Archive | beauty

Be Your Own Breast Friend

By Skinmedix on August 16, 2013 in anti-aging, beauty, SPF

The skin on the chest is thinner than on the face, and the cells don’t turn over as quickly. Start treating the girls with some respect and TLC.

Morning: Smooth on a cream high in antioxidants and peptides, like Pro+Therapy MD Advanced Ultra Rich Day Repair. The sun is 95% of the aging process. In fact, the sun breaks down the collagen and elastin fibers in the skin of your breats, making them sag faster, so don’t forget to follow up with a sunscreen!

Night: Exfoliate with a Clarisonic brush or a mild scrub, like PCA Skin Gentle Exfoliant. Then spread on a mix that’s one part retinol cream and one part moisturizer (we like DDF Pro-Retinol Energizing Moisturizer). Before you hit the sheets, rememeber—the chest get wrinkles, too. The way sleeping on your side can encourage wrinkles on the face, it can also cause those fine lines between your breasts. Your best bet? Sleep on your back.

NEW ARRIVAL: Beautyblender Sponge Applicator

By Skinmedix on June 28, 2013 in beauty, Uncategorized

NEW ARRIVAL: Beauty Blender

Now you can look like a movie star without the pricey services of a major make up artist. Introducing Beautyblender, the ultimate make up sponge applicator. Invented by top Hollywood make up artist Rea Ann Silva, Beautyblender has been created to leave you with a professional finish and a flawless complexion. Silva knows that the key to a perfect face is simple: a perfect blend. So forget your fingers or sharp-edged triangular sponges, these application methods waste make up and can leave visible streaks.

Beautyblender’s patent-pending elliptical shape makes application foolproof by allowing you to access hard-to-reach areas with stunning ease. Its suede texture is sensual to the touch and its unique curves fit the contours of your face, leaving your make up dazzling and undetectable. Beautyblender is latex free, non-allergenic and odor free.

The Sponge


Original Beautyblender® – the star of the system	Beautyblender® Pro – Same material, different color. A true omage to Professional Makeup Artists around the world.	Beautyblender® Pure – Still the same amazing cosmetic applicator but without color

How to UseAlways dampen the Beauty Blender sponge before use. Take the sponge and soak it in water. The sponge expands to nearly double it’s volume. Squeeze out all the water, and use the damp sponge to apply the makeup. Bounce Beautyblender against your face when applying make up. Bouncing, also called stippling, blends make up without creating changes in the texture or tone of your skin. Use Beautyblender’s pointed side for hard-to-reach spots like around the nose and mouth, and under the eyes. Use the round base for foundation and blush on the larger areas of your face such as your forehead, cheeks and chin.

Tip: Make sure you don’t throw away the packaging, as the pedestal in the packaging is used to store your sponge after usage and for drying after you have cleaned it.

Shop the Beautyblender and Beautyblender cleansers on SkinMedix.com – now available in single, duo, and multi-variety packs!

Prepping Your Skin for Makeup

By Skinmedix on June 22, 2013 in beauty, Uncategorized

All the primer in the world can’t create flawless skin. For that seamless makeup look, try one or all of these tips to get your complexion ready!

Power Wash

Sloughing off those dead skin cells is the quickest way to boost radiance. To do so without irritation, use an oscillating brush, like Clarisonic Mia 2 Sonic Cleansing System, with a mild scrub twice a week. And once a week, apply a clay mask, like Revision Black Mask, to absorb impurities.

Smooth

At-home peels can help you achieve a silkier finish. Use a peel, like Neostrata Skin Active Perfecting Peel, one a week at night–it’s an at home treatment with glycolic acid to smooth the skin’s texture and even out tone.

Hydrate

Dry and chalky does not make for a great nude look. What you’re after is “lush” skin, and to get it you have to seal in moisture. After cleansing, use a generous layer of hyaluronic acid, found in products like SkinCeuticals Hydrating B5 Gel, to attract water molecules to the skin. Follow with a drop of facial treatment oil, like Trilogy Rosehip Oil.

How do you prep your skin before makeup?

