*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...

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...

I recently took a poll in my Facebook group asking about people’s biggest “gripes” when it comes to their skin/appearance. The number one concern, BY FAR, was sagging, specifically laxity in the lower face and losing definition along the jawline. Interestingly, Google searches for people wanting to learn more about their 'jawline' have increased markedly in the past five years, nearly tripling globally!! It's important to remember that jawline trends, like so many aesthetic

Hair loss is oftentimes only associated with middle-aged men. In fact, 85% of men will experience hair loss by age 50, many of whom begin to see shedding in their 20s. For women, it’s different. Many of us have memories of elderly female family members who used wigs or had distinctly thinning hair. While the average woman isn’t concerned with hair loss in her 20s, many women will experience some form of hair loss by the age of 40 (oftentimes related to thyroid, pregnancy, or

If you're like me, your skincare journey went like this: "I'll do ALL things possible to care for the skin on my face...bring it on!". Five years later: "wait, I have a neck? I need to take care of it?" Another couple years later, "are those WRINKLES on my chest?!" Like skin on our face, our body skin can either be nurtured or hindered by our habits and environment. Happily, as the skin on our body is generally thicker than the skin on our face it tends to age more slowly. Bu

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

On average, women experience a 30% collagen loss in the first five years after they hit menopause. Consider this: collagen loss at menopause

The number of devices available now for use at home is incredible, even overwhelming. What’s exciting is that the technology behind these at-home devices has roots in dermatologist's offices and aesthetic clinics. I’ve put together this post to share with you background on modalities, let you know which modality can benefit which skin concerns and to give you a set of tools to make the best decision for you. Of course, to make the most of the investment in time and money, I