Skin

Makeup Monday–My Favorite Moisturizer

May 14, 2012 · 2 comments

in Good Things, Makeup/Beauty, Skin

It’s time we sat down and had a chat. You know you’re not getting any younger, right? Even if you’re 22, you know your lovely, wrinkle-free skin won’t last forever.  The older you get, the more important nice skin becomes. So here’s what you need to do: Stay out of the sun. I know, I know; you look gross and pasty if you don’t have a tan. I get it. But this is the thing: a tan lasts for what– a few days? But the damage of being out in the sun lasts forever. Forever. You can’t undo the damage. It’s not like a pair of lungs that somehow regenerate themselves once a person stops smoking. Forget what the ads say, you can’t turn back the clock. If you could everyone would look 28.

It’s sad to consider all the damage we girls of the 80′s did in the quest for bronze-goddess status. But nowadays pale skin is where it’s at. You can be pale and still be accepted socially!  Look at all the actresses! They are pale. So accept your future; it’s either tan and wrinkly or pale and less wrinkly. There is no possibility of being tan and having gorgeous skin until you’re fifty. It is simply impossible. Impossible.

Most of the skin products I use are homemade, but my daytime moisturizer is something I don’t mess around with. Why? I need serious SPF and so do you. Adding SPF to handmade products is a tricky business and I don’t want to end up making a product that hurts, rather than helps, my skin.

There are a jillion creams and lotions out there for you to chose from. I stick to the drugstore products because they are cheap and work perfectly well. If buying something that costs $50 makes you feel better about yourself, be my guest.  But there are lots of cheapo products that work really nicely.  This is my favorite. It’s by Garnier and moisturizes my dry skin without making it greasy, and it looks nice under my makeup. It has a nice fat SPF of 28.  You shouldn’t be putting anything on your face with an SPF less than 25.

favorite daytime moisturizer

Garnier Skin Renew costs about $12 and can be purchased at any drug store/Target, etc.

Again, my skin is dry and not at all sensitive. If your skin is oily or easy irritated, you might need to try some other options. Garnier Skin Renew might work for you or it might not. Either way make sure you get something with a nice high SPF. Promise?

 

I was not paid by anybody to hype this product. I just like it.

Bumpy Red Skin on Your Upper Arms and How to Get Rid of It

November 21, 2011 · 6 comments

in Bad Things, Good Things, Health, How-To, Makeup/Beauty, Skin

Today is Makeup Monday and although I call it that, it’s really about more than just cosmetics. Anything having to do with the face or skin is fair game.  Today we’ll be discussing that gross, bumpy, red skin that shows up on the backs of your arms (or even on your legs, hips or bum). I always figured this skin condition was something that happened to everyone as they got older. It happened to me, although I’m not really sure when I first noticed it—maybe sometime in my early thirties.  But I’ve talked to several people who don’t have it (lucky!). I’ve also found out that it can actually be caused by a medical condition called Keratosis Pilaris. (That sounds like some sort of fancy new workout.)

I’m rather passionate about skin care and have tried all sorts of methods to get rid of my scaly, red chicken skin. I have used every exfoliation product sold at the store and still it’s persisted.

Until now.

My red bumps are gone. Completely gone. It took about two weeks.

This is how I got rid of them: (People are always asking me for lots of details when I do a skin “how-to” so this will be very descriptive.)

1. Exfoliate in the shower every day. You can use whatever method you prefer. I have a loofah that I use sometimes. But I also use an Apricot Scrub by St. Ives. This is a really unique body scrub because it isn’t oily. Most scrubs are full of oil so they will moisturize as well as exfoliate. But we don’t need to be coated with oil at this point. So stick with the St. Ives if you plan on using a body scrub (it’s also perfect for exfoliating before a spray tan). It’s cheap and can be found in just about any drug or grocery store. But any product that really gives your skin a good scrubbing will be fine.  Exfoliation alone is not enough, though.


2. Moisturize. I stumbled across a fantastic product a while ago called Olay Quench In-Shower Body Lotion. It is pretty strange stuff. After you’ve cleaned yourself off in the shower, you slather this Olay lotion on and then rinse it off. Yes, you rinse it off. So bizarre. But it is wonderful. It will leave your skin so moist and soft. And it has a little sparkle to it. Who doesn’t want to be sparkly? (Okay, maybe not men. But Mister uses it and you definitely cannot see the sparkle through his arm hair.) It has  a pleasant scent (not my fave but it’s OK. The scent doesn’t last long anyway).  Occasionally I can find this at Target (you know I don’t shop at the Walmarts on principle so I can’t tell you if they sell it there) but sometimes I have to get it here on Amazon where it’s about $8 for a pretty big bottle. It’s easy to spot because it has a large hole at the top of the bottle to hang in your shower (nifty little touch). You don’t have to use this moisturizer, but I love it and it’s super convenient to apply lotion head to toe and be done in 30 seconds. If you don’t want to use this, then go straight to step three.

3. After I get out of the shower and do my hair, my lotion has absorbed pretty well so I apply my third—and most important—product: Glytone Body Lotion which you can buy here. I found this on Amazon and it’s been a game-changer.  This lotion is over 17% Alpha Hydroxy Acid. So basically, it’s going to sizzle off those bumps and keep new ones from forming.  Glytone is pretty spendy (about $30 for an 8 ounce bottle) but I only apply it to the areas that need it so I imagine it’s going to last quite a while.  Glytone needs to be applied twice a day, so I use it in the morning after my shower like I said, then in the evening after I get undressed. That way it can sit on my body all night long.

I’ve been completely amazed at my arms; they are silky, clear and baby soft. It took me about two weeks to get them looking good, but other people that have used Glytone say it can take up to 3-4 weeks.  If you’re going to be wearing anything revealing for the holidays, now is the time to get your skin in tip-top shape.

 

I was not compensated for any of these products. I bought them, tried them and liked them all on my own.

Makeup Monday–Olive Squalane and Shea Butter

October 17, 2011 · 10 comments

in Good Things, Jennie Likes, Makeup/Beauty, Skin

Hey lookie! Makeup Monday is back! It’s not just about makeup, despite its name. It’s about beauty, and products I like, and maybe even a tutorial or two. After all, I want you readers to be even better looking than you already are! Well, actually, you can be hideous if you want. It’s not really my business. But I’m here to help you look ravishing if you’d like to. And before we even think about makeup we need to think about skin. It’s your blank canvas. Your makeup can be absolutely perfect, but if your skin is no good then it hardly matters.

I am 40 and my skin still looks pretty darn good. I get compliments on it almost every day. Part of it is genetics, part of it is staying out of the sun, but a large part of it is due to two products: olive squalane and shea butter. I make my own soap (soap being nothing more than a combination of water, lye and oils). While I think soap is sort of important, it’s washed off every time it’s used. But moisturizers stick around. To me moisturizing is where it’s at. I love the idea of using completely natural products on my skin. Because of my soapmaking, I have many, many oils and butters on hand. I have tried everything to see what works.

I have dry skin that has only gotten dryer as I’ve aged. Dry skin looks tired and lackluster. So I was thrilled to find my first product: Olive squalane. Squalanes are produced by the skin and are basically fats pumped with antioxidents. They are what gives a child that radiant, glowing complexion. But our bodies slow down squalane production in our early 20′s. After than we’re left with skin that gets wrinklier every year. Excuse me while I sob about that for a minute.  But lo, here is squalane in a bottle! It is wonderful! Seriously, it is light and quickly-absorbed by the skin. I apply a few drops to my face, neck and hands every night after I wash my face. When it’s dry weather I’ll also put some on before I apply my moisturizer with SPF.

The thought of putting oil on my face freaked me out a little the first time I tried it. I mean, I spent my entire adolescence getting rid of oil! But this isn’t heavy and won’t clog pores. It’s nickname is “A facelift in a bottle”. While I think that might be pushing it, olive squalane is fantastic stuff; my skin glows. It is soft and moist and healthy-looking. It will forever be my favorite facial product.

My second favorite product is shea butter. I make a salve that has several ingredients but the backbone is pure shea butter. I’ve used it by itself for quite a while and it’s great stuff. When I was about 35 I started getting dry, scaly skin under my eyes. The skin in that area is very delicate and I had an impossible time trying to get rid of the dry cracks.  I even tried chemical peels which worked for a couple of weeks but never cured the problem.  One night as I was going through my soapmaking supplies I came across my container of shea butter. I though, “what the heck?” and rubbed a bit under my eyes. By the morning the dry skin was gone and has never come back.

Shea butter is very heavy and greasy. I only put it under my eyes and around the mouth on my smile lines. It’s incredibly gentle and has never irritated my eyes. It is also great to put on lips or on chapped baby cheeks. If you live in a dry or cold climate, you need this stuff!

