Natural At Home Facial by Blomma Beauty and Lyonsleaf

We are so glad to have made friends with beauty expert Karen MacDonald from Blomma Beauty, London. She discovered Lyonsleaf while judging the Free From Skincare awards in 2023 and says she fell in love with our brand. She is such a warm and knowledgeable person, we quickly fell in love with her too.

We are really pleased to share this four-step 'at home natural facial' routine Karen developed using Lyonsleaf 100% natural waterless skincare range. 

 

Natural At Home Facial Instructions

So if you fancy an 'at home natural facial', prepare a warm relaxing space and be sure you have access to hot water, pop on your pyjamas, scrape back your hair with a headband and gather what you will need:

• Three face flannels or cleansing mitts,
• two small ramekins or mixing bowls,
• A couple of clean teaspoons or spatulas,
• A make-up brush suitable for applying a face mask.

You will also need the following Lyonsleaf products:

• Your favourite Lyonsleaf Beauty Balm 
  (fragranced / unfragranced, vegan or beeswax version)
• Lyonsleaf Vitamin C Exfoliating Face Mask
• Lyonsleaf Pore Cleansing Charcoal Face Mask
• Lyonsleaf Soften and Rejuvenate Facial Oil (fragranced or unfragranced)
  

Step 1: Oil Cleanse with Lyonsleaf Beauty Balm

This step will cleanse and remove make-up. Using a pea-sized amount of Beauty Balm, massage into the face and neck. You can take this time to massage your face, releasing tension and improving lymphatic drainage. 

Run a flannel or cleansing mitt under comfortably hot water and use the hot, damp cloth to remove the balm along with make-up and dirty sebum without stripping the skin's natural oils.

 

Step 2: Gentle Exfoliation

Tip a small amount of the Vitamin C Exfoliating Face Mask into a small clean mixing bowl. The amount you use will depend on how much exfoliation is required. We recommend being very gentle, so half a teaspoon is plenty.

Add enough Beauty Balm to the powder to make an oily paste (about the size of a marble should be enough). We find you need about twice the amount of Beauty Balm to powder.

Apply to your face and neck using your fingertips and gently massage, avoiding the eye area. Be careful not to scrub too hard, as excessive exfoliation can damage the skin barrier.

Mixing Lyonsleaf Vitamin C Exfoliating Face Mask with Lyonsleaf Beauty Balm will release compounds onto the face mask that are soluble in oil, for example, Quercetin, Kaempferol and Isorhamnetin, which are all powerful antioxidants and anti-inflammatories. 

We recommend leaving the scrub on for 10-15 minutes to allow these compounds to nourish and soothe the skin. 

Use a clean flannel soaked in comfortably hot water to gently remove the mask and enjoy the steam.

 

Step 3: Pore detox

Lyonsleaf Pore Cleansing Charcoal Face Mask is extremely gentle and nourishing compared to other clay masks on the market, which are often just clay.

The first ingredient is Amla powder (which is the same as the first ingredient in the Vitamin C Exfoliating scrub). We recommend using the Pore Cleansing Charcoal face mask mixed with water at this stage so you extract all the water-soluble compounds from the amla powder, having benefited from the oil-soluble compounds in the previous step.

Enlarged pores are caused by dirt and debris inside them, and this can lead to blackheads if not addressed. This step of your home facial is designed to detox those pores and gently lift dirt and debris while flooding the skin with beneficial nutrients.

In a clean mixing bowl, put 1 heaped teaspoon of the Pore Cleansing Charcoal face mask and mix with a small amount of water to make a paste, thin enough to brush on, but thick enough not to drip off the brush. 

Paint onto your face, avoiding the eye area and leave for 5-15 minutes. If your skin is dry or sensitive, only leave it a few minutes or skip this step altogether. The mask will pull the debris from pores as it dries, so the deepest clean happens when it dries on your face.

Wash off with warm water and a soft flannel or mitts.

 

Important Note!

Lyonsleaf face masks are very gentle, but all clay masks and exfoliating scrubs are drying and should not be used if your skin barrier is damaged.

If you think your skin barrier may be damaged, just follow steps 1 and 4 daily. If skin is inflamed use Calendula and Marshmallow Balm to calm and hydrate throughout the day. Damaged skin barrier can take several weeks to recover.

 

Step 4: Moisturise, Nourish and Soften.

Use Lyonsleaf Soften and Rejuvenate Facial Oil to moisturise and administer a good dose of softening marshmallow root extract. Choose the unfragranced or fragranced  depending on your skin's sensitivity to essential oils. 

This oil is very rich in linoleic acid, an essential fatty acid vital to skin barrier integrity. The term 'essential' means the body cannot produce it and it must be obtained by diet or applied topically. When obtained via diet the body can utilise linoleic acid to bolster and repair skin barrier, but it is much quicker and more effective to apply it topically.

Linoleic acid is not sun-stable and will oxidise in sunlight causing free radical damage, so we recommend using Lyonsleaf facial oil at night or when you won't be out in the sunshine.

 

How Often Do You Need a Natural At Home Facial?

We recommend completing this full treatment once a week to help keep your complexion clear and your skin barrier balanced and nourished. The rest of the week (or everyday if your skin barrier is compromised) just do step 1 and 4.

 

Problem Skin

If you have problem skin, such as acne, rosacea, perioral dermatitis or eczema you can add in one of Lyonsleaf calendula products to reduce inflammation. Apply to affected areas in place of Soften and Rejuvenate Facial Oil at step 4. If skin is very dry and sensitive, skip steps 2 and 3. 

We have 3 Calendula products and you can read about the differences here.

 

Precautions

Lyonsleaf are 100% Natural. Because they are water free we can avoid preservatives like parabens and their equally unsavory alternatives like phenoxyethanol. We can also avoid emulsifiers, thickeners and other stability related ingredients that are often very harmful. However, it is possible to be allergic to a natural substance, as anyone with hayfever knows. So it is important to patch test all products before applying generally. It's even possible to be allergic to Calendula (Although very rare) if you are allergic you will be allergic to all daisies, so beware of products containing chamomile or chickweed.

if you are very sensitive we advise choosing unfragranced products from our range,. If you are not sure you can buy a sample tin first. they ship as a large letter, so postage is very cheap (if you are only buying samples) and they double as handy travel tins that you can refill if you decide to buy a big pot. Sample tins are available on the product p[ages of all Lyonsleaf jarred products