If you’re trying to maintain your hair and skin in Africa you’ll realize that beauty products are often very expensive. Most of them are imported and do  not  cater to African skin tones or skin textures. Trust me this is a blessing in disguise, often these cosmetics and hair products are loaded with harmful chemicals that in the long run damage your skin, hair and general health.

h. The beauty of Africa is in its natural resources, this is no different when it comes to beauty cosmetics. I will give you examples of natural cosmetics that you can find in your back yard or your local market.

1.      

      Avocado:

            this is by far my favorite, you can use avocado on your hair as a natural deep conditioner. It will moisturize your hair and give it a shiny soft feel. It also softens the skin and removes black heads and dry patches.  Here is how it is used as a deep conditioner.

  •    To use mash the avocado and apply on sectioned hair.
  •    Wrap hair with plastic cap
  •    Let it sit for about an hour and wash out using warm water and a hair conditioner

As a face mask all you need is about a tea spoon of mashed avocado.

·         Apply on face by smearing evenly

·         Let the avocado dry if possible by sitting under the sun for about 30 minutes

·         Once dry wash off with warm water and organic soap

This will leave your skin baby soft and since avocado comes from nature you do not have to worry about any side effects.

                                                                                                                                                                                          2. Citrus fruits: 

                        citrus fruits are delicious and good for your health as they provide the body with vitamin C, which helps boost the bodies’ immunity and keeps the nasty colds away. What most people don’t use are the peels of these fruits, they are often discarded and thrown out. The skins of these fruits can be used as a natural cleanser and make up remover. It also helps calm swelling or enflamed skin and gives it a lovely citrus smell

·         When ready to clean face or remove makeup pat the skin with cold water

·         Take the peels of the fruits and squeeze the colored side towards the face

·         The fruit skin will splash its juiced onto the face so close your eyes to ensure the juices do not enter the eyes

·         Make sure its distributed onto the entire face

·         Let it sit for about 30 min

·         Wash face with warm water

It’s often said that happiness is not having what you want but wanting you’ve got, so appreciate the abundance of our natural resources and maintain your natural beauty.