Top 6 To Do Things for 30 days before Durga Pujo

The calendar says – ‘32 days to go before Ma (Goddess Durga) arrives’.

Noticing this, the first thought that struck me was, ‘it’s high time to take stock of my skin and hair and health, in general.’ You may wonder, ‘Why?’.

The answer is simple: With friends, relatives and family around, it’s important to look perfecto! After all, looking good begins with a great and flawless skin and shiny locks. 

So here are the top 6 things, I plan to follow all through this month, to look great in all the new sarees and clothes I have bought already! (I’m planning to do a post on what I have bought for Pujo so far, and which saree I plan to wear on which day!)

1. CTMing in a different way: I’ll begin with the CTM routine. On regular weekdays, I’ll religiously follow the usual CTM routine, using the Richfeel Cleanser, Rose Water and Brihan’s Cucumber Gel. I go to sleep with Cucumber Gel on my face every night.

For these 30 days: I plan to add the Sweet Almond Oil as well. I’ll apply a small amount of this Oil around the eye area. I’ll replace the Cucumber Gel with Olive Oil and Lavender Oil and go to sleep with this, to achieve a glowing and hydrated skin next day.

2. Moisturiser: As said, I use Cucumber Gel as a moisturizer now.

For these 30 days: I plan to use Aloe Vera gel or honey as a moisturizer on a regular basis, at least twice a day.

3. Nourishing:  I know it’s important to nourish the skin from inside and that is why I do eat salads and fruits occasionally. I know I can see some of you say, That Wont Do, Girl!

For these 30 days: Mere application of packs, CTMs and scrubs don’t create the magic and that’s why I plan to overhaul my diet as well. Salads and hydrating vegetables like cucumber and tomatoes will top my food list. Along with this, I’ll embrace a bowl of curd as my dessert after lunch every day. I’m ditching the sandwiches and fries I snack on at times. But not any more! Instead, it’s sprouts and corn for me from now on.

4. De-tan: One easily gets tanned in Pune and to top this, I got even more tanned during my amazing Goa trip, earlier this year. And ever since, I’m battling with the tan, winning some battles and losing many!

For these 30 days: I plan to do damage control by detanning myself using Lacto Tan clear and a pack of multani mitti with cold water and turmeric, every alternate day. Plus, protection is also a must for me now.

5. Deep Conditioning:  For fabulous hair, you need deep conditioning! I deep condition my hair, once a month.

For these 30 days: My plan is to deep condition my hair every weekend. For this, I use a combination of olive oil, coconut oil and castor oil. I put the oils together to warm. When it gets quite warm, I apply this oil on the scalp and the entire length and wear a shower cap. After an hour, I shampoo off. The after effect makes me smile throughout the day!

6. Pedicure: Treating my fired feet to a relaxing pedicure session is mandatory ahead of the festival.

And for a curtain raiser, I'd love to create this look for myself on Ashtami morning.

These are my priorities ahead of Durga Pujo this year. What are your to do’s? Please share in the comments below. 

Top Tips: Skin

As I try to come out of the shock of Rajesh Khanna’s death, I could not help but wonder at how beautiful Dimple Kapadia and Twinkle Khanna look till date! Both seem to be ageing gracefully, but, you never know whether they took the plastic surgeon’s help. Anyways, more on that later when I’ll write about Rajesh Khanna’s leading ladies, both on screen and off it.

This post is about quick beauty tips for glowing skin. I’m not too fussy, so I prefer not to be elaborate with my beauty regime. I believe in religiously cleaning my face twice a day, followed by the application of natural or herbal things to nourish my skin.

Let’s compile a list of such skin nourishers that are handy for working women (like me) and mothers, who are always juggling between home and work. So, here we go and please take note of these tips.

·   For dull and lifeless skin, apply a thin film of honey on damp face and retire for the night. Next morning, wash off, Do this for a week to see the best results. Honey is good for dry to normal skin, and oily skinned ladies, can add few drops of lemon juice to it.

·   Aloe vera is a great gift. Pluck out a leaf and break it to take out the clear gel. Apply all over your face generously. Keep for 30 mins and wash off. Aloe vera is good for acne, dryness and for general use. You can use gels available in the stores.

·   Cucumber is great to combat dryness and clean your face. Dip a cotton woll in cucumber juice to clean your face or apply a thin layer of cucumber to de-tan yourself.

·   Raw milk is an excellent cleanser for dry skin. Dip a cotton wool and rub all over your face, for a squeaky clean face.

·   Tulsi mixed with neem can be used to combat acne and pimples.

·  Neem juice or extract is good for any type of skin eruption like pimples, and scalp infections. You can use neem extract with turmeric to keep off infections as well.

So what do you like? Do you love the elaborate beauty rituals or do you resort to quick tips like me? Please feel free to share. J

Love-
N

PS: Images sourced from Google.