Pamper yourself

Ok so this was on my bestie's blog and she's letting me snag it and i'm adding more to it.

"I'm tired of all this nonsense about beauty being only skin-deep. What do you want? An adorable pancreas?"


Being that I'm in my in late 20's(Just turned 28 on the 5th) skin care has become essential.
Here's some info. I've collected - hope you enjoy! :)

::5 Rituals for Beautiful Skin::

*Cleansing
*Exercise
*Sleep
*Sunlight
*Water

Adapted from "50 Simple Ways to Pamper Yourself" by Stephanie Tourles (Storey Books, 1999).

Skin care doesn’t need to be a complex chore: It can be simple, natural and basic. Find out how to make your skin radiant, healthy, and beautiful with these mostly-free, couldn’t be simpler tried-and-true techniques.

1. Cleansing Routine: A beauty must! Cleanse your skin twice daily (only once if your skin is dry) using a mild, natural, inexpensive cleanser designed for your skin type. Add a couple of drops essential oil of rose, spearmint, or orange to your cleanser to boost its cleaning effect and aromatic quality. Cleansing your skin is especially important before going to bed, because your body excretes toxins through your skin as you sleep. If facial pores are clogged with makeup and dirt, breakouts can occur. If you perspire a lot in your line of work or exercise heavily, then rinse off and massage your body with a coarse cloth or loofah before retiring to remove salt and dead-skin buildup. Your skin needs to breathe while you sleep!

2. Exercise: Try to exercise outside, to help oxygenate your cells with fresh air and facilitate waste removal through your skin. Exercises such as walking, biking, in-line skating, and weight lifting improve cardiovascular fitness and muscular endurance, which translates into increased energy and a rosy complexion. If you live in a city, try to find a green space—a park or a greenway—in which to exercise. If city streets, with their attendant pollution, are your only outdoor option, exercising in a gym may be a better alternative.

3. Sleep, Blissful Sleep: I don’t care what else you do to your skin, if you are sleep deprived your skin will look sallow, dull, tired, and saggy; with your puffy eyes, you will resemble a frog prince or princess. And of course, your energy level will be less than desirable. Sleep: It’s the best-kept skin care secret there is!

4. Sunlight: Ten to 15 minutes of unprotected exposure to sunlight several times a week is essential to the health of your bones and skin. It helps your body absorb calcium, due to the skin’s ability to convert the sun’s rays into vitamin D. Sun exposure helps heal eczema, psoriasis, and acne, and energizes your body. Plus those warm rays just make you feel good all over. If your dermatologist advises you to avoid the sun entirely, other sources of vitamin D include egg yolks, fish liver oil, vitamin-D-supplemented soy or cow’s milk, organ meats, salmon, sardines, and herring.

5. Water: What goes in must go out, and water helps move everything along. Impurities not disposed of in a timely manner via the internal organs of elimination (such as the kidneys, liver, lungs, and large intestine) will find an alternate exit, namely your skin, sometimes referred to as the “third kidney.” Pimples and rashes may develop as your body tries to unload its wastes through your skin. Eight to 12, 8-ounce glasses of pure water a day combined with a fibrous diet will help cleanse your body of toxins and keep your colon functioning as it should. Water also keeps your skin hydrated and moisturized, so drink up!

So again...

Skin is the largest organ and literally "drinks in" what you put on it, getting it into your bloodstream and your organs in a matter of minutes or even seconds. What you put on your skin can either help it or harm it - and your entire body - depending on what's in the product. Therefore, it's important to consider the ingredients in ALL the products you use - like those on your hair and body as well as your face. 

The best treatments for any age or type skin are not the most expensive ones, but rather gentle ones that are effective. Chemicals are not gentle or effective. In fact, research is showing that a buildup of chemicals on the skin can cause acne, dryness (which leads to prematurely aging skin) and skin cancer.

 The best products are those with the highest-quality ingredients, not the highest price.

