Tips for hair and skincare this holi

Protect your skin from the sun as well as chemical colours by applying a sunscreen with SPF higher than 20, half an hour before stepping out of your house, suggests Shikhee Agrawal, Head-Training, The Body Shop India. She further suggests some basic routine to follow before and after the celebration to avoid getting blemishes.

Don't ignore fingernails: Fingernails are as important as your face especially on the day of Holi where the sensitivity of your cuticles and nails are quite evident. So it is best to pay attention to areas like your fingernails and apply transparent nail varnish, polish or a petroleum jelly as a protective coating. This helps to protect the nails from absorbing Holi colours and keep stains off.

Oiling to the rescue: Holi colours can presumably damage your hair to a great extent. Applying coconut or even a normal hair oil, half an hour before stomping out can cut back the damage scope to a nominal level. The oil with its natural ingredients will make a shield on your hair to reduce the ill effect of harmful colours and will make it easy for you to get rid of it later.

Lip balm: As there's always a risk of colour entering into your mouth through lips, it would be nice to apply a thick layer of lip balm jelly generously over them so that the Holi colour does not stick to them.

Cleansing the right way: Once all the celebration gets over, comes the real problem of removing the colours from your face. First, rinse the face with plain water and then apply a cleansing cream or face lotion over it so that it gets clean from deep within. It's suitable to use a cleanser containing less of chemicals and more of natural ingredients to get rid of all the toxic substances.

Shampoo and conditioner: Wash off the impurities and colours with a good hair shampoo. Also, once you are done with the washing part, don't forget to apply conditioner as your hair needs to have the nourishment, shine and strength that a good conditioner offers to give.

Eye Cream: It is important to apply a good and efficient eye cream full of vitamin E before dozing off to sleep. This will make you feel fresh the next morning and will clear your dark circles and patches overnight.