Skin care no good? Makeup no good!

THE SKIN:
Ok, so as you know(I hope!) our skin is our body’s largest organ and it serves as a protective barrier to our entire body. Because it’s constantly exposed to EVERYTHING, the care we give to it, is of the utmost importance!! The surface appearance of our skin is largely affected by environmental factors and how we care for our health internally and externally.

THE BASICS:
Face washing-
Sooooo, for whatever reason, people have a very hard time washing their face on a regular basis! For a makeup wearing woman, this is especially disturbing. Now, I cannot even lie and tell you that there hasn’t been a time(s) I maybe had a littleeeee itty bitty too much to drink and passed out pre-makeup removal (it happens), but I try my best be diligent and consistent in my skincare routine. Hey, we only get one face! Unless, you’re that creep guy from Jeepers Creepers who steals everyone’s damn face right off their damn head. Don’t be him. Love your own face.

*The BASIC face wash:
1. Use a gentle, non-abrasive cleanser, preferably one WITHOUT alcohol (Vodka’s fine though. Just kidding).
2. Wet your face and apply your cleaner with your fingertips. Fingertips are the least abrasive to the skin (use circular motions). Resist the temptation to scrub your skin because scrubbing irritates the skin.
3. Rinse with water and pat dry with a towel (a soft one is ideal)
4. Moisturizer

*The NOT as BASIC face wash:
This includes incorporating a gentle exfoliator or face mask, toner, possible serum and SPF (if it’s the daytime)

EXFOLITAOR: getting the best version of your skin is always the ideal situation! Using an exfoliator in your routine (2-3x per week) aids in this process by removing dead skin cells, thus exposing the *not dead* skin. Live skin for the win! Removing dead skin also improves the texture of the skin. Think about your feet before and after they use the cheese scraper thingy during a pedi! (I am in no way, shape, or form advising you to cheese grate your face. Please don’t do that). As always, be gentle! Scrubbing can also cause unwarranted redness and irritation.
TONER: it’s role is to complete the cleansing step (insert after step#3) and rid the skin of any particles, pollution or impurities that the cleanser may have left behind. You can apply the toner to a cotton round and use all over the neck, throat and face (excluding the eyes). Toner also aids in balancing/restoring the pH levels in the skin
SERUM: adding in a serum before your moisturizer is kind of a no brainer because of the benefits. Raise your hands if you want to get wrinkles? Oh, no one??? (if you raised your hand, you can stop reading now). So the role of the serum is to target a specific skin concern i.e.: wrinkles, dark circles, hydration issues. They are highly concentrated and have the capability to penetrate deeper into the skin than a moisturizer, due to their smaller molecules. Serums can also be used under the eye. Serums work best when your skin is still slightly damp from cleanse/tone.

SPF: last step, and super-duper important. Kind of like how science taught us that smoking is bad for lungs, welp science also taught us that overexposure to the sun is also bad. It causes premature aging, may cause skin cancer and EVERY TIME you encounter a sunburn, you do irreversible damage to the skin. Being tan is great, I know! But our body’s natural defense mechanism to the sun is an increase in its melanin production (causing the browning affect) which still occurs while wearing SPF. Over exposure is never ok. Shield that face ya’ll!
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HYDRATION/MOISTURIZER:
Crucial step, which is why it has its own subsection! After you’ve washed that face (basic or not), you want to hydrate that face (in this case, with moisturizer). I always apply my moisturizer in an upward motion towards my temple. Pulling down on the skin could potentially advance aging and wrinkles. Yuck! The under eyes deserve extra attention as well, that area is the most delicate on our entire face. If applying an eye cream, always use your ring finger in a light tapping fashion around the eye. Our ring finger has the lightest tough of all of our fingers. (who knew?!)

Hydration. Hydration. Hydration. Our bodies are made up roughly 60% water, so more than half of our entire existence is water! So, it would make sense that we must ensure that we stay hydrated, always. Our skin interacts and appears in direct connection with how hydrated we are. Dehydrated or under hydrated body’s skin looks like shit. It’s dull, appearance is dry, flaky, dark circles/bags under eyes, acne prone, oily, etc. Not to say that is the ONLY reason those symptoms can occur, but it is certainly an indicator.
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Now we understand that washing our face is like, pretty damn important to the longevity and preservation of our precious facial skin! Wash your face people!

Let’s get a little cute and discuss some tips and tricks for ideal skincare leading up to your wedding day (or any other significant event where your skin and makeup need to be on point!)

Water: Put down the sodas and energy drinks and 9 cups of coffee. Ok, I know sometimes your dragging ass just needs a Red Bull. I get it. I drank enough energy drinks and coffee in college to probably bottle up and blast me to the moon. Am I even alive? I think I am. Ok. Alcohol is also something to wean out. It bloats you and hungover skin looks like shit. Don’t worry, you can still get black out drunk on Malibu and pineapple if you want to, just aim for 5-7 business days before the wedding 😉 Drink all of the water. Circles back to the hydration thing we discussed before and keep your face/body hydrated with moisturizer.

Waxing: Please don’t choose the day before your wedding to get your entire body waxed, when your last experience with hair removal was Nair in 2002. No trying new things the week of the wedding. Waxing causes redness and irritation to the skin. If you have been waxed before and know your skin’s sensitivity, schedule your appointment AT LEAST 2 days in advance.

Exfoliating: as discussed in detail before, exfoliating is a key player in a fresh glowing complexion. In your “road to a perfect face for your wedding” journey, enjoy the benefits of exfoliating. If you aren’t regularly doing this already–again, DO NOT start the night before the wedding! Choosing a reasonable 30-45-day window pre-wedding to exfoliate 1-3 times per week leading up to, should suffice.

If one thing in this entire blog resonates with you, let it be the importance of cleaning your face. Leading up to your wedding, you want your best skin forward. So cliché, I know, but also sooooooo true! Make it an honorary pledge to your skin (your makeup artist will thank you) to clean your face EVERYDAY! Establish a regimen with a combination/or all of the products discussed above and let that skin liveeeeeee! There are only positives that will come out of it—your makeup will look bomb for your wedding and your face will look bomb every day. #winning

Ok, byeeeeee

-A

Disclaimer: This blog post is intended to be a general resource only and is not intended to be nor does it constitute professional medical advice.

Sources:
*American Academy of Dermatology
*Into the Gloss