Some many months back, I began writing about the possible myth surrounding the need to wash one’s face in my blog post, But Mom Told Me So… Fom skin line/care representatives, to the women on television, to skincare articles and even to the experts – dermatologists, I always heard the same message being blasted: good skin care starts with the right cleanser, used twice daily.  I don’t know who started this rumor, but it caught on and we  all have accepted this as a truth.  Not so, I say, as do many of the people I consider walking proof that this is just a gimmick to sell more products.  Everyone has a different skin type, and therefore, what holds true for one person will not necessarily work for another.  This is why I prefer to share with you my stories – but at the same time – I strongly suggest you discover what the best solution is for your skin type and needs.  Read more…

Sometimes in life you have the pure luck of stumbling across something so great that you either want to tell everyone or keep it your little secret.  As it turns out, it’s your lucky day, because I happened to discover something pretty awesome and I decided to let you in on my new must-have.

The summer months in muggy DC had begun to take a toll on my hair.  Frequent showers (all one has to do is stand outside and in minutes the sweat beads swell at your every pore), matched with frequent blow drying began to sabotage any potential for good hair days.  On top of that, my long hair would sweep my neck and back when I went on long, sweaty runs; the salt collecting on the ends of my hair began to really dry it out.  And after trying SO HARD to grow my hair out, I was now contemplating hacking a chunk off in order to have healthy looking hair again!  That was until something happened three weeks ago.  Read more…

I can’t say enough about the concept of “smart makeup.”  With the tireless innovations of the beauty industry, they’ve brilliantly thought up makeup that is infused with the goodness of the technology in those SPF, anti-aging and firming creams – and it just keeps getting better.  I’ll be sporadically (I always think of “Clueless” when I say that word) posting reviews on these products.  The latest thing to cross my radar is Anastasia’s Illumin8 With Youthful Synergy Complex Eye Shadow Palette.

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My friend Melanie has been allergic to nickel for as far back as she can remember.  Wearing any jewelry with this type of metal has always caused her to have skin reactions.  Melanie was able to make trips to the dermatologist an infrequent event by being careful to avoid wearing anything with nickel in it, and that worked well until last year.  She found herself with this inexplicable rash on her lower abdomen that just would not go away.  She finally made an appointment.

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In my last post, I discussed the first line of defense in tackling those pesky red pimples that always show up at the most inconvenient times.  Treating the redness is only a temporary fix, however, and so the the second line of defense is healing the pimple.  I have a few tricks that I use which work well for me, but if you’ve found success with a treatment – stick with it !

Generally, I’m not a fan of a lot of over the counter spot treatments.  I find that they irritate my skin and mostly worsen the blemishes.  Whenever using salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide, my pimples tend to become larger, redder and take much longer to heal.  So instead, one of the treatments I use comes from Lush.  Lush’s Fresh Pharmacy is a facial soap that is good for oily skin types.  While too drying for washing my entire face with, I have found that it does make a great spot treatment.  Read more…

No matter who you are – young  or old, male or female –  having a pesky, red pimple is not hot.  I was reminded of that the other day when one sabotaged my plans for looking fabulous.  And unfortunately, those are often the type you have to ride out over the course of a few days.  That’s why I have a couple tricks I use to get me through those embarrassing days.  Read more…