4 Homemade Face Mask Recipes

Here's post #5 in my series "How I Pamper Myself." (In case you missed the previous posts, feel free to check out How I Wash My Makeup Brushes, Homemade Eye Makeup Remover, Homemade Face Moisturizing Oil, and 5 Homemade Facial Cleansers.) While face masks are pretty easy to whip up at home, they definitely feel indulgent to me. Unfortunately, I rarely think to do them more than a couple of times a month.

There are tons of DIY face mask recipes out there, but I have only tried a few. My requirements are that they not contain too many ingredients or too odd of ingredients (I am sure papayas are nice for this, but I would rather use a fruit I commonly have in my own kitchen rather than make a special purchase) and that they not be too time-consuming to create. I realize that's entirely a matter of opinion, though. I will pull out the food processor, but I would prefer to not have to do this, if that makes sense. Here are a few that I have tried that I feel are worth mentioning.

{Ingredients for DIY Face Masks}

My tried and true recipe that I have been using the longest is one I got from the book Vinegar Fridays. Every time I use this mask, I notice that my skin feels firmer and my complexion is glowing, so it definitely does good things.

Martha Washington's Vinegar Facial Mask

• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. honey
• 1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar

1. Whisk the ingredients together in a small bowl.
2. Then, apply to face. I often use a basting brush, but fingers work fine, too. 
3. Leave on for 20 minutes. 
4. Rinse with warm water.

Next, I decided to try this one since it calls for common ingredients, and honey is known to be wonderful for skin.

Apple Honey Mask

• 1 apple, cored and quartered
• 2 Tbs. honey

1. Chop apple in food processor.
2. Add honey.
3. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
4. Pat onto face and leave for 30 minutes.
5. Rinse with warm water and pat dry.

The pros of this mask recipe are that it 1) smells nice 2) feels good when applied to skin and 3) my face felt nice after using it, essentially all I would hope for. The cons, however, were that it 1) had a weird consistency - both runny and pulpy at the same time - 2) made way too much (I wonder if I was supposed to use only 1/4 of the apple?) and 3) it became sticky before it was time to rinse off. While this wasn't the worst beauty item I have ever made, it was not my favorite for those reasons, and I would probably stick with the other recipes I have tried so far.


This next recipe smells absolutely delicious! If I hadn't remembered it had raw egg in it, I probably would have drunk the left over portion because it reminded me of a smoothie. Again, I decided to try this because it has honey, and also a fruit that is readily available to me this time of year: strawberries. And because I feel like I am sharing so much with my lovely readers lately, here is a special something for just for you: a late-night self-portrait taken while wearing my smoothie mask. My skin felt very soft after using the strawberry lemon mask, but a bit on the tight side. I suppose the dryness is why it is suggested for acneic skin, but I am not sure if this is a desirable result. I will probably try it a few times throughout the summer before making my final decision. It's certainly worth a try.

Strawberry Lemon Mask (for Acne)

• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 1 egg white
• 1 1/2 tsp. honey
• 1/2 cup strawberries

1. Mash/blend all ingredients. (I used my food processor for this.)
2. Smoothe onto face.
3. Leave on for at least 10 minutes.
4. Rinse with warm water and pat dry.

{Yep. That's me with a smoothie 'stache.}

This last one I saw on Pinterest. It looked interesting because the picture shows the model peeling the mask off her face. Either I got the proportions wrong, or this doesn't really happen. No matter, though. This was a nice little recipe. The lemon juice cuts the egg smell and makes this one smell nicer than good old Martha Washington's recipe. I'm not sure where the expression "egg on your face" came from, but I can tell you from personal experience that it's not a bad thing. In fact, it's definitely good for your face. Additionally, those two recipes with egg are probably my favorite since they are the easiest to make, meaning I don't have to use my food processor. (For the record, this is not hard, it just means that I have more to clean up after doing my mask, and frankly, who wants to spend lots of time on clean-up when she just got done pampering herself?)

Egg White Mask (for Oily Skin)

• 1 egg (separated)
• few drops lemon juice 

1. Whisk together an egg white and a few drops of lemon juice. (The directions said to use fresh squeezed, but I used lemon juice from a bottle.)
2.  Apply to clean skin. (I used my fingers for this.) 
3. Wait 15-20 minutes.
4. Wash off with warm water and pat dry.
5. The directions say to follow with an oil-free moisturizer, but I use my homemade moisturizing face oil instead.

Well, this concludes my post on homemade face mask recipes. Hopefully, you found one that sounds good. Feel free to share how you will be pampering yourself this Mother's Day! I think my day will include some ice cream, and hopefully, somebody else will do the cooking.