Sunday, December 30, 2012

Be Kind to your (aging...) skin!

I am grateful my skin has been changing over the years.
From puberty's pimples to an oily adulthood, passing through 2 pregnancies, breastfeeding years, stress, happiness, awful eating habits in College, wonderful eating habits packed with exercise, facials and TONS of medicated and non-medicated cosmetics, healthy sun bathing and terrible sun burning, good make-up and cheap make-up - my skin has been through it all over my almost 35 years.

Today I want to talk about an awesome skin line: Dermalogica

This privately owned company is headquartered in Carson, California and has offices spread around the world, in dozens of countries. All products are made in the USA.
I first explored Dermalogica a bit when my Mom, in her mid-60s, purchased a starter-kit at Ulta about a year and a half ago. My Mom's very dry and aging skin did not react very well to it, however, as my Mom was used to a much richer consistency. I do not remember which starter-kit she purchased.

About 2 weeks ago, I went to Ulta looking for a skin-brightening solution. My skin started showing some serious sun damage. I love freckles, don't get me wrong, but those are sun spots from toasting in the sun throughout the years before I understood the great importance of a good  sunscreen!
I browsed around, left and went back a few days later. I wanted to research online before settling on anything and spending a bit more than usual. Good skin care IS more expensive. Do NOT believe in cheap miracles. Really. You WANT to put good stuff on your skin! It's your skin! Be kind to it! The quality of the ingredients, the place from where and the way natural ingredients were acquired, the packaging, the care, the storage, the Chemists, the team, the research (hopefully NOT involving animal testing!!!), oh my goodness, all this COSTS. The more you eliminate from the large equation, and the more you mass produce and the less care you put into the cosmetics, the cheaper it will get. I want good stuff for my skin.It deserves it! Please note, I don't splurge on cosmetics all the time. I go to Walgreens and CVS all the time. There are some things, though, that I believe are worth the big bucks.

I fell in love with Dermalogica's mission, which puts strong emphasis on Education and Innovation, offering us products free of common skin irritants, free of animal testing, free of fragrance and artificial colors, mineral oils, alcohol etc). To the company, skin care is a health issue, not just a cosmetic problem. The focus is not on selling us their products through pretty packaging and catchy names. They are straight-forward as can be. You know what you're getting and what I've gotten for my skin is MARVELLOUS.

I just recently started using the Clarisonic Mia 2 Skin Cleaning System. I feel the skin cleaner and more fully and efficiently absorbing the products I use.
This is what I bought from Dermalogica and rave about:


C-12 Concentrate: A strong brightening treatment I use during the day. I apply sunscreen afterwards, without a doubt. I learned my lesson! I have an oily T-zone, but the smooth, silky texture is just perfect for my skin. It's very light!


Overnight Repair Serum: Even oily skin needs to stay moisturized. Don't think that by drying it out you'll keep the oil away. Our skin needs a natural barrier against indoor and outdoor exposure. I love this serum. It makes me feel I'm truly nourishing my skin with so much goodness. It's greasy, but don't be fooled: It's good stuff from Argan and Rose oils, which, by the way, smell oh-so-good! I have tried the serum by itself and have mixed it in with my night moisturizer. In the morning, my skin feels soft, looks bright, looks rested and stress-free. This serum is a serum that helps your skin cope with aging. Everyday our skin ages. It doesn't matter if we are 25, 30, 40 or 50. Skin is still aging.

Be kind to it.





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