Shitty Beauty Hacks & Bad Advice You've Seen Online or Heard IRL - How do I make my hair grow faster? How do I get rid of stretch marks? How do I whiten my teeth naturally? Etc.

[emo goff]

Putting lemon juice on your face to fade acne scars. Yeah I did that a lot when I was younger.

 

[fuzzyrodent85]

I have a question, is there a way to have a good skincare routine that isn't too time consuming and expensive, I see all these people on YouTube talking about all their toners, exfoliation, serums, face masks etc.

 

[spiritofamermaid]

Pinterest and the like are obsessed with apple cider vinegar and baking soda as if they’re some kind of miracle cures that can do anything. No, they’re just a mild acid and a mildly basic, abrasive substance. They work in situations where just about any mild acid or a mildly basic or abrasive substance would do the job.

Yes, this a thousand times yes! My mom was obsessed with ACV and it feels like she used it with e v e r y t h i n g. When I was younger she put some sort of sauce in my hair (maybe ACV?) to help with my "oily-ness" [which I later learned was solved by washing with shampoo twice every other day or more] and I honest to god felt like I was in Hansel and Gretel.

She also loved to use this charcoal soap. I will admit that I like it a little more than normal soap on my face (and it has cleared up) but I'm not sure how much is placebo, even though I still think she was full of nonsense when she forced me to start using it.

 

[OttoWest]

Rolling antiperspirant on your face will keep it from sweating— via a school chum.

Yes but the side effect was it inflaming her cystic acne. Blocking your pores the way an antiperspirant does on top of all the artificial fragrance in deodorant seems a recipe for skin disaster. I’m still baffled that she couldn’t put two and two together on that one.

 

[Daddy's Little Kitten]

Is this where I dump this channel?

 

[*extremely mom voice*]

https://kiwifarms.st/threads/how-i-got-super-soft-skin-prerecorded.70892/

I heard that using hair conditioner on your face will help moisturize and soften your skin. @Letora ,any thoughts on that?

I came here to post Amberlynn's conditioner skincare routine because to this day it haunts me.

I have a question, is there a way to have a good skincare routine that isn't too time consuming and expensive, I see all these people on YouTube talking about all their toners, exfoliation, serums, face masks etc.

Yes. The basic version is cleansing and applying mosturizer/sunscreen. You can do an oil cleanse (olive oil works fine) or you can buy a detergent cleanser. Both double as makeup removers. On top of that, put a broad spectrum sunscreen at least SPF 15. You may have to experiment to find one that doesn't clog your pores.

If you're having trouble with acne, you can try a vitamin c serum or a salicylic acid product. The point of most serums and toners is to restore the antibacterial acid barrier of your skin. Salicylic acid will also decrease the inflammation of active acne.

Expensive makeup tends to be higher quality, but expensive skincare tends to be barely better than cheap stuff. All the active ingredients that actually do something are cheap as hell. Most of what you're paying for is marketing. As long as you're moisturized, your acne is under control, and you're wearing sunscreen every. Single. Day. Then that's all you really need.

 

[Pope Negro Joe the XIIIth]

Personally I love charcoal soap and facewash, but that's because it tends to keep my skin from breaking out much. I have oily & sensitive skin, so anything that strips the oil down to a normal level and doesn't destroy my skin is good. Motherfuckers using that shit on their teeth, no thanks.

On another note, I made the mistake of buying a bubbling kanolin clay mask once. My face looked like I'd been rubbing cherry Kool-Aid on it for days, I thought I was going to have to go into the dermatologist.

 

[krazy orange cat]

When I was visiting my grandmother, she told me I should wash my hair with beer to make it thicker. I'm still not sure if she actually believed it or if she just wanted a sly way to get rid of grandpa's beer.

 

[Mandaark]

Ugh homemade toothpastes and deodorants
Etsy is full of that bullshit and people eat it up at a larger pricetag than buying products that already exist.

I have hydrohilosis and so I spent a long time looking at deodorants that are free of aluminum in order to use drysol -which sucks, by the way, but if used sparingly allows for natural sweating vs being a disgusting fuck - and all that other stuff comes up with it.

Native is probably the best I've found, for anyone wondering. It contains a small amount of baking soda but I've had no irritations and it actually prevents odor. There is a stinky detox period so be prepared.




