Gettin' swimmy with it: Looking your best

By Ellen Stanton

As a Relationship Coach I'm always stressing the importance of people having a positive relationship with themselves first. Many people feel this is selfish. But the truth is if you can't show up for yourself, how can you truly show up for others? Now that we are entering into a New Year, please do not let finances keep you from looking your best! With a little help I have come up with some great home spa treatments that will keep you looking and feeling wonderful all year long. Enjoy and Happy New Year!

Organic Green Goddess Facial

1 cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 ripe avocado
1 tsp. lemon juice 
Pinch of ground coriander

Directions: Put yogurt, mayonnaise, honey and avocado in a food processor. Pulse until smooth and creamy. Place into a bowl and add lemon juice and coriander, mix my hand until well incorporated. For best results buy whole coriander seeds and finely grind in a coffee grinder. It is worth the effort the aroma is out of this world! Apply masque to face, neck and decollete. Keep on for at least 15 minutes wash with warm water and follow up with moisturizer of choice.

Avocado Facial Mask

2 tbsp plain yogurt (not nonfat)
1 tsp olive oil
Avocado, cut open.

Directions: Combine ingredients and mix well. Apply to clean face and neck. Leave on for 20 to 30 min. Rinse with plenty of warm water.

Homemade facial scrubs are a great way to clean your face without the harsh effects of regular soap. It leaves your skin clean, removes dead skin cells and improves circulation. Ingredients                                                      

Bowl of Oatmeal Scrub

2 Tbsp. ground oats
2 tsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. Aloe Vera
1 tsp. lemon juice

Directions: Combine all the ingredients into a smooth paste. Prepare your skin by washing it with plain warm water. Smooth the paste on your face and neck. Rinse with plenty of warm water.

Cucumber Facial Scrub

Your skin is more likely to look dull and ashy if there's a buildup of dry, dead cells on the surface. To speed cell turnover and get great-looking skin this summer, you'll need to exfoliate regularly. "Once a week should do it," says Angelina Umansky, owner of Spa Radiance in San Francisco, who pampers her clients with this all-natural body scrub. The salt and the buttermilk's lactic acid exfoliate, and the cucumber cools. It's especially good before applying a self-tanner to get even color.

1 medium cucumber, peeled and grated (use a cheese grater)
1 cup buttermilk
1⁄2 cup sea salt or kosher salt

Directions: In a small bowl, mix the cucumber and buttermilk. Add the salt and blend into a thick paste. Relax in a warm shower for 5 minutes, allowing the heat to open your pores. Apply the scrub, paying special attention to dry areas like elbows and knees, then rinse. (Use this scrub before shaving, because the salt can irritate freshly shaved skin.)

Homemade Hand Moisturiser

It's time for your hands to come out of hibernation. If yours aren't quite ready, try this homemade solution from Lisa Price, founder of Carol's Daughter, a natural hair- and skin-care line. Price, who concocted her first products in her kitchen, created this overnight skin softener using sugar to gently slough away rough patches, coconut oil to moisturize, and lemon juice to lighten pigment discoloration and brighten skin.

½ cup coconut oil (found at health-food or specialty grocery stores)
½ cup sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
Cotton gloves

Directions: Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Rub the mixture over your hands for at least 1 minute, scrubbing like you would while washing up. Use a paper towel to brush any excess sugar from your skin. Slide your hands into the gloves, and leave them on overnight. By morning, the oil should be absorbed, and your hands ready to make their debut.

A Citrus Lift for Parched Hair

You don't have to live with lifeless locks, thanks to this easy-to-make Citrus Lift by Justin Depasquale, creative director for Depasquale, the Spa in Morris Plains, New Jersey. "The citric acid in fresh juice along with the carbonation from club soda will cleanse hair and remove any dirt, chlorine, and salt buildup," he says. "And sage oil will restore vitality and sheen."

¼ cup club soda
¼ cup fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice
¼ cup fresh-squeezed orange juice
¼ cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice
Drop of sage essential oil

Directions: In a clean spray bottle, mix the club soda, grapefruit juice, orange juice, and lemon juice. If your hair is longer than shoulder length, add an eighth of a cup more of each ingredient. Add the sage essential oil (found at most health-food stores). Wet hair thoroughly, then spray on the mixture. Comb it through so hair strands are evenly covered; leave it on for two to four minutes. Finish with your usual shampoo and conditioner. Repeat the Citrus Lift once every two weeks; for super dry, damaged hair, do it once every three weeks.

Hot Oil Hair Treatment

3 tablespoons pure jojoba oil.  Water the oil and apply it to your hair, starting at the ends and working up to the top of head.  Wrap hair in a towel and relax for an hour or leave in overnight.  Rinse and shampoo hair as usual.  Do once a week or more often if your hair is extremely dry.

Homemade Hairspray

Mix 1 teaspoon sugar with 1-cup warm water. Let it cool and then pour into a clean spray bottle. This stuff really works well!

Homemade Foot Scrub

If you notice that your feet are getting dry, flaky and cracked, you probably need to use an exfoliating product and a moisturizer regularly to keep the skin on your feet hydrated and soft. Find out more here!

Combine egg and table salt to create a homemade exfoliating treatment for the feet. Use this mixture once a week to remove dead skin cells from your feet. The salt is a terrific natural exfoliate while the egg acts as a moisturizer.

After rinsing the mixture off your feet. Apply cooking oil all over your feet and then wear clean, white socks overnight. By using these treatments once a week throughout the winter, your feet will stay soft and moisturized.

Ellen Stanton is passionate about coaching and helping people. She is a firm believer that there is someone for everyone. Sometimes we just need a little help and hope, so we can move forward with our lives. Ellen is a personal and professional relationship coach, as well as a freelance writer with previous articles both in print and on line. Visit her website: www.stantonlifecoach.com

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