Olive squalane and shea butter are specialty ingredients that can be hard to find locally. I get mine from Texas Natural Supply. They are here in Austin but are exclusively a mail order company. I have been thrilled with the quality of their products. Their prices are very good too (although shipping is not cheap. But in the end these products are not going to be any more expensive than nice drugstore moisturizers). You can find olive squalane here and shea butter here.

Itching for a scratch

July 27, 2010 · 4 comments

in Bad Things, Feeling Sorry for Myself, I'm Not So Great, Skin, Texas

Central Texas has quite the infestation of mosquitoes this year. We had a very wet spring and now we are celebrating buy buying lots of cans of insect repellant. We have the typical dusk-loving mosquitoes, but this year there seems to be a brazen new strain of bugs that come out during the day. It’s kind of like those campy old vampire movies where suddenly the vampires become immune to sunlight. It changes everything. This year I can’t sit out by the pool without getting eaten alive. Even in the middle of the afternoon. Mosqitoes, what is going on? Whence the superhuman strength?

The upshot is that I have bug bites all over me. I hear every adult voice in my head telling me not to scratch. But one day I just though, “Who cares? Why shouldn’t I scratch? Scratching just means they’ll stop itching sooner.” Which is true. I congratulated myself on going against the flow and feeling free enough to scratch as I pleased. But now there is a big problem; I have gross scabs and scars from scabs. Especially on my legs.

They look horrid.

And no amount of fake tanner can camouflage a scab.

Maybe all those voices telling me not to scratch knew what they were talking about. Darn. I hate when those voices are right.

Chappy

March 11, 2009 · 2 comments

in Good Things, Health, Jennie Likes, Skin

Target never ceases to wow me.  Last night as York and I were shopping for supplies for his art class I came across the new skincare line from Boots.  Not only is it so darling, but the lip stuff is actually called Lip Salve.  This is what I have always called Chapstick, Carmex, et al.  I don’t know why. I think I just like the word “salve”.  

I feel so validated.

I will not, however, be buying any Boots products, cute as they may be.  You know I make my own line of skincare, so why would I?

Aaah, the hubris

August 24, 2008 · 6 comments

in Skin, Yuck

You know how I mentioned a few days ago that I have such wonderful skin?  Well, due to my bragging I am developing what will surely be one of the decade’s largest zits (everything is bigger in Texas!)  It is still in the subterranean stage, but I can feel it growing in strength and power.  It should burst forth in all its nasty glory in a few days.  My pale skin only accentuates the redness, so I will appear to have a large neon light on my chin.  If you happen to see me, please avert your eyes.  Many thanks.

Les produits de beauté

August 21, 2008 · 9 comments

in Good Things, Making Stuff, Skin

I am a bit obsessive about my skin.  I cannot tell a lie, it looks good. Especially for being as old as it is.  I like to make some of my skin care products, others I buy.  The bottom line is that I have a motley assortment of bottles and jars around my sink and it’s been driving me crazy.  It’s hard to express how much I can’t stand ugly things.  So I got down to business and created some pretty packaging and now everything matches.  I even spent several hours trying to conquer the monster that is Adobe Illustrator in order to make some labels that I’m madly in love with.  It’s so much harder than it looks!


The two products below are my favorites. One is an Eye Salve to wear at night. It’s mostly shea butter with some aloe and avacado; so gentle and terribly moisturizing. I had some dead, dry skin under my eyes a few years ago that I could not get rid of, no matter what I tried. Not even those harsh acidy creams made a difference. I finally dug some shea butter out of my soapmaking supplies and tried it under my eyes and voila! The dry skin has disappeared for good, as have all the little lines that were beginning to form.

The other product is olive squalene. It’s an olive oil extract that is fantastic. It seems a little weird to put oil on your skin, but it’s quite light and is absorbed pretty quickly. It has excellent healing and restorative qualities, and can help with age spots and fine lines. It also is an antibiotic by nature and can calm down acne. (I know, oil + zits = bad, but olive squalene is different.) Which is why companies charge the big bucks for it ($48 for one ounce! cough, choke), but you can find it much, much cheaper through soap supply companies.  I slather it on every night and my skin feels incredible by morning.  This is especially great for dry skin, whether it’s due to climate or “maturity”.

If you beg me, I might just sell you some.