Beauty and Personal Grooming

I have been bleaching my face, every 15 days, from the age of 19 as there is some superfluous hair on my face. But now, I find that my skin is no more soft and clean as it used to be. Pimples and rashes have started troubling me. Please advise. - Anu

In fact, so obsessed are Indians with a fair complexion that in addition to fairness creams, usage of cream bleaches to lighten skin colour also is on the rise. A survey conducted by a leading bleach manufacturer has in fact revealed that around 90 percent of women bleached for a fairer complexion while only 10 percent bleached to camouflage superfluous hair. If you are fond of bleaching, here are some points to keep in mind to make the maximum use of this cosmetic preparation . (A few tips about bleaching, the benefits of bleaching, precautions to follow while bleaching etc are mentioned in these posts: The wonders of cream bleach and How to apply cream bleach . Do read those posts as well.)

I don’t use crème bleach on my face quite often, partly because my skin is sensitive and acne-prone. It’s only during special occasions that I opt for bleaching, that too, to brighten up my face and conceal light facial hair. Sometime back, when I had to attend a function, I decided to bleach my face two days prior to the event. It’s always a good idea to try anything, say, coloring your hair, going in for a professional facial, tweezing your brows , plucking /threading your upper lip hair, and of course applying bleach on your face a couple of days before any big event so that you do not sport an unnatural look. I had purchased ‘ Ayur Silky Instant Bleach with Rose ’ for this purpose and as per the instructions applied it to my face carefully. (You may read this post on step-by-step instructions for applying cream bleach .) I left it for 25 minutes and after I washed my face found that it had done little to conceal facial hair and blend them to suit my skin-tone. And as...

If you are not comfortable using chemical bleaches to bleach your facial skin, then you may want to try this herbal bleach. Lime and honey are known to have a mild bleaching effect on hair. You can repeat this treatment once every week. Though it is a slow gradual process it comes off as an effective, harmless treatment. Recipe #1 Ingredients: 1 tsp of Honey 1 ½ tsp of cream 1 tsp of lemon juice Method: Mix the cream and honey well. Add in lemon juice. Apply on face and wash off with lukewarm water. Recipe #2 Ingredients: 2 tsp of milk or milk cream (malai) Juice of 1 lemon Method: Combine together and rub on face gently. Leave it on for 20-25 minutes and then rinse off.

Generally, facial hair and for that matter even hair on the arms have a sparse growth but nevertheless they need to be tackled if one wants to sport a feminine hair-free look. Plucking , waxing or shaving is not quite suitable for facial hair. For those who have hairy arms and legs, waxing is just perfect.   Waxing , as you know, guarantees smooth, hair-free arms and legs for a month or even more sometimes depending on your individual hair-growth pattern. Bleaching is ideal for facial hair. Being an effective and painless method, it merely lightens the color of the hair, making it less conspicuous. Facial hair and hair on the arms are barely visible after a bleaching session.

“ I don’t want to use chemicals on my face” is a common refrain among women about bleaching. Most women still believe that bleaching is done only to achieve instant fairness, but few know about the other advantages of bleaching. Bleaching helps maintain skin health by removing suntan and performs a 3-dimensional task. First it camouflages facial hair to match skin colour. Secondly it thoroughly cleanses the clogged pores of the skin by removing the dirt, making it breathe a lot easier. Lastly it gives instant fairness to the skin, lightening the skin colour by a couple of shades, but more than that it nourishes the skin with the release of active oxygen into the skin. Beauticians across the world recognize oxygen therapy as the latest skin care technique.