How Your Phone is Messing with Your Skin

By Skinmedix on June 14, 2013 in anti-aging, beauty

You feel like completely lost without it, but your lifeline to your friends, family, and work could be wreaking havoc on your skin.

Habit: Squinting your eyes to read the small type on your screen.

Problem: Crow’s feet and 11 lines (the vertical frown line between the brows), which normally don’t show up until your 30s or 40s, are showing up more and more on people in their 20s.

Quick Fix: Increase your font size to “Grandma” (20pts or bigger), and up your screen’s brightness. Look for products with argireline to temporarily freeze muscle movements. Some studies show up to a 60% reduction in wrinkle depth in one month of use.

We recommend:

Kinerase C8 Peptide Deep Wrinkle Treatment
PCA Skin ExLinea Peptide Smoothing Serum
GloTherapeutics Super Serum

Habit: Constantly looking down to check texts, emails, Facebook, etc.

Problem: It’s called text-neck—a slack, untoned neck and jawline caused by a breakdown in collagen and elastin. These tiny fibers only have an infinite number of times they can fold. The constant up-and-down movement weakens this support structure.

Quick Fix: Hold your phone eye level to minimize folding at the neck. Apply a skin-firming, peptide-rich cream on your jawline and down your neck. According to a study in Molecular Pharmaceutics, products containing high levels of Matrixyl can nearly double collagen production.

We recommend:

Neostrata Firming Collagen Booster
Exuviance Collagen Triple Boost Serum
GloTherapeutics gloPeptide plus Defense

Habit: Talking long enough that your phone gets hot against your face.

Problem: Prolonged exposure to heat from any source can increase melanin production in that area—and if brown spots and an uneven tone weren’t bad enough, research shows they can make you look up to 10 years older!

Quick fix: Use a handsfree headset or speakerphone. A brightening cream, with ingredients like licorice, can help fade unwanted spots.

We recommend:

Vivite Vibrance Therapy
DermaQuest Retinol Youth Brightening Serum
SkinMedica LYTERA Skin Brightening Complex

Habit: Pressing your face against your phone. (See those oil and makeup streaks on your screen?)

Problem: The touch-screen trend has caused a rise in acne in the “phone zone”—temples, cheeks, and chin. The dirt and bacteria that live on your screen are transferred to your skin when you talk on the phone which may lead to breakouts.

Quick fix: Clean your phone daily with an anti-bacterial wipe. Use a benzoyl peroxide lotion or glycolic acid face pads to keep your pores clear.

We recommend:

Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Glow Pad
Glycolix Elite Treatment Pads 15 Percent
DDF Benzoyl Peroxide Gel 5%
PCA Skin Acne Cream

Are you guilty of any of these bad habits?

Should You Use a Facial Toner?

By Skinmedix on June 3, 2013 in anti-aging, beauty

Due to outdated information and misperceptions, toners have become a confusing category of skin-care products that many fashion magazines and cosmetic salespeople advise against using, or simply dismiss toners as an optional step. However, a well-formulated toner can provide truly amazing benefits for your skin.

Toners are meant to be used after cleansing. They once were recommended as a way to restore skin’s pH balance after using a bar soap or bar cleanser because those types of cleansers raise the skin’s natural pH to a level that isn’t good for your skin. However, with today’s gentle, water-soluble cleansers, the skin’s pH doesn’t change appreciably, and the fact that skin’s pH recovers just fine on its own made the need for toners to adjust skin’s pH fade away.

What we now know is that after cleansing, what your skin needs is a range of ingredients that restore and repair its surface. Skin can never get too much of these important ingredients, which include antioxidants and skin-repairing substances such as glycerin, fatty acids, and ceramides. The right toner can give your skin a healthy dose of what it needs to look younger, fresher, and smoother, right after cleansing and throughout the day.

If the toner is well formulated, we recommend that you make toner an essential part of your cleansing routine because the benefits can be felt and seen almost instantly. Below is a list of some of our favorite toners for various skin types available at SkinMedix!

