Beauty Tips

• If you have MATURE or DRY SKIN - Only wash your face once per day, in the evening - unless you get really dirty during the day. Use a creamy cleanser on a cotton pad or wash cloth, wipe it over your face and rinse. Then use Witch Hazel or an alcohol-free toner on a cotton pad, wipe it over your face to remove any remaining cleanser and dirt and rinse. Apply a night moisturizer or our Revitalizing Skin Cocktail. In the morning simply rinse your face with warm water and apply a drop or two of Grapeseed Oil and a moisturizer with SPF.
• If you have ACNE or OILY SKIN - Wash your face in the evening with a facewash containing Alpha Hydroxyl and/or Beta Hydroxyl Acids - glycolic, lactic, salicylic, or fruit acids. After rinsing use either Witch Hazel or an astringent toner to remove dirt, oil, and cleanser residue, then rinse again with water. Moisturize your skin with either the Revitalizing Skin Cocktail or Grapeseed Oil. In the morning if your face is not to oily, simply rinse with warm water and rub out the oil patches with your fingers. If it is oily then wash and tone as you did in the evening and apply Grapeseed oil for moisturizing and a very light-weight sunscreen. Use a salicylic acid based spot treatment for pimples. DO NOT use any products with Benzoyl Peroxide as they are incredibly drying and toxic.
• If you have SENSITIVE SKIN - Wash your face once per day with a gentle creamy cleanser in the evening and rinse. Apply with either your fingers or a cotton pad. Use an alcohol-free toner to remove excess dirt and cleanser. Moisturize your skin with Grapeseed Oil or Hemp Seed Oil. In the morning rinse your face with warm water and apply a small amount of Grapeseed Oil and a gentle SPF.

Why moisturize with Grapeseed Oil?

Grapeseed Oil is loaded with vitamins and minerals. It has the same consistency as the oil in our skin, so it absorbs quickly and does not clog the pores. It is a gentle, effective natural way of protecting your skin barrier and keeping out pollution and bacteria. Oily skin needs moisturizing just as much as dry skin. Often times we strip our skin barrier of its protective oils by trying to get that squeaky clean feeling. Your skin over compensates and makes your oil glands produce much more oil than normal, which massively clogs your pores. Give you face moisture and it will protect you! You can find this oil in the grocery store next to the salad dressings and Olive Oil. Olive Oil is also very moisturizing, however it is a heavy oil and can clog your pores.

Why is exfoliating important?

Exfoliation is needed to remove the dead skin cells from your face. Too many dead skin cells will mix with your natural facial oil to clog your pores and cause pimples, black heads, and milia. Skin that is not exfoliated leaves your complexion looking very dull and lifeless. DO NOT use a facial scrub to exfoliate. Even the most gentlest of scrubs will scratch up your delicate skin cells. Use an exfoliator that is either enzyme or alpha hydroxyl based. This type of product will gently dissolve the intracellular glue that is holding the dead skin cells onto your face. After rinsing your complexion will be radiant. If you have oily skin you will need to exfoliate at least 3x per week. If you have dry skin, once per week will be fine. However, you must not over exfoliate. Your skin cells need time to mature and come to the surface. If you remove them too soon and too often, you will damage your skin and cause it to wrinkle. 

Is Toner really necessary?

Yes! Toner is a vital part of a healthy skin care routine. Our skin has a natural pH balance of 5.5. The pH scale goes from 0-14 with 0 being highly Acidic, and 14 being highly Alkaline. Water is neutral and has a pH of 7. So this means our skin is on the slightly acidic side. Cleansers and especially bar soaps (which you should NEVER use) are alkaline and usually have a pH of 8-11. When you wash your face with cleanser you will increase its pH from 5.5 to around 10. If you rinse with water and stop right there then you will cause your skin to dry out and get very irritated, leading to dryness or a breakout. A toner is acidic and is needed following a cleansing to return your skin back to its normal pH of 5.5. So after you wash your face, it is vitally important that you put some toner on a cotton pad and wipe your face. THEN RINSE the toner off your face with water so that you do not irritate your skin in the opposite direction. This one small step will go a long way to make a positive change in your skin. Also, unless you have cystic acne or very oily skin, avoid using Astringent. It is way too strong for most skin types.

Milia - those impossible to remove tiny white bumps on your face.

Milia are raised, tiny, white bumps on your face, usually on the cheeks and near the eyes. It is a small amount of encapsulated oil that is stuck in the pore and can't be removed because the skin has grown over it. The best way to prevent them is to cleanse your skin properly (see above), exfoliate regularly, and don't use products that are too heavy for your skin type. Milia are deep inside of your skin and you cannot extract them yourself without causing severe damage to your face. Your skin needs to be punctured with a lancet or the Super Frecator and then gently squeezed to remove the milia.  It is an easy procedure for me to do for you.