Ask Shahnaz

Nargis Fakhri

Beautician Shahnaz Husain offers tips and answers queries. Send your queries to askshahnaz@gmail.com

I get heat boils which leave scars. What should I do to get rid of them? — Divya

The boils may be pimples or acne. Wash your face twice a day, morning and night, with a medicated soap. Then wipe it with an astringent lotion, using cotton wool. Mix a little rose water with sandalwood paste and apply it on your face. Wash it off after 15 minutes. Or, boil neem leaves in water on a low flame. Cool and drain off the liquid. Make a paste of the leaves and apply it daily on your face. Wash it off after half-an-hour. Mix cinnamon powder with a little lemon juice and a few drops of honey into a sticky paste. Apply it only on the pimples daily, leaving it on for one or two hours. If there is any dryness, mix one teaspoon each of honey and lemon juice and apply it on your face daily, at any time. Wash it off after 15 minutes. It helps relieve dryness and clear up pimples.

I have oily skin and small dots on my nose. When I press them a white substance comes out. — Sengg

These could be blackheads. Blackheads occur on oily skin or oily areas of the skin. After washing your face in the morning, wipe the blackhead-prone areas with an astringent lotion, using cotton wool. In the morning, after washing your face, make a paste of baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) and water. Apply it on the areas with blackheads daily, washing it off after five minutes. Use a facial scrub three times a week on the blackhead-prone areas. Either buy a facial scrub, or mix rice powder with rose water and use it as a scrub. Rub it gently on the areas with blackheads using small, circular movements. Leave it on for five minutes; then wash it off. Or, mix oats with egg white and apply the paste twice a week on the blackhead-prone areas. Wash it off after it dries.

I am 16 and have pimple marks on my face. Suggest how I can get rid of them? —

Geetha

Mix rice powder with curd and use it as a facial scrub once or twice a week. Rub it gently on the face with tiny circular movements, especially on the dark spots. Leave it on for a few minutes before washing it off. Do not apply it on the pimples. Mix honey and lemon juice in equal quantities and apply it daily on your face. Wash it off after 15 minutes. Mix multani mitti with rose water and lemon juice into a paste and apply it on your face two or three times a week. Wash it off after it dries.

My hair becomes very oily barely 2 days after a wash. I used henna but my hair turned red. — Yashaswini

Oily hair should be washed frequently. It can even be washed daily, but use very little shampoo, taking care to wash it off well. Only one application of shampoo is enough. Avoid oil application. Henna will turn white hair reddish brown in colour. It does not colour dark hair. For oily hair, apply egg white 15 minutes before washing your hair. Add the juice of a lemon to a mug of water and use it as a last rinse.