How to wash away Holi colours

Sushmita Dutta

Holi without colours is meaningless but with some harmful colours doing the round, your beauty is in danger. The chemicals present in the colours damage your skin and hair. You may also develop rashes and allergy. And when you try to get rid of the colours, the skin is affected. But if you pay attention to certain things before and after Holi, you can always enjoy Holi without any fear of damaging your skin. Before Holi • Before going to play Holi apply either castor oil or olive oil to the hair. The oil will form a layer over your hair and when you wash it the colours will come off easily. • Apply moisturiser to your hands, face and all the exposed body parts. • Apply dark colour nail paint to your nails so that the nails do not get coloured. Later remove the nail paint. • Wash your face with cold water if you get colour on your face. Some colours get permanent after drying up. • Apply foundation just before playing Holi. This will protect your skin from dry colours. Also apply vaseline to your lips. Special Hair Protection Tips To discourage hair loss and fall due to harsh chemicals in the Holi colours, here are some remedies. • Apply almond oil and olive oil to your hair every night. • Soak fenugreek seeds in 4 tablespoon of curd then apply to hair or apply yellow of egg to the scalp for 30 minutes. Then wash away with shampoo. • Mix 1 tablespoon of vinegar to 3 tablespoon of oil and apply it to the hair. This will provide strength to your hair. Special Packs for skin protection For dry skin: • 1 tsp almond powder • 1 tsp honey • 2 drops lemon juice and little milk Make a paste of all the ingredients and apply it your face. Let it stay for 20 minutes. Wet your hand with little water and try to rub off the pack from the face. This will make your skin soft and clean. For oily skin: • 1 tsp Masoor Dal • Dried Orange peel • 1 tsp rose water • 2 - 3 drops lemon juice Make a paste of all ingredients and apply it to the face. When the pack gets dried, apply some water on your hands and then try to rub off the pack. Things to remember • Use cold water to remove colours, hot water makes the colour long lasting and it is difficult to get rid of them. • Do not wash your face again and again. This will make your face dry. • Do not rub your skin with any rough or hard thing. This will make your skin itchy. Apply coconut oil with the help of cotton and ten try to remove colours. • To lighten the colour, rub lemon wedges and then apply wheat flour and oil mixture. • Apply moisturiser to the entire body immediately after a bath. • If you are planning a bleach or facial then wait for at least a week. • Applying soaked amchur powder also helps get rid of colour.