My Secret Beauty Treat: Yogurt Mask with Turmeric and Honey

Thanks to my mother, I have pretty OK skin. Except for the fact that I’ve been plagued by blackheads since the age of 12 (I’ll talk about how I keep them under control in another post), my skin has always been said to be even, smooth, and fine. When I do get spots, however, they are usually caused by hormones, which means there is NOTHING I can do about them. I can’t avoid them by not eating certain food, drinking more water, or going to bed earlier. They are usually red, painful, and HUGE.

That is why when I heard turmeric powder could help with that, I was instantly intrigued. I’ve been using homemade yogurt mask for about a year now. I started doing it because I couldn’t find a commercially available mask that I like here in Belgium (also one that doesn’t break the bank), and after I tried it I REALLY loved it. In the beginning I used yogurt with honey and sometimes a little lemon juice. My skin is always smooth and brighter after that. It also does help getting the “that time of the month” zits out of my face.

Turmeric powder is something that is very commonly used in Indian and Thai cuisine. It is a rusty orange yellow color and has a distinctive smell. Not unpleasant or sharp, but distinct. It is said to have antioxidant, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial properties. Yogurt nourishes and deep-cleanses the skin. Honey is also nourishing, anti-inflammatory, and anti-bacterial.

So here is what I do. I usually do this before my morning shower, because I want to be able to rinse anything that might get into my hairline in the process. I dole out 1-2 heaped teaspoon of plain yogurt, put about half a teaspoon of turmeric powder into it, and topping it up with half a teaspoon to one teaspoon of honey. I mix it up, slather it on my face (any leftover goes to my neck), wander about for 10-15 minutes, and then pop into the shower. You can definitely finish the rest of the yogurt with some jam in the meantime. I find it convenient how jam fits snugly into the hole that I just dug out for the mask. 10-15 minutes are good, but if you want to wait longer you can. Just make sure it doesn’t start drying out, particularly around your eyes.

The result is the best mask I’ve ever tried in my life! My skin always looks brighter, smoother, and cleaner after the treatment. I don’t know if it is purely psychological, but I always notice improvement in the lines on my neck after using this. They are less pronounced, and my neck also looks way smoother. Any zits you may have won’t immediately go away. However, throughout the day you’ll notice them going down. I then apply my toner with a cotton pad. You might get some yellow pigment on the pad still, but I swear it is invisible on your face.

What I like more about this mask than my previous honey and lemon formula is that it is not as runny, so it won’t start dripping halfway through. Also, lemon juice might be irritating if your skin is sensitive. The turmeric powder in it also makes this mask perform a lot better. At least what it does to the lines on my neck and any zits I might have is amazing!

The possible cons of the treatment is that it doesn’t smell as pleasant as a commercially available mask. In fact, I always think I smell like Indian food when I use it. It’s not bad, but I can imagine it putting some people off. Also, the color is a bit scary. I have made sure my boyfriend can’t see me when I have this on. I know it’ll probably weird him out. Nevertheless, it is easy to clean up anything that might end up on your clothes (though I haven’t got it on a white shirt or something. Again, I recommend using this right before you take a shower. If you can stay in the bathroom naked for 15 minutes you won’t have to worry about this getting on your clothes) or the shower curtain. Just rinse.

All the ingredients are amazingly cheap that this treatment costs almost nothing. I got a whole bag of turmeric powder from an Asian shop for about 80 cents, and it will last me a long time if I only use it for this treatment. So give it a try and let me know what you think!