The Nightingale: Today's Japanese Beauty Secret
The Japanese people love innovation and aren't afraid of jumping in with both feet. After more movies with an Eastern bent reached Western shores, American women became more interested in learning more about Japanese beauty secrets.
One Geisha-inspired treatment based on ancient natural remedies is Uguisu no Fun. Uguisu is Japanese for Nightingale. Nightingale droppings were used by Geisha and Kabuki actors to remove their thick make-up in times past. The bird poop has tested skin lightening properties. Whiter skin is much prized by Japanese women. It contains the enzyme guanine, which can brighten dull skin. It both bleaches and exfoliates the skin when applied as a mask mixed with white clay. You don't have to go to Japan for it. You can buy it online.
Another ancient ingredient, adzuki, a kind of red bean, is gently rubbed on the face. This is to keep keep the face smoother and to help avoid blemishes.
Rice bran, another old food remedy, is used by the Japanese to nourish the skin and keep it looking young. It is also supposed to prevent wrinkles, remove dark circles under your eyes and control the natural oils of the skin.
A special kind of sea algae called wakame kelp is found in the waters off Japan. It is an outstanding way to care for the skin naturally. It protects from the sun's UV rays and pollution. It also protects against dark circles under the eyes and from wrinkles.
Fresh bull semen for deep-conditioning skin protein treatment.
Japanese women use silkworm cacoons (matyutama) to cleanse their skins. They also use shark liver oil (squalane oil) added to moisturizer to treat dry skin.
Worried about dirt in the soles of your feet? Mandarin wood vinegar is distilled from burnt wood from Mandarin trees and is reported to create naturally occurring infrared energy. This energy supposedly draws out black impurities though a sort of towel attached to the soles of the feet.
You don't have to go to Japan anymore for the goldfish pedicure. Your better American salons feature them now. The treatment uses gara rufa or doctor fish. They eat off the dead, scaly skin only. In about 15 minutes, and quite a bit of giggling no doubt, you will have baby clean feet.
The whiter the skin, the more beautiful the woman it is thought.
You don't have to go to Japan anymore for the goldfish pedicure. The better American salons feature them now. The treatment uses gara rufa, or doctor fish. They eat off the dead, scaly skin only. In about 15 minutes and after quite a bit of giggling no doubt, you will have baby-soft feet.
