How to turn an eve of load-shedding into a spa-like pamper session

1. DRAW A BATH 

... before the hot water in your geyser runs out. Meanwhile, cleanse your face in preparation for a face mask.

2. SCENT THE SCENE 

Fill your bathroom with enough flickering candles to create a soft glow. Up the relaxation factor by adding a scented candle with a calming fragrance like lavender or ylang ylang.

3. MIX UP A DIY HAIR MASK

This recipe for a nourishing DIY hair mask from Linda Gieskes-Mwamba, founder of natural hair-care brand Suki Suki Naturals, can be whipped up with a couple of common kitchen ingredients and a few essential oils. 

To make it, mash 1 ripe avocado and 1 ripe banana until smooth. Mix in 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 2-3 tbsp sweet almond oil and 5 drops lavender essential oil. Sieve the mixture to remove the fibres from the fruit.

Apply the mask to your hair, cover with a plastic shower cap, and let it sit for 30 minutes. Rinse it off with lukewarm (never hot!) water.

4. POP ON A FACE MASK

From anti-ageing to moisturising, there's a mask to remedy any skincare concern.

For this load-shedding pamper session, we'd recommend a sheet mask as it doesn't need to be rinsed off; you simply massage any leftover serum in to your skin after you've removed it. That way you'll have clean bath water to rinse off your hair mask. 

5. RELAX 

If your phone still has battery power, pop on your most relaxing playlist. Lie back in the bath and chill out. 

6. TREAT YOURSELF TO A MASSAGE

To have a spa-like experience at home, Santé Wellness Retreat and Spa’s Graham Hindle suggests you apply a rich, lightly fragranced body moisturiser or body butter all over, paying special attention to dry and neglected areas like the back of neck, elbows and heels. Apply each product slowly, using long fluid strokes, he says.

By now you should be feeling super relaxed and sleepy, so it's time to indulge in the most effective beauty treatment of them all: sleep.