask, I added one part clay to two parts liquid. If you have oily skin, I would reccomend using water as your liquid. Normal or combination skin would use almond or soy milk, and dry skin would use only honey or maple syrup. 

Since I've been breaking out a little recently, I decided to have a liquid base of water. This way I would able to draw all all of the possible impurities. 

Recipe for oily skin (about two servings):

-1 tablespoon clay

-2 tablespoons of water

-1/2 tablespoon maple syrup

-5 drops of tea tree oil

Simply add all the ingredients in a bowl and stir until smooth. 

Warning: tea tree oil can be really intense if you haven't ever used it before. It is all natural, but it has a distinct sting to it. I felt that diluted in this mask, it instead gave a very refreshing, cool feeling, but it might be different for different skin types. 

This mask was so easy to make, and felt great on my skin. Apply like lotion, smoothing a thin layer over you skin. Wait about 10-15 minutes until it feels dry to touch. Rise with water and dry. If you feel like you still have residue, even after rising with water, feel free to use your usual cleanser to get a clean feeling. Moisturize and...

Voila! Your skin is photo ready! 

This mask really did make my skin feel awesome and smooth and I can already tell a huge difference in my pores. It pulled out all the inpurities in such a gentle way. 

I recommend this for all skin types, just make sure you adjust the recipe to your specific needs. 

So this day ended up on a very positive note. 

My advice if you're ever having a bad day: find a way to pamper yourself. You deserve it! These two methods show that you don't need to go to ridiculous lengths to show yourself some love. I had these things already in my pantry, just begging for me to put to good use. 

Even if it's not perfect, you must love your body! It does so much for you! Show your love with little pamper sessions like these and I promise it will repay you (: