Skincare

Greetings, my friends! Bottom Line - I hate to say it, but I love this mask! I wanted to hate it because of how much it costs, but in the end - I fell in love with it and will continue to rebuy this mask for as long as it's around. Sisley Paris: Sisley Paris is a French beauty company created in 1976 by Hubert d'Ornano. D'Ornano wanted to create products that used technological advances to extract the best aspects of plants and essential oils. Sisley's production, administration, and research laboratories are located in France and can now be found on five continents. Sisley Paris Black Rose Cream Mask: I've tried a lot of masks in my life, and this is hands down the most hydrating mask I've ever used. It was so hydrating that after I rinsed my face the first time I used it, I thought it was still on because my face felt sooo hydrated. It makes my skin plump, smooth, and soft no matter how dehydrated or dry (winter months only) my skin is. Sisley says ...

Greetings, my friends! Bottom Line - I would absolutely recommend buying this set to anyone who wants to explore sheet sets - whether you're a beginner or an expert. The variety they sent helped me explore the different types of mask that are available, and helped me determine what I like and don't like in sheet masks.  ACWELL : ACWELL is a Korean beauty company that combines traditional Korean medicine with over 400 years of history with modern-day research to give you the best results. Natural herbs calm skin and address problems at their roots to restore skin back to health. -SokoGlam ACWELL Honey Anti-Wrinkle Daanj Mask: I'm torn on this one. I like the results, but I don't think I'll buy this again even though it only costs $2.50. I've tried a couple of these kinds of face masks (linen with lot of goo essence) and I just don't like the way it feels on my skin while I wait the 20 minutes for the mask to set. Having said that, once ...

Greetings, my friends! I originally wrote this post back in 2012 after I searched other reviews for the similarities and differences between Skinceuticals' Phloretin CF and CE Ferulic. There were a ton of postings online (and still are) about CE Ferulic and how fantastic it is, but Phloretin CF (being the newer product) has fewer post while costing the same. So which one do you choose? That is what I hope to address in this post in my updated review of these products. Bottom Line - b oth products are incredible! If you have wrinkles - CE Ferulic is the way to go. But if you have combination or oily skin and are focused on evening your skintone and/or correcting hyperpigmentation - then you'll want Phloretin CF. I prefer Phloretin CF over CE Ferulic (which I'll explain why below), but my hubby-to-be prefers CE Ferulic (which I'll also explain below).  Skinceuticals: Skinceuticals is a US skincare company that was created by Alden...

Greetings, my friends! Bottom Line - this is a holy grail for me and my hubby-to-be. I have yet to find another hand lotion that does what this does without leaving a residue. Dermalogica : Dermalogica is an American skincare company founded by Jane and Rey Wurwand in 1986. However, before the first Dermalogica products were made - in 1983, Jane, a U.K. trained skin therapist, opened "The International Dermal Institute" for licensed skin therapists to teach hands-on postgraduate level skincare training. Realizing there weren't products on the market which matched what she was teaching, Jane and Rey established Dermalogica. They decided they wanted a p roduct line free of common irritants and ingredients which they felt led to breakouts, such as lanolin, SD alcohol, mineral oil, artificial colors, and fragrances - and that's exactly what they ended up creating. Dermalogica Multivitamin Hand and Nail Treatment: Hands down (pun intended) this is the best hand...

Greetings, my friends! Bottom Line - despite the cost, I absolutely plan to buy this again once I run out of my current nightly moisturizer.  Tatcha : Tatcha is an American beauty company founded by CEO Victoria Tsai in 2009. Their skincare products are rooted in geisha beauty practices and focus on powerful natural ingredients, such as abaca leaf, green tea, seaweed, red algae, oatmeal, rice bran, and Japanese wild roses. Tatcha employs scientists in both the US and Japan to create products from scratch using these ingredients, which led to the  foundation of their products - Hadasei-3™, a trinity of anti-aging superfoods born from the Japanese diet, and the basis for the original geisha beauty rituals: green tea, rice and algae.  Every ingredient is carefully selected and minimally manipulated to be gentle and safe with maximum effectiveness.  In short - their  principle is quality products that focus on less doing more. The Silk Cre...

