It's an age-old tradition: scooping a dollop of homemade multani mitti out of a bowl, and slathering it all over our faces to reinstate our glow. It's almost like we've ritualised the practice. We're all for DIY face packs re-energizing our skin, and this one just happens to address a multitude of skincare concerns most of us grapple with at some point of time in our lives. It's time to indulge in this ingredient and bask in all the benefits it promises on delivering to your skin.
Benefits of multani mitti for skin
A mineral-laden multani mitti is associated with a befuddling spectrum of benefits for the skin. It's ideal for skin that's oily in the way that it absorbs excess sebum (oil) from the surface (owing to its mattifying properties), unclogs pores, and eliminates impurities. It also has acne-fighting properties. According to experts, this homemade remedy can cool the skin, remove blackheads and whiteheads, control excessive production of oil, soothe inflammation-induced irritation, and reduce the appearance of pores. Yup. It does that.
Oh, and how can we not talk about its 'my-face-is-glowing' property? Multani mitti is known to cleanse your skin by sloughing off any build-up of dead cells on the surface. This results in increased circulation, improved retention of nutrients and moisture, and an exfoliating effect. And that leads to a rejuvenated, glowing appearance. And it can tackle sunburn, pigmentation, uneven skin tone, and dark circles as well!
How to use multani mitti
This concoction can be applied as a face-pack, spot-treatment, and exfoliant.
- Spot treatment: As a spot treatment, all you have to do is mix one tablespoon of sandalwood, one-fourth teaspoon of turmeric powder, and one tablespoon of multani mitti powder with two tablespoons of water until you get a thick paste, and dab it on a pimple to dry it up and reduce redness. Keep it on for a bit, and rinse it off with lukewarm water. Or you can leave it on for the night.
- Exfoliant: As an exfoliant, just mix it with powdered oats, and scrub your face with the resulting formula gently.
- Face pack: You can create a moisturising, exfoliating, or brightening face-pack with ingredients like papaya, turmeric, yoghurt, lemon, honey, aloe vera, etc. The simplest recipe for a multani mitti-based mask? Mix one-fourth cup of high-fat milk (suitable for combination skin) or rose water (suitable for dehydrated skin) with one tablespoon of multani mitti powder, and apply it to a clean, dry face. Leave it on for ten minutes, and rinse it off with lukewarm water. You can try out different versions of the mask as well — papaya-based masks and aloe-based masks are common ones, and each of them serves a different purpose. It depends on the problem you want to counter.
Keep in mind that you mustn't use the mask if your skin is really dry. It will absorb all the oil from your skin, and exacerbate the situation. Even those with sensitive skin mistakes exercise caution when experimenting with this clay-like ingredient. It might just lead to redness and irritation. Always do a patch-test before giving it a try.
Written by Urvi Shah on Jan 29, 2022
A professional writer by day, and a poet by night, I'm a journalism graduate with experience in the news, travel, and food sectors. A frantic compiler of excerpts from books I've read, you can count on me to incorporate quotes and phrases into everyday conversations without a warning. On days I'm not working, I station myself in front of my laptop, and try to work my way through month-old drafts of my writings.