 With so many manufacturers using chemicals in their products, almost any product - cleansers, moisturizers, shampoos, shaving creams, conditioners, hair gels, sunscreens and makeup - can be causing breakouts on your face and body. 





"Prescription Retinoid creams were originally developed as acne treatments, but subsequently it was discovered that they also helped reverse sun damage and skin aging."

Prescription Retinoids, which are vitamin A derivatives, work by exfoliating the top layer of skin and stimulating collagen production in the lower levels. Though in rare instances they can cause irritation, Dover says they work well—and quickly—with most skin types (“you’ll see improved smoothness and brightness within weeks”).

Since they increase sun sensitivity, Dover says to apply prescription retinoid products only before bedtime. In the morning, however, he says you can supplement your antiaging routine by using a moisturizer or serum that contains amino-peptides, botanicals, and/or growth factors (fruit cell extracts that mimic human embryonic stem cells).


::PACK ON ANTIOXIDANTS::
Vitamins A and C are known for their steadfast plumping and brightening (Dover calls them the best of all the vitamins). But other antioxidants—think green tea and pomegranate—can be great antiaging allies too. Model Agyness Deyn sees esthetician Christine Chin twice a month for facial sessions, which culminate with a green tea mask. “It calms, hydrates, and repairs her skin,” says Chin.

::EXERCISING IS A BIG ANTI-AGER::
A lot of people find that after doing yoga for a few months, their skin is glowing and any acne clears up. It’s not just the sweating; it’s the breathing and the stimulation of the nervous system. Besides toning your body, it also tones your face.

::VEGGIES::
Broccoli & sweet potatoes - full of natural estrogen. Which will
make your skin appear pretty nice ;) Leafy greens are high in vitamin A & C. Good for upping your glow factor.

Wash your face before bedtime. Try your hardest NOT to go to bed with makeup on.
ALSO -- clean your makeup brushes/sponges regularly. Lots of bacteria hide out in our brushes & sponges.

As for product - what to use, which to buy, cost...?

There are SO MANY products out there. Everyone needs to find a skin care regimen that fits their skin type. I don't think skin care has to be ridiculously expensive. There's great cleansers & moisturizers at your local drug stores.

Here's a list of great cleansers/moisturizers that you can find at your local drug store -
Neutrogena, Noxzema, Aveeno, Oil of Olay, Kissmyface, Eucerin, & Cetaphil.

Product that's a little more pricey -
Bare Escentuals, Bliss, Clinique, Lancome,MAC, & Philosophy Purity Made Simple.

For anti-aging, I like Anew by Avon & Timewise by Mary Kay

For me personally I have always have very sensitive and dry skin marked with a diagnosis of Psoriasis since High school. I never tan, exercising more and Just started drinking green tea and applying Vitamin E oil to my face and neck after showers. My bestie recommended Kissmyface and I am going to try it soon. Luckily the women in my family age well lol.

Also in the book offers these Pamper yourself tips:

1. Use lavender essential oils to relax.
2. Drink a cup of herbal tea.
3. Get an herbal facial steam.
4. Give your skin a drink with natural skin toners.
5. Dry brush your skin.
6. Get a foot massage.
7. Soak your feet.
8. Eat beans (they are high in vitamin B)
9. Exercise outside in the fresh air.
10. Get more sleep.
11. Drink more water.
12. Take a milk bath.
13. Brush your teeth with fresh mashed strawberries.
14. Put a few drops of lavender or Roman chamomile on your pillow.
15. Brighten your home with flowers and/or flowering plants.
16. Mist your face with water to refresh and hydrate your skin.
17. Use natural odor fighting mouthwash.
18. Walk barefoot on the grass.
19. Play in warm summer rain.
20. Let yourself be playful.
21. Try yoga.
22. Turn your bedroom into a private retreat.
23. Listen to music.
24. Spray your feet with chilled peppermint for a cooling energy boost.
25. Trust your natural inner wisdom.