Toners for Oily or Blemish-Prone Skin:

SkinMedica Purifying Toner
Dermalogica Clean Start All Over Clear
Murad Clarifying Toner
Glytone Acne Cleansing Toner

Toners for Dry or Sensitive Skin:

Wilma Schumann Soothing Toner
Dermalogica Multi Active Toner
Obagi Nu-Derm Toner
DDF Aloe Toning Complex

Toners for Combination Skin:

SkinCeuticals Equalizing Toner
Neova Balancing Toner
Exuviance Moisture Balance Toner
PCA Skin Nutrient Toner

If the toner you’re considering is filled with great ingredients (like those in the list above), then skipping this step is cheating your skin of more of the beneficial ingredients it needs to become healthier and act younger. A toner that contains state-of-the-art ingredients proven to smooth, soften, calm, and repair skin is a wonderful addition to anyone’s skin-care routine!

Do you use a toner as part of your skin care regimen?

5 Tips for a Firmer, Younger-Looking Neck and Chest

By Skinmedix on May 16, 2013 in anti-aging, beauty

We see so much anti aging advice for our face. But what about the other parts, like our neck and chest? These areas are often on display too, and if we don’t take good care of them, they can give away our age. Keep reading for tips on how to keep your neck and chest firmer and looking younger!

1. Extend down.

Whether it’s with your Clarisonic Aria Sonic Skin Cleansing Brush or a glycolic acid, extended your daily exfoliant all the way down to the top of your chest. Sloughing away the dead-skin layer allows active ingredients to absorb faster.

2. Up the ante.

The skin on the neck and chest is thin, so sun damage is more apparent and harder to repair. Both the neck and chest require stronger formulations to reverse aging. Dedicated neck creams are more concentrated and powerful than most face creams, but some facial formulas with retinol, such as Murad Time Release Retinol Concentrate for Deep Wrinkles, can be used on the neck and chest, too.

3. Bring in the peptides.

Some of the best ingredients for treating damage below the jawline is tetrapeptides, like the ones in StriVectin-TL Tightening Neck Cream. There’s plenty of science to show they help make new collagen and elastic tissue, which is what the neck and chest need to look firmer and younger.

4. Stengthen the skin barrier.

Niacin is a B vitamin that, until recently, we could not get through the skin barrier. Now a new delivery system, in the NIA24 andStrivectin-TL lines, means it can penetrate the epidermis and strengthen the skin barrier. Try NIA24 Sun Damage Repair for Decolletage and Hands to dramatically improve the texture and tone of the neck and décolletage!

5. Watch your wardrobe.

When you treat skin below the jawline with anti-aging ingredients, consider the fabrics you wear. Anything scratchy, like wool, can cause irritation.

Is treating your neck and chest already part of your skin care regimen?

Say it isn’t so! LiLash No Longer Available after May 2013

By on May 10, 2013 in beauty, Beauty News

bloglilash2
Sadly, Cosmetic Alchemy LLC, the makers of LiLash and LiBrow, will no longer distribute their products within the United States as of May 13, 2013. Resellers, including SkinMedix, will be unable to place orders with Cosmetic Alchemy after that date and thereafter SkinMedix will be limited to supplies on hand. Click here to stock up on your favorite lash conditioner while supplies last!

3 Things to Know About Antioxidants

By Skinmedix on April 10, 2013 in anti-aging, beauty

3 Things to Know About Antioxidants 1. Not Every Vitamin is an Antioxidant

And not every antioxidant is a vitamin. Some vitamins are anti-oxidants, however. Vitamin D, for example, has little to no antioxidant capacity. It cannot neutralize a free radical. Vitamin E, on the other hand, is a potent free radical scavenger (anti-oxidant) and a necessary vitamin. Look for products with high potent antioxidants like vitamin C, Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA), and Glutathione.

2. Let Your Skin Feast

For the best protection, wear a formula with several antioxidants. Studies show they work together, becoming more powerful when they’re combined than when they are alone. For example, vitamin C is more potent than green tea extract and grapeseed extract, but none of them alone, can do near what they can do together in terms of fighting off free radicals and keeping oxidative stress to a minimum.

