Monday 15 July 2013

DIY Skincare #1: Aspirin and Lemon Juice Mask/Exfoliator!

Hello again! Apologies for my absence, life has happened and I've been super busy! Little update for you: I'm back at home with family, seeing lots of my closest friends, working to save a bit of extra money for my flat and generally having a nice, chilled out summer!

Whilst I was away from my blog, I was brainstorming some new posts. With the hotter weather in the UK (I almost can't believe it either), my skin has been SUPER oily and make-up (when I bother to put it on) just slides right off within a couple of hours. So I decided to try something different and spend a little less money on store products that promise to fix my problem skin and fade my acne scars. I've always been really interested in natural home remedies for treating skin problems. Also, as I am eating healthier I am seeing some benefits but surely any natural exterior remedies must be a further benefit, right?

Over the next 4 weeks, I will be trying out 4 different face masks/exfoliators all concocted from various ingredients typically found in our kitchen cupboards. Little detail here: I have very oily skin, large pores and acne scarring etc. These remedies are specifically for oily skin and would not be suitable for dry skins and maybe even combination skins. However, some oily skins out there may not see the same results as I do as we all have different skins that respond in very different ways. Just thought I'd slip that in just so you are aware.

Okay so first up is the Aspirin and Lemon Juice mask. Now, I've also labelled it as a exfoliator because of the texture and personal opinion. Some of you will think of it as a mask, some will not.

Here are the ingredients you will need:


  • 3-6 aspirin tablets (these can be bought very cheaply in any supermarket or drugstore)
  • 1-2 tbsps of lemon juice
Note: 3 aspirin will require 1 tbsp of lemon juice and 6 aspirin will require 2 tbsp.


I was recommended to use aspirin by my brother who also suffered from a more severe case of acne when he was a teenager. We all know aspirin is predominantly used as an anti-inflammatory when taken orally but it does actually have benefits for the skin too! Due to these anti-inflammatory properties, it can help with aiding discolouration from acne and redness. It also contains salicyclic acid which is a proven ingredient to reduce the occurrence of acne. Having said all this, if you are allergic to aspirin, do NOT put it on your skin. It will sink into your pores and possibly cause an allergic reaction. Always check with your doctor before using it.

Lemon juice is also very good for the skin. If you mix it with warm water and drink it, it will detoxify your body of all those nasty toxins that are often come through the skin in the form of spots and pimples. It contains vitamin C which helps to build up your skins levels of collagen which prevents aging. If you are losing weight or trying to (as I am), lemon is great for keeping your metabolism high which means you'll digest your food quicker. There is honestly so much you can do with a lemon! I never thought I'd be saying that... What I'm trying to say is that it is damn good stuff and has amazing benefits for your skin inside and out! Hurrah!

Now that I've rambled on about how great aspirin and lemon juice is for your skin, you want to see some cold hard evidence and real opinions, right? Well here you go... (Note: all these photos were taken with my iPhone as I do not have access to my friends shiny and lovely Canon camera for the rest of the summer)

So here is my skin before I applied the mask:

You cannot tell a great deal from this picture except that my skin looks a little shiny and there is quite a bit of redness from spots and scarring.
And here is me with the mask on:


And here is me after I'd rinsed it off:


Here are a few pictures of the process so you can get an idea of what it's like:




So, what do I think of the results?

  1. My skin feels a lot softer afterwards due to the aspirin building up with the lemon to get rid of the dead skin cells.
  2. The consistency was very rough so probably not suitable for very sensitive skin.
  3. The mask sticks to the skin very well so no worry of it slipping and sliding off the face.
  4. Must be careful not to get fall out into your eyes when applying to the forehead.
  5. 6 aspirin and 2 tbsp of lemon juice is more than enough for 1 person. I'd say 3 aspirin with 1 tbsp is enough.
  6. I could feel my skin tighten but not too heavily that it was uncomfortable; more like it was doing it's job.
  7. More of an exfoliant that you would use once a week rather than a soothing and relaxing mask.
  8. Matte finish which is a massive plus for me!
  9. Doesn't leave the skin tight- just very fresh and rejuvenated!

Overall, I really like this face mask/exfoliant and I really like the results it gave! I would highly recommend this to anyone who has very oily skin like mine and is fed up of spending loads of money on store products that don't do that great of a job. In the grand scheme of things, I'd rather spend under a £1 on this than maybe 10x the price on a product that might not even work!

I hope you have enjoyed reading this post and I will be back next week with another D.I.Y. skincare remedy for you all!

Let me know if you have tried this face mask and what you thought of it!

Have a wonderful week!

Paris x

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