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39 Easy At-Home Beauty Activities to Do When You’re Bored

HealthEvokeDecember 5, 2023

8 6 minutes read

39 Easy At-Home Beauty Activities to Do When You're Bored

DIY face masks, hair treatments, and high-tech beauty devices are a fun way to pass the time at home. We have tried our fair share of at-home beauty treatments. Some are more confusing or messy than they’re worth, but the following are those we genuinely love to play around with when we’re lounging inside and in the mood for some pampering. Read on for our 39 favorites.

Try the Latest TikTok Beauty Hacks

There are so many TikTok beauty trends you can try. If you’re playing around with makeup, consider playing with the “Prism Eye” technique or experimenting with adding blush to your under-eye concealer. Want to put some hair hacks to the test? There’s the ’90s rollers method or treatment bun.

Clean Your Makeup Brushes

We’re all guilty of forgetting to wash our brushes and sponges regularly. Use your downtime to fully clean your beauty tools.

Organize Your Beauty Products

If it’s been a while since you’ve organized your beauty products, take this time to get it done. After deciding what you’re going to keep, toss expired products and donate unopened items to local charities.

Give Yourself a Manicure

Show your hands some TLC with an at-home mani. If you’re not confident in your nail painting skills, don’t worry. You can always use press-ons or nail polish strips.

Give Yourself a Pedicure

After giving yourself a manicure, why not give yourself a pedicure, too? If you don’t have a steady hand (neither do we), these at-home kits are impossibly easy to apply, actually stay put, and come in an array of cute, minimalist nail art designs you’d otherwise pay top dollar to have done professionally. You could also try press-on toenails.

Try the Heatless Curls Method

The heatless curl method is another hair hack worth trying when you have time to spare. All you need to do is twist your hair up using materials you already have on hand, like socks or headbands, to achieve voluminous, bouncy curls.

Create Your Own Lip Scrub

Making a lip scrub is super simple and fun. We love this recipe that only calls for four ingredients–brown sugar, honey, coconut oil, and cinnamon.

Try Dry Brushing

Elevate your bodycare routine with dry brushing. The practice involves using a firm body brush to massage your skin, which helps get rid of dead skin cells and stimulate circulation.

Try the Hanacure At-Home Facial

Few skincare treatments are buzzier than this mixable face mask, which is designed to re-create the youth-inducing effects of a professional facial by brightening, contouring, detoxifying, lifting, and firming the face. It only takes about a minute to prepare and apply, then 30 minutes to take effect, but the results are mind-blowing. Just look to our full review by Byrdie’s former associate editor Erin Jahns, who tried the product with her 70-year-old parents

Use a Blue-Light Laser

The powerful blue light emitted from this chic little device works to fight acne by penetrating deep into the pores to kill any breakout-causing bacteria down there. Use it once a day for five minutes, and you can almost guarantee to see improvement within a couple of months. Byrdie’s former associate general manager, Lindsey Metrus, is a fan not only of the results but of the ritual itself. “It just feels so good to just lie there and run it over your face,” she says.

Sculpt Your Face with a Gua Sha

Gua sha is an ancient Chinese practice whose purported facial benefits include lifted, contoured facial muscles; smoother skin; and a reduction of wrinkles. Simply drench your face in your favorite serum, then use the smooth edges of this rose quartz tool to scrape the skin, lifting it from the center of your face upward toward your hairline.

Do Some Mess-Free Self-Tanning

Self-tanning had always seemed like a burden to me until I got my hands on a bottle of this totally clear, non-stinky, all-natural tanning water. After exfoliating and shaving, I simply spritz this stuff all over and blend it with a mitt. It’s so easy, it leaves no stains or smell, and six hours later, I suddenly have a natural-looking tan.

Indulge in a Bubble Charcoal Mask

Talika’s three-step mask bubbles up as it sits on your face, which is a truly amusing spectacle. It’s not just for show, though—the unique detoxifying formula combines oxygen with traditional Asian medicinal ingredients to clear toxins from the pores, according to the brand.

Repair Your Hair with a Jojoba Oil Hair Mask

Jojoba oil has endless benefits for the skin and hair, but one of the simplest uses is as a treatment hair mask. Simply apply the product all throughout your hair, braid your strands, leave it for a few hours or overnight, and then shampoo. The ingredient, which is primarily composed of monounsaturated fat, works to control dandruff and promote a healthy scalp.