I also remember trying to sound cool in gradeschool and saying I put lotion in my hair to make it soft. I don't even remember why
Needless to say I did not sound cool lmao

 

[Some JERK]

5-Minute Crafts should rename their channel 100-Year-Old Wive's Tales. Take everything they show with a grain of salt and attempt it with an abundance of caution. Most of it is bullshit, especially the beauty/skin care shit.

 

[admiral]

Not necessarily a beauty hack, but it is an old wives' tale.
My mother (usually such a rational woman) once told me that you can cure (or at least aleviate) a yeast infection by smearing natural yoghurt in and around your vagina, and then leaving it for twenty minutes. I looked it up and apparently there is some evidence that it can be effective, but I can't imagine how bad you would have had to let get if you were willing to sit in your bathtub shovelling yoplait up your snatch.

 

[UntitledKiwi]

I have a question, is there a way to have a good skincare routine that isn't too time consuming and expensive, I see all these people on YouTube talking about all their toners, exfoliation, serums, face masks etc.

If you’re looking for specific products/advice:

Spoiler: Personal Routine

I have dry, extremely sensitive skin and these are the products recommended to me by a dermatologist. She also recommended CeraVe products if Cetaphil doesn’t work.

Since mask wearing is now a mandatory thing pretty much everywhere, maskne is a part of life. I use Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser (not the daily facial cleanser) and follow up with the Cetaphil Daily Hydrating Lotion before I put on my mask for an 8 hour shift. The kind of mask you wear all day also matters, a cotton mask is the best choice to avoid breakouts. (A 48 count of masks is 40 bucks on Amazon by Gildan, great option.)

Then I wash my face with the cleanser again before I go to bed. For problem spots or big, painful pimples I use a hydro colloid patch (acne patches) that you can buy at any drug store.

If you are worried about your skin or have any underlying medical conditions (eczema, rosacea, etc) go to a dermatologist for the best advice for your skin. It is the largest organ in the human body and everyone is different.

A YouTuber/Beauty Guru with their own line of products to promote < actual medical doctor.

 

[Dysnomia]

HAHA. My question to our gorl would be why not just use lotion? Lotions are formulated with skin in mind, so they include ingredients like hyaluronic acid which is helpful for skin, and doesn't do anything for hair. Meanwhile, conditioner is formulated with hair in mind, so it includes things like silicones, which do not benefit the skin in any way. It's just a waste of conditioner.

If she wants to use random objects as moisturizer she could just smear butter on her face while she's making a snack in the kitchen.

Speaking of conditioner, I read on Lipstick Alley that fabric softener is super conditioner for your hair. I would assume this would ruin your hair because it is for laundry. I am white so I would never try it anyway. But it sounds like a pretty bad idea regardless.

Also, I cut my finger a few months ago and it got infected. It swelled really bad and my aunt suggested black salve.

She is a boomer and nothing about her is new age or crunchy. But she said her mon used it on her before when she was a kid. She didn’t believe me when I told her it was dangerous.

 

[admiral]

I've come to the conclusion that a lot of the 'home remedies' for small illnesses/spots/beauty complaints etc that my female relatives gave me when I was younger were just placebos to shut me up.

 

[Letora]

Speaking of conditioner, I read on Lipstick Alley that fabric softener is super conditioner for your hair. I would assume this would ruin your hair because it is for laundry. I am white so I would never try it anyway. But it sounds like a pretty bad idea regardless.

Also, I cut my finger a few months ago and it got infected. It swelled really bad and my aunt suggested black salve.

She is a boomer and nothing about her is new age or crunchy. But she said her mon used it on her before when she was a kid. She didn’t believe me when I told her it was dangerous.

OMFG I'm reminded of the photos of that woman who burned the front of her nose off with black salve because she didn't want to get her tiny skin cancer spot treated by a doctor, and was stuck looking for plastic surgery afterwards. I don't even know how the hell you fix all that missing cartilage. Some people are insane with how much they will suffer to avoid reality. Graphic photos here.

And ugh! I'm fairly certain fabric softener, considering it's a laundry penetrating chemical which is incredibly concentrated, would fuck up your scalp and skin, perhaps even giving you dermatitis among other issues. It's also an endocrine disrupter, and there are people who are against using it even for clothes. (I don't use it because I heard it damages clothing over time).

