I tried Meghan Markle's affordable beauty hack, and it actually works

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Long before becoming the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle was a successful television actress on the drama “Suits,” living her best life and jet-setting between her homes in both Toronto, where the show was filmed, and Los Angeles.

All that international travel definitely had an impact on the now-royal’s beauty routine, something that she didn’t shy away from sharing with her fans. Speaking to Allure back in 2014, the actress revealed that one of her go-to beauty hacks is not only a great multipurpose product, but it’s also only $13.

“The one thing that I cannot live without when I'm traveling is a small container of tea tree oil,” the now-38-year-old royal revealed.

“It's not the most glamorous thing, but if you get a cut, a mosquito bite, a small breakout, no matter what it is, it's my little cure-all. It's inexpensive, it's small enough to carry on, and I bring it with me all the time."

According to The Body Shop, their bestselling version of this multipurpose oil is so popular, that one bottle sold every 17 seconds in 2018 too.

SHOP IT: The Body Shop, $13

What is tea tree oil?

An essential oil that’s harvested from the leaves of the Australian tea tree plant, tea tree oil is a known antibacterial that helps to purify skin. It’s been used for centuries in traditional and folk medicine, and is believed to absorb excess oil and calm blemishes while helping to speed up the skin’s healing process.

Applied directly onto affected areas as a spot treatment, tea tree oil is effective at calming existing breakouts, as well as preventing future ones. It’s also an antiseptic, meaning you can use just a few drops of this potent essential oil to cleanse minor wounds and treat issues like athlete’s foot or nail fungus.

Does it work?

Since receiving a bottle of tea tree oil last year, it’s actually become a go-to beauty product in my medicine cabinet. I’ve used it for everything from treating minor cuts and scrapes to a spot treatment for blemishes, but my favourite use has actually been one of its more surprising benefits.

After getting my cartilage pierced in October, I’ve been struggling through a lengthy healing process. Cartilage piercings are notorious for their drawn-out healing time of up to a year, and need constant attention in order to prevent infection. Despite my best efforts using a gentle cleanser and saline solution as recommended by the technician who performed my piercing, every once in a while I’ve still found the area becoming irritated.

After researching whether tea tree oil is safe to use on piercings (spoiler alert, it is as long as there are no open sores) I’ve been reaching for my bottle any time I notice my ear acting up. I’ll place a couple of drops of the essential oil on a cotton swab to cleanse the skin, then quickly wipe down the earring to remove any bacteria. Within a couple of hours the redness and swelling will subside, along with any irritation.

The bottom line

Although it’s generally safe to use on the skin, there are still a few considerations before applying tea tree oil for the first time. For one thing, it’s important to make sure that you’re using a solution that has been pre-diluted with another carrier oil and is not a pure essential oil.

While 100 per cent tea tree may be great in your diffuser for its spa-like aromatherapy benefits, it’s too strong for the skin and can cause more harm than good. You also want to avoid ingesting it, since it’s toxic if swallowed, and that you make sure to perform a patch test on your wrist before use if you’re worried about the potential for an allergic reaction.

Unlike Meghan Markle, I won’t be travelling any time soon, but I’ll definitely be holding on to her affordable beauty secret for years to come.

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