Pamper yourself for pennies – budget beauty ideas tested

Pamper yourself for pennies – budget beauty ideas tested

When times are tight, it’s good to find ways to treat yourself that don’t cost much. Staying in with a good film and a few beauty treatments can make for a cheap but fun night.

Unfortunately, if money is in really short supply, even home-based beauty treatments can be too expensive. So when I read that mayonnaise works as a moisturising facemask, I thought I’d give it a go.

It was horrible. Smearing a sandwich ingredient on my face didn’t benefit my skin at all, but it did get me thinking about other expensive beauty potions that can be replaced with cheap products that are already in most homes. I decided to spend an evening pampering myself for as little as possible.

Oatmeal bath soak

Luxury bubble bath, bath bombs, bath petals… There are endless lotions and potions designed to turn a boring bath into a luxurious moisturising experience.

But many people swear by simple porridge oats as a way of softening skin and even treating eczema. Some people buy special finely-ground oatmeal and pour it directly into the bathwater.

I went for a cheaper method, though, and simply shoved some of my rolled breakfast oats into a sock, which I plunged into the water.

Savings: It’s hard to price up exact savings, as you can really spend what you like on moisturising bath treatments. However, I occasionally treat myself to a bath bomb from lush priced at £3.50, so a few pennies-worth of rolled oats means quite a saving.

Verdict: This genuinely worked; my skin felt really moisturised and soft. My toddler gets eczema, so we’re going to use this in his baths too.

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Honey and olive oil hair mask

I found this recipe on Yahoo’s US site. You combine honey and olive oil, then massage it into your hair and leave for an hour. I only managed 30 minutes but it did seem to have an effect despite that.

Savings: Olive oil isn’t exactly as cheap as oats, but it still costs less than a high-end home hair treatment – and far, far less than a treatment at a hairdressing salon.
 
Verdict: I certainly did find that my hair was shinier and softer after this treatment. But it wasn’t easy to wash out and I didn’t really feel properly clean until I shampooed again the next day.

Olive oil eye-makeup remover

Many budget beauty blogs suggested using olive oil as an alternative to expensive eye-makeup remover.

Savings: That was definitely cheaper than many shop-bought products which can easily cost well over £5 for a small bottle.

Verdict: A tiny smudge of olive oil on some cotton wool undoubtedly works just as well as any shop-bought product that I have ever used. But I’m not sure it’s cheaper than baby wipes which cost me just a penny a time and don’t leave oil on my skin.

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Honey hand exfoliant

According to Good Housekeeping http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/beauty/anti-aging/homemade-beauty-recipes, you can make a cheap hand exfoliant by mixing ground almonds, clear honey, sunflower oil and lemon juice. Simply rub over your hands, leave for three minutes and rinse off.

Savings: You only need a very little of each ingredient to make this, and I had all of them in my cupboards already. I’d estimate that this exfoliant cost me about 15p at the most.

In the past I have bought a tub of mid-range hand exfoliator for £5.25, which lasted for probably around 20 treatments, so this is cheaper.

Verdict: This treatment somehow combined sticky with greasy and didn’t feel like a treat. But it did leave my hands feeling softer and smooth, and I can see this being a real help for chapped hands in the winter.

Would I do it again?

It’s amazing how many recipes for home-made beauty products there are online, and many of them can be thrown together from the contents of your cupboard. I also like that you know exactly what’s gone into these treatments, so there’s no unpleasant chemicals and they’ve definitely not been tested on animals.

The main perk is that you can treat yourself even when you’re broke. If you have these common items in your cupboard then you can spend an evening pampering yourself without spending anything at all.

Do you save money with home-made beauty products? Share your recipes, tips and how much you’ve saved with other readers using the comments below.