Pampering pleasures

Looking good doesn’t have to be hard or expensive. It is amazing how much better you can feel after a bit of pampering whether it is a new hair cut, a facial mask, a manicure or a new outfit and, if you feel good, you will look good.

So, take some time out from your busy routine and treat yourself. It will leave you feeling relaxed, rejuvenated and invigorated.

Beauty for women and for men

The easiest way to spoil yourself is with some beauty treatments. You can choose to visit one of Christchurch’s many wonderful beauty salons or you can do a bit of DIY pampering at home.

Here are some tips:

• Start with taking off any make up and cleaning your face.
• Have a long soak in the bath or a nice hot shower, using fragrant bath or shower gels, oils or a bath bomb.
• Get rid of rough skin by using a loofah sponge or a scrub cream for your body and a pumice stone for your feet.
• Once out of the water, wrap yourself in a big fluffy towel or a bathrobe.
• The hot water and steam open up your pores so now is a good time to have a facial mask.
• Apply a rich moisturiser to your limbs fresh out of the bath or shower, this is the best time for your skin to absorb the nutrients in the body lotion.
• It is also a good time to cut your finger and toe nails, shape them with a nail file and, if you have enough time, give them a new colour.
• Once you are finished with the facial mask, use toner and moisturiser.

Especially for men

Pampering has traditionally been something in which only women indulged but men are cottoning on quickly that looking after yourself is quite enjoyable. All-male beauty salons have opened up, the range of skincare products for men has expanded rapidly and a new term has even been coined to describe the discerning male who is prepared to spend time and money on his appearance and lifestyle the metrosexual.

Regardless of whether your want to be classed as a metrosexual male, it is important to look after yourself and, with New Zealand’s harsh climate, in particularly take care of your skin. With a much thinner ozone layer over New Zealand, the sun’s rays can cause a lot more damage from unsightly wrinkles to more serious issues such as melanomas and skin cancer. So, even if you don’t want to spend time and money on pampering, make sure you add one essential ingredient to your daily routine sun block.

If you do like to indulge, here are some tips:

• Cleanse, tone and moisturise your skin and, rather than borrowing the products of the female in your life, invest in ones designed especially for the male skin. They smell good and will be much better suited to your skin type.
• Shaving is a big part of a man’s beauty regime yet most men would say that the ‘perfect shave’ is quite hard to achieve. It doesn’t have to be. According to an article on MSNBC.com, proper shaving has become a lost art. However, men are re-discovering the merits of the traditional wet shave. If that all sounds like too much hard work, make sure that you shave after having a shower, not before and, if you shave without a shower, wash your face with warm water for a few minutes before shaving.
• According to those in the know, every man should experience a traditional cut throat shave.
• Use nail scissors or clippers to trim those nails. Biting your nails to keep them short is not a good look.
• For more grooming tips, search the library catalogue.

Hair

There is something exceptionally luxurious about having somebody else wash your hair. Most hairdressers these days include a bit of a head massage to leave you utterly relaxed while they transform unkempt hair to a glossy, healthy mane.

Some interesting facts on hair:

• On average, people have 100,000 hairs on their head.
• Hair will grow about 1cm a month.
• Female hair grows more slowly than male hair.
• Hair grows faster in warm weather.

Regular haircuts are a must. On average, a short haircut will stay in style for up to four weeks, medium length hair needs to be cut every five weeks and long hair will need a trim every six weeks. Even if you are letting your hair grow, you will need to go to the hairdresser once in a while, at least once in 8 weeks. If you don’t, you will get split ends that can look terrible and the only cure is a cut.

Check out localeye for listings of hairdressers in Christchurch.