Skin Recharge

As of today, face masks and scrubs have been very popular, but unfortunately have also increased in price. Now, I don’t know about everyone else, but I want a mask that not only exfoliates and hydrates my skin, but also I can afford.  Lucky for you, I will show you two different face masks and one body scrub that will help replenish you skin without leaving you with an empty wallet. 

1. Greek yogurt + Honey                                                                                   

• 2tbs Greek yogurt 

             – helps moisture the skin

• 1 tbs Honey

             – works on acne while Alison cleaning and moisturizing 

*Apply mask on a clean face

*Leave on for 15 minutes

*Wash off mask with warm water. 
    2. Greek yogurt + Oatmeal.                                                                 

• 2tbs Greek yogurt

              – helps exfoliate the skin 

• 3 scoops of Steel cut Oatmeal

             – helps sooth dry, irritated skin while at the same time keeping skin soft. 

*Apply mask on a clean face 

*Leave mask on for 15 minutes. 

*Wash off mask with warm water. 
   3. Brown sugar + Honey + Olive oil                                                                       

• 2tbs Brown sugar

              -scrubs off dry, rough skin. 

• 1tbs Olive oil and honey

             – both help re-nourish and moisturizer the body

* Apply to dry skin (hands, elbows, knees, body in general)

* leave on for 10-15 minutes and the wash off. 

Enjoy!! ❤️❤️❤️

I’m in Love with the Coco!

Coconut oil has been use to Re-boost the hair for a long time. It is one the easiest and affordable treatments for hair nourishments.

Personally my hair is a mess. It is always loosing its shine causing it to be dry. Im constantly finding myself applying half the bottle of conditioner just to have some soft hair, and I know I’m not alone. Although, using your entire conditioner bottle will give you shinning and soft hair, that will get pricy.

Coconut Oil benefits:

• Promotes hair growth
• Nourishes the scalp
• Rich in antioxidants
• Antiviral, anti fungal, and has antibacterial properties.                            
• Gives hair shine
• Hydrates
• Reduces dandruff

The process is simple. All you do is apply a good amount of coconut oil to dry hair. You can leave it on for a minimum of 30 minutes to overnight. ( wear a shower cap while incubating).

Simple. You can repeat once a week if needed.

Tea Bagged

Have your ever woke up from a late night, whether it’s from studying, partying, working, etc, and noticed your eyes are swollen?  I know, I know, dumb question, we all have. 

Well let me tell you, using tea bags for the eyes helps reduce tired and swollen eyes. The tea has to be caffeinated and have found that green or black tea are best. It said that caffeinated can help with dark circles as well, But in all honesty, I didn’t see a difference. 

Simple Steps:

1. Steep two tea bags in hot water for 3-5minutes. 
2. Once steep, place tea bags on a plate and let get cold in refrigerator for 20 minutes.
3. Gently squeeze the excess liquid until damp.
4. Place tea bags over eyes and leave for 15-30 minutes. 

That’s it. Super simple. Even I can’t mess this up. 

Enjoy!!!!

DIY Papaya Mask

Who loves face mask? I personally love doing a mask at let once a week. It’s like my own personal spa day. Relaxing music in the background, some gunk on my face, and a glass (bottle) of wine. It’s a win, win. 

Doing a face mask will help your skin in many different ways. Papaya is not only delicioso, but is also really good for the skin. 

There are only 3 ingredients to make this mask; Papaya, honey, and lemon. This mask will help overall with hydrating the skin, improve the skin tone, help with blemishes, acne, and skin discoloration. 

Papaya- 1/4 cup

•  Rich in Vitamin A, C, and E. 
• Has antioxidants 
• Hydrates, helps with blemish
• Lightly exfoliates the skin
• Helping with the overall youthful look. 

Honey-1 tbsp

• Helps retain moisture
• It is anti microbial- fights off bacteria caused by acne 

Lemon- 1/2 tsp

• Vitamin C 
• Has antioxidants 
• Lightens skin
• Reduces excess oils
• Skin is smooth and soft 

1. Make sure to begin any mask with a clean face.
2. Apply the mask to face and neck 
3. Leave mask on for 15-20 minutes
4. Rinse with cold water to close the pores

Mix all 3 ingredients in a blender/food processor until it is a fine paste

** Steaming the face before applying the mask will open up your pores and help your skin really absorb the products

*** Using a ripe papaya= easy blend. 

Champagne taste, on a Beer budget

Figuring out the type of skin care regimen is best for you, begins with identifying what type of skin type you have. For me, I have combination skin, which is where only my T zone is oily, and the rest of my face is normal. Luckily, I do not have sensitive skin, so trying new products does not really irritate my skin. 

Even though I would love to use all the high end producs that will turn my face to gold, I got bills to pay. So I use the products I can afford, but also have a positive effect on my skin. My current skin regimen is almost all drugstore products, except for two I purchased online. 

AM Routine 

1. Wash my face with Neutrogena gentle cleanser and dab face dry. 
2. Apply a thin layer of Vitamin C serum. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013NCB2JO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
3. App,y a thin layer of Cerave eye cream
4. Apply Neutrogena hydro boost moisturizer gel 
5. Apply a thin layer of Best Damn Beauty Lip mask. http://bestdamnbeauty.com/index2.html
6. Apply a layer of Neutrogena Healthy defense Spf 50 ( combination of moisturizer and SPF)

PM Routine

1. Wipe make up with make up remover wipes. 
2. Cleanse skin with Neutrogena gentle cleanser
3. Apply a layer Vitamin C serum, let dry for at least 30 seconds. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013NCB2JO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
4. Apply a pea size a amount of Neutrogena Retinol, let soak into skin
5. Apply a layer of Cerave eye cream 
6. Apply Neutrogena hydro boost moisturizer. 
7. Apply a thick layer of the best damn beauty lip mask ( life saver) http://bestdamnbeauty.com/index2.html

I try and keep my regimen simple. We all have a lot going on in life, from work, kids, to whatever it may be. The last thing we need is complicating it with a million and one products. 
Till next time…… 

Glowing skin is ALWAYS in.

This picture really states how gullible we can be when becoming desperate for healthy skin. There are many products out today that promote healthy glowing skin, and yes many of them work, but let’s face it, most don’t have the time, money, or patience to apply a million and one products . Other than the retinoids, which discussed in my last blog, Vitamin C plays a huge roll in providing that natural, healthy ,and glowing skin we all want. 

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid), when used a long period of time,  lifts and tightens by helping your skin boost collagen production. In other words, looking young and minimize the formation of wrinkles. 

Vitamin C benefits:

1. Lightens spots 
2. May help prevent and treat UV induced photodamage. 
3. Achieve younger and radiant skin 
4. Powerful antioxidants attack free radicals which cause to age prematurely. 

Like many products, you start to see the full effects on an average of 3 months when used daily. 

Wrinkle Free

     Who wants to get old? Really, that was a rhetorical question. No one wants to get old. The most noticeable aspect of getting old are wrinkles. There are treatments that can be done to minimize the appearance of wrinkles, but can add up and be really expensive. But there is one simple product that is not only affordable, but can help slow down wrinkles. One simple word, Retinoids. 

   Retinoids have been around for decades, but not many really understand or even know the benefits of a Retinol. I’ll keep this as sweet and simple as I can and give everyone the basic and most important factors of a Retinol. 
  

First and foremost, retinoids are most commonly prescribed by a dermatologist to treat inflammatory and/or comedone acne. Fortunately for everyone, there are drugstores that sale retinoids, the only difference is the strength.
   

As mentioned before, Retinols are most commonly used to treat acne, but have other indications which will definitely benefit everyone.

• They boost many cell functions that tend to slow down at the age of 30. 
• They get rid of all the dead cells
• Reduces the number of severity to promote quick healing (acne).
• Vitamin A derivative 

Basically, it helps slow down the wrinkles! 🙋🏽

Retinols are safe to use long term, but unfortunately, cannot be used if trying to conceive, pregnant, or Breast feeding. 

How to apply retinoids

1. Apply a pea size amount to the entire clean face at night. 
2. Let dry and be absorbed by the skin
3. If needed, you may moisturizer the skin afterwords. 

That’s it. Very simple. One very important fact one needs to remember when adding a retinol to their regimen is, retinols cause dryness, can irritate the skin at the beginning , and can cause some peeling. 

If your skin is oily, you would love a retinol because it will help minimize the oils. But if you have dry skin, you want to start applying the retinol every other night and possibly mixing the product with moisturizer. Once your skin gets use to the product, you can change the regimen to every night. 
* *some or most insurance don’t like covering retinols if you are over 25 years of age. One way to get around it, is for your doctor office to start a prior authorization with your insurance and try to get the medication approve, but of course their are no guarantees .  

First step to anti-aging

 

 

Everyone has been told once or twice to wear sunscreen for sunburn prevention, but most do not really understand the effect it has on our skin. To really understand the effects, let me give you the cliff notes on sunscreens.

Not only is sunscreen important to prevent sunburns, but it is also to protect from skin cancer and anti-aging. There are two important parts when purchasing sunscreens, UVA and UVB. Ultraviolet-A (UVA) can penetrate into the deeper layers of the skin and is responsible for the immediate tanning effect, skin aging and wrinkling. Ultraviolet-B (UVB) penetrate the superficial layer of the skin. It is responsible for burning and skin cancers. http://www.who.int/uv/faq/whatisuv/en/index2.html. Getting a sunscreen that is broad spectrum, will protect with both UVA and UVB.

Applying sunscreen everyday can help reduce your chances of skin cancer and having the leathery skin we hate. Having healthy skin begins with the protection from the sun. The sun also causes hyperpigmentation, capillary damage, and radical free damage. Needless to say, sunscreen is the most important step in skin care for a healthy and glowing skin. My recommendation is to apply SPF 30 every morning.