3. Be Quick

Wearing a sunscreen or moisturizer with antioxidants is fine, but serums penetrate faster than creams when applied to bare skin. The strongest concentrations are usually the most stable, so look for one in a dark or opaque bottle. A change in color, smell, or texture of the product can mean the antioxidants have oxidized. Make sure the lid is tightly closed on these types of products, and store them in a cool, dark place to minimize the oxidation process.

Antioxidants We Love:

1. Glytone Antioxidant Anti Aging Facial Serum
2. PCA Skin C-Quench Antioxidant Serum
3. SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic
4. NeoStrata Antioxidant Defense Serum

5. PRESCRIBEDsolutions Line Subtractor Anti-Aging Serum C + AHA (add a Booster for even more fighting power!: PRESCRIBEDsolutions Booster 4 – Anti-Oxidant)

Have you tried any antioxidants from our list? What’s your favorite?

Allure’s Beauty Bucket List

By Skinmedix on March 27, 2013 in beauty, Beauty News

Allur'e Beauty Bucket List Allure Magazine shares their list of “50 Beauty Products to Buy Before You Die”, and 2 SkinMedix favorites made the cut!

Clarisonic Sonic Cleasning System
It was Oprah who really launched this oscillating facial cleanser into popularity. “It’s a miracle massage for your face!” she said. Everyone in the audience got one—and Lady Gaga, Demi Moore, and Justin Timberlake followed suit. The brush uses a patented sonic frequency of more than 300 movements per second to clean, soften and smooth your skin. In just 60 seconds a day, it removes six times as much makeup and dirt as your hands alone, which not only clears pores but also makes skin-care products more effective. It cleanses so well that pores appear smaller, fine lines and wrinkles appear reduced, and your skin’s tone and texture improves. Just one minute a day, for the best skin of your life.

Find a Clarisonic right for you:
Clarisonic Pro Face and Body Spot Therapy Kit with Extension HandleClarisonic Aria Sonic Skin Cleansing BrushClarisonic Mia 2 Sonic Cleansing SystemClarisonic Mia Skin Care SystemDr. Dennis Gross Skincare Alpha Beta Glow Pad
When New York City–based dermatologist Dr. Dennis Gross came out with a facial self-tanner that hydrated skin, reduced wrinkles, and shrank breakouts, we only had one question: Can we get one for our whole body? You bet. And he even threw some vitamin D into the formula as well, just in case you were tempted to spend any time in the sun. Glow Pad transforms dull texture and tone into radiant, glowing skin better than MotherNature herself! Shop Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Glow Pads here.

What SkinMedix products are on your beauty bucket list?

Your Skin…Just Much Better

By Skinmedix on March 7, 2013 in anti-aging, beauty, Tips, Uncategorized

Call it the anti-aging essentials. Follow these wrinkle-fighting regimens and learn what to apply and when, for better looking skin.

1. Four nights a week – Build collagen

Vitamin A derivativies are still the “gold standard” for keeping your collagen stimulated. But since they can be irritating at first, it’s best to alternate your retinoid or retinol product with a gentler peptide cream. We recommend Pro+Therapy MD C8 Peptide Deep Wrinkle Treatment or Jan Marini Age Intervention Peptide Extreme. Some peptides, like those used in PCA Skin ExLinea Peptide Smoothing Serum, also help plump up your skin.

2. Three nights a week – Turn over those cells

To prevent wrinkles, as well as dull skin tone and uneven texture, use an alpha-hydroxy acid (AHA) cream, like PRIORI Advanced AHA Skin Renewal Cream, every other night. As you do with retinoids, apply after cleansing.

3. Every morning – Fight free radicals

After your cleanser and moisturizer but before that all-important SPF come antioxidants. Their mission: protecting your skin’s DNS from rogue molecules brought on by sun and smog that line and dull your skin. We recommend NeoStrata Antioxidant Defense Serum or DermaQuest Daily Antioxidant Serum–or for an easy all-in-one, try Topix Replenix Antioxidant Sunscreen Moisturizer SPF 50+.

…Between Treatments – Work in a night cream

As they fight lines, collagen builders and cell-turnover agaents can irritate and dry out your skin. If necessary take a night off and apply an anti-inflammatory cream with coffeeberry, like Revaleskin Intense Recovery Treatment.