Drew Barrymore’s weird skin care hack for nixing redness

Drew Barrymore has been dishing out some nifty little beauty tips on Instagram as part of her #beautyjunkieweek (read: using facial spray as hairspray) and we seriously can’t get enough of it.

And in perhaps one of our favourite beauty hacks yet, the actress shared a super unexpected way to reduce skin redness and irritation – and it involves using an ingredient you might find in your garden.

She posted a selfie on Instagram explaining that after suffering a “giant bite or reaction” on her face, she “tried the age old myth of aloe vera”. While we’ve all heard the benefits of aloe vera’s skin-loving gel for soothing sunburn, we didn’t know quite how powerful the plant in general could be for treating other skin issues.

She wrote, “I dug out the meat of the live plant stalk, which I cut off a plant in my yard and then kept in the refrigerator to reuse. The juice you can squeeze out simply did nothing. So [I] placed a small chunk of [the meat] right on my skin." Drew went on to explain that she left a piece of the aloe plant on her skin for three to four hours before observing some unexpected results.

In a series of selfies that followed, she explained that the aloe meat itself had started turning red and that the mark on her skin was noticeably lighter.

"It was actually suctioning out the red from my face," she shared. "In two days [it] was gone. I had even tried bleaching creams, and [nothing] was getting the red spot off my face until this natural remedy. Aloe Vera live plant meat worked to extract the redness."

The star then posted a flawless #nofilter pic, showcasing the impressive end result. She wrote, “I cannot thank you enough for bearing with me. For those few who benefit from this, there is too many who think I am a freak! I get it. Beauty junkie week is not for the faint of heart sometimes. But I like to find real results without invasion and real attainable methods for working women and moms. I hope this didn’t make you all too sick. Come to think about it, I probably should have picked another day over the beautiful and romantic royal wedding. Oh well. More tomorrow. I’ll try to keep it more attractive!”

Oh, Drew! We can’t wait for more #beautyjunkieweek wisdom!

Can’t get enough of this skin-soothing ingredient? Some of our favourite products that are packed full of aloe vera goodness include Sukin Aloe Vera Gel, The Body Shop Aloe Soothing Day Cream and Mario Badescu Aloe Vera Toner.

Want to find out how aloe vera can keep your winter skin in check? Check out six different ways to use aloe vera in your beauty routine. 

What’s your favourite treatment for tackling redness? Let us know in the comments below.

Main image credit: Getty
Inset image credit: @drewbarrymore