Hello Friends,

Valentine’s day is just a couple of days away and I wanted to write a blog post about the self care rituals I do at home to get ready for my big date. But even if you don’t have any plans, this is an inclusive post with the goal of making you and me feel great around this Valentine’s Day holiday.

Let’s get Sleek, Clean and Smooth

Let’s get started with our body. My husband always tells my son: “If you look good and smell good, someone will like you” and that’s our goal. For Valentine’s day, you want to make sure you smell good in all the right places. Start with a nice warm/cold shower. Did you know that showering with hot water daily can age our skin? Yes!!! The hot water strips our skin of all the good oils that keeps it looking young. A cold shower is the best because it also firms our skin.

After lathering with body with soap, I am going to scrub my entire body with The Coffee Scrub. To do so, apply a little bit to your hand and just scrub it from bottom to top starting with your feet. Pay special attention to the knees, elbows and any cellulite spots. Finish the shower by shaving your legs with a little bit of conditioner or shave cream.

At-Home Mini Facial

Is always good to do some face treatments before any big event. I start by washing my face and exfoliate with a chemical exfoliant by Kate Somerville’s ExfoliKate line. I don’t use face scrubs or face brushes. They are not good for aging skin at all. Aging skin is any woman past the age of 30. Next, I’d like to steam my face for about 15 minutes. After the steam, pat the face dry and then apply a mask. Now this post is for other forty-something women out there who care about anti aging skin care like I do. For masks, I’d recommend a mask with firming, glowing and brightening qualities. I am using a brightening mask from 111SKIN with Rose Gold Brightening qualities. One face treatment is enough but if you have the time to apply another mask, go for it. After my face treatment, I give my face an extra lift with my NuFace Microcurrent Facial Toning Device and then finish things off with my regular skin care products. TIP: Don’t do a harsh mask. You don’t want a V-Day scenario where your skin is all irritated and broken. There’s no makeup that can fix that.

Manicure/Pedicure

If you don’t have time or can’t seem to book an appointment at the nail salon, don’t worry. You can do an at home mani/pedi and get the same results.

My at-home Pedicure

All you need is a bowl big enough to put your feet in it. I recently invested in a collapsible electric foot bath by Homedics and I love it! I like to add hot water, 10 drops of Lavender essential oil and any foot soak salts from the drugstore. Soak your feet for about 10 minutes and then move to the next step: remove the calluses. To remove calluses, I use a pumice stone I bought from Amazon and rub it around my heels with some pressure. Do it until the bottom of your feet are all smooth. Next, I’d like to use the Cuticle Remover tool to cut out any overgrown cuticles. Now they are ready to be painted. I am choosing a red color from LondownTown on Amazon. I really like their Vegan, gel-like formulas that lasts me a week with no chipping.

My at-home Manicure

Now that our feet are done and just drying, let’s move to the hands. For the hands, we are going to repeat the process our feet just went thru: Soak your hands with a mix of hot water and Lavender/Rose essential oils for about 10 minutes. Use your Cuticle Remover tool to cut out all the excess cuticle and cut your nails if needed. I like my nails short and square but that’s just me. I do a lot with my hands and I type a lot! Don’t we all. Just make sure all your nails are the same length. I the smooth with nails with this tool I found that has a side for all your nail needs: buffing, smoothing edges,etc. After I smooth my nails, I start painting them with the Londontown Nail Hardener and Base Coat, followed by the color and finishing it with their top coat. Couple of drops of drying oil and voila! I got salon nails at home with my non toxic products.

Well, now you are ready for whatever time you have planned for Valentine’s. Valentine’s day is a day to celebrate love and feel good about yourself whether that is with a partner, friend or alone. When you love yourself, it shows and others notice. So cheers to a great and fun Valentine’s day to you.