Since it falls under the heading of “truly bizarre,” I excluded this little gem from my recent beauty post. I felt it was odd enough to merit its own post! It’s a trick I picked it up from a recent issue of InStyle, and it has served me well thus far:
Did you know that toilet seat covers make fabulous blotting papers? UNUSED ONES, OBVIOUSLY. They are just the right thickness and consistency to absorb facial oil, and won’t dry you up like the Clean & Clear jobbers I use by the truckload on my shiny, shiny, shiny face. I won’t be stocking up on toilet seat covers anytime soon, but they’ve come to the rescue in many a restaurant bathroom already!
Image via MySistersJar.
![[Valid RSS]](wp-content/themes/thesis_18/custom/images/valid-rss-rogers.png "Validate my RSS feed")
{ 24 comments… read them below or add one }
Gosh, that IS remarkable! I'll definitely have to try that trick if I'm caught out and about with any blotting papers, thanks Sal!
Or you can buy rice paper at any drug store (they are very inexpensive packs of..a lot!) they are as small as an index card and come in a cute pack, you can carry them with you all the time.
What a great tip! xoxo
I would be scared of contamination to be honest- lots of microscopic stuff flies in the air when toilets are flushed (ever read those studies on what is on toothbrushes?) – a bit risky to be touching to your face? Not trying to be negative…just saying
Yes, definitely. And brown paper napkins (like at Starbucks).
Wow, I've never used blotting paper, but I will keep this in mind.
I'll do ya one better: buy end papers from any beauty supply store. They're for perms, but I use them as blotting sheets.
You can get a box of 1000 for less than $5, and that box will last for ages.
I'm a big fan of the Burt's Bees rice paper blotting papers, myself.
Wow, thanks for the tip!!
Get you and your restaurant toilets with seat covers! I feel blessed when there is toilet paper….xx
That is a truly awesome tip!
Great tip! I'll have to try that next time I'm out and about. Thanks!
You're the best. Tip of the day!
Brilliant!
I'm sorry, that is too cheap for me! I don't want to save money that badly I guess that I get involved with anything toilet-related! I'd rather be shiny, to be honest!
Hmmm… I do have a pretty shiny face so this has a certain appeal to it…I guess as long as no one walks in while I'm using a big toilet seat cover to dab at my face… wow, this could lead to all kinds of fun and interesting encounters in the bathroom! Love it! S.
I'm so weird about toilets, the thought of putting anything remotely related to a toilet on my face is disturbing.
However, this seems like a truly interesting and helpful fact for people with fewer neuroses.
Ya know what's funny, y'all? I never even CONSIDERED the potential grossness of using something from a public bathroom. What a blindspot THAT is, eh?
Well, I'll prolly still use this trick when I'm in a shiny-face-pinch.
Hahaha, I read that in Instyle too! I work at a restaurant, and when I have a free minute to "Blow my nose" [when I ask my mgr if I can go blow my nose, I actually mean, "Can I go put on lip balm and marvel at the migration pattern of my makeup?"] I de-grease my cheeks with a seat cover. I worry about the germs, too, but I always take the second one back!
I've heard this, too.
I've had varying results with the gaskets (my word for seat covers).
Knew that trick
Dr. Feelgood balm by Benefit is great for absorbing (I assume – I have no idea how it works) oil. I can't stand using powder as it gets cakey and I went through too many blotting papers – until I purchased some Dr. Fg on a whim.
Love it. I think they have small sizes of it at the holidays if you want to try it out.
2 suggestions for blotting papers in a pinch. 1) Yellow post it notes really work in a pinch – hold them up to the light after dabbing at your nose and you will be ashamed of how oily your face is! 2) If you have a brown paper grocery bag any size – these babies really soak up the oil. My favorite cheap oil blotter is from ELF – they cost $1 and work like a charm!
Regarding the potential grossness of public restroom items: the literal truth is that, although particles do fly around in the air when a toilet's flushed, proximity to the toilet itself doesn't make much difference in your chances of contamination.
MythBusters did an experiment with some toothbrushes placed above toilets, some beside the sink, and some outside the bathroom, elsewhere in the building. Bacteria test results were pretty much the same regardless of location. Those bacteria are going to be present anywhere human beings spend a lot of time.
On the bright side, though, they've always been there whether we knew it or not, and our immune systems have dealt with them just fine.
My aunt told me about this tip years ago. (at least 15) I have no idea where she got it from. She is one seriously elegant lady. My mom jokingly called her Miss Priss. Sibling rivalry is a funny thing