The main reason you want to take protective measures is to prevent your skin barrier from being damaged.
A damaged skin barrier will cause you days (and possibly weeks) of redness, dryness, irritation and in extreme cases, blistering too.
Step One
Everyone has that one cousin/friend/lunatic colleague, who ALWAYS brings metallic and permanent paint to Holi parties. Your first line of defence is doing everything in your power to prevent them from attending.
Get them a one-way ticket to Russia: your skin is more important.
Step Two: Preparing skin, hair and nails before the event
Hair
Oil your hair with coconut oil and your scalp and then make braids. This look may not be the most attractive, but It will save you a lot of heartache. If this does not appeal to you, then perhaps a baseball hat and/or tie your hair up in a bun helps.
Nails
or both your hands and feet, please use multiple coats (at least 3) of nail varnish and a top coat. I find the top coat prevents colour from seeping into my nails. For men, I would suggest a transparent nail varnish.
Body
Cover your entire body from face to toe and then from toe to face in
Vaseline. Its disgusting (I agree), but its your only friend here.
I don’t favour oil for the face to toe application because it gets absorbed
into your skin. Also, some oils can block your pores causing break-outs,
this is not the case with Vaseline which is non-comedogenic.
Vaseline is an occlusive and it essentially sits on your skin. The aim
is for the colour to get trapped into the Vaseline before it reaches your skin.
Should you be using sunscreen?
Not really.
If you are expecting sunscreen to provide some formidable protection against UV AND you intend to play Holi, then let me disabuse you of that notion.
As soon as water hits your skin and/or your wiping your face/body, the sunscreen becomes less effective and needs to be reapplied.
I would simply skip sunscreen that day and focus on sensible sun protection, including long-sleeve clothing, sunglasses and staying in the shade as much as possible.
Is alcohol really terrible for my skin?
How to remove colour after the event
Wipe off as much dry, excessive colour build up BEFORE you take a bath.
Brush out as much colour from your hair as possible.
In terms of colour removal, this is my recipe which works better with castor or coconut oil. (In the past I have suggested olive oil, but castor oil really likes dirt and grim!).
For less stubborn stains, leave on for a couple of minutes and wash out GENTLY with a wet cloth. However, for stubborn stains leave on for at least 5 – 10 minutes. DO not let the pack dry out and again, gently wash out.
RECIPE
Combine the following to form a thick paste:
- 2 tablespoons of besan (chickpea flour)
- Healthy pinch of turmeric
- 1 tablespoon of honey
- 1 tablespoon of yogurt
- 2 tablespoons of castor oil
This makes a lot of paste – but you could always triple the quantity.
Castor oil is the oil of choice here because it absolutely loves dirt and grim. Honey prevents skin from drying out.
Products to calm your skin after Holi
Hands down the best product is Organic Coconut Oil. If that is unavailable then Aloe Vera gel.
I use a heavy duty moisturiser, which is actually a barrier repair product. You can try out
The second and equally effective product is Bioderma’s Intensive Balm for sensitive skin
Other options include straightforward GLYCERIN and body butters from Juicy Chemistry.
Juicy Chemistry body butters are available at Juicy Chemistry online for Rs 750.
That’s it from me today! Happy Holi!!