Make a Turmeric Under-Eye Brightener

Turmeric has purportedly been used as a skin-brightening treatment for centuries, and Team Byrdie swears by it for the under-eye area in particular. Mix one tablespoon of turmeric and one tablespoon of buttermilk, apply the orange mixture to your dark circles with a brush, and expect to look infinitely better slept after just 15 minutes.

Self-Applied Eyelash Extensions

Lashify’s extensions kit is so easy an impatient, jaded beauty editor could do it—with results and stupidly gorgeous, natural-looking lashes that stay on for up to 10 days. When Byrdie’s former editorial director came into the office one day with a full set of these, we were shook to find out she did them herself in 15 minutes.

Perfect Your Smoky Eye

Perfecting the art of the smokey eye is a never-ending journey. There’s always room for improvement, so why not experiment? Here’s our favorite tutorial.

Discover New Online Beauty Shops

Exploring beauty sites you’ve probably never heard of before is endlessly entertaining. You might just find your new favorite store in the process.

Make an Immunity-Boosting Smoothie

Care for your skin from the inside out by whipping up a delicious smoothie. Here are some of our favorite recipes.

Try Meditation

Rest your mind and body with a moment of meditation. Here’s everything you need to know about practicing meditation and some great at-home yoga apps with guided meditations to try. Add in the use of a DIY heating pad for a fully indulgent experience that soothes the body and soul.

Read a Beauty Book

Enrich your mind with a few beauty-related books, such as Palette: The Beauty Bible for Women of Color or Glow From Within. You’ll learn practical tips, tools, routines, and foods for transforming yourself and your lifestyle.

Do a Face Massage

Use a facial roller to give yourself a massage. Facial massages are beneficial for a few reasons. They can help minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, assists with lymphatic drainage, relieve muscle tension, and reduce stress.

Try this Mascara Hack

Want your lashes to look bolder? Experiment with this life-changing mascara hack. You won’t regret it.

Try a Funky Wash-Out Hair Color

Test out a new hair color commitment-free by using hair chalk, temporary hair dye, or color wax.

De-puff Your Under-Eyes with Tea Bags

Topical caffeine has been shown to reduce under-eye puffiness and dark circles. Steep two bags, squeeze out the excess liquid, allow them to cool, and you’re good to go.

Do a Foot Treatment

Make sure your feet feel baby-smooth by indulging in a foot care routine. We recommend using a foot soak, peel, and cream,

DIY a Bath Bomb

There’s nothing more soothing than a bath. Enhance your bathtime with a DIY bath bomb. It’s easier to whip one up in your kitchen than you think.

Try Dermarolling

This technique has been shown to reduce wrinkles, under-eye bags, and even stretch marks. However, using a derma roller carefully is important to avoid damaging your skin. Here’s exactly how to do it.

Try Dermaplaning

Not to be confused with derma rolling, dermaplaning is an exfoliating process that will leave your skin softer and more radiant. Looking for a dermaplaning razor? There are seven Byrdie-approved options.

Give Yourself a Scalp Massage

Few things compare to the feeling of a scalp massage. You can always just use your hands or upgrade the experience with a luxe scalp massager and oil.

Give Yourself a Steam Facial

One of the best parts of a facial is the steam. You can achieve the same effect at home by purchasing a facial steamer.

Tint Your Own Eyebrows

Tinting your eyebrows can make them appear fuller and more definer. Here’s an easy-to-follow tutorial to make sure you get it right.

Pair the Perfect Wine With the Perfect Face Mask

A self-care day at home isn’t complete without doing a face mask. Here are the best face masks.

Try a Butt Mask

It’s important to care for your skin from head to toe, and that includes your butt. As the name suggests, butt masks are treatments for your butt. They can be used to hydrate, exfoliate, or detox the skin in that area.

Whiten Your Teeth

Pop on some white strips for an hour while you’re watching Netflix. Here are a few of our favorite whitening products.

Try the Olaplex Bond Maintenance System

The Olaplex Bond Maintenance Kit is an at-home salon-quality hair treatment that has become a Byrdie editor favorite. It helps make your hair stronger, healthier, and shinier, so it’s definitely worth trying.