Bring The Salon Home With These Marvellous Beauty Strategies

For many of us, the salon is a truly wonderful place. A place of relaxation and pampering. A place where we can get some precious time for ourselves. Unfortunately, one of the many consequences of the global pandemic is that access to salons is either no longer possible, or severely restricted. In fact, getting an appointment, let alone a regular one has become a challenge in itself. Fortunately, there are plenty of salon treatments that you can do yourself in the comfort of your own home, making them perfectly safe no matter what level of lockdown your country is on.

 

Hair colour 

Home hair colouring is a trend I have firmly embraced over lockdown, the sight of grey roots peeping through at an alarming rate was not helping my lockdown mood at all!

And although it can feel very daunting the first time you attempt home hair colouring, here are some hints and tips to help. 

Do a patch test before attempting to dye your hair, it's so important to test for allergies before dying your hair, it's the reason a good salon will insist on one.

Try a semi permanent dye first before the real deal of a permanent shade. This way you can test brands and find one you love before committing to a permanent colour.  

Wear old clothes and have an old towel to hand, you will probably get drips from the dye and you don't want to ruin your best Egyptian Cotton towels!

Apply a protective barrier cream such as Vaseline to the hairline, and immediate wipe any spills and drips from skin

Follow the instructions to the letter. Leaving dye on for longer will not result in a 'stronger colour' it will just dry and damage your hair.

Treat your hair to a pampering mask in the weeks following a home dye session. 

It may take a while to find a brand you love, but once you do you'll realise you can get a very professional looking result all from your own home. 

Nails 

 

For anyone used to attending their three weekly nail appointments like clockwork, COVID lockdowns have presented a new layer of challenge. Unfortunately, many nail salons are still not open because the close confines and risk of infection they pose. 

 

The good news is that all is not lost when it comes to nail beauty, even if you can't get a file a polish or your regular infills. The reason for this is that you can get some genuinely remarkable professional level products like the ones available from Victoria Vynn at a very reasonable price to use in your own home. They even stock the supplies for you to do the latest nail trends as well like beautiful watercolour blur style inks. Something that means you can keep your nails looking tip-top, and on-trend, even without your salon appointment. 

Facials

There are hundreds of beautiful products on the market that can help you give yourself a pampering facial at home. In particular, look out for the cleansing clay mask that comes in all sorts of different types. 

Another excellent investment here is a peeling mask. That is one that sets on your face, and that you get the satisfying experience of peeling off. Not only does this feel weirdly great, but it's fantastic at unclogging your pores and resurfacing your skin, making it look fresh and bright. 

 

Finally, if you want to add a super luxe touch to your at-home facial, why not try adding in some fancy equipment like a jade roller, crystal scraper, or micro-needling tool? All of which are all the rage right now in the beauty community!

 

Hair Removal 

Regular waxing at the salon is a staple of many women's beauty regimes. After all, there is nothing better than the smooth, soft skin that you don't have to worry about for the next 4-6 weeks. Fortunately, some at-home waxing and hair removal options can be just as effective. 

The first of these is the microwaveable wax kits - something that provides you with all the benefits of hot waxing at home. Choose the ones with reusable fabric strips as these can save you money and are better for the environment too. Just watch out that you don't overheat the wax. You want it to be liquid, but still cool enough to go on your skin!

Of course, hot wax can be messy, and if you rather keep things as clean and comfortable as possible opting for premade wax strips is a good option. These can work immensely well for the face and bikini areas too. Although, be sure to shop around as some are much more sticky, and so more effective than others. 

Another option that you may also wish to consider for at-home hair removal is an epilator. Epilators are devices that work like waxing, by pulling hairs out at the root. Something that makes them grow back less coarsely, and also gives you the maximum amount of time before you have to perform the treatment again.

There are a huge variety of epilators on the market too. From larger ones for the legs to small ones for the face and bikini. If you're new to epilating it's recommended that you pick one with a beginners setting, and also that it can be used both wet and dry, as epilating in a warm shower or bath can be a great deal less painful. 

Massage 

While you can't quite get the same divine experience of a hot stone or Swedish massage from a professional, there are some home massage options that you can try.

The first is giving yourself a facial massage, so something you can get through instructions on how to do here. You can do this after a facemask, and with some extra special serum which will not only feel great but also do wonders for the tone of your face. 

Alternatively, if it's more of a body massage you are looking for, why not invest in some equipment like a neck and shoulder massager, or a deep tissue massager? Then, all you need to do is pop on some relaxing music and use an essential oil diffuser, and you can have an experience very close to a real spa, at home.