Woke up this morning and my face just felt nasty. Do you ever get that feeling? Like you just need a deep clean? That’s how I was feeling this morning. So after walking my dog in the wonderfully cooler weather, enjoying a few cups of coffee, and some peanut butter and jelly toast, that’s exactly what I did: gave my skin some love. Took a nice bath, applied my Skin Ceuticals Clarifying Clay Masque and read my newest book (lately I’ve been going through books at the rate of about two per week).
Seventeen years ago, when I was pregnant, taking a bath and using a clay masque was one of my most favorite things. The clay smells earthy and I love that…I find it relaxing.…and now it’s nostalgic as well. So while I read the last few chapters of Playground: A Childhood Lost Inside the Playboy Mansion the clay did its job and pulled out all the impurities in my pores. Next it was on to the Clarisonic. If you don’t have one, you should get one. Plain and simple. When I started at Body Tonic the girls were like, It will change your life. I saw no reason why an automated facial brush would change my life, but dang, it’s pretty amazing. It cleans your skin five times better than just using your hands. It feels crazy smooth afterwards too…like after a peel or microderm. And as Iris says, After I do my face, I start again and do my neck. My neck! How did I not think of that! So now I do that as well. I loaded up my face with my Elta MD Foaming Face Wash (this stuff really bubbles!!) and turned on my Clarisonic.
My face was as smooth as Maricela’s newborn baby’s behind will be!
As I finished up my shower I thought that how, finally, at the age of 40, my skin seems to have settled down. I say that today, and watch…next week I’ll probably break out in cystic acne. The battle with my skin has been a long one. I’ve taken Acutane three times. Luckily I escaped that hormonal nightmare unscathed, with no acne scars. But despite having such issues with my skin, I have generally been lazy when it comes to investing in, or even caring about the products that are best for my skin. It’s strange to think that we could drop a few hundred on a dinner, or new boots, but not want to pay even half that for quality skincare products!
When I started at Body Tonic one of the girls gave me a skin care consult and suggested what was best for my skin type, and my skin issues. She included recommendations for tretinoin, face wash, toner, eye cream, and sunscreen. If you haven’t had a skin care consult, definitely bring it up next time you’re in!
Soon after that consult, I also attended an Obagi training where we learned the science behind a lot of their products. When they talked about toner, I rolled my eyes. I never understood toner…I’ve always thought it’s pretty much pretend. To me, toner was Sea Breeze, and I used it as a kid to take off my makeup when I was too lazy to wash my face. Or else I used it after being out in the heat and I liked the cooling feeling it left on my skin. I now know that stuff just strips off any trace of goodness that needs to be on your skin!
But even as I entered the world of beauty, as I began my work at Body Tonic, toner still remained the product at the bottom of my “needs” list. The trainers at the Obagi seminar addressed this issue actually. Toner is a way to balance your skin’s pH. It’s particularly wonderful in the cooler months when your skin can feel extra dry after washing. I crave it now! It feels good, and smells good too. And my skin is much healthier for it. At that training, they gave us a little sample bag of products: their foaming gel, their toner, and a sunscreen. (To this day, even though I use products from other skin care lines, the Obagi foaming gel and toner are my favorites: they smell great, they aren’t overly drying, and they have a great price point.)
Anyhooo…back to my Sunday morning deep facial cleaning… I hopped out of the shower and sprayed on my Skin Ceuticals Equalizing Toner. Any trace of skin tightness or dryness was automatically erased. Then came my Neocutis Lumiere eye cream, and finished it all off with Elta MD Daily tinted SPF with hyaluronic acid. If I were going to put make up on and go somewhere, which clearly I’m not going to because instead I’m in pjs writing my blog, I would also have applied my Skin Ceuticals tinted eye SPF, which also acts as a primer for under-eye concealer. (I’ve never been big on under eye creams either. I remember Kit asking me, when I started at Body Tonic, what eye cream I used, and I said I didn’t. She gave me one of those wonderful Kit looks like I had just said something as crazy as that I hated Mexican food and wine).
The thought of using all these products used to exhaust me and bore me. Why on earth do I need all this stuff? Well, honestly you don’t need it if you aren’t interested in protecting that beautiful skin of yours, or if you don’t care about preventing future damage.
But you DO need skincare products if you want to protect your skin after your IPLs, Whispers, injectables, peels, etc. You DO need skincare products if you want to prevent further sun and environmental damage.
You can check out our Products page and inquire with any of the girls next time you’re in about what’s best for you. If money is an issue, we always have at least a few products on discount each month, and we have four product lines with various price points as well. Keep in mind most products generally last three months or more.
In case you’re interested, my favorites, and the ones I use daily are:
Cleansing: Obagi Foaming Gel or Elta MD Foaming Wash
Toner: Obagi (it doesn’t come in a spray bottle but you can always buy one at Target and pour your Obagi toner in that. Great for a quick cleanse off after yoga or the gym, until you can get home for a good wash); or any Skin Ceuticals toner
Serums: Skin Ceuticals CE Ferulic. I have used this for many years. Great antioxidant and it gives you a noticeable glow.
Eye: Neocutis Lumiere Eye Cream & Skin Ceuticals SPF Eye (tinted and helps with concealing under eye circles)
SPF: Elta MD Daily SPF tinted with hyaluronic acid (feels like silk and you can actually go without foundation if you want to).
At night I use our prescription tretinoin to help with skin cell turnover for improved skin clarity and texture. (I use a little on my neck and décolletage as well…thank you very much for the tip Iris!)
Oh! And don’t forget the Clarisonic! And the face masques! I LOVE masques. I use both the Skin Ceuticals Hydrating B5 and the Clarifying Clay…depending on what my skin is feeling like.
All our products will be 20 percent off at the Open House, Thursday, November 12th from 3-7!! Can't wait to see you!!