Uncategorized

HOME SKIN CARE

Let’s talk a little bit about your skincare routine at home. Did you know that more than 80% of how your skin looks is a direct result of how you care for it at home? I LOVE pampering my clients with their facials and a variety of skincare services that all benefit their skin, but the real benefits are revealed when they continue the work on their own between visits. I relate it to if you go to a physical therapist once a week but never do the exercises they suggest between visits. Your progress will be far slower than someone who does those exercises as prescribed.

So, you may ask, what does a good home care routine look like? Great question! I’m going to outline the ideal home skincare routine today, and then over the next few months, I will break down different ingredients for you as well. Although, I’ll give you a few tips on picking out products today to get you started!

First of all, I want to discuss marketing techniques used today that drive me crazy! Did you know that products may advertise a specific ingredient on their packaging, even if there isn’t enough of that ingredient in the product to have any real benefit to your skin? For example, it can have one single drop of say hyaluronic acid in it, and the brand can have that on the package. TIP: if the ingredient you’re looking for isn’t listed in the first 3-5 ingredients, it probably does not contain enough of that ingredient to make a noticeable difference in your skin. Look for products that have active ingredients listed early in the ingredient list and preferably don’t have a lot of words you can’t pronounce listed at all.

If you don’t know what an ingredient is, there is no harm in looking it up! Afterall, did you know that there is a commonly recommended carcinogenic ingredient called hydroquinone for hyperpigmentation that you should never use for more than three months at a time without at least a three month break in between? It bleaches the skin well, but you should be made aware of possible side effects before using it, so you can make an informed decision. Sorry for that little tangent.

Back to home skincare. The ideal home skincare plan consists of active and resting days. Think 3 cardio days where we are stimulating the skin to slough off the dead skin cells and promoting new skin cell, collagen, and elastin production. The other 4 days are our resting and nutritive days where we are feeding the skin healthy nutrient-rich ingredients, which are soaking in deeper since we’ve removed some of that thicker epidermal layer of dead skin cells. You also always have a morning and an evening skin care routine. What I’m about to share may seem overwhelming at first. Don’t worry! Your esthetician is happy to help you start small and gradually build up, starting with the most beneficial products first!

On your active mornings, you should use active products that help to break up the intercellular cement that holds the dead skin cells together. You will start with a cleanser, then an exfoliation (there are three kinds to choose from-mechanical, chemical, enzymatic), then a serum(s), eye cream, moisturizer, sunscreen, and lip therapy with sunscreen. All of these products will have ingredients specific to your skin type and target your problem areas. Your esthetician will help you determine what will help your skin the most.

On your resting mornings, you will use all nutritive products which will include a cleanser, a serum(s), eye cream, moisturizer, sunscreen, and lip therapy with sunscreen. These nutritive products will contain ingredients that may hydrate, lighten, tighten, brighten, balance tone, target fine lines and wrinkles, etc. Again, your esthetician will help you pick out what is best for your skin!

Nighttime routines are pretty much the same for active and resting days, except for the night creams. You will use all nutritive products including a cleanser, serum(s), eye cream, night cream, and lip therapy. The night cream will be an active night cream on active days and a specialized one on resting days.

If you are on a tight budget, I’d say the most important products to start with that will give you the most bang for your buck in terms of results and prevention are serums, night creams, and sunscreen! By the way, your skin recovers and rebuilds 30% more while you’re sleeping, so that nighttime routine is extremely important! NEVER sleep with makeup on your face! It will age you at least 30% faster! Nobody wants that! Age better, age backwards!

Lastly, better skin health is also dependent on better overall health. I cannot stress this enough. Our skin is our largest organ. It protects us. It absorbs. It excretes. That means, the environment we surround ourselves with gets absorbed into our skin and into our bodies. It also means that what we put into our bodies in terms of food, drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, etc. gets excreted through our skin. If we get a cut in our skin, it is a doorway for infection to enter into our body, so we need to take care of it. We should try to eat healthy and drink lots of water! Hydrated skin is plumper (hides the wrinkles better) & healthier. The sun causes 90% of the signs of aging, so protect your skin from the sun with sunscreen and hats. TIP: car windows protect you from burning rays but not from aging rays, so use sunscreen on those arms, too. Your health insurance generally covers an annual checkup with a dermatologist, so I encourage everyone to get a full body check annually.

I hope you find this to be helpful information! Have a blessed day!!!