 

[Free the Pedos]

"Only wash with conditioner and don't use shampoo because shampoo is bad for your hair." or "Shampoo has sulfates in it which are bad!! Only use sulfate-free shampoo!"

Wtf? Conditioner is an oily product. It doesn't contain soap. Can you wash oil off with more oil? No. Adding oil to your greasy-ass head won't remove the grease. If you have oily hair in general, there isn't a need to use conditioner. Shampoo is simply soap, and it removes excess oil and dirt from your hair. Sulfates are a detergent (soap). There's nothing wrong with sulfates. I'm sure these people are walking around with stringy, limp hair by avoiding using soap on it.

Similarly, I've heard people say 'Cetaphil will fucking KILL you! It's made with petroleum products [or something]! Instead, rub coconut oil all over yourself!'

I'm not a scientist, but I think if actual oncologists advise skin cancer patients to use Cetaphil on their skin, it's probably fine.

 

[melty]

I got suckered into castor oil for eyelashes recently. Spoiler, it doesn't do anything.

Not an internet tale, but when I was a kid I read in a beauty magazine that you could boil cinnamon sticks and rinse your hair with them to get a red tint. My mom, being very against hair dye but pro "natural" solutions, agreed this was a good idea. It burned the shit out of my skin. Fuck beauty magazines, they deserve to go under for multiple reasons.

I've heard coconut oil on your face is bad for it. This is another miracle product that gets touted for everything: skin! Hair! Eyelash growth! Lose weight with it! Give it to your dog! Needless to say, there is mixed evidence for most of this. It can cause acne for some people and probably won't grow your hair.

 

[spiritofamermaid]

I got suckered into castor oil for eyelashes recently. Spoiler, it doesn't do anything.

Not an internet tale, but when I was a kid I read in a beauty magazine that you could boil cinnamon sticks and rinse your hair with them to get a red tint. My mom, being very against hair dye but pro "natural" solutions, agreed this was a good idea. It burned the shit out of my skin. Fuck beauty magazines, they deserve to go under for multiple reasons.

I've heard coconut oil on your face is bad for it. This is another miracle product that gets touted for everything: skin! Hair! Eyelash growth! Lose weight with it! Give it to your dog! Needless to say, there is mixed evidence for most of this. It can cause acne for some people and probably won't grow your hair.

Only good thing about coconut oil imo is that it tastes better than butter or any non-stick spray when you use it on a skillet. Any other claims will require sources plskthx.

 

[AbraCadaver]

“Like, most clay masks are made with bentonite clay, right? So is kitty litter!! So like, buy a giant bag of unscented kitty litter, grind it up into a fine powder and put it on your face! THE COSMETIC COMPANIES LIKE HAAAATE WHEN YOU SAVE MONEY THIS WAY.”

Girl, that litter goes under your cat’s bum, and often has other trace minerals mixed in that aren’t listed on the label and aren’t for your face. If you wanna be cheap just buy aztec clay and shut up.

Makes me almost as mad as fucking nutters who shave down bars of soap and put it in their washing machines “as an amazing money/saving hack.” Because machine detergent is far mote expensive than the effort of grinding down loads of soap bars with a cheese grater.

And I’m sure replacing that eventually-damaged machine and wearing clothes filled with itchy, undissolved bar soap will save you tonnes, Ethel. Because machine detergent and bar soap are not the same fucking thing.

 

[HIVidaBoheme]

Lemon juice for skin. A magical cure all that fixes acne, dull complexion, wrinkles, you name it!
Except that it absolutely destroys the skins moisture barrier, which skin needs intact to stay healthy.

Putting lemon juice on your face to fade acne scars. Yeah I did that a lot when I was younger.

Gorls no, just no. Summer sun and lemon juice are a recipe for disaster from staining your skin with darker blotches to burning it as it lowers the photosensitivity threshold.

A crazy one I heard back in my school days was applying alcohol after waxing would relive your skin and keep it smooth. Also washing your hair in lavender oil mixed with coconut oil somehow kept lice away and your hair smooth and silky instead of pungent and greasy af.