The 8 Best-Kept Skin Secrets You’ve Never Heard Of

Don’t sleep with your head buried in your pillow.

According to celebrity aesthetician Renee Rouleau, “We spend about 2,500 hours sleeping annually and most of that time is spent with our heads buried in pillows. The best position to sleep in is on the side with your head positioned at the bottom of the pillow so the lower half of your face never touches the pillow. This will help prevent squishing of your face, which encourages wrinkle formation.”

Getty Images

Instead of drinking tap water, switch to sparkling mineral water.

It’s trendy in Japan and Korea to wash your face with sparkling water. But when it comes to drinking water, you get so much more out of a sparkling mineral water than something flat. Nitrate-free options like AQUA Carpatica are the way to go so that your body can better utilize the benefits the water has to offer, like a healthy dose of magnesium and calcium and balancing out pH levels.

Load up on bananas.

Celebrity aesthetician Joanna Czech says that a banana a day does wonders for your skin. “They’re full of potassium and magnesium, so they help to regulate your digestive system, which in turn makes your skin glow.” In addition to eating them, Czech uses bananas to make an at-home mask by mashing them up and adding in flax seed oil and ground oatmeal to make a paste. “Slather it on your skin and let it dry. Then, tissue it off to reveal hydrated, calm, nourished skin.”

Getty Images

Clear up breakouts with iodine.

You may not think to apply a drop of iodine to a bad blemish. But, according to celebrity aesthetician J’ai Ione, that’s just what you should do. “Iodine kills germs and helps to really keep the skin clean. It actually makes for a great spot treatment when used at night.” Just apply a small amount with a Q-tip before bed and let it dry before applying any other skin care products. 

Getty Images

Don’t gloss over the benefits of cortisone cream.

Sure, you keep a tube of cortisone cream stashed in your bathroom drawer to take away the itch and sting associated with bug bites, rashes and allergic reactions. But, truth be told, you can use it for so much more. Celebrity aesthetican Lori Anderson says that cortisone cream is a great go-to for flaky skin caused by Retin-A or chemical peels. “You can also apply it to a pimple or an area post injection to calm it down.”

Getty Images

Steam your skin.

You may be familiar with having your skin steamed during a facial, but that’s not the only time you should do it. Annie Tevelin, founder of SkinOwl, says that steaming is the number-one way to treat dehydration, acne and allergies and promote glowing, healthy skin. Just grab some botanical herbs or a facial tea, steep it in hot water in a large bowl and place your face a few inches away from the bowl to let the steam penetrate your pores. 

Getty Images

Double mask it.

To get skin that gleams and glows, apply not one, but two masks (although not at the same time) to your skin. Do a hyaluronic acid and collagen-infused sheet mask—try Leaders Cosmetics Collagen Boosting Renewal Mask ($4)—for 15 minutes. “Then, take off—don’t rinse—the excess product and follow with a raw honey mask,” says celebrity aesthetician Julia March. “Wash the honey mask off after 15 to 20 minutes and mist your skin with neroli or rosewater. Apply a serum, moisturizer and a few drops of your favorite facial oil. The result: plump, glowing skin.”

Getty Images