Greetings, my friends! To tone or not to tone...that is the question. The answer is it depends on why you're toning and what you hope to get out of it. As I've mentioned a million times before, I have oily skin. There is a lot of debate in the skincare community as to whether people with oily skin need toner (and whether those with dry skin should avoid it all together), but what I will say is that while it is not an absolutely necessary step - I still tone. Over the years I've gone back and forth on toner. I yo-yoed between astringents and freshers (descriptions below), but right now I've settled on " softeners " which are also called " toning lotions ." Before I break down the different types of toners on the market, I'd like to first tell you what toner does. Toner is the final cleansing step and a prep-step in the skincare ritual which is designed to improve the surface of your skin. The controversy around toner is that it's d...

Greetings, my friends! Today I'd like to talk about one of my favorite skincare topics - exfoliation. Over the years, I've gone back and forth about whether or not I need to exfoliate everyday or if I can get away with doing it once a week. The bottom line is I need to exfoliate everyday. This is a personal decision for everyone, but I would argue whether you exfoliate everyday or if you do it one-to-two times a week - exfoliation helps everyone's skin. But it's important that you know your skin before you begin an exfoliation ritual. Exempli Gratia (E.G.) - my skin is lazy, congested, acneic, and oily. I accept my skin for it's beautiful faults and treat it accordingly. Because of my skin issues - exfoliation helps me remove the dead skin which builds on my face (gross, I know) daily and clogs my pores. By removing the dead skin through exfoliation once a day, my products can better penetrate and treat the issues I need to treat more effectively to reach my g...

Greetings, my friends! I thought I'd dedicate a post to my cleansing principles.  When choosing a cleanser, as I mentioned in both my morning and nightly skincare rituals, the gentler the cleanser, the better the cleanser.  If you're like me (someone who has oily or combination skin and is prone to acne), then the worst thing you can do is use a harsh stripping cleanser. In many ways, I see acneic and oily skin as sensitive skin. Now, I don't react to products very often so I don't fall into the traditional sensitive skin category, but I do get acne if I don't take care of my skin properly. When you break it down, acneic skin is skin that is inflamed with a localized infection. What we should be doing is using products that will not cause further inflammation in order to allow our skin to heal. So when choosing a cleanser, make sure you choose a gentle product that gets the job done. Although I started this post by speaking to my own skin-type, I t...

Greetings, my Friends! Little Background: I posted my morning skincare ritual earlier today and thought that I should share my evening ritual with you all as well. If you followed by blog previously, you'll know that I posted my nightly ritual back in December 2012. While the principles haven't changed, my routine/steps have changed a lot. My evening skincare ritual takes anywhere between 15-40 minutes to complete. Nightly Skincare Ritual: As I explained in my morning skincare ritual post, I am using the term "ritual" to describe my skincare routine because after researching Asian skincare practices, I felt that the term I was using - routine - implied a necessary task versus the term ritual which was used to describe something precious and sacred. I spend up to an hour a day taking care my skin (morning and night) - which does not feel like a chore. To me - this is a therapeutic practice, so going forward - I will refer to my skincare pract...

Greetings, my Friends! Little Background: I first posted my morning skincare routine back in December 2012, but I thought since I was restarting my blog that I should share my updated routine. For the most part it hasn't changed, but I have added a few things.  Morning Skincare Ritual: I don't know about the rest of you, but even on my days off - I don't feel fully awake if I haven't completed my morning skincare ritual. The term "ritual" is new to my lexicon. I always thought of my skincare routine as a routine, but in reading about Asian skincare practices - I noticed that they often used the term ritual when describing the series of steps they take in their skincare practice.  The term routine implied something that we do everyday because we must, but a ritual implied something that a person savored and cherished. I like this concept. So I would like to use the term ritual hereafter when describing my skincare ...