Lulur at Home

Preparing for a wedding can be really, really taxing. I’m experiencing it first hand. Being the eldest and the only girl in the family has its disadvantages – and this is one of it. I can’t rely on elder brothers or sisters to take care of stuff. My youngest brother Adik is still studying in Jordan and Abang, well – he has a lot on his hands right now. Mak and Ayah of course have their own roles, especially regarding the make-over of our home, the kenduri food and canopies. Apart from those, I attend to most of the preparation which translates into lots of stuff – from choosing the outfits, distributing (and posting) invitation cards, buying flowers for the whole house (pelamin, bilik pengantin, the stairs, high table), buying the bed set for the bilik pengantin, bla bla bla down to the teeny meeny tiny stuff as getting the tiny roses made from satin ribbons and sewing them onto my flower girls’ dresses. Yes, I do them myself. A few married friends expressed their concerns – “Why don’t you pamper yourself, just go for facial or spa. You have to think about these things too, you know? You’ll want to look your best on your big day.” Ok, honestly speaking, going for a facial treatment is a foreign concept to me. I don’t wear make-up. I don’t even wear lipstick and I don’t do facial. I just rely on the basic cleanse-tone-moisturise regime daily. Occasionally I’ll put on a facial mask to give my face some extra ‘lift’. So, I’m still undecided about doing this facial thingy. Spa, though, is another thing. I’ve tried sauna, aromatherapy steam bath, massage with essential oil and all. But of course, I have a budget to worry about and can’t afford that many costly days at the spa. Fortunately, a girl I met at a beauty salon was kind enough to share some tips and secrets on mandi lulur (body scrub) so that I can do it myself at home. By knowing these tips, the girl told me, I could save up to a few hundred ringgits since I can do exactly the same thing at home for a lot lesser than what they normally charge at the beauty house. I’m sharing the tips and secrets here - hope it can help other bakal pengantin on a tight budget too. The equipments: Long handled bath brush Small towel to be used as wash cloth A bath tub Dry towels 2” paint brush The ingredients: Olive oil – massage oil, not the extra virgin olive oil Italians use for cooking. Lulur Mas Sinangling (Mustika Ratu) Kulit Rambai Powder (Bunga Tanjung) Lulur Mas Sinangling soap (Mustika Ratu) Mangir Powder (Mustika Ratu) UHT Low fat milk Essential aromatic oils 1. Gently lather the olive oil on your feet and body. Massage in circular motions from your feet upward. This will help to smoothen and soften the skin as well as help causing less pain during scrubbing. 2. Mix two packets of Lulur Mas Sinangling and a packet of Kulit Rambai powder with sufficient water to make a paste. Apply on whole body. Wait until partly dry and then gently scrub with the small dry towel in a circular motion, rubbing off the powder. This will exfoliate dead skin cells, cleanse the pores, activate lymphatic circulation and boost the elimination of toxins. Use the long handled bath brush to reach your back - slough off the dead skin cells with wide circular strokes. 3. Rinse with warm water and use the Lulur Mas Sinangling soap to get rid of the yellowish excesses. Pat dry your body. 4. Mix Mangir powder with sufficient water to make a paste. Apply on whole body using the paintbrush. Wait until almost dry and the flakes start to fell on their own. Gently rub off the powder. Mangir has a whitening effect on the skin apart from making the skin softer, smoother and it helps eliminating body odour. 5. Mix two cartons of UHT low fat milk with sufficient warm water in the bathtub. Add in essential oils to suit your mood and purpose. Soothing oils such as lavender and chamomile help to unwind after a particular busy period. Stimulating oils such as rosemary and citrus fruit helps to revitalize and energize. 6. Soak in, rest and relax. You can put on a facial mask and soothe your eyes with used teabags or thin cucumber slices – yes, they do help in relieving soreness and puffiness. This is a weekly treat. For daily purposes, just use those lulur scrubs in bottle (Puteri Binari, Temulawak or anything - they are nicer in smell than Lulur Mas Sinangling and don’t leave yellowish excesses but perhaps not as effective in exfoliating the dead skin cells). You can tell the difference after three weeks – the skin is softer, smoother and more radiant. Why don't you give it a try and find out for yourself ;-)