Have you seen the meme that says "January has been a long year." I love it because for me, it's so true. January always feels like the longest month of the year. Maybe it's because most of us have just resolved to do something we're not used to doing day in and day out, and we're just counting down the days til the 31st. Or maybe you're like me, and you made it the first 7 days without coffee only to resolve it's better for everyone that you remain caffeinated. I was cranky y'all.
One resolution I did take on years ago, and will continue with as long as I have a face, is having regular facials. When I had my first facial ever, I was completely hooked by the mere relaxation of it. I was also pretty annoyed. This was a facial?! I grew up with the impression that facials were some luxurious torture only older rich people did. Movies and t.v always portrayed women with their pre-facial relaxation, reclined in a robe with cucumbers on their eyes (always), only to leave as if they've just joined the witness protection program. Think Samantha Jones from Sex and the City. But that was not the case at all! Between leaving sans redness, glowing healthily and relaxed, I also learned something about my skin that fascinated me. I had always thought my skin was oily. Just oily, nothing more, nothing less. But my skin care trainer told me my skin was dehydrated. She explained the dehydrated areas on my face and why I could be experiencing them, and recommended a couple of products to add to my routine. The thing was, I didn't know my skin was dehydrated. It had been dehydrated for so long, I thought that's just what my skin felt like. After implementing the new products to my routine, and a couple more facials, I couldn't believe what my skin looked like. I couldn't believe that's what my skin felt like. "It's so smooth," I said to her, (running my hands over my face,) and she agreed, and then she told me to stop touching my face.
This is something I have in common with our skoah kustomers. The realization that regular facials are A. realistic, and B. enlightening. One of the many perks of regular facials is having access to our skin care trainers wealth of knowledge, and kustomized recommendations based on our skins needs. They are skin experts, and they have heard it all. I polled some of our trainers, and these seem to be some of the most commonly asked questions during their sessions. You might learn something that could Amp up your Glow!
How often should I exfoliate?
Fun fact: You lose about 30-40 thousand skin cells an hour. That's roughly one million skin cells in a 24 hour period. The human body is so majestic...
Some of this dead skin remains on the surface of your face, which can clog pores, and cause your skin to look dull and feel dry. Exfoliating loosens and removes these dead skin cells revealing plumper, younger skin cells. Skin also looks and feels smoother, while your skin care products can work more effectively by penetrating the areas between skin cells. As far as how much you want to be exfoliating, this can depend on the person, but we typically want you to aim for 2-3 times a week. The exception here is anyone with hypersensitive skin types prone to irritation, in which cause 1-2 times a week is usually best. Signs you're exfoliating too much are excessive dryness, irritation, redness, and sensitivity. The key is to 'listen' to how your skin responds to regular exfoliation.
What do toners do?
One of the most important things a toner does is balance out your pH. But what does this mean, you ask? Settle in class, it's time for a quick Chemistry lesson.
A pH is essentially the measure of acidity or alkalinity of water soluble substances. A pH value is a number from 1 to 14, with 7 as the middle (neutral) point. Our skin is naturally acidic, typically with a pH balance around 5.5. This number is pushed and pulled to different levels depending on the alkaline or acidic nature of the products or water you're using when you for instance, cleanse your skin. Depending on how acidic or alkaline your skin becomes, you can experience dry patches, irritation, or begin to produce too much oil that can lead to breakouts.
This is where a classic toner comes in. A toner, like our tonik, quickly restores your skin to it's epidermal heaven in the 5.5 range. Balanced skin, is happier skin.
How often should I clean my makeup brushes?
Dirty brushes can lead to breakouts and fungal infections. As a general rule of thumb, clean your brushes weekly with a brush cleaner, and additionally, wash once a month with a gentle shampoo. *It's important to lay your brushes flat to dry, as standing them up can cause the moisture to travel down to the base where mold and bacteria can grow.*
I have acne, won't I break out more if I moisturize?
Even if your skin is normally oily, acne treatments can sometimes take your skin from shiny to uncomfortably dry, flaky and irritated. Using a moisturizer daily is the best defense to help with these side effects. We also commonly see peoples skin breaking out because they're not moisturizing. There are lots of moisturizers on the market that won't cause more breakouts or your skin to feel greasy. Here are a few of ours: face skotion lite, face skotion, face kream
Do I really need to wear SPF every day, even when it's cloudy?
When it comes to SPF, the answer is always yes. Sunscreen should be called daylight screen, because the sun doesn't need to be out to penetrate your skin. UVA rays are present during all daylight hours, 365 days a year. Up to 40% of the suns damaging rays can reach you on cloudy days, and furthermore, can penetrate glass. We're exposed to large doses of UVA throughout our lifetime, so in this case, it's better to be safe than sorry. Besides all the obvious reasons you should be using it (ahem, skin cancer), wearing SPF is the BEST way to prolong healthy, glowing skin. One study showed that 90% of wrinkles come from the sun. Ninety Percent. We'll just go ahead and link our SPF's here for ya: dewlux face kream lite 30, face lotion 25, face skotion 30, and body lotion 30
How important is my at home routine?
Your homecare routine plays a key role in your skins progress, and how long your facial results last. It's essentially maintenance for your monthly facial. Imagine for a moment that you went to your dentist for a monthly cleaning, but in between that time, you didn't brush, floss, or rinse. Your dentist would be starting from square one again and again, and eventually the lack of care would result in bigger issues.
How do I prevent and treat breakouts on my shoulders, back and chest?
Most treatments that work on your face will work on your body. You can spray turbo tonik on those hard to reach places like your back and shoulders. It has a blemish blaster blend to fight breakouts and reduce bacterial presence on the skin. Another cause could be you're not exfoliating your body. Invest in a body buffer like our body skrub to slough away dead skin to polish and soften.
To prevent future breakouts on your body, wear clothing made of cotton or other absorbent materials, and change out of damp gym clothes as soon as possible. Sometimes, your bar soaps or even clothing detergent can be the culprit. Opt for gentle, sulphate free body washes, and unscented detergent products.
Have more questions? DM us on instagram or Facebook, or book in for a facial to speak with a skin care trainer about your skin!
