The singer has been showing off her new skincare regime on Instagram. Could spoons, clingfilm and toothbrushes be worth a go, too?

If you thought Madonna, who has been known to hand her worn knickers to David Letterman and snog Drake on stage, no longer had the power to shock, think again. On Instagram, she has shared a video of herself receiving a facial using … forks. The singer lies back while two forks are rubbed across her cheeks and under her eyes by her aesthetician, Tarin Skillets. “It really tightens the skin,” says Madonna.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Better than a fork? Photograph: Alamy

While her forks look like they may be electric, delivering tiny electrical currents beneath the surface of the skin with the aim of toning facial muscles and boosting collagen and elastin production, the video has led observers to ask if, for the sake of our faces, we should all be reaching for the silverware. Jane Lewis, an aesthetic nurse at the Skin to Love Clinic in St Albans, sees some advantages: “She’s not scraping the skin – [she’s] encouraging blood flow, increasing lymphatic drainage.” But if all your forks are in the dishwasher, are there any other household products that can help tighten, buff or unwrinkle?

Spoons

Spoon massages have been recommended by German doctor-cosmetologist Rene Koch as a way to expel excess fluid, improve blood circulation and reduce wrinkles. “I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that to my patients,” says Lewis, “but if you’re going to the cutlery drawer, then the round side of a spoon would do just as well [as a fork]. It’s all about creating movement.” It would, she says, have a similar effect to using facial rollers.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Pepto-Bismol … pore reducer? Photograph: Alamy

A toothbrush

Using a soft-bristled toothbrush to exfoliate the skin has been recommended in some quarters as a way to cure acne and help you look younger. “It’ll be a bit like a Clarisonic brush that you can buy for exfoliation,” Lewis says. “If it’s an electric toothbrush, you’ll get more vibration and that will probably be better.”

Pepto-Bismol

The beauty blogger Farah Dhukai is a master at using household items on her skin. She recommends using this antacid medication, usually a treatment for discomfort in the stomach and gastrointestinal tract, as a pore reducer. “The salicylic acid it contains would refine the pores, reduce acne and oil,” says Lewis– but it should be used in moderation, as it can cause skin irritation.

Clingfilm

A few years ago, the beauty world was swept up by the Japanese Skincare Revolution, which claimed that steaming your face by covering it in clingfilm (with breathing holes, obviously) would help you achieve beautifully smooth and rejuvenated skin. Lewis can see how it would have a drawing effect, “pulling out impurities because you’re keeping your skin warm and moist”.

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