Holistic Skin Care

Writing a post about taking a more holistic approach to skin care is really daunting! Most of these points deserve a whole book's worth of explanation, but I'll try to consolidate a few tips, and explore them further in later posts. The important thing is to expand the way you think about acne and inflammation, and realize that your skin may be trying to tell you that something else in your body is out of whack.

Acne, and I mean inflamed or cystic acne, is often a result of your body trying to let out toxins. (Not always, but often). Sometimes this is because of poor digestion, or an overworked liver or kidneys. If you're feeling good and staying healthy, your skin should be looking good, too. But it also could mean you're stressed out. Your skin can be remarkably sensitive to stress, whether it's from something obvious like a demanding job, or an underlying stressor like low self-esteem.

I don't pretend to know everything about getting rid of acne*, but I want to list a few things that can help. And sidenote, I'm still all for well-formulated skin care products to help tackle acne while you're working on the getting healthy part, but please be gentle! And, of course, remember that everyone's skin is different, so everyone's acne and acne solution will be different.

The List:

January Rising

Have you heard of OCC Lip Tars?  They're these amazing magical concoctions that work as some kind of liquid lipstick.  You need the tiniest little bead of product to get a super saturated color on your lips that's supposed to last for hours.  You can watch a demo here on how to apply it (and a warning, they're not lipglosses so do not apply as one!).

Photo by Stella Rose Saint Clair. From the Indiegogo page

Ok, so that's pretty cool right?  Well it gets cooler.  One of their employees, January Hunt, is fundraising to have gender reassignment surgery, and OCC (along with January) have created a lip tar specifically for this cause!  The color, a hot pink designed by January herself, is limited edition and will only be sold through this fundraiser.  For a donation of $25 you get a limited edition lip tar and get to contribute to a great cause, 100% of the money goes to January.

This is the Indiegogo page where you can donate. There's 13 days left in the fundraiser and she's almost to her goal, let's help her get there.  Head on over to read more about January, and hopefully get yourself a lip tar (I already did!).  If you can't donate the $25, you can always go lower as any little bit counts.

Changing It Up

My biggest insecurity right now is the skin on my face.  I can’t leave the house without a cake face on.  It doesn’t matter if I look fake, orange, or powdery, I prefer that look over people being able to see my acne and scars.  I have decently "clear" skin right now in regards to acne, I mostly just have white heads.  My cystic mountains have almost disappeared but have left behind hyperpigmentation all over my cheeks and jawline.  I have redness and dark spots and just overall really unhealthy looking skin. If I look at the chart from Friday, my problem areas are my liver, stomach, and large intestine. Which means I HAVE to clean up my system.

I have been talking about bettering my lifestyle for awhile now but just can’t bring myself to do it.  My number one excuse is “I don’t have time”.  I think it’s time I find the time.

Beauty From The Inside Out

Image from rawforbeauty.com

This chart is really cool, and a good reminder that what goes on in the rest of your body affects your skin. Everything in your body is interconnected. What you put into it, and how you take care of yourself, will show up on your face.

While it's fun talking about different skin care and makeup (really, really fun), and important to find safe products that won't break out or irritate your skin, there's only so much you can take care of on the surface. The real work has to be done from the inside out. The best thing you can do for your skin is to lead a healthy lifestyle. You know the deal: eat well (meaning whole, nutritious foods), drink lots of water, get enough sleep, exercise regularly, get some fresh air and sunshine, and minimize stress. Sounds easy, right? Just remember--baby steps.

But, we do want to start addressing the diet and lifestyle component to having healthy skin on Those Pore Girls, because what you put on your body is not nearly as important as what you put in it. And to those of you struggling with cystic acne: these are the kinds of things you have to work on, not your skin care routine. Even if you have acne as a result of hormonal imbalances, those can also be sorted out through eating right and taking care of yourself. Often, people get acne because of allergies and reactions to food (especially dairy and gluten). Everything is interconnected! Food for thought.

By the way, if you want to get started on reading about all of this stuff, we highly recommend checking out The Love Vitamin. Tracy's blog is amazing, thorough, and inspiring. You can read all about her journey to healing her skin through making changes to her diet and lifestyle, and get some seriously awesome tips for yourself, too. (You guys, she doesn't even have to wash her face anymore!) Otherwise, stay tuned.

Drugstore Bronzer and Contour

I was having the hardest time finding the right bronzer for my skin tone. I needed something that would look natural and give me a healthy glow. Except I had no idea what color would work for me! Especially since most bronzers seem to be suited for lighter skin tones. But, I tried out a few things from the drugstore, and I’ve found at least a couple bronzers and contours so far that I think would work well for other girls around my color.

But first a few tips on bronzer and contour:

• When picking an overall bronzer, look for something 2 to 3 shades darker than your skin tone, and warmer than your skin tone. You want something similar to how you would naturally tan.
• For contours, go with something darker and cooler. You want the color to mimic the look of natural shadows on your face, and shadows don’t tend to be orange!
• Bronzer should go on the high points of your face, where you would naturally be kissed by the sun. This means cheekbones, temples, your nose, and chin. I tend to use it all over the perimeter of my face as well.
• Contours should go where you want to emphasize a shadow: under your cheekbones, under your jawline (my fave), the sides of your nose (if you want to slim it down), and the hairline (especially if you have a very high forehead).
• And super important, always remember to bronze all the exposed parts of your skin to match your face, like your neck and chest. Otherwise you’ll look pretty silly!
• No perfectly contoured and bronzed look is complete without a good highlighter, but we'll save that for another post.

And there are swatches for all these products at the end of the post. So let's get to it!

OBSESSED: Rosewater

Those of you who know me in person probably know I'm obsessed with rose-flavored and -scented products. Rose syrup, rosewater, rose tea, rose candles, rose ice cream...you name it! But, rosewater happens to be a wonderful addition to skin care products, and a great toner in its own right.

I use a rosewater toner once or twice a day after cleansing. It's the very gentlest of astringents, so it's perfect for sensitive skin. Rose is also known to be beneficial for mature skin. It's softening, soothing, and smells like heaven. You can see in the picture I also have a bottle of rosewater and glycerin, which is perfect if you have dry skin or live in a dry climate, since glycerin keeps some moisture in your skin. You can use it to refresh your face during the day if it's feeling dry, without messing up your makeup.

Packing Light

This past weekend I drove down to Rosarito for a quick two day trip (I was visiting my grandparents).  As I was frantically packing Saturday morning, I started stuffing makeup into a Hello Kitty cosmetic bag. I usually stuff 2 or 3 of these with brushes, eyeshadow, and lipsticks. This time I took a second to stop and think about it. How many lipsticks have I lost? How many buttery eyeshadows have crumbled beneath the pressure? So I dumped everything and started over.

TPG Approved: Friday Roundup

Happy International Women's Day! 

Here's a roundup of all the stuff TPG approves of this week. 



Into The Gloss | Anti-Aging In Your Twenties: Too Much Too Soon?

Image from Into The Gloss

Into the Gloss did a great piece this week on anti-aging products, and when you should start using them. They get into the dangers of using things like retinols for long periods of time--which apparently end up thinning out your skin a lot. Although ITG does tend to favor expensive products and skin care, you can still take away lots of things from the post, like always protect your face from the sun!

Avalon Organics Vitamin C Renewal Balancing Toner

Image found here.

A few months ago I had this weird urge to start trying out anti-aging products even though I don’t need them yet. I should probably take that as a sign that I’m reading too many beauty blogs. Anyway, I ended up giving most of the stuff away to my mom, but I kept this toner because I liked it a lot. I’m in my early 20s, so the most I really need to do is wear sunscreen regularly, but I this toner also helps with balancing the skin, and getting an even tone.

Some of you may be asking, “Do I need a toner? What do they actually do?” The answer is, for the most part, no. Toners were originally created to balance the pH of the skin after using a harsh soap on the face, back when actual soaps were used. Now that we have gentle, non-soap cleansers, there isn’t a huge need for them. But, a well-formulated toner can be a nice addition to your skin care routine, especially if it contains vitamins and antioxidants.

The Avalon Organics Vitamin C Renewal Balancing Toner works like this, according to the bottle,

American Cream

As you might have noticed by now, I’m a fan of Lush Cosmetics.  I usually stick to the skincare, but since I’m trying to repair my hair, I thought I would try some of those products.  When I bought the Fair Trade Honey shampoo (mentioned in my February favorites) I also bought the American Cream conditioner.  It’s a pretty well known conditioner among the Lushies*, and almost everyone raves about it.  I bought the small bottle because I didn’t want to shell out the $30 for the big bottle.  The 3oz bottle was $10, which is A LOT of money for 3oz of product when you have hair that falls more than halfway down your back. 

From Lush website

The description:

American Cream is our dreamy, medium-strength for soft, shiny and bouncy locks. Softening honey, scalp clarifying lavender and fresh oranges make a conditioner suitable for all hair types to soften rough ends and keep hair calm. Not to mention the absolutely delectable strawberry vanilla cream scent.

Angie's Faves- February Edition

So February is over, and we’re onto March.  Spring collections are out and lipsticks are getting brighter. Here is a list of items I enjoyed this past month. Let’s call them my February Favorites.

 

• Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage foundation- I reviewed this way back in our first TPG post.  I love it so much, I can’t go a day without it.