Using fruit for skin offers a wealth of benefits. Fruits contain water and nutrients that are precious for our health, which is reflected in a luminous complexion: the face and facial skin are the mirror of our wellbeing. So we should never go without at least two or three portions a day of dried and fresh fruit. The ideal time to eat it is in the morning at breakfast and as a snack between meals.

But its benefits are amplified when it is also used directly in a DIY fruit beauty face mask, to hydrate, cleanse and nourish the skin. Some fruits are better suited to oily or impure skin, being rich in acids, while others are perfect for dry skin, being high in sugars. A zero-waste idea: fruit that is too ripe to eat works perfectly well for these purposes.

Read also: Seasonal fruit, month by month

DIY fruit face masks for a radiant complexion: how to prepare them

A good squeeze of citrus juice (orange and lemon, even frozen) is just the thing to brighten and revitalise oily and combination skin: simply apply it to a clean face by patting with your fingertips. This toner is also astringent, making it perfect for enlarged pores, and useful for eliminating excess sebum. As a fruit face mask, you can use the pulp obtained by mashing a ripe kiwi or blending a pear, leaving it on for around twenty minutes before rinsing off with cool water.

Read also: 5 natural detox drinks and smoothies

Homemade fruit masks to hydrate and nourish: how to prepare them

Those with dry or mature skin can use sweeter, more substantial fruits, such as banana and apricot, or avocado and melon. In this case, it is simply a matter of obtaining a creamy mixture by mashing or blending a ripe fruit, then spreading it over a clean face. After twenty minutes, rinse off and pat the skin gently dry.

Fruit masks against skin blemishes: how to do it

A dull or lacklustre complexion, or one with sun-induced or age-related blemishes, finds new radiance thanks to a strawberry or grape lotion, obtained by blending the fruit. It is used by gently dabbing it onto a clean face, paying particular attention to the dullest areas or the blemishes. Alternate this with a mask made from blended apple or pineapple pulp, leaving it on the face for a quarter of an hour and then removing it with cold water.