During the unprecedented

hours spent at home during the pandemic quarantine, many of you completed various DIY projects, such as planting gardens, learning a new language, or mastering a musical instrument. I personally used the time to trample a 6 year old in Clue Junior (“No, Sarah, it wasn’t Mrs. Peacock at 3 p.m. with the Lemonade. It was Mr. Green at 4 p.m. with the Milkshake!"), physically wrestle the TV remote from a 9 year old’s hands, and launch a failed attempt to declare Cheetos a perfectly reasonable lunch entree.

We all take different paths.

One thing many of us had in common, however, was our inability to get to the spa for cleansing, revitalizing, and, according to the other people in my quarantine sanctuary, much needed stress-reducing procedures. But thankfully, numerous ways can help you achieve that youthful glow at home with DIY facials, and now that things are back to a relative normal, we can still take advantage of our quarantine skill sets to achieve that youthful glow any day of the week, probably even without a special trip to the store. Just be sure to have a lot of honey on hand because apparently honey is the key to a luminous complexion and NOT Cheetos. Who knew?

Step One: Clean Your Face

Really clean it, don’t just wipe off the crumbs. Use a combination of equal parts yogurt and honey, let it dry, and then rinse with warm water.

Step Two: Exfoliate

Exfoliation is important because it gets rid of dead skin, and no one wants to be wandering around with the ghost of skin cells past haunting their face. Numerous recipes are available for homemade exfoliants — most of which read more like a breakfast side dish rather than a beauty cream — but for basic exfoliation, combine two tablespoons of oatmeal, 1 tablespoon of yogurt and 1 teaspoon of, yes, honey.

Apply the mixture to your face in a circular motion for a full minute, leave on for 5 more, then rinse and pat your skin dry.

Step Three: Steam

Steaming after exfoliation will soften your skin and push you closer to your facial glow goals. Boil a pot of water, drape a towel over your head and shoulders, and lean in (but not too close) for 10 minutes. If that seems like too much effort, simply hop into a hot shower and steam all of you.

Step Four: Mask

With your face clean, exfoliated, and softened by the steam, now is the time to apply your facial mask for increased hydration and better skin texture. Again, there are many different recipes for homemade facial masks, all of which made me weirdly hungry, but a basic mask requires 1 tablespoon of honey, 1 tablespoon of yogurt, ¼ mashed up ripe avocado, and ¼ teaspoon of turmeric powder.

Mush all the ingredients in a bowl, spread across your face and neck, and then avoid any personal contact because, girl, you’ve got mashed up avocado all over your face! And you don’t think the 9 year old is going to make fun of that? Payback for that lost remote is harsh! After 15 minutes, wash off with warm water.

Step Five: Tone

This step gets helps get your face back to a more balanced pH level after all of that soaking in breakfast foods. Mix together 3 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, 1 cup of water, and 1 teaspoon of honey, then pat the toner directly onto your skin.

Step Six: Moisturize

Plenty of items lurking in your pantry can be used as moisturizers. Keep in mind, however, that moisturizer is not washed off, so if you share a bed with someone who might not appreciate the odor of cod liver oil, choose wisely.

Most pantry oils can be applied, in a dime sized amount, directly to your face. If you want something that resembles a more commercially available moisturizer, use a double boiler to melt ½ cup of shea butter, then remove it from the heat, add ¼ cup of aloe vera gel, 4 drops of lavender oil, 3 tablespoons of rose water and 1 teaspoon of … what was that final ingredient? Oh yes, honey, honey!

Let it cool, then whip it until fluffy, and scoop into a glass jar. Apply it morning or night — it smells a lot better than cod liver oil.

So, it is possible to get the fresh dewiness of a spa facial without leaving home. And with pampered skin and a fresh glow that has nothing to do with snack food residue, I might even let the 6 year old win at Clue. But only if she provides the Cheetos.