Pre-Skin care tips for Holi

Preparations for the most vibrant festival of the year Holi have begun and who can keep calm at all!
The Holi fever has set in and every household is now getting prepped up for the gujiyas, malpuas, bhang, thandai, gulal and all the fun and excitement it brings in.

But besides all this, it also brings in the concern for our skin because it is at this time our skin gets affected the most.

It needs our maximum attention because the harsh and chemical composed colors do a lot of damage to the skin.

Here are 10 essential skin care tips to follow while playing the festival of colors and minimizing the damage to the skin.

Pre-Holi skincare

Your skin needs to be protected with products so as to lessen the damage the colors and other external factors will cause to your skin. It becomes essentially important to add a layer of protection on your skin.

Here is the product list and how you can protect the skin with the help of sunscreens, oils, moisturizers and other products.

1. Moisturize– Before you go out to play Holi, you will be exposed to not only the colors but also the scorching heat.
   So this is the reason that when you are about to step out, make sure that your skin has an ample amount of rich moisturizer all over the body.
   Apply a generous amount of it all over so as to avoid the loss of the moisture and restore the natural color of your skin.You can also slather your skin with olive oil or coconut oil and massage it all over till it gets absorbed. You can also dab some cotton on the skin to remove the excess.This will act as a barrier between the skin and the colors and also it will be easy to remove them after the Holi.

2. Cover your skin- Because Holi is generally played outside, it has a possibility of you getting tanned.
   You must wear clothes like full-sleeve kurta, T-shirts or tops, salwars or full-length joggers that will protect your skin from the damage of the colors.
   You can opt to wear dark colors that ensure that the colors will not come on your skin when mixed with water. Wear clothes that are loose and comfortable.
   Because if you want to enjoy, you must not choose to wear skin fit clothes or tight clothes because you may end up in itching because of the chemicals these colors tend to hold. Wear fabrics that are breathable like cotton
   Avoid wearing denims because they get heavy when water is put on them.

3. Apply sunscreen– Holi is celebrated during the day time and so the constant exposure to the sun, water and colors is an obvious thing. Which brings us to the point that the skin might get tanned and bringing back the original color of the skin is a huge task.
   So we recommend applying a good and a rich sunscreen of SPF 30 or higher so that it works even on a harsh afternoon. Apply 20 minutes before you step out to play.
   After that you can coat oil too on your skin.

4. Lip care– Apply petroleum jelly instead of lipstick. It will help the color to come off easily and will keep them hydrated and protected.

5. Prep up your nails- It takes a lot of time for the nails to grow. So don’t mistake by ignoring the nails while playing Holi.
   Keep them short and painted with a dark nail polish.
   Apply thick layers of nail paint and rub petroleum jelly or olive oil around the nails cuticles. It will prevent the color to penetrate deeper in the skin.

6. Keep yourself hydrated- Remember to keep yourself hydrated during the festivities and post it too. It is very essential to do so because the skin becomes very dry due to the chemicals the colors have.
   If you do not keep yourself hydrated, the skin will appear to be dry and lifeless post the festivities which you surely don’t want!
   So, definitely, keep your body hydrated.

7. Ears and eyes- All this while do not forget these parts and these are the areas where the colors settle down quite easily.
   Coat these parts with petroleum jelly so as to keep them smooth and moisturized.
   Apply the petroleum jelly on the eyelids and under the eyes but do not take it near to the eyes and be careful while you do this.

8. Hair care– The first tip is to give a good oil massage to the hair. Cover all your hair strands with a nice thick layer of oil before you step out to enjoy the festival.
   Do not shampoo your hair before the big day. The clean hair will be like an invitation to the dirt and harmful chemical colors to come and si which obviously you don’t want!
   You can use coconut or castor oil to oil up your hair.
   Tying your hair up in a bun or in a braid will expose only a certain part of your hair to the color. If you leave it open or in a ponytail, it gives full exposure to the colors.

9. Use ice- Rub ice cubes for 15 minutes before you step out to play the beautiful festival of colors.
   Take a cotton cloth and rub them all over. It helps in closing the pores of the skin thereby preventing the harmful colors to penetrate the skin.

Post Holi skin care tips

And just so after the Holi festivities, there comes the big challenge to you; how to remove Holi colors from the skin without affecting it.

Removal of colors can sometimes be a big task even if they are organic colors. This is because they are infused with chemicals which stick and penetrate in your body.

The colors like Gulal will come off in a few washes, but colors like silver, green and other highly chemical based colors take a few days to come off the skin. They also leave the skin too dry and take away its moisture.

So try not to play with these colors and play a safe Holi with Gulal and organic colors.

Here are a few tips that you can follow post Holi celebrations-

1. Rinse with natural ingredients- Do not directly use the chemical based soap or facewash on your skin.Use Besan which is a natural scrub and an enriching agent that gives proteins to the skin and will eliminate all the accumulated chemicals on the face.You may also choose natural Ubtans or home-made face masks made with natural ingredients like turmeric, sandalwood, rosewater, curd, lemon juice etc.They will help nourish the skin from within, remove the chemicals and the colors without any side effects.You can also use olive oil to remove the colors.

2. Use milk– Dab soaked cotton pads on to the area that are touched by the color.Apply it evenly all over your face.The milk helps in releasing the color off your skin without irritating the skin.

3. Use a moisturizer– Put a good moisturizer on your skin. Your skin tends to dry post Holi celebrations. It hence becomes necessary to apply moisturizer and nourish your skin well.

4. Use Aloe Vera– Who has just not heard the name of this wonderful plant!You can also apply Aloe Vera on to your face and skin.This plant is known for its healing and cooling properties and is widely used because of its herbal remedies. It will help repair the damage done to your skin due to the colors.But a tip to keep in mind, apply this gel only after proper cleaning.

5. Apply Ice- Apply ice to get back the lost moisture and balance that the skin has lost due to the chemical based colors.Ice helps in toning the skin and also takes away the swelling from the tired skin.

6. Sprinkle some rose water– At the end, sprinkle some rose water to get back the glow and sheen of the skin.Rose water is a coolant and will soothe your skin. It will also tone the skin and add the required freshness to it.

7. Hair care- Don’t directly jump and start rinsing shampoo. Sit under the shower for 10minutes and let the excess color wash out.Then rinse your hair with a shampoo.Use a conditioner or a serum or any hair mask to provide nourishment to the hair that it lost during the festival because of the colors.

8. Avoid makeup- Go light on your skin after Holi. Give your skin some time to breathe. Already post Holi, the skin goes dry and if you apply makeup it may react with your skin.If really important, use a BB cream, moisturizer or a mineral powder.Avoid any heavy foundation and too much products.

9. Avoid any salon treatment- Put a hold to any of the salon treatments for at least 4-5 days post Holi.The reason being that the skin is already damaged because of the colors and the exposure of the sun.So do not irritate it further by the painful treatments.Let the skin heal first.