A few weeks ago I mentioned that I've been using (and spending time down the rabbit hole with!!) a new brand of skincare that really has my attention; OneSkin . I'll share something here - I cannot remember ever evaluating a skincare brand that had more research and substantiation behind it. Ever. In fact, with OneSkin I would say that, as exciting as it is for me to talk about the product itself (actually more than one product - as I'll get to in a few minutes) this is a c

I’m so happy to share my latest routine to look after my skin. I’ll soon be 48 years old, and I’m even more committed than ever to spend the time on myself (skincare and other care) to make sure I’m the best me I can be. Of course, I LOVE skincare, so some of you might find my routine a bit ‘extra’ (it is 😉). I hope some of you will be ‘extra’ along with me, but don’t feel obliged! But really all that’s needed as building blocks for a solid evening regime are a few simple

Essential to everyone's skincare routine are the following five components: 1.Cleanser 2.Retinoid 3.Vitamin C 4.Moisturizer 5.Sunscreen I order these components this way: PM Cleanse, retinoid, moisturizer OR cleanse, moisturizer, retinoid. AM Cleanse (or don't, this depends on preferences), vitamin C, moisturizer, sunscreen. This simple routine can help with skin tone, collagen production, pigmentation, fine lines and texture. If you feel that you have a skin condition that

Vitamin C is an antioxidant that protects skin cells from the damaging free radicals caused by UV exposure. Vitamin C is also a pigment inhibitor helping to lighten hyperpigmentation (brown spots), even out skin tone, and give serious luminosity to the skin

SPF! Every year I learn more and more about sun protection and this year is no exception. In this post I hope to educate you on what to look for in a sunscreen. I'll keep it short and sweet! I'll be doing an Amazon live all about sun protection later today but I wanted to share this here first in case you can't make it. PHYSICAL OR MINERAL First of all determine if you have a preference between physical (mineral) and chemical sunscreens. The difference is the sun filters an

If you have it, you likely know it. You might get flushing of the cheeks when you have a glass of wine, go out into the cold (or heat!) or eat spicy food. Perhaps you’ve seen little liquid filled ‘pustules’ around the nose and cheeks that you initially thought were pimples - only to observe that they didn’t disappear after a week or so as a blemish might. I don't have rosacea myself, but I have several friends who do. And there's a good chance you or someone you know struggle

There are thousands of skincare products on the market - literally thousands. Amazon and companies like Wish and YesStyle have given us access to products from all over the world - skincare we wouldn't have dreamed of trying even ten years ago. My (happy) job is to determine which of those are worth your time. I always start with the 'ingredient deck' - what's on the back of the tube/bottle/box says a lot more about what's inside than the promises in the companies' marketing.

*Please note: the thumbnail pic for this blog and corresponding video was made black and white and with contrast to show the pigment irregularities (much like a woods lamp would). Up until recently, the most effective at-home ‘toolkit’ to clear hyperpigmentation involved a combination of hydroquinone and tretinoin - both in strengths available only with a prescription. I know from personal experience in treating both clients and my own melasma that the Obagi Nuderm works.

I'm a sucker for cool packaging. Whether it's a Tiffany Blue box, the muted packaging on a Jo Malone candle, or a screaming yellow...

Retinol, Retinaldehyde, Tret and Retin-A, oh my!! Making sense of Retinoids. If you’re on the anti-aging path, you’ve surely heard of the miracle of retinoids. The term ‘retinol’ has enjoyed a meteoric climb in the realm of internet searches. In fact, there has never been so much interest in retinol as there is today with Google searches up 400% in the past five years(!!!) I credit this to the massive increase in products that include some form of this miraculous Vitamin A de

A few years ago I tested a silicone patch designed for the eye area. I tried the patch for one night. With high hopes, I awoke in the morning to peel away the Sio patch and found that my under eye was a little pink and very puffy. I thought 'hmm, not what I'd hoped for', tossed the rest back in the drawer, and made an 'it was too good to be true' mental note about the promises of silicone patches. Well, two years later I decided to give the Sio patches (along with several

Have you noticed that as we get older it can appear that our eyes get smaller as our face seems to get bigger? Well, you aren’t just seeing things (no pun intended LOL)! It's a sad fact: as we age, our brow starts to drop, eyelids sag, and many of us develop dark circles and puffiness. Combine all that with less eyebrow hair and shorter, lighter eyelashes, and our eyes do indeed appear to be shrinking!! I've seen first-hand that when we address these key elements we can hav

You may have heard the term “double cleanse” and thought that it sounded like an exercise in extravagance; designed for those who spend hours on skincare every night. There’s no arguing that cleansing twice takes twice the time, perhaps adding another minute or two on to your evening ritual. But I’m here to make the case that this practice isn’t in any way indulgent and, in fact, why I firmly believe that double cleansing before bed is a necessity in modern life. In my mind,

You'll often hear people talking about skincare 'actives' when they talk about things like retinoids, Vitamin C and AHAs. But what ...

Here we are in the last days of summer 2020 and if your skin is anything like mine, it’s feeling a bit parched. You might be thinking that sun exposure is the main reason our skin gets dry in the summer - and that sunscreen should provide all the protection we need. In fact, it’s more complex than that. Points to you if you’ve been judicious about slathering on SPF all summer. As we know, sunscreen protects the skin from UV damage. Interestingly, recent studies have concluded