What is an Online Skin Care Consult?

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Do you need a skin care consult?

Do you purchase skin care products based on a recommendation from a friend or a blog post only to be disappointed by the results?

The product may not be to blame, it may just not be right for your skin type.

When you don’t have a local skin care specialist, you may turn to the Internet to research product and find recommendations. There are also online skin care consults popping up on some websites.

Most online skin care consults fall into one of two categories:

  1. A free computerized quiz from a large skin care company to categorize you into one broad type and offering their matching skin care range, usually “dry”, “oily” “sensitive” etc.
  2. An appointment for a one on one Skype consult with a specialist for $100+.

Being a busy business owner, I recently discovered the online shopping service for clothing, Bungalow. They match me with a stylist who sends me a box of clothing based on my likes and dislikes. I thought “What if there was a service like this for skincare?”. My online skin care consult and 3 Day Turnaround Kit was born!

The Hannah Sowd Skin Care Online Skin Care Consult begins with an in-depth questionnaire to determine your skin care needs, you can also upload photos of your skin to receive a more accurate assessment. Once I receive your completed questionnaire and photos, I determine your custom skin care routine.

Your routine will be comprised of skin care products from different product lines, including my own. Since I don’t work for any particular brand, I’m free to pick and choose the best items for your skin. All of the skin care brands I offer are products I’ve been working with for years in my studio so they are proven to be effective.

Once I have determined your best skin care routine, I create your 3 Day Turnaround Kit of product samples. This includes samples of all the products in your routine so you can try it for three days.

After you have a chance to try the 3 Day Turnaround Kit, you will receive a an offer for 20% your first purchase of all the full size products in your kit. What more could you want?

Get started now.

 Online Skincare Consult, $20 + tax and shipping

Three Ingredients For Younger Skin

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Antioxidants

The skin requires a healthy dose of antioxidants every day to prevent new damage and reverse prior skin damage. Layer your antioxidant serum under your SPF for added sun protection.

Retinol

Retinol helps increase skin cell turnover which in turn encourages collagen production. The end result is smoother, brighter skin with less breakouts and clogged pores.

Sunscreen

Everyone needs sun protection, end of story. If you don’t spend much time in the sun, an SPF 15 in your daily lotion is fine, if you get more exposure bump it up to SPF 30.

A good skin care routine is only as good as the products you use. While good quality products can help your skin look better now as well as in the future, poor quality products can be ineffective and even cause harm. In this blog, the dermatologists at Skin Center of South Miami explain more about the importance of quality skin care and facial products:

Why is good skin care important?
Good skin care is important for the following reasons:

It helps your skin stay in good condition: You’re shedding skin cells throughout the day, so it’s important to keep your skin glowing and in good condition. An effective routine can help prevent acne, treat wrinkles, and help keep your skin looking its best. We recommend you to buy the best face masks toronto for your skincare routine.
Your skin will look more youthful: As you age, your skin’s cells turn over more slowly, make it look duller and less radiant. Using a quality skin care line can help remove dead skin cells so your body will replace them with newer, more youthful cells.
Prevention is easier than correction: Preventing skin problems is easier -– and less costly – than trying to fix them in the future.
Your self-confidence will get a boost: When your skin looks better, you’ll feel better about yourself and have more self-confidence.

What’s Your Skin Type?

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Have you ever wondered how skin type is determined?

The amount of oil you produce is one of the major factors.

Dry

Dry skin types will benefit from washing with cool or warm (not hot) water using a cream based cleanser and treating with a serum followed by a creamy moisturizer. Serums have a thinner consistency and are more readily absorbed into the skin to deliver moisture to the lower layers, the moisturizer is designed to lock hydration in place.

PRO TIP: A common mistake is to assume dry skin does not need to be exfoliated. Exfoliating with an enzyme mask 1-2 times per week helps remove dead skin build up and allow products to penetrate better.

Normal

If you are lucky enough to fall into the normal category, chances are it won’t last forever! A gentle cleanser and moisturizer twice a day as well as an SPF during the day will keep your skin in great shape. As you age or experience hormonal changes, you can add to this routine to deal with the changes more easily since you have already established a routine.

PRO TIP: Do you fall asleep without washing your face? Get in the habit of washing your face right when you get home from work/gym/happy hour, BEFORE you sit down on the sofa to watch TV. Your skin will thank you!

Combination

Combination skin is a very common, oil in the T-zone yet dry on the cheeks. Use a gentle, foaming cleanser to get rid of the oil build up in the T-zone without over drying the cheeks. A treatment moisturizer with vitamin C will help prevent the excess oil from oxidizing in the pores and causing blackheads while keeping the cheeks from getting flaky.

PRO TIP: Use a white clay mask once a week to balance the skin, it will absorb excess oil from the oily areas and gently exfoliate dead skin from the dry patches.

Oily

Oily skin may be the most frustrating of all the skin types but the excess oil keep skin from getting wrinkles for much longer. Activated charcoal face wash helps absorb excess oil without over drying the skin, you can leave the cleanser on like a mask for 1-2 minutes for extra oil fighting power. Follow with a light antioxidant serum plus SPF during the day.

PRO TIP: Use blotting papers throughout the day to absorb excess oil without disturbing your makeup and SPF.

In-Flight Skin Care Tips

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women with dark hair looking out the window of an airplane

What’s the best routine for your skin while in an airplane?

 

The night before

 

Wash with your normal cleanser and exfoliate with an enzyme mask. Apply a balancing clay mask or a hydrating gel mask depending on your skin type.

Drink a lot of water.

 

The day of

 

Layer a hydrating serum under your moisturizer on clean skin before the flight. Skip the foundation and concealer, apply a light layer of tinted moisturizer if you need some coverage.

Drink a lot of water.

 

During the flight

 

For flights 5 hours or under, reapply your moisturizer at least once (wash your hands first!). Continue to drink water and skip the alcohol.

For flights over 5 hours, clean your skin with a cotton ball and toner mid-flight then reapply your hydrating serum and moisturizer. Drink more water.

 

After the flight

 

Repeat the enzyme mask + hydrating or balancing mask routine and continuing using the hydrating serum under your moisturizer.

Always pack travel sizes of your regular products when traveling. A foreign climate is not the time to introduce a new product to your routine.

And have a glass of water!

Why are plastic micro beads banned in the United States?

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President Obama recently signed a bill that banned the use of plastic microbeads in personal care products, this is great news for the environment!

How do plastic microbeads affect the environment?

This animation from The Story of Stuff illustrates it quite well. In short, the beads are too small to be filtered out of the water system and clog the gills of fish in the ocean or in the case of the smaller beads, become food for the fish and end up as part of our sushi platters.

What does this mean for skincare?

For many of us, nothing.

I’m not a fan of mechanical scrubs for exfoliation so I don’t retail any products that contain plastic microbeads. I prefer an enzyme or chemical product to exfoliate the skin.

Many companies are reformulating their mechanical scrubs to contain organic material. The downside to organic material is the pieces aren’t as uniform as plastic so they have a greater chance of causing micro tears to the skin.