Using the right techniques to steam your face will help you make the most out of this treatment without accidentally damaging your skin in the process. After you are done steaming your face it is important to moisturize to keep your skin protected and adequately hydrated. Following are some examples of how to steam face.
1. Clean Face. Using a cleanser to wash the surface of your skin will help prevent pushing dirt into the pores during steaming. You should also tie your hair back so it does not hang near your face and spread oil or dirt.
2. Boil Water. Fill a pot or kettle with water and any fruity or herb ingredients you plan to use. Boil the water for 1-2 minutes, then remove it from the heat and allow your ingredients to steep for a few minutes.
3. Cover Head with Towel. Place your pot of water on the counter, using a towel to protect the surface. You can also pour hot water from the kettle into a clean bowl. Cover your head with a towel to create a tent that will capture the steam.
4. Position Face over Water. Lean over the steaming bowl or pot with your eyes closed for 5-7 minutes. Keep the face 10-12 inches from the water to get the most steam without overheating.
5. Close Eyes and Relax. Steaming your face should be a pleasant sensation. Breathe easily and relax, keeping the eyes closed to protect them from the heat.
6. Splash with Cool Water. When you are finished steaming, splash your face with cool water and gently pat the skin dry with a towel.
When following the general steps listed above you can add few dried herbs or essential oils to improve the health of your skin. Below are ideal herbs and oils for facial steam.
1. Ideal herbs for a facial steam include spearmint, lemon and orange slices, lemon balm, rosemary, peppermint, chamomile, rose petals, green tea, honey, lavender, calendula, fennel seeds, thyme, parsley, sage and cinnamon.
2. Ideal essential oils for facial steam include clary sage, chamomile, mandarin, tea tree, lavender and neroli.
You can learn more about how the proper techniques to cleanse your face from the following video:
The acid from lemon can help you cleanse your face. It is important to be careful when exposing your skin to acid or steam to avoid damaging the skin, but when performed correctly this technique can help cleanse acne and keep your skin healthy.
1. Fill Basin with Water. Fill a large basin with water that is hot but not scalding so the steam will not burn your face.
2. Position Face over Water. Keep your face close to the water to absorb the steam. Hold this position for 1-3 minutes to open the pores.
3. Drench Washcloth with Lemon Juice. Squeeze the juice from a fresh lemon onto a washcloth.
4. Cover Face with Washcloth. Place the lemon soaked washcloth on your face and leave it in place for around one minute.
5. Apply Ice Cubes to the Face. Gently rinse away the lemon juice with lukewarm water then place ice cubes on your face for 15-30 seconds to tighten the pores.
You should remove any makeup or surface debris before you perform a steam treatment. Any oil or pollution on your face during a steam can move into your pores and cause an outbreak of acne. These tips also apply to those that regularly take hot showers.
Steam treatments should be used to help make extractions easier. This will loosen dry skin and debris so it is easier to remove without damaging the skin.
You should not rely on steaming your face alone to keep your face clean. If you perform a facial steam too often when there is no reason for it you can cause damage to your skin. You should also avoid steaming your face for long periods of time. Healthy skin should be steamed for no more than 10 minutes and skin experiencing some sort of issue should only experience limited steam exposure.
Skin that is inflamed will be sensitive to the heat from a facial steam, which can increase irritation.
The heat from a steam treatment can increase inflammation to these areas.
Hot air will cause your skin to swell and increase blood flow to the affected area. This can increase the appearance of acne on the skin.