Dermatologists hate her. No, not because she’s discovered the secret to eternal youth; she’s doing a hot sauce facial.
If you’re on social media, you know about D.I.Y. beauty. You can’t scroll through Instagram without seeing a new trend about reusing the contents of your pantry for makeup. The videos are addicting: how exactly is she going to use cocoa powder to contour her nose? Some D.I.Y. beauty hacks are brilliant, like using oatmeal as a healing salve for the skin. That being said, there’s a ton of makeup and skincare trends online that aren’ just silly – they are downright dangerous.
Here’s a few D.I.Y beauty trends that dermatologists recommend you don’t try.
Photo: @noahbuscher via Unsplash.
Put Down The Liquid Glue (!)
In recent years, the liquid glue face mask has become a D.I.Y. beauty staple. Apparently there’s nothing more satisfying than peeling dried glue off your skin (?), but this trend is no good for it. First, peeling liquid glue off your face really hurts. Second, dermatologists say that the glue is too harsh for the skin – you’re more likely to have clogged pores or an allergic reaction to a liquid glue facial rather than the clear skin of your dreams.
With that, some dermatologists are on the fence about the effectiveness of peel-off masks in general. If you aren’t careful, you risk micro-tearing your skin (inviting in pimple-causing bacteria) or ripping out vellus hairs. Vellus hairs are the teeny, super soft hairs that cover your entire body, (with the exception of your palms and the soles of your feet). Whether you want to keep them or not is a personal preference, but be sure to check out dermaplaning as a removal technique. It’s not as harsh as shaving, as painless as a peel-off mask, and is super satisfying to watch.
All About The Oils
Remember when coconut oil was the end-all, be-all cure? It’s great in hair masks, for nourishing your nails, and it smells amazing too. One place coconut oil should never touch? Evidently, your face. Oils run on a system called the comedogenic scale. Every oil will fall somewhere on the spectrum based on if they’re unlikely to clog pores and cause damage (zero-rating) or if they’re highly likely to clog pores and cause an allergic reaction (five-rating). Of course, the scale isn’t a perfect system.
Naturally, skin’s natural pH and overall oiliness will impact the way any moisturizer comes into contact with it. Generally, coconut oil scores a rating of four or five because of its high lauric acid content; the fatty acid that gives coconut oil all its smoothing, moisturizing properties. So on sensitive facial skin, it’s more likely to clog your pores and leave residue behind. Substitute argan, almond, jojoba, hazelnut, or maracuja seed oil for your face instead.
Sweeter Than A Sugar Scrub
Using a sugar scrub to smooth the skin is a top recommendation within the D.I.Y. beauty community for the fact that it’s easy to make and exfoliating with one feels great. That said, the sugar crystals in your kitchen aren’t finely ground like the ones in scrubs you can buy at the store. Regular sugar crystals are too coarse for sensitive skin and dermatologists say that they can lead to painful acne and scarring. Not only does an at-home sugar scrub risk making hundreds of microtears on your face, it also puts users at high risk for irritation and serious breakouts due to sugars natural attraction to bacteria. If you love a good sugar scrub, consider using one only once or twice a month.
Hairspray And Deodorant… As Setting Spray?
The first person to use hairspray as setting spray probably thought they hit the jackpot of all beauty hacks. Sure, if you’re putting hairspray on your face, it will (probably) hold all your makeup in place. Though a sticky residue comes a result of a few spritzes and attracts dirt, dust, bacteria, and literally anything that blows in the wind. Hairspray also has a high alcohol content that can dry skin right out, causing breakouts.
Deodorant has also been used in D.I.Y. beauty circles to help makeup stay in place. The theory is that deodorants antiperspirant properties will keep makeup perfectly matte, but using it as a primer comes with more cons than pros. Deodorant can clog pores and be hard to take off at the end of the day. Even if your skin is naturally oily, it’s likely to cause breakouts and leave irritation behind as well.
When it comes to trying D.I.Y. beauty trends, we like to abide by the following rule: If something seems too good to be true, it probably is. And if anyone recommends putting chilli paste